Job 17 The Heritage of the RIghteous

The Heritage of the Righteous

Yesterday we looked at an overview of everything the Lord has been showing us in this very deep book of the Bible. We saw one thing for certain yesterday – people in a difficult trial need love! Nothing but nothing can take the place of love. True love never fails. We need it all the time. When we are going through a really tough time, we need it even more. Can anybody say amen?

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your word Lord! It never fails. It has deep waters that flood us with blessings every time we bathe in it. Lord, we cannot understand where You want to take us. Holy Spirit is our Teacher and our Guide. I ask You Father to show us what You want us to see today. Open the eyes of our hearts and prepare us to absorb everything that You have for us. Thank You for loving us so much and helping us each time we study Your word to grow up more and more so we can become like our Master – Jesus! I ask You to give all of us studying this lesson wisdom, revelation and application Lord to what we need to learn individually at this time in our lives. We purpose to be a doer of Your word and not a hearer only. And we thank You Father in advance for the answers to this prayer, according to Your word where You said to ask and we would receive that our joy may be full. We ask it and we believe we have already received it in Jesus name! Amen.

Moving along in his conversation that continues from yesterday, this chapter opens and closes with the same theme – Job feels his time in life is over. He is surrounded by mockers whose eyes have been closed by the Lord. They don’t understand. People spit in his face and the noble look at him as if he were a lost cause. The last seven verses primarily say what the first verses said – it’s all over. Have you ever felt that way? Many of us can probably relate. In the middle of all that misery, Job made a comment that is profoundly true for all time…

Job 17:9

Yet the righteous will hold to his way, and he who has clean hands will be stronger and stronger.

In the previous chapter we saw him longing for someone to plead his case. What he really needed was a strong dose of love, not a continual barrage of accusations from his ‘so called’ righteous friends. As far as Job could tell in all this he could not see where he had done anyone wrong. And on the surface, he hadn’t.

It wasn’t as if he had killed someone or told a lie to a friend or stole something that didn’t belong to him. Was there anything that he had done wrong to another human being as far as he understood? No, not at all. His error had been his fear. It was a spiritual problem rooted in fear that led to his demise. After all, he had been considered a perfect man in all the east by God, right? Knowing that he was a good man who stood on correct principals, he had no idea why the door was open for satan to attack this man of God.

They didn’t understand the things that the devil did in those days like we have understanding now. We have the written word of God in the New Covenant – the New Testament to give us a lot of wisdom and revelation with the help of Holy Spirit to be able to understand the deeper spiritual things – hallelujah! But Job didn’t have the Holy Spirit in him like we do today. He was at a disadvantage of sorts in that way.

But God knew all that and would not leave His children without help. How He helped them in those days was different than how He works with Christians today because of what Jesus has made available to us – glory to God! God would send His Spirit to help and His presence was there, but things were different back then. Now Job blurts out in the middle of his despairing words that the righteous will hold to his way and the hands of a clean man would grow stronger and stronger. Even when he felt his life was basically over with and he was just waiting in line for his time to die and be remembered no more, he knew that the righteous would never be forsaken. Look at this…

Psalm 37:3-7

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.
He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.

When a person truly delights in and trusts in the Lord and His ways, doing good and feeding on His faithfulness, the Lord gives us the desires of our hearts. Isn’t that great news saints?!! The thing we want to look at here is that delighting in the Lord and His ways changes the desires of our hearts. Instead of selfish ambitions we start to want what He wants in this life and in the earth. And as we are transformed more and more into His likeness as we grow up in Him, our desires continue to change to be what He wants. We start to throw out our old wishes and wants, visions and dreams. We begin to dream His dreams and embrace His vision and plans for our lives to carry out His purposes in the earth.

God needs people to cooperate with Him to get things done. He isn’t going to just do everything without us. He created us and had plans for each one of us to do our part in the body as members of Jesus body – the church. When we selfishly sit on the sidelines and refuse to go to church or take part in the service of the Lord, we can’t see His plans fulfilled in and through us. But when we delight in His ways, our hearts then begin to cry out, “Father, not my will but thine be done.” And when that becomes your heart’s cry and mine friends, we begin to see miraculous things happen.

When we give up trying to do things our way, and commit our ways to Him, fully trusting in Him, He shall bring it to pass. Psalm 37 is about the heritage of the righteous. That’s exactly what Job was talking about in verse 9 of our chapter today – the heritage of the righteous. Can’t you hear it? In the midst of his pain and sorrow, he spoke out a good and strong word that a righteous man will hold on in his way and grow stronger. What he didn’t realize at that moment is that he was prophesying over his own life. We will see more on that later.

God brings forth our righteousness as light to everyone around us and our justice like the brightness of the sun at noon time – hallelujah! Yesterday I told you about my little 9 month old baby girl that I had given up for adoption when I was only 17 years old, a baby myself. Letting her go was the greatest act of love I could have ever done for her. To keep her would have meant certain destruction for her life. I was so immature and unable to properly care for myself, much less an innocent little girl newly born into this life.

The pain was far deeper than I ever really wanted to deal with. Most of the time I buried it way down deep and just didn’t allow myself to think about it. There was more grief about it than I ever realized. Even on her birthday most years I would not cry. I did feel really good about letting her go because as the years played out I understood more and more how much I would have damaged her if I had selfishly kept her around me.

Since I surrendered to the Lord in 2005 I have prayed for all my children according to the Lord’s will. My greatest desire for all three of my daughters was that they be strong women of God totally in love with Jesus and living out His plan for their lives. I have wanted nothing less than God’s very best for them and I didn’t want any of them to have to suffer things like I did in my life. The daughter that I gave away for adoption is now 44 years old. Her first name is Marci. 

And do you know that today is exactly one month past her 44^th birthday. The reason I tell you is this. I sat visiting a friend this morning and she received a clear word from the Holy Spirit that my Marci is doing well. That is the first time I have ever heard a report about her. Because I chose to give her to someone who was able to raise her properly and I did not choose the abortion that my mother had encouraged me to get, I gave her a chance for a life that I never could have provided.

Today, the Lord not only spoke through my sweet Christian sister in the Lord to tell me she is doing well, but He also spoke through my husband to let me know that we will be restored. Hallelujah! I know now that she is alive and well and that one day soon I will meet her. I am so excited. I believe what the Lord says in His word. No matter if things hurt from time to time – all the tears and sadness – I believe what He has promised. I know that just as the psalmist wrote, “He shall bring it to pass.” He is a good God! He is a restoring God. And when this reunion happens I will be shouting from the rooftops! He gets all the glory!

Many will be blessed as they see this psalm play out in our lives. Give Him a shout of praise! And isn’t that the best time to start shoutin? Before the miracle happens – yes, that’s when we get excited. It’s faith that pleases God saints! Faith believes what the eyes cannot see. Faith knows the package is in the mail even when it doesn’t ‘feel’ like it! Praise God that we don’t have to live by what we feel or what we see. The just shall live by faith and faith believes in what it cannot yet physically see. No doubting Thomas’s in this bunch – amen?! 

In Psalm 37:7 it goes on to say that we are to rest in the Lord. What does that mean? It means to be at complete peace while we wait. So we go about our business. We keep thanking Him. We never stop believing that it will come to pass. No matter what the timeline is we just rest – like taking a sweet nap on a rainy afternoon, snug as a bug in our little beds while Almighty God who never slumbers nor sleeps is fast at work bringing it to pass in ways we never would have imagined! Oh He is such a good God. I live to tell you all and as many as will listen about all the amazing miracles He has done in my life so that you too can know that He wants to do the same for you – hallelujah!

I want to hear others tell me about all the great things God has done for them. In fact, when we are together with other saints that is what the majority of our conversations should be about – the goodness of God and all He has done for us - amen! Is there anything else worth talking about? Nothing can compare to His goodness, His sweetness and His countless blessings for His children. Lots of people will not believe in how good He is until they see something. But that’s no faith at all.

That’s where we come in. While we wait we don’t fret. We don’t wonder how He is going to do it. We don’t keep our eyes on the clock and think, “OK God, anytime now!” No! We just keep trusting and praising and thanking Him. He said this in His word to me on more than one occasion about more than one thing I was asking Him about…

Isaiah 60:22 NLT

The smallest family will become a thousand people, and the tiniest group will become a mighty nation. At the right time, I, the Lord, will make it happen.”

The Lord knows the right time to blow open the doors on certain things in our lives, while other things are totally in our control to bring about. If only Job had realized that he could have escaped his misery so much sooner if he had changed his attitude. Yet in the midst of all his self-inflicted suffering at this point, he is speaking a truth out of his mouth that will ring true for eternity – the righteous will never be forsaken and justice will always prevail. Job was yet to learn that justice would prevail in his case. The Lord will not let justice escape His children. Let’s look at Psalm 37 in its entirety.

We will see what Job was talking about in verse 9 all over the place. If only Job could have clung to these words in the days of his affliction, what hope he would have had as he waited on the Lord who was surely going to deliver him…

Psalm 37

Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.
He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; do not fret—it only causes harm.

For evildoers shall be cut off; but those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; indeed, you will look carefully for his place, but it shall be no more.
But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him, for He sees that his day is coming. The wicked have drawn the sword and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, to slay those who are of upright conduct. Their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.

A little that a righteous man has is better than the riches of many wicked. For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the Lord upholds the righteous.

The Lord knows the days of the upright, and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. But the wicked shall perish; and the enemies of the Lord, like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away.

The wicked borrows and does not repay, but the righteous shows mercy and gives. For those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth, but those cursed by Him shall be cut off. The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for  the Lord upholds him with His hand.

I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread.
He is ever merciful, and lends; and his descendants are blessed.

Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell forevermore. For the Lord loves justice, and does not forsake His saints; they are preserved forever, but the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off.
The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell in it forever.

The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom, and his tongue talks of justice. The law of his God is in his heart;
none of his steps shall slide.

The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to slay him. The Lord will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.

Wait on the Lord, and keep His way, and He shall exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you shall see it. I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a native green tree.
Yet he passed away and behold, he was no more; indeed I sought him, but he could not be found.

Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright; for the future of that man is peace. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in Him.

Wow! Do you see all the hope in this psalm saints? It is glorious! What if Job had stood on verse 24 during his trial? Or what about verse 28? If Job had realized that in the midst of his mess, he could have continued to stand on the promise of God’s eternal word. And how different his time would have been spent, amen?! And we can see what Job said in verse 9 of today’s chapter playing out in verse 30 can’t we? Oh I hope you have your Bible open to this Psalm as you read with me. I want you to meditate on all the promises of the righteous – that’s you and me who are born again.

Look at and feast on the hope that we have in Him no matter what we are going through. And regardless of how the wicked ones around us seem to be doing, we don’t have to fret, do we? In fact Jesus has told us not to fret, the Psalmist told us not to fret, and the word of God is packed with hundreds of verses that tell us (yes, command us) not to fret (worry!).

What can you and I learn from all this today? There is so much here for the man or woman who really believes God and takes Him at His word. Look at what is says in verse 37. He says that the blameless man has a future of peace. Glory to God! The Lord really is our strength in trouble. If we would just grab a hold of this friends. If we would truly believe what God can and will do for Him when we wait on Him.

I have waited for over 43 years wondering what the result of my little girl’s life was. Was she dead or alive? Was she saved or not? Was she healthy or sick? Was she happy? How did her parents treat her? What does she like? What is her favorite color, favorite food and what does she like to do for fun? Most of these questions I would not even allow myself to ponder because it has really been more painful than I realized. But I know this much. I have decided to follow Jesus and put my trust in Him. And I can tell you honestly that He has never let me down when I trusted Him for something.

Today I believe I received a firm promise from Him that He will bring my Marci back to me and it will be wonderful! I will be able to explain to her that the only way I could really love her was to let her go. Then I had to trust God and hope that she would do well. Today, one month after her 44^th birthday, I now know that she is doing well – praise the Lord forever! Haven’t we heard that we have to be willing to let go of everything that means anything to us? Like Abraham with Isaac, or like the disciples, who, when called by the Master, dropped everything and followed Him. It seems that the more I have let go of things, people, etc., the more the Lord has brought it back to me with His blessing.

What about you? Are you waiting on the Lord for something big? Will you trust and rest as you wait? Will you be a man or woman of great peace no matter what you are facing, knowing that God can work all things out for your good if you love Him?

Questions:

What did Job think about the state of his life at this point?

What was the one sensible thing that he spoke out of his own mouth in this chapter?

What have you been waiting on for a really long time? 

Will you make it a point to love God through it all and keep on trusting Him no matter how long it takes?

Isaiah 40:28-31

Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord
shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

There are three main points to consider from today’s study…

What God says matters a lot more than what people say

With God our circumstances are never hopeless

The heritage of the righteous man or woman is a place of rest and peace

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for lifting us up when we are down. Thank You for giving us strength and hope for our situation. In You Lord I can find all the rest and peace I need to walk through every storm that comes my way. You give power to the faint and never leave the righteous forsaken. Father, thank You for the wonderful things that You are working out on my behalf because I love You. While I wait I will walk in perfect peace with Your help knowing that You are always faithful. Thank You in advance for the answers to my prayers in Jesus name!

Do you really believe God will come through for you?  

And God Said… You fill in the blanks. 

John 7:38

“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”