Turth #109 - God gives us grace so we can give others grace - Job 31

Job 31:13-15
“If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or my maidservant,
when they brought a complaint against me,
what then shall I do when God rises up?
When he makes inquiry, what shall I answer him?
Did not he who made me in the womb make him?
And did not one fashion us in the womb?

Justice is a universal inward bent of the human condition.   We all cry for justice and we all recognize injustice.   Our recognition might be based upon different values and unique cultural norms, but we still crave justice.  In the above section of Job (Job 31), the man is attempting to defend himself against the accusations of his friends.   In their minds, Job is a sinner and his plight is well deserved for his sin.  In Job's mind, he is innocent and has done nothing worthy of this punishment.  (Remember, even in the first chapter God is boasting of the character and perfection of Job!!)   In this final chapter of Job's defense, (God and a fourth friend will be the speakers throughout the rest of the book), Job speaks about justice and injustice.   He is stating in the above verse that "if" he did act in an unjust manner toward a servant, that WOULD BE WRONG.   Job is not in the place to deny right and wrong.   Job is in the place of stating he KNOWS right and wrong and finds himself on the side of the right.   Job states that to treat a servant wrong, simply because your station in life is "higher" than their station, is indeed wrong.  His reason for that justice statement?  Job recognizes that God has made (created) both the rich and the poor, the master and the servant.   He goes on to state that before their birth, while they were in the womb, God made them.  They had no designation of servant or master in the womb.  They are the same before God and therefore are the same in life.   Job invites an inquire by God himself, because he doesn't believe he has wronged anyone.   The truth Job gives us in the place of his defense is that God does create all and that everyone has equal standing before God.   Job is not teaching that sociality norms of hierarchy are wrong.  Job is teaching us that our treatment of others based upon those hierarchy status symbols is wrong.   In the one of the last books of the Old Testament, God sums up all the requirements of God the the prophets voice as follows:

Micah 6:8
He has told you, O man, what is good;
and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?

Notice how Jesus summed up the entire law of the Old Testament:

Mark 12:30-31
And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

How we treat others is a fundamental aspect of our walk with God.   Job is defending himself and, yet, instructing us.   Our treatment of others is a mark of the mercy and grace we have in our hearts. When God sheds mercy and grace in our hearts we should share mercy and grace from our hearts to others.