“But now they laugh at me,
men who are younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to set with the dogs of my flock.
What could I gain from the strength of their hands,
men whose vigor is gone?
Through want and hard hunger
they gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation;
they pick saltwort and the leaves of bushes,
and the roots of the broom tree for their food.
They are driven out from human company;
they shout after them as after a thief.
In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell,
in holes of the earth and of the rocks.
Among the bushes they bray;
under the nettles they huddle together.
A senseless, a nameless brood,
they have been whipped out of the land.
To better understand the above verses of Job we need to take a quick glimpse at the preceding chapter. In chapter 29 Job is remembering his high status in life, before Satan attacked him (Job 1-2). Job had it all. He had family, fame and, most important to the contrast of chapter 30, high respect. He had status and significance among the people of the land. Then trauma impacted his life. Now, as he states in the above passages, he is mocked by even the lowest of the land. As we read the passage we might have an unsettling of our own sense of moral outrage at Job’s attitude. Remember, this is the Job that God said in the beginning of the book that he was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil (Job 1:1). God said this three times in the first two chapters (Job 1:1; 1:10; 2:3). Yet, as we read Job’s above words, now it would seem that Job is quite arrogant, bias and certainly possessed some societal scorn for those who were less than he was. However, it might well wise to consider a few things before we cast doubt on Job’s character, especially since only God knew his heart.
1. We must never forget when reading Job, past chapter 2, that this man is in deep despair and turmoil. This does not give him and excuse to now act corrupt, but his lens has changed significantly. In these two chapters he is just making a comparison trying to figure out why he has gone from respect to ruin. He wants to know why he has fallen from the diadem of the elite to the disdain of dregs. When we are in trauma we simply want to know what just happened.
2. We must remember that the days of Job, societal class was a normal function of the community. This does not dismiss the thought of bias or class warfare, but it does explain Job’s innate perspective on it. Just as slavery in the time of Paul was accepted, didn’t mean Paul accepted it. It simply meant it was part of society and the lens by which all lived. Undoubtedly in Job’s day, as in ours, there were those less fortunate. Some by the act of God (Proverbs 22:2). Some by their acts of their own foolishness (Proverbs 21:10).
3. Lastly, to Job’s point, he was now less than he was. He is, yes, writing about those who he would have never even associated with, but he is doing so to demonstrate his fall, not their weaknesses. Job has gone from the top to the bottom, in a moment. He is simply making the point that those who would have never been in his circle are now mocking him to their delight in their circus. This also speaks of their lack of character. They see before them a man to be mocked, not someone to shown mercy. Those of low character, no matter the reason, remain of low character. Job has a reason to speak the way he does (although we would all prefer we could be better in these situations). They do not. They simply want to mock the man who was above them to now elevate their own status above him. The adage don’t kick a man when he is down, comes to mind.
Proverbs 24:17-18 (ESV)
Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,
and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles, lest the LORD see it and be displeased, and turn away his anger from him.
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