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Proverbs 2 opens with a simple phrase: “My son.” Not with wisdom. Not with understanding. Not with an explanation. It begins with a call. A call spoken before knowledge is received. From there, Proverbs speaks of listening, inclining the heart, calling out, and searching. These words seem to describe a posture of receiving what is being spoken. Then Proverbs says: “Then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God.” (Proverbs 2:5) Before knowledge i

Today, I begin reading Proverbs. Right at the opening, these words are placed before the reader: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 (Proverbs 1:7) Proverbs is often called a book of wisdom. So one might expect it to begin with a discussion of wisdom and knowledge. Yet what is spoken first is not knowledge itself. It is: “The fear of the Lord.” Before speaking about knowledge, Proverbs speaks about where one stands. Before acquiring knowledge

Job — Final Reflection Job continued to ask questions. Why is there suffering? Why does God remain silent? Why do the righteous suffer? His friends gave explanations. Sin. Retribution. The righteousness of God. Each of them spoke about God. Job also spoke. Of his own righteousness. Of suffering. Of a reality he could not understand. Of a silent God. Elihu declared: God has already been speaking. But in the end, the Lord Himself speaks. From within the storm. The Lord does not

Job Chapter 42 At last, Job responds. “I had heard of You by the hearing of the ear. But now, my eyes have seen You.” For a long time, Job continued questioning. He sought the reason for suffering. He demanded explanations. He spoke of his own righteousness. His friends also continued speaking. Righteousness. Retribution. Explanations about God. But in the end, what remained was not explanation. It was the Lord Himself. Job says, “I had heard of You.” As knowledge. As underst

Job Chapter 41 The Lord speaks about Leviathan. A great creature of the sea. A being beyond human control. Filled with power, bringing fear to those who see it. The Lord asks: “Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook?” “Can you make it submit to you?” People want to understand. They want to control. They want to manage. They want to hold everything within their own hands. But the Lord reveals a being that human beings cannot control. Leviathan does not obey humanity. It ca

Job Chapter 40 The Lord speaks to Job. “Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him?” For the first time, Job falls silent. “I am insignificant. How can I answer You?” Job had continued questioning throughout his suffering. He spoke of his own righteousness. He sought explanations. He demanded answers from God. But now, before the voice of the Lord, Job stands still. The Lord asks further: “Will you condemn Me to justify yourself? Will you declare Me guilty so tha

Job Chapter 39 The Lord continues to speak. Yet, the reason for suffering is still not explained. Instead, the Lord speaks about living creatures. Mountain goats. Deer. Wild donkeys. Wild oxen. Ostriches. Horses. Eagles. Each of them lives beyond human control. Life moves beyond human understanding. The Lord asks: “Do you know?” “Can you see?” “Can you rule over these?” People try to understand the world. They try to explain it. They try to control it. But the Lord reveals a

Job Chapter 38 At last, the Lord speaks. From within the storm. Job had continued to ask: Why is there suffering? Why does God not answer? Why do the righteous suffer? His friends continued to explain: Sin. Retribution. The righteousness of God. Elihu had declared: God has already been speaking. But now, the Lord Himself speaks. “Who is this that darkens counsel with words without knowledge?” The Lord does not answer Job’s questions with explanations. He does not explain the

Job Chapter 37 At last, Elihu speaks about the storm. Thunder. Lightning. Raging winds. Freezing cold. Before the power of nature, human beings stand still. Elihu says: “Listen to this, Job. Stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.” People move restlessly, trying to understand. They seek explanations. They hurry toward answers. But Elihu says, “Stand still.” The works of God are beyond human understanding. People try to stand before God only after understanding ev

Job Chapter 36 Elihu continues to speak. “Bear with me a little longer, and I will show you that there is more to be said on God's behalf.” Elihu declares: God is great. God is righteous. God speaks through suffering. Suffering is not merely punishment. At times, God uses suffering to open human ears. Then Elihu turns his gaze to the storm. Clouds. Rain. Thunder. Lightning. In the power of nature, he sees the greatness of God's work. People encounter things they cannot unders

Job Chapter 35 Elihu speaks to Job. “If you are righteous, what do you give to God?” “If you sin, what harm do you do to Him?” Elihu speaks of the perfection of God. God is not enriched by human goodness. God is not diminished by human sin. God is not a being whose worth rises or falls because of human actions. At times, people wonder: What is the meaning of my righteousness? Why pray if nothing seems to change? Does my response mean anything to God? But the real question her

Elihu speaks. God never does evil. The Almighty does not act unjustly. He repays each person according to what they have done. Elihu strongly defends the righteousness of God. God is never wrong. This is an important truth throughout the Bible. The issue is this: Speaking the truth and standing before the truth are not the same thing. People may speak about God's righteousness, while still remaining within the limits of their own understanding. When you say, “God is righteous

Job Chapter 33 Elihu speaks to Job. “God speaks once, and twice, though no one notices it.” Here, the perspective of the entire book of Job shifts. Job had continued to ask: Why am I suffering? Why does God not answer? Why does He remain silent? His friends continued to explain: Suffering has a cause. The righteous are rewarded. The wicked are judged. Both were speaking from the human side. Elihu says: “God is speaking.” The problem is not that God is silent, but that people

Job Chapter 32 Elihu appears. He is angry because Job justified himself. He is also angry because Job’s friends could not answer him. He has listened in silence for a long time. But at last, he begins to speak. “My words are ready to burst forth.” “I cannot keep silent.” When people feel they must speak, they can no longer remain quiet. But the real question is not what is being said, but where it is coming from. Is it coming from personal zeal? Or from God? When you cannot k

Job Chapter 31 Job offers a long defense of himself. If I have acted unjustly. If I have deceived others. If I have neglected the poor. Then let me bear the consequences. Here Job speaks at length about how he has lived rightly. In the midst of suffering, he is trying to prove his own innocence. When people are misunderstood, they want others to understand them. They want their righteousness to be recognized. But who is that proof really directed toward? When you try to prove

Job Chapter 30 After recalling the glory of the past in Job 29, Job now speaks of his present reality. He is mocked by younger men. He has lost his dignity. He suffers in pain. God feels distant. The contrast between past and present becomes clear. Those were better days. He was honored. He was protected. Now he is despised, suffering, and God does not answer. Job does not hide his reality. The more people remember the past, the more sharply they may feel the pain of the pres

Job Chapter 29 Job recalls the days that have passed. God’s lamp shone over his head. He was respected. He helped the poor. He practiced justice. Job looks back on who he once was. He was protected by God. He was honored by others. He was doing what was right. Those memories stand in contrast to the present, where everything has been lost. When people look back, they often think, “Those were the good days.” Yet within those memories there remains the memory of one’s own right

Job Chapter 28 “Where can wisdom be found?” “God alone knows the way to it.” People dig deep into the earth and discover treasure. But wisdom is not found that way. People dig. They search. They find. They know where silver is found and how gold is refined. But the place of wisdom is unknown to them. Wisdom cannot be gained through effort or skill. At the end, it is said: “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom.” When you search for wisdom, where are you? Are you trying to find

Job Chapter 27 Job continues to speak. “I will not let go of my righteousness.” “My conscience does not condemn me.” Job still holds on to his own righteousness. Job speaks clearly. I am not wrong. I will not let go of my righteousness. My conscience does not condemn me. Even in suffering, his sense of righteousness remains. A person may lose everything, yet still hold on to one final thing. The conviction: “I am right.” When you still hold on to your own righteousness, where

Job Chapter 26 Job responds. “How you have helped the powerless!” “What wonderful advice you have given!” Job speaks with irony. His friends have been speaking with the intention of helping. Right words. Theologically well-ordered explanations. But those words alone cannot sustain Job. Job says, “How much you have helped.” There is deep irony in these words. People often pour out right words with the intention of helping. But in the midst of suffering, those words may only ad