NOTES for Job 19:21-27

Job's cry is a rebuke to us. We so often do not know what to do when confronted with another person's grief. And because we do not understand... we launch into a frenzy of pointless activity. We rush to console, explain, rebuke, wipe away tears, analyze the situation... and thereby only deepen the person's suffering. If you do not possess peace yourself, you cannot share it with your neighbor. You cannot give what you do not have. This is what happens with Job's friends: all their words only make the situation worse. It could not be otherwise. Job's problem lies in his personal relationship with God. Only two take part in that relationship: Job himself and God Himself. No one else can “join in.” Does this mean that we should quickly step aside from a suffering person and leave him alone? No, it does not. We must remain close when our presence is needed, without interfering in the situation or deciding for the other person.