"Then Job replied to the LORD: . . .

"Then Job replied to the LORD: . . .

'I take back everything I said,

And I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.'

After the LORD had finished speaking to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite:

'I am angry with you and your two friends, for you have not spoken accurately about me, as my servant Job has. So take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer on your behalf. I will not treat you as you deserve, for you have not spoken accurately about me, as my servant Job has.'

So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite did as the LORD commanded them, and the LORD accepted Job's prayer.

When Job prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his fortunes. In fact, the LORD gave him twice as much as before!"

 

God restored (and even doubled) Job's fortunes only after Job prayed for his friends. Perhaps that was the one thing Job needed to do to be fully healed and restored. He got right with God, but also needed to get over the bitterness toward his friends who failed him in his hour of need. Could it be that God will not prosper us until we're right in all our relationships? And could it be that when we pray for others and seek their good, it results in our own blessing?

Job 33:23–28

"But if an angel from heaven appears—
a special messenger to intercede for a person
and declare that he is upright—
he will be gracious and say,
'Rescue him from the grave,
for I have found a ransom for his life.'
Then his body will become as healthy as a child's,
firm and youthful again.
When he prays to God,
he will be accepted.
And God will receive him with joy
and restore him to good standing.
He will declare to his friends,
'I sinned and twisted the truth,
but it was not worth it.
God rescued me from the grave,
and now my life is filled with light.'"

 

This is a picture of the new covenant—what Jesus does for the believer. In Jesus, we have a "special messenger to intercede for a person." Jesus paid the ransom. God accepts us because Jesus declares us "upright." Our lives are full of light because of Jesus. Notice that God receives us with joy. Today, let this wonderful picture of Jesus' work—predicted centuries before it came to pass—sink into your heart and give you joy. Revel in God's own joy in you! And don't forget the last part—tell others what God has done for you!

Genesis 28:20–22

"Then Jacob made this vow: 'If God will indeed be with me and protect me on this journey, and if he will provide me with food and clothing, and if I return safely to my father's home, then the LORD will certainly be my God. And this memorial pillar I have set up will become a place for worshiping God, and I will present to God a tenth of everything he gives me.'"

 

Notice that giving a tithe is connected to worship. It is an acknowledgment that God is the source of everything we have. The tithe always seems to be an expression of true worship of God. Are you giving back at least a tenth of all God gives you, not as a legalistic rule, but as an expression of your gratitude and trust?