Therefore He knows their works; He overthrows them in the night, and they are crushed. He strikes them as wicked men in the open sight of others. Job 34:25-26
Judges will often throw the book at people who have broken the law severely. It is a part of upholding the law against those who break the law. Anytime that someone is sent to prison or jail, others know that the person has been judged and punished by the judge or proper authority. There is never a time in which a person is in prison that has not been placed there by the judge or the proper authority.
Elihu states that God sees the works of man and overthrows them and crushes them as wicked men.
Looking from the outside on another person’s problems makes it easy to judge what one thinks is occurring or why it is occurring. However, those judgements could easily have been made in error, since no person can see and know absolutely everything about the situation.
Elihu was correct in that God does see all mankind and knows all of their works. However, God does not always strike every person as a wicked person for what was done or not done. During the time of Job’s trials, God was not striking Job at all. God was allowing Satan to strike, but under very controlled circumstances and it was done to prove Job’s faithfulness.
Many believers are just like Elihu in falsely accusing God of striking another believer as a wicked person. They believe that the problems are only a result of the individual’s personal sin. The one going through the difficulty will also often accuse God of striking as though that one was wicked.
Rather than immediately accusing God of striking, one must seek what God is actually doing or allowing. It may be a time of testing to prove growth. During difficult times it is a time to examine yourself and seek God’s wisdom in the situation. Find out from God if it is for punishment or for a testing to bring about growth.
God does not always automatically punish you for sins. He wants to show you love and build you up and cause you to grow. If you are believing in Jesus and have been repentant of all sins, then you know that the trouble is a time of testing, not judgement and punishment. Give God thanks for building you up.
Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that God will give you true understanding of trials in your life; that you will not falsely accuse God of punishing; that you will grow in the Lord daily; and that you will lift others up that God has in a time of testing.
Picture by Kamal Preet Kaur under Unsplash
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