Job 38:2: “The Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: Who is this that darkens my counsel by words without knowledge? Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.”
The Lord comes suddenly in the book of Job. He comes from a whirlwind, a whirlwind we did not know about earlier. God appears out of nowhere.
God is answering Job’s prayer. Again and again, Job has called upon God to come before him and even to hear his case. Job is righteous. From the story of Abraham, we know that the servants of God are ultimately righteous through faith. So it is not through good works that Job is right before God, but through a belief that has worked itself out in faithful obedience in his life. We know he is upright because earlier in the text, the author tells us that he is righteous. Job’s life pleases God. Job knows that he does not deserve what he has received. God strikes him, but he has not sinned. Job cries out for the justice of God. God now shows his love through addressing Job.
Contrast the meeting between God and the suffering Job and the almighty God with a book like “The Shack.” In that book, the protagonist, who is also in deep suffering, meets with a Trinitarian God, who predominantly demonstrates empathy. Here God’s first concern is for justice; justice for Job and justice for God’s name. Job 38 does not picture a therapy session, but a courtroom, “Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.” When God comes to us, he reveals to us that he is a consuming fire. That is why God must appear to Job in a whirlwind. The whirlwind helps keep Job from the full effect of God’s awe-full glory.
As Elihu has demonstrated earlier, Job has not rightly honored God’s name. Job’s state is very understandable, but if we are to be challenged by this text, we must recognize that even this righteous man, who was the worst of victims, failed in honoring his creator.
Yet we should also note the honor God shows Job here. He, the mighty God, the one who scattered the stars throughout the heavens, has chosen to respond to the charges that Job has brought against him. God, who is so far beyond us, has made his presence known. The transcendent God has become immanent for the sake of his beloved servant.
His charge is direct, “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” Job has defended his righteousness, but he has not confessed the righteousness of God. God’s defense is simple. You do not understand me, and you cannot claim to discern my ways. Like Elihu, who spoke for God, God draws Job’s attention throughout this passage to his work in creation, which is beyond Job’s mind, and much which is beyond our understanding today as well.
God is our Creator. We are not only comforted by his love, but also by his power. He is the God who destroys the enemies of his people. He hates the sin that remains within us, and he hates the lies and philosophies of this world that deceive so many. Further, that so often have purchase in our minds and hearts as well. He is the God who continues to come and shake the earth with his almighty power.
How can we face a God like that? Job wonders about that earlier in the book. Job 9:33, “There is no arbiter between us, someone to lay a hand on us both.” Job knows that God is almighty and holy. He is afraid, yet his desire to be declared innocent is overwhelming, so he cries out that God may come and judge him. In Job 38, we see the grace of God in answering Job’s charge.
We have more than Job. We may approach God in Jesus Christ, and we can face the consuming fire of God in the flesh of Jesus Christ. Hebrews tells us, “his flesh is the veil” between God and us. We do so with the same fear as Job, but we may do so with the highest confidence because we do have a mediator. Jesus Christ is the answer to why God is willing to dispute with Job over God’s righteous acts.