Job 9

This can be taken as my response to the “Euthyphro Dilemma”, as Plato writes in his Euthyphro dialogue when Socrates asks Euthyphro: “Is the pious loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is loved by the gods?”  In a couple of philosophy classes I have taken or just showed up to, this question comes up and is put in many different forms so that the philosophical problem could be understood from different backgrounds.  The basic question that is being asked is, “Does God love good things or are things good because God loves them?” and in the context of Job, the question could be rephrased to ask “Is God just or are things just because God says they are?” 

The philosophical problem here tends to be that if God is just, then He cannot assume the All-Transcendent image that He is said to have.  Why?  Because He would be limited by whatever Justice may be, Justice would be greater than He and He would have to conform to it.  Everything good would be greater than God and would dictate what God is like and how He would act.  If God is truly All-Transcendent, then whatever He says that Justice is, that is what Justice will be; things would be good just because God loves them.  The “problem” in having this view is that nothing would be truly good or right in itself.  If God began to love infanticide and sacrificing babies, there would be nothing left to say that it is wrong AND WHAT YOU THINK DOES NOT MATTER.  It would be right because God says it is right.  You cannot ignore the problem by saying “Oh God would never authorize anything like that!”  By giving Him All-Transcendence, it is granted that anything He does, anything He WOULD or COULD do, would be correct and righteous by the simple fact of Him doing it. 

And this exactly the stance I want to profess: 

There are a couple of verses I want to use to presume this stance then others to actually justify this stance.

“God walks right past me, without making a sound.

And if he grabs something, who can stop Him or raise a question?” (Job 9:11-12 CEV)

This verse reflects the “power” aspect of God’s justice, it does not feel too much like justice at all, when you realize that this means that, since He is boss, he can do whatever He wants.  This is not some typical bully who runs over every one though, this is THE TOP bully; this means that there is nothing that anyone can do go against Him.  It is not anyone that you can scheme against or plan to overthrow; Job is talking about the Fate-Maker here, liken it to the Universe itself.  Anything He does automatically becomes “Word” because there is really nothing you can do to question it.

“Even though I am innocent, I can only beg for mercy.” (Job 9:15 CEV)

This verse reflects the fact that Job is innocent, and this says a lot.  If Job is truly innocent, this would mean that God’s punishment is truly unjustified, and yet, like I said in the last reflection, there is nothing anyone can do.  Even if you think God is not being just, if my explanation of power was not enough, what the hell are you going to do about it?  The only thing that Job can do is beg for mercy from this erratic being (if you resort to calling it that, it does not matter if you think He is insane, He still dominates over everyone).  Best thing you can do, in a Universe with such crazy laws, is try your best to get along with it.  If you reject it, it would be equated with suicide… well not even that because the Universe does have laws to rule even in the region of death (that is what makes death what it is).  Death is at the mercy of God as well.

“And if God came into court when I called him, he would not hear my case.  He would strike me with a storm and increase my injuries for no reason at all.  Before I could get my breath, my miseries would multiply.  God is much stronger than I am, and who would call me into court to give me justice?” (Job 9:16-19 CEV)

True it speaks of God’s strength, but the hopelessness of the situation that Job portrays is that of a Cosmic Tyrant.  And to this I say Amen!  If this is the way that the Universe is to be, who are we to question?  If you were to live under the roof of he who demands from you more than your life, you would have to give in to his request; your being under his care implies that you have accepted his offer and contract; who are you to question?  Alas! We have been given life into this tyrannical Universe without consent, I never asked for me to be given life, I never did anything for me to be here, and yet, here I am.  Do I not have rights as an existent entity?  Sad but true… APPARENTLY NOT!  What will it take for us to understand that we are truly the Universe’s pawns?  Even if it is true that God is a Tyrant, I would rather live by this truth than accept a more comforting lie; and this is why I would be proud of this truth, because it would be the case that IS.

What God does is done, and is established.

If we have God as Eternal ruler, this means that His actions are equated to the persistence of the Universe itself.  God would truly be Fate and the Law.  To say that the law is erratic or idiotic, only means that you do not approve of the way the Universe works; and what would this even mean if it comes from one who was created in the universe and through the universe?  It would be like a computer program created to crash itself.  Since the way that the Universe is, is given, one who disagrees with it would be labeled as polemic, insane in all senses of the word, and insensitive to the waves of the universe.  If ever you think Life is unfair… who said Life was supposed to be fair in the first place.  Learn to live with it, because you can never truly submit the laws of the Universe to your will.

“Even if I were innocent, God would prove me wrong.  I am not guilty, but I no longer care what happens to me.  What difference does it make?  God destroys the innocent along with the guilty.  When a good person dies, God sits back and laughs.  And who else but God blindfolds the judges, then lets the wicked take over the earth?” (Job 9:20-24 CEV) Amen!

The following verses I will use to justify God’s endowment to “bend justice” to whatever form he wills.  This justification may or may have not been implied or even intended by the people who spoke them, but the words are true and, 1 + 1 make 2.

 “Not once in a thousand times could we win our case if we took Him to court.  God is wise and powerful – who could possibly oppose Him and win?” (Job 9:3-4 CEV)

This verse mentions, not only that no one would be able to win a case against God, but also that (as stated in the second sentence) the reason why no one would be able to “oppose Him and win” is because He is “wise and powerful”.  The emphasis is not power alone anymore, but wisdom also has to do with His “erratic” nature.  Now, by “wise”, I assume it does not mean that He has the wits to “trick” Job into being guilty; this characteristic would not be “wisdom” as much as it would be “supreme cleverness”.  I have not looked at the original scriptures, but judging by all the versions I have read, wisdom has more to do with understanding.  “Wise” in this verse does not mean that God is sly in His logic, but that as deep as His wisdom goes, He indeed has a foundation to His reason.

This foundation is so deep that:

“Even if I were innocent, God would prove me wrong.”  (Job 9:20 CEV)

When I read this verse I do not read:

If I were innocent, God would fool me into making me think I am wrong.

Or
If I thought I was innocent, God would show me I am wrong.

Instead I read:

Even if I was TRULY innocent, God would prove me TRULY wrong.

This says that in God’s Supreme Wisdom, He can manipulate the Truth of the Universe.

The Truth is what He says it is.  Only the wisdom of a God would have the capability to surpass its own laws. 

This is the reason why Zophar mentions in his first speech that “wisdom has many different sides” and not just the ones we know.  Our sense of justice and righteousness is truly incomplete.  “But I wish He would speak and let you know that wisdom has many different sides.  You would then discover that God has punished you less than you deserve.”  (Job 11:5-6 CEV)

Our sense of justice and righteousness is so lacking that, as Job says, “No human is innocent in the sight of God.” (Job 9:2 CEV)

This should allow us to understand that we, as corrupt human beings and by the mercy of God, have been accustomed to and thus created our own system of justice that is by no means truly just. 

Example:

Picture a father who has many stubborn sons, let’s say they are 25 years, to get a good picture of how ridiculously stubborn these “children” are.  The sons are constantly encouraged to learn how to live on their own, and just to learn what life is about in general.  But the sons have grown accustomed to the father taking care of their every need, they have been SPOILED.  If the father ever tries to discipline them, and make it a little harder for them so that they could learn to be a little more independent (say he doesn’t let them one of them have dessert for breakfast), the son would give such a bad fit as if his LIFE was on the line, he would be in literal AGONY, in HELL; the son even becomes self-destructive!  (Oh, what God has to put up with to try and redeem humanity from sin.)

So in this picture, the children have chores that they do (let’s say, they must come up with a short story in their head and tell it to the father), and the father rewards them for their chores (the father pays for half of a day’s worth of entertainment; they would “die” if they had any less).  The children have grown accustomed to this so much, that they now believe that it is the father’s responsibility to reward them (keep in mind that they are of an old enough age for their father to simply abandon them).  And yet, they believe that if God does not provide does not adhere to THEIR laws, and the way THEY see “life”, that He is being UNFAIR! 

Life is harder than you think; it is harder than you were ever allowed to experience.  The starving people in third world countries, have no idea how much harder it could be for them.  If God were to leave us in Hell, He would still be righteous.  If this father were to abandon his sons, he would only be doing what was legally expected.  God is even breaking His own laws, to give us another chance.  God is not a tyrant for doing what He did to Job, He is merciful for limiting Satan at all (Job 1:12 and 2:6).  The "justice" that Job inquires, when he mentions taking God to court, would be his own worthless sense of justice; the kind that the sons induced with their chores.