The Psalm Project: David vs. Job

We’ve made it about 20% of the way through the book of Psalms in #thepsalmproject. If you’re still reading with us, yay! We know that at this point in the book, many of David’s Psalms sound redundant and you may want to check out.

Friend, please don’t check out yet.

Mmmmmkay?

I’ve found that while there may be repetitive themes (or even the exact same wording in several Psalms), I’ll be reading along and then…bam! One of them will just hit me in an entirely new way.

That’s exactly what happened when I read Psalm 27.

the story of job

Along with #thepsalmproject, I’m also going through The Chronological Bible this year. It’s been so exciting because I’ve never read the whole Bible. I mean, I’ve read most of it, but not all of it.

We were in the book of Job for a few weeks in January and I couldn’t help but contrast Job and David’s laments as I read both texts concurrently.

If you’ve never read the book of Job, let’s walk through it for a sec. Get comfy!

Job gets a lot of criticism from the Christian world. Like A LOT. Like so much that some people would say we won’t even see him in Heaven. Ouch.

But the Bible, God’s inspired Word, describes Job in the very first verse of his book as blameless, upright, one who feared God, and one who turned away from evil. By the Old Covenant’s standards, this type of man was about as good as it gets. He loved God and God poured out so many blessings on Job’s life.

Satan saw how “perfect” Job was so he asked God to ruin Job’s life and then see if he’d still be so committed to Him. God refused to do anything to Job, but He gave Satan permission to test Job’s faith.

It’s a fascinating story.

Spoiler alert: Job’s life was ruined. Like completely wrecked.

He lost his children, his servants, his animals, his health, his reputation, his name on the guest list at his friends’ parties. You name it, he lost it.

Interestingly enough though, he didn’t lose his wife. Personally, I think Satan left her alone because she wasn’t a threat to him. She’d later tell Job to give up his integrity, curse God, and die already. So, like I said, not a threat.

Job’s three “friends” each take turns sharing their wisdom and advice about why he’s in this situation and the possible sin that led him to this point, ultimately separating him from God’s love. Most of their advice is unhelpful, untimely, unloving, and ungodly.

Meanwhile, Job goes back and forth between soaking in depression, wanting to die, cursing his friends, and demanding God to respond to his outcries.

There are moments when Job’s faith rises up from within him and we get a glimpse of hope that he hasn’t given up, but for the most part, his words are hard to read.

“Oh that I might have my request, and that God would fulfill my hope, that it would please God to crush me, that he would let loose his hand and cut me off!”
Job 6:8-9
“My flesh is clothed with worms and dirt; my skin hardens, then breaks out afresh. My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle and come to their end without hope.”
Job 7:5-6
“If I hope for Sheol (Hell) as my house, if I make my bed in darkness, if I say to the pit, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’ where then is my hope? Who will see my hope? Will it go down to the bars of Sheol? Shall we descend together into the dust?”
Job 17:13-16
“He has stripped from me my glory and taken the crown from my head. He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone, and my hope has he pulled up like a tree. He has kindled his wrath against me and counts me as his adversary.”
Job 19:9-11

To sum it up, Job almost completely lost his hope. He almost completely lost his faith.

Job had much to say against God, but once God responded, he hardly spoke another word.

I’m so glad I’m not God because I feel like I would’ve been tempted to say, “Oh really? You say that I ‘give and take away,’ but it was Satan coming against you this whole time. Oh you think you know everything, don’t you? I’ll show you…I’ll give you your health back, but you can just sit there and be sad for the rest of forever. You’re gonna wish you’d never said all of those awful things about me.”

Surprise, surprise…that isn’t even close to what He said. God’s response was complete healing and redemption. Even though Job didn’t always do or say the right thing, God still redeemed everything he lost. The Bible says that he was twice as blessed post-trial. God restored to him twice as many children, fortunes, cattle, and health.

Job lived to see four healthy, thriving generations in his family.

Our Father is so redemptive. He’s just that good.

David vs. Job: A Better Way to Wait

I read David’s words in Psalms in the morning and Job’s words after work. I couldn’t help but see that both of these men were facing incredibly difficult trials.

Yet, only one of them showed me a better way to wait on the Lord.

I never want to judge Job’s character because I haven’t walked in his shoes. I haven’t been abandoned on the side of the road, desperately begging God to heal the leprous sores on my body. I haven’t buried all of my children on the same day.

Most of us will never understand the depth of the pain and suffering he endured.

I just wonder, if given the “opportunity,” how many of us are more like Job than we’d like to admit? Let’s be careful to not lump Job into the “unsaved, unholy” category unless we’ve walked in his shoes.

With that said, David modeled time and time again how to pour out our broken hearts to the Father in a way that still honors and worships Him at the center.

Psalm 27 is a beautiful example of this for me.

David showed us how to worship through the wait.

Were people chasing him down? Yes. Were his enemies surrounding him? Yes. Did it seem as though everything was falling apart around him? Yes. Was he abandoned by his family? Yes.

Just like Job, he was under attack. The difference between Job and David was David’s response to this attack.

David responded with worship.

He began to sing to the Lord, “Here’s the one thing I crave from God, the one thing I seek above all else: I want the privilege of living with him every moment in his house, finding the sweet loveliness of his face, filled with awe, delighting in his glory and grace. I want to live my life so close to him that he takes pleasure in my every prayer.”
Psalm 27:4

What was the ONE thing David wanted?

Deliverance? Healing? Rest? A spouse? Fame? Money?

Nope. None of the above.

Above everything else, he simply wanted to be in God’s presence.

He just wanted to live in God’s house, staring at His beautiful face, studying at His feet.

He just wanted to worship God.

“The one thing I crave is ____________”

Here’s what I’ve learned…if I fill in the blank with anything besides Him, I’m doing it wrong.

The “better” way to wait it to worship Him. Not because we want anything from Him, but just because He’s the only one worthy of that spot.

If we crave wealth, fame, or even a big, happy family above everything else, we’ll miss the mark.

What one thing do you crave, friend?

Like really crave?

Is it security? Children? A comfortable retirement plan?

None of these are “bad” things, but they’re still the wrong things.

I know this stings a little bit. It stung me, too.

He deserves the rightful place to be enthroned on our hearts as we offer up our lives as living, breathing sacrifices. There’s nothing we have to DO. It’s simply a heart posture of worship.

Worship through your wait. It’s the better way.

Psalm 27

a psalm of David

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

2 When evildoers assail me
to eat up my flesh,
my adversaries and foes,
it is they who stumble and fall.

3 Though an army encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear;
though war arise against me,
yet I will be confident.

4 One thing have I asked of the Lord,
    that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
    and to inquire in his temple.

5 For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will lift me high upon a rock.

6 And now my head shall be lifted up
above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.

7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;
    be gracious to me and answer me!
8 You have said, “Seek my face.”
My heart says to you,
    “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
9     Hide not your face from me.
Turn not your servant away in anger,
    O you who have been my help.
Cast me not off; forsake me not,
    O God of my salvation!
10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me,
    but the Lord will take me in.

11 Teach me your way, O Lord,
    and lead me on a level path
    because of my enemies.
12 Give me not up to the will of my adversaries;
    for false witnesses have risen against me,
    and they breathe out violence.

13 I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living!
14 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong, and let your heart take courage;
    wait for the Lord!