In the ancient area of ??Uz, there lived a righteous man named Job who was upright and honest, believed in God, shunned evil, and was willing to do good. This man had everything going well in life. He had seven sons and three daughters, 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 pairs of bulls, 500 female donkeys, and a large number of servants at home. He was a rich and blessed man envied by the local people.
The younger generation is filial to the Master, and the children are also friendly and harmonious with each other. They often set up wine and banquets, invite each other, and get together happily. One day, Job's eldest son held a banquet to entertain his brothers and sisters, and the children all went to the banquet happily.
On this day, God convened a gathering of angels in heaven, and Satan (the devil) also mixed in to worship God. When God saw it, he asked: "Where are you from?"
Satan replied: "I have just returned from the earth."
Then God said: "Have you seen my servant Job? He was the best man in the world. He worshiped me and acted justly. He never disobeys God's orders and commits evil crimes."
Satan smiled sinisterly and said, "What does this mean? His family is prosperous, his life is prosperous, and he lives a happy life. It is all God's gift. , It’s not surprising that he worships you.” Then he provoked: “If God destroyed everything he has, would he still treat you so piously?”
God listened, Feeling that it was reasonable, he agreed with Satan to test Job at will, but was not allowed to harm his life. Satan readily accepted the command and began to test Job.
Job, who was enjoying happiness in heaven and earth, never imagined that he, a man with great blessings in heaven, would instantly fall into the abyss of pain, and tragedies in his family kept appearing:
Someone He came to report: "The oxen were plowing the fields and the donkeys were grazing on the edge of the fields. Suddenly, a group of Sheba people came and captured the livestock and killed the servants who were plowing the fields. I was the only one who escaped to report the news to you!"< /p>
Before the visitor finished speaking, another person came to report: "In the pasture where the sheep were grazing, fire suddenly fell from the sky and burned all the sheep and the shepherd boy to death. I was the only one who escaped and went to You report!"
Before the visitor finished speaking, someone else came to report: "The camels were resting in the pasture, and suddenly three groups of Chaldeans came in, took away the camels, and killed them. The shepherd who was looking after the camels, I am the only one who escaped to report to you!"
Before the visitor finished speaking, someone else reported: "Your eldest son was drinking and eating with your children, and suddenly he got scratched! A strong wind came and broke the pillars in the house, and the house collapsed, killing them all. Only I escaped to report to you!"
One after another, bad news hit Job's heart. Faced with one after another natural and man-made disasters, he stood up, tore his clothes, pulled out his hair, fell down on the ground, worshiped God, and prayed: "I came to this world naked, and I will die." I will return naked; it was God who gave and God who took away; I have been pure and upright throughout my life and have never done any evil or sin. Now that I have suffered this misfortune, I will still praise God and thank my Lord for His grace!”
After hearing this, God felt that Job was really honest and did not complain even after suffering such a big blow and grievance. He was very satisfied and turned around to blame Satan. However, Satan said disapprovingly: "This is just a small injury. There is nothing to regret about the things outside the body. Everything can start again. If you let him break his muscles and bones, it will be very different. By then , will he still worship you like this without betraying your God?”
God felt that a guy like Satan would not bow his head and admit defeat without breaking his head and bleeding, so he allowed him again. Test Job, but warn Satan that his flesh and blood can suffer, but his life is not allowed. Satan withdrew from God and sought to torture Job.
This time he directly brought disaster to Job's body, causing Job's healthy body to suddenly be covered with sores from head to toe. Job was in so much pain that he had to sit in the ashes and scrape his body with tiles to relieve the pain. When his wife saw this, she couldn't help but cursed the unfairness of heaven, and advised her husband not to believe in God anymore, but rather to abandon the Lord and die happily, so as not to suffer the consequences alive. Job heard this and accused his wife of being stupid and ignorant, but he still believed in God.
Job had three good friends who were close friends in life and death. When they heard that Job had suffered this disaster, they quickly came to visit him. When they saw Job's miserable state of being covered with pustules and waking up in and out of consciousness, they couldn't help but burst into tears. They tore their robes, threw dust on their bodies, and sat quietly with him for seven days and seven nights without saying a word.
When Job woke up from his coma, he told his three friends Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar about his misfortune. I was cursed that day! Because it did not close the door of my pregnancy, it caused me to suffer so much when I was born. I wish I had died in my mother's womb, never breathing or seeing the light. That way I can sleep peacefully and get rest." He sighed and lamented: "Everything I fear has happened to me. I am not indolent, but I have suffered all kinds of hardships; I hope for happiness, but what comes is disaster; what I look forward to is disaster. It was light, but darkness came. I was troubled and troubled one after another. My music turned into sad songs, and my flute music turned into crying!"
The three friends listened to him. These words took turns to enlighten him.
Eliphaz reminded him: In the past, when you saw others suffering, you always comforted them with kind words and helped others with actions, helping others overcome their weaknesses and tide over the difficulties. Now, don’t lose your mind because you are suffering from disaster. Believe that God will not do unjust things. As long as you have faith in God, everything will be fine in the future. Job believed that he had been righteous and innocent all his life, and he did not know what mistakes he had made to suffer such a catastrophe.
Bildad showed great righteousness: God is just and impartial, and your suffering is not due to your own fault, but perhaps because of the sins of your children. If you have always been upright and pious, you should stick to it. God will never abandon a good person. Job believed that he had never made any mistakes. He had always been very strict with his children and they had not committed any deviant behavior. So call God to bear witness or point out the fact of their crime. "If God knows that I am sinless and does not save me, I hope God will let me die happily!"
Zophar scolded Job: You should be ashamed of yourself for boasting about your righteousness. If you are punished, you must be guilty. If you keep your heart at peace, you should repent to God and get rid of your sins. God will not abandon you. Job realized that these disasters were sent by God. He said: The arrows of God have hit me. These poisonous arrows have pierced my heart. All the fears he has arranged come to attack me one after another.
The three friends have the same view: God is great, so God’s reward for good and punishment for evil is just. Since God is so just, then Job’s punishment must be Everything happens for a reason and it is a sin. Therefore, to avoid punishment, Job must confess his sin to God and repent.
Job could not accept the views of his friends. If he did not agree that he must be guilty if he was punished, he tried his best to defend his innocence. He said: "Look, have I lied in front of you? Please be fair! Don't accuse me for no reason, because I am completely upright. Am I indifferent to evil? Can I not distinguish evil from evil?" He also retorted to his friends in a sarcastic tone: What a help you have given me! What a salvation you have given me! How wise are your words! You guys really enlightened me! I'm really sorry you guys came up with such a brilliant insight! He insists that he is righteous and his punishment is incomprehensible.
The four of them had their own opinions and argued endlessly. At this time, a young man passed by. His name was Elihu. He listened to the debate between the four of them and also participated in expressing his own opinion. He believed that Job's own justification was wrong, and the advice of the three friends was also wrong. He stated his opinion: "God punishes people not because of their own evil deeds, but to test the authenticity of righteous people, to encourage truly righteous people to persist in doing good deeds, to strengthen their determination to do good, to better accumulate virtue, and to save people." His life." He also said: "It is impossible for the world, including wise and righteous people, to fully understand the infinite mysteries and mysterious intentions of God." Therefore, he advised Job to trust God wholeheartedly and glorify God.
After hearing this, Job suddenly felt refreshed. He was deeply disturbed that he had complained and said too much, and begged God for forgiveness. At this time, a whirlwind came, and God appeared in the whirlwind. He was condescending. He questioned Job about the wonders of creation:
"Who has obscured my will with ignorant words? Get ready for battle." Well, now I want to ask you a question, you must answer me... Does the rain have a father? Who gave birth to the dew? Who is the mother of the frost? Can you control the stars? Star, can you lead out the Zodiac on time? Can you guide the Big Dipper and its satellites? Do you know how these laws govern the earth? Is it raining heavily from the sky? Can you send out thunder and lightning at will? ..."
Then he used the nature of animals to question Job: "When it sneezes, the water splashes with light, and its eyes are like sparks. It shines like coal, its breath burns with coals, its mouth breathes fire, its flesh is strong and solid, its heart is as hard as rock, it regards iron as hay and copper as rotten wood, and sharp arrows cannot scare it away. , the slings are but stubble to it. Its turmoil makes the abyss churn, and the sea water is like boiling oil in a pot..." God's barrage of questions made Job dizzy. He was speechless, speechless, and could only admit guilt and blame himself.
God saw that Job had understood and regretted his excessive complaints, so he removed his physical pain, rescued him from his miserable situation, and showed his righteousness to God. The physical and mental torture must be repaid twice as much.
After Job recovered his health, he gave birth to seven sons and three daughters, and owned flocks of cattle and sheep, as well as a huge fortune. Then, the family was full of children and grandchildren, and they lived a happy and prosperous life. Job, who enjoyed the happiness of his family, lived to be 140 years old before dying and passing away.