13 “He has removed my brothers far from me,
And my acquaintances are completely estranged from me.
14 “My relatives have failed,
And my intimate friends have forgotten me.
15 “Those who live in my house and my maids consider me a stranger.
I am a foreigner in their sight.
16 “I call to my servant, but he does not answer;
I have to implore him with my mouth.
17 “My breath is [d]offensive to my wife,
And I am loathsome to my own brothers.
18 “Even young children despise me;
I rise up and they speak against me.
19 “All [e]my associates abhor me,
And those I love have turned against me.
20 “My bone clings to my skin and my flesh,
And I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.
21 “Pity me, pity me, O you my friends,
For the hand of God has struck me.
22 “Why do you persecute me as God does,
And are not satisfied with my flesh?Job Says, “My Redeemer Lives”
23 “Oh that my words were written!
Oh that they were inscribed in a book!
24 “That with an iron stylus and lead
They were engraved in the rock forever!
25 “As for me, I know that my [f]Redeemer lives,
And [g]at the last He will take His stand on the [h]earth.
26 “Even after my skin [i]is destroyed,
Yet from my flesh I shall see God;
27 Whom I [j]myself shall behold,
And whom my eyes will see and not another.
My [k]heart faints [l]within me!
28 “If you say, ‘How shall we persecute him?’
And ‘[m]What pretext for a case against him can we find?’
29 “Then be afraid of the sword for yourselves,
For wrath brings the punishment of the sword,
So that you may know there is judgment.”
We left Job in a pretty miserable state, and at first it seems that train of thought is continuing. But Job is still working things out, and what he’s really building up to is that he is has confidence that God will remember him in the end. Job is not happy about the way things are, he doesn’t really understand why it seems God is still set against him, but he still puts his trust in God to the end.
He ends with a warning for his friends, to be careful what they say. For they’ve been accusing him of harboring sin and wrongdoing, and have misrepresented God, and one day they will be judged for that. We all need to be careful of what we say, even if we’re so sure we are right, we need to allow God’s wisdom to speak through us and not get carried away with our own understanding like Job’s friends.
Ultimately, our hope is in God. No matter how dark things seem, and regardless of whether we can make sense of what is happening to us or those around us, He is our everlasting hope. God does not change, but he is faithful. As Paul told the church at Philippi, “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Hold on to Him, especially in the storms, and you will not be cast aside, but will be carried through by the One who loves you more than life itself.