Justify Yourself?

Day 7: Genesis 31–35; Job 37–42; Matthew 19–21

There is a lot of covenant making, covenant renewing, covenant keeping and breaking going on in these readings today.  But there is one verse that really helped me understand Job's grief stricken struggle with God.

Job 40:8   Would you really challenge My justice? Would you declare Me guilty to justify yourself?

To justify oneself is to try and clear one's name of any charge against that name of wrong-doing.  It is to maintain one's righteousness.  Job maintained that he was righteous, had kept God's commands without fail.  But his friends said that surely since Job was under such terrible suffering, it must be that he had angered God in some way by sin.  Certainly they felt his complaining to God was sinful.

Elihu, a young man who out of respect kept silent in respectful deference to the older men present, finally speaks out.  He says that men are never as righteous as God.  We are simply mere creatures of a grand creator we cannot possibly understand.  So how can we call God to account when we have no real sense of what is just and fair in every situation?  Elihu argues (Job 34:12b, 17a) "the Almighty does not pervert justice." and "Could one who hates justice govern the world?"  Ultimately we must trust the God who creates us and the world we live in, whether or not it meets our expectations.

Still God has called a people to be His own.  He promises Jacob protection and providing for him and his descendants. "Look, I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go (Gen 28:15a)."  Is this promise not also for us who listen to His calling and follow His direction?  But suffering comes all the same.

From our perspective God is not keeping His promise to protect and provide when we are harmed or fall on bad times. A soldier falls in battle.  A father weeps over a child who died from cancer.  We cry out in anguish like Job.  It is totally natural and understandable.  But in the end what can we do?  Shun God?  Sadly many of us do just that.  They would cry, "a man gains nothing when he becomes God's friend (Job 34:9)." They would "declare God guilty to justify themselves (Job 40:8b)."

Covenants are agreements between parties who belong to the agreed to rights and responsibilities of the arrangement.  Laban and Jacob covenant not to to harm one another.  It is sort of a peace treaty.  Abimelech covenants with Isaac for the same sort of arrangement.  When Abimelech's men fill in Isaac's well which he had covenanted with Abraham to not molest, he feigns ignorance and responsibility.  In doing so he tries to justify himself before the son of Abraham.  He asks Isaac to leave his region, but when news gets to Abimelech that the Lord God is blessing Isaac too as God did Abraham, he wants a peace treaty with Isaac, too.

God is no Abimelech.  He is no Laban or Jacob who uses trickery and deceit.  God is always just and fair, even when life causes suffering, God is working in the midst to redeem, heal and make new (Rom 8:28).  And how can we justify ourselves before God, a mere mortal?

Jesus, the son of the living God, was asked by a rich young ruler, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus responded, "Why do you call me good?  There is only one who is good!" Then Jesus told him to keep God's commands, but helped the man to see that he loved his wealth more than God.

None of us keep the commands faultlessly. None of us walk before God blamelessly. All sin and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23).  So how do we justify ourselves in the court of the King of the Universe? 

The good news I live by is that justification is a gift to those who receive the gift of eternal life through the love of God shown to us in the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Paul tells us "the wages of sin are death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ (Rom. 6:23)."


Thank you, Father for Your great mercy in Jesus Christ! I glady receive the gift of Life through faith in Him. Help me to live this eternal life each day and with every breath I draw by Your goodwill.  Amen.