Job Endured​—So Can We!

“Look! We pronounce happy those who have endured.”​—JAMES 5:11.

1. What did one elderly Christian say about his trials?

‘THE Devil is after me! I feel just like Job!’ With such words A. H. Macmillan expressed his feelings to a close friend at the headquarters of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Brother Macmillan finished his earthly course at the age of 89 on August 26, 1966. He knew that credit for the faithful service of anointed Christians like him would “go right with them.” (Revelation 14:13) Indeed, they would continue right on in Jehovah’s service by a resurrection to immortal life in heaven. His friends rejoiced that Brother Macmillan obtained that reward. In his declining years on earth, however, he was beset by various trials, including health problems that made him keenly aware of Satan’s attempts to break his integrity to God.

2, 3. Who was Job?

² When Brother Macmillan said he felt just like Job, he was referring to a man who had endured great tests of faith. Job lived in “the land of Uz,” likely in northern Arabia. A descendant of Noah’s son Shem, he was a worshiper of Jehovah. Job’s tests apparently occurred sometime between the death of Joseph and the time when Moses proved himself upright. During that period nobody on earth was equal to Job in godly devotion. Jehovah viewed Job as a blameless, upright, God-fearing man.​—Job 1:1, 8.

³ As “the greatest of all the Orientals,” Job had many servants, and his livestock numbered 11,500. But spiritual riches were of utmost importance to him. Like godly fathers today, Job most likely taught his seven sons and three daughters about Jehovah. Even after they no longer lived in his home, he acted as family priest by offering sacrifices for them, just in case they had sinned.​—Job 1:2-5.

4. (a) Why should persecuted Christians consider the man Job? (b) Regarding Job, what questions will we consider?

⁴ Job is someone for persecuted Christians to consider in order to strengthen themselves for patient endurance. “Look!” wrote the disciple James. “We pronounce happy those who have endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome Jehovah gave, that Jehovah is very tender in affection and merciful.” (James 5:11) Like Job, Jesus’ anointed followers and the present-day “great crowd” need endurance to cope with tests of faith. (Revelation 7:1-9) So, what trials did Job endure? Why did they occur? And how can we benefit from his experiences?

A Burning Issue

5. Unknown to Job, what was taking place in heaven?

⁵ Unknown to Job, a great issue was about to be raised in heaven. One day “the sons of the true God entered to take their station before Jehovah.” (Job 1:6) God’s only-begotten Son, the Word, was present. (John 1:1-3) So were the righteous angels and the disobedient angelic ‘sons of God.’ (Genesis 6:1-3) Satan was there, for his ouster from heaven would not come until after the Kingdom’s establishment in 1914. (Revelation 12:1-12) In Job’s day, Satan would raise a burning issue. He was about to call into question the rightfulness of Jehovah’s sovereignty over all His creatures.

6. What was Satan trying to do, and how did he slander Jehovah?

⁶ “Where do you come from?” asked Jehovah. Satan replied: “From roving about in the earth and from walking about in it.” (Job 1:7) He had been seeking someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8, 9) By breaking the integrity of individuals serving Jehovah, Satan would try to prove that nobody would fully obey God out of love. Taking up the issue, Jehovah asked Satan: “Have you set your heart upon my servant Job, that there is no one like him in the earth, a man blameless and upright, fearing God and turning aside from bad?” (Job 1:8) Job met divine standards that took his imperfections into account. (Psalm 103:10-14) But Satan retorted: “Is it for nothing that Job has feared God? Have not you yourself put up a hedge about him and about his house and about everything that he has all around? The work of his hands you have blessed, and his livestock itself has spread abroad in the earth.” (Job 1:9, 10) The Devil thus slandered Jehovah by implying that nobody loves and worships Him for what He is but that He bribes creatures to serve Him. Satan alleged that Job served God for selfish advantage, not out of love.

Satan on the Attack!

7. In what way did the Devil challenge God, and how did Jehovah respond?

⁷ “But,” said Satan, “for a change, thrust out your hand, please, and touch everything he has and see whether he will not curse you to your very face.” How would God respond to such an insulting challenge? “Look!” said Jehovah. “Everything that he has is in your hand. Only against him himself do not thrust out your hand!” The Devil had said that all Job possessed was blessed, increased, and hedged about. God would allow Job to suffer, though his body was not to be touched. Bent on evil, Satan left the assembly.​—Job 1:11, 12.

8. (a) What material losses did Job experience? (b) What was the truth about “the very fire of God”?

⁸ Soon, the satanic attack began. One of Job’s servants gave him this bad news: “The cattle themselves happened to be plowing and the she-asses were grazing at the side of them when the Sabeans came making a raid and taking them, and the attendants they struck down with the edge of the sword.” (Job 1:13-15) The hedge had been removed from around Job’s property. Almost immediately, direct demon power was applied, for another servant reported: “The very fire of God fell from the heavens and went blazing among the sheep and the attendants and eating them up.” (Job 1:16) How diabolic it was to make it appear that God was responsible for such calamity even upon his own servant! Since lightning is from heaven, Jehovah could easily have been blamed, but actually the fire was of demonic source.

9. How did economic ruin affect Job’s relationship with God?

⁹ As Satan pressed the attack, another servant reported that the Chaldeans had taken Job’s camels and had killed all the other attendants. (Job 1:17) Though Job thus experienced economic ruin, this did not destroy his relationship with God. Could you endure great material loss without breaking your integrity to Jehovah?

Greater Tragedy Strikes

10, 11. (a) What happened to Job’s ten children? (b) After the tragic death of Job’s children, how did he view Jehovah?

¹⁰ The Devil was not finished with Job. Still another servant reported: “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in the house of their brother the firstborn. And, look! there came a great wind from the region of the wilderness, and it went striking the four corners of the house, so that it fell upon the young people and they died. And I got to escape, only I by myself, to tell you.” (Job 1:18, 19) The misinformed might say that the devastation caused by that wind was ‘an act of God.’ However, demon power had touched Job at an especially tender spot.

¹¹ Grief-stricken, Job ‘ripped his sleeveless coat apart, cut the hair off his head, fell to the earth, and bowed down.’ Yet, listen to his words. “Jehovah himself has given, and Jehovah himself has taken away. Let the name of Jehovah continue to be blessed.” The account adds: “In all this Job did not sin or ascribe anything improper to God.” (Job 1:20-22) Satan was defeated once again. What if we should experience bereavement and grief as God’s servants? Unselfish devotion to Jehovah and trust in him can enable us to endure as integrity keepers, just as Job did. Anointed ones and their companions who have an earthly hope can surely draw comfort and strength from this account of Job’s endurance.

The Issue Gets Hotter

12, 13. At another assembly in heaven, what did Satan call for, and how did God respond?

¹² Jehovah soon called another assembly in the heavenly courts. Job had become a childless, impoverished man, seemingly smitten by God, but his integrity was intact. Of course, Satan would not admit that his charges against God and Job were false. Now the ‘sons of God’ were about to hear the argument and counterargument as Jehovah maneuvered the Devil so as to bring the issue to a showdown.

¹³ Calling Satan to account, Jehovah asked: “Just where do you come from?” The reply? “From roving about in the earth and from walking about in it.” Jehovah again drew attention to his blameless, upright, God-fearing servant Job, who was still holding fast his integrity. The Devil replied: “Skin in behalf of skin, and everything that a man has he will give in behalf of his soul. For a change, thrust out your hand, please, and touch as far as his bone and his flesh and see whether he will not curse you to your very face.” So God said: “There he is in your hand! Only watch out for his soul itself!” (Job 2:2-6) Hinting that Jehovah had not yet removed all protective barriers, Satan called for the touching of Job’s bone and flesh. The Devil would not be permitted to kill Job; but Satan knew that physical disease would pain him and make it appear that he was suffering punishment from God for secret sins.

14. With what did Satan strike Job, and why could no human give the sufferer relief?

¹⁴ Dismissed from that assembly, Satan proceeded with fiendish delight. He struck Job with “a malignant boil from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.” What misery Job endured as he sat in the ashes and scraped himself with a piece of pottery! (Job 2:7, 8) No human physician could bring him relief from this terribly painful, loathsome, and humiliating affliction, for it was caused by satanic power. Only Jehovah could heal Job. If you are an ailing servant of God, never forget that God can help you to endure and can give you life in a disease-free new world.​—Psalm 41:1-3; Isaiah 33:24.

15. What did Job’s wife urge him to do, and what was his reaction?

¹⁵ Finally, Job’s wife said: “Are you yet holding fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” “Integrity” denotes blameless devotion, and she may have spoken sarcastically to get Job to curse God. But he replied: “As one of the senseless women speaks, you speak also. Shall we accept merely what is good from the true God and not accept also what is bad?” Even this ploy of Satan did not work, for we are told: “In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” (Job 2:9, 10) Suppose opposing family members were to say that we were foolishly wearing ourselves out in Christian pursuits and urged us to renounce Jehovah God. Like Job, we can endure such a test because we love Jehovah and desire to praise his holy name.​—Psalm 145:1, 2; Hebrews 13:15.

Three Arrogant Frauds

16. Who came, supposedly to comfort Job, but how did Satan manipulate them?

¹⁶ In what turned out to be another satanic scheme, three “companions” came, supposedly to comfort Job. One was Eliphaz, likely a descendant of Abraham through Esau. Since Eliphaz had priority in speaking, doubtless he was the oldest. Present, too, was Bildad, a descendant of Shuah, one of Abraham’s sons by Keturah. The third man was Zophar, called a Naamathite to identify his family or place of residence, perhaps in northwest Arabia. (Job 2:11; Genesis 25:1, 2; 36:4, 11) Like those who try to make Jehovah’s Witnesses renounce God today, this trio was manipulated by Satan in an effort to make Job plead guilty to false charges and break his integrity.

17. What did the visiting trio do, and what did they not do for seven days and seven nights?

¹⁷ The trio made a big show of sympathy by weeping, ripping their garments, and tossing dust upon their heads. But then they sat with Job seven days and seven nights without uttering one word of comfort! (Job 2:12, 13; Luke 18:10-14) These three arrogant frauds were so bereft of spirituality that they had nothing comforting to say about Jehovah and his promises. Yet, they were drawing wrong conclusions and getting ready to use them against Job as soon as they had complied with the formalism of public grief. Interestingly, before the seven-day silence ended, the young man Elihu took a seat within hearing distance.

18. Why did Job seek peace in death?

¹⁸ Job finally broke the silence. Having drawn no comfort from the visiting trio, he cursed the day of his birth and wondered why his miserable life was being prolonged. He sought peace in death, not even imagining that he could ever have real joy again before he died, now that he was destitute, bereaved, and gravely ill. But God would not let Job be touched to the point of death.​—Job 3:1-26.

Job’s Accusers Attack

19. In what respects did Eliphaz accuse Job falsely?

¹⁹ Eliphaz spoke first in the three rounds of debate that further tested Job’s integrity. In his first speech, Eliphaz asked: “Where have the upright ever been effaced?” He concluded that Job must have done something evil to receive God’s punishment. (Job, chapters 4, 5) In his second speech, Eliphaz ridiculed Job’s wisdom and asked: “What do you actually know that we do not know?” Eliphaz implied that Job was trying to show himself superior to the Almighty. Ending his second assault, he painted Job as guilty of apostasy, bribery, and deceit. (Job, chapter 15) In his final speech, Eliphaz falsely accused Job of many crimes​—extortion, withholding bread and water from the needy, and oppressing widows and orphans.​—Job, chapter 22.

20. What was the nature of Bildad’s attacks upon Job?

²⁰ Taking the second turn in each of the three rounds of debate, Bildad usually followed the general theme set by Eliphaz. Bildad’s speeches were shorter but more biting. He even accused Job’s children of doing wrong and thus of meriting death. With faulty reasoning, he used this illustration: As papyrus and reeds dry up and die without water, so it is with “all those forgetting God.” That statement is true, but it did not apply to Job. (Job, chapter 8) Bildad classified Job’s afflictions as those coming upon the wicked. (Job, chapter 18) In his short third speech, Bildad argued that man is “a maggot” and “a worm” and is therefore unclean before God.​—Job, chapter 25.

21. Of what did Zophar accuse Job?

²¹ Zophar was the third to speak in the debate. In general, his line of thought followed that of Eliphaz and Bildad. Zophar accused Job of wickedness and urged him to put away his sinful practices. (Job, chapters 11, 20) After two rounds Zophar stopped talking. He had nothing to add in the third round. All along, however, Job courageously answered his accusers. For instance, at one point he said: “All of you are troublesome comforters! Is there an end to windy words?”​—Job 16:2, 3.

We Can Endure

22, 23. (a) As in Job’s case, how may the Devil go about trying to break our integrity to Jehovah God? (b) Though Job was enduring various tests, what might we ask about his attitude?

²² Like Job, we may face more than one trial at a time, and Satan may use discouragement or other factors in his efforts to break our integrity. He may try to turn us against Jehovah if we are having economic troubles. If a loved one dies or we experience ill health, Satan may seek to induce us to blame God. Like Job’s companions, someone might even accuse us falsely. As Brother Macmillan indicated, Satan may be ‘after us,’ but we can endure.

²³ As we have observed so far, Job was enduring his various trials. However, was he just barely enduring? Did he actually have a broken spirit? Let us see if Job had really lost all hope.

Job’s Reward​—A Source of Hope

“Jehovah . . . blessed the end of Job afterward more than his beginning.”​—JOB 42:12.

1. What does Jehovah do for his people, even when trials weaken them greatly?

JEHOVAH “becomes the rewarder of those earnestly seeking him.” (Hebrews 11:6) He also motivates his devoted people to witness courageously, even if trials have made them as weak as dead ones. (Job 26:5; Revelation 11:3, 7, 11) That proved true in the case of suffering Job. Though maligned by three false comforters, he was not silenced by fear of men. Rather, he gave a bold witness.

2. Though they have suffered persecution and hardship, how have Jehovah’s Witnesses come out of their trials?

² Many present-day Witnesses of Jehovah have suffered such great persecution and hardship that they have been near death. (2 Corinthians 11:23) Like Job, however, they have shown love for God and have practiced righteousness. (Ezekiel 14:14, 20) They have also come out of their trials determined to please Jehovah, strengthened to give a bold witness, and filled with genuine hope.

Job Gives a Bold Witness

3. What kind of witness did Job give in his final speech?

³ In his final speech, Job gave an even greater witness than he had previously given. He fully silenced his false comforters. With biting sarcasm, he said: “O how much help you have been to one without power!” (Job 26:2) Job extolled Jehovah, whose power hangs our earthly globe on nothing in space and suspends water-laden clouds above the earth. (Job 26:7-9) Yet, Job said that such wonders ‘are but the fringes of Jehovah’s ways.’​—Job 26:14.

4. What did Job say about integrity, and why could he express himself in that way?

⁴ Certain of his innocence, Job declared: “Until I expire I shall not take away my integrity from myself!” (Job 27:5) Contrary to the false charges hurled against him, he had done nothing to merit what had befallen him. Job knew that Jehovah does not hear the prayers of apostates but will reward integrity keepers. This may well remind us that soon Armageddon’s storm will hurl the wicked out of their place of power, and they will not escape God’s unsparing hand. Until then, Jehovah’s people will walk in their integrity.​—Job 27:11-23.

5. How did Job define true wisdom?

⁵ Imagine the worldly-wise trio listening as Job showed that man has used his skills to find gold, silver, and other treasures in the earth and in the sea. “But,” said he, “a bagful of wisdom is worth more than one full of pearls.” (Job 28:18) Job’s false comforters could not buy true wisdom. Its source is the Creator of the wind, the rain, the lightning, and the thunder. Indeed, the reverential “fear of Jehovah​—that is wisdom, and to turn away from bad is understanding.”​—Job 28:28.

6. Why did Job speak about his earlier life?

⁶ Despite his sufferings, Job did not stop serving Jehovah. Instead of turning away from the Most High, this man of integrity yearned for his former “intimacy with God.” (Job 29:4) Job was not bragging when he recounted how he ‘rescued the afflicted, clothed himself with righteousness, and was a real father to the poor.’ (Job 29:12-16) Rather, he was citing the facts of his life as a faithful servant of Jehovah. Have you built up such a fine record? Of course, Job was also exposing the falsity of the charges made by the three pious frauds.

7. What kind of person had Job been?

⁷ Job was laughed at by younger men ‘whose fathers he would not even have placed with the dogs of his flock.’ He was detested and spit upon. Gravely afflicted as he was, Job was shown no consideration. (Job 30:1, 10, 30) Because he was wholly devoted to Jehovah, however, he had a clean conscience and could say: “He will weigh me in accurate scales and God will get to know my integrity.” (Job 31:6) Job was not an adulterer or a schemer, and he had not failed to help the needy. Though he had been rich, he never trusted in material wealth. Moreover, Job did not engage in idolatry by giving devotion to inanimate things, such as the moon. (Job 31:26-28) Trusting in God, he set a fine example as an integrity keeper. Despite all his sufferings and the presence of false comforters, Job made a masterful defense and gave a splendid witness. His words having come to an end, he looked to God as his Judge and Rewarder.​—Job 31:35-40.

Elihu Speaks

8. Who was Elihu, and how did he display both respect and courage?

⁸ Nearby was the young man Elihu, a descendant of Nahor’s son Buz and thus a distant relative of Jehovah’s friend Abraham. (Isaiah 41:8) Elihu showed respect for older men by listening to both sides of the debate. Yet, he spoke courageously concerning matters about which they were wrong. For instance, his anger blazed at Job’s “declaring his own soul righteous rather than God.” Especially was Elihu’s wrath directed against the false comforters. Their statements seemed to exalt God but really reproached him by taking Satan’s side of the controversy. “Full of words” and moved by holy spirit, Elihu was an impartial witness of Jehovah.​—Job 32:2, 18, 21.

9. How did Elihu hint at restoration for Job?

⁹ Job had become more concerned with his own vindication than with God’s. In fact, he had contended with God. As Job’s soul drew close to death, however, there was a hint of restoration. How so? Well, Elihu was moved to say that Jehovah favored Job with this message: “Let him off from going down into the pit! I have found a ransom! Let his flesh become fresher than in youth; let him return to the days of his youthful vigor.”​—Job 33:24, 25.

10. To what extent was Job to be tested, but of what can we be sure in view of 1 Corinthians 10:13?

¹⁰ Elihu corrected Job for saying that there is no profit in taking pleasure in God by maintaining integrity. Said Elihu: “Far be it from the true God to act wickedly, and the Almighty to act unjustly! For according to the way earthling man acts he will reward him.” Job acted rashly in emphasizing his own righteousness, but he did so without adequate knowledge and insight. Elihu added: “Let Job be tested out to the limit over his replies among men of hurtfulness.” (Job 34:10, 11, 35, 36) Similarly, our faith and integrity can be fully proved only if we are ‘tested to the limit’ in some way. Nevertheless, our loving heavenly Father will not let us be tempted beyond what we can bear.​—1 Corinthians 10:13.

11. When sorely tested, what should we remember?

¹¹ As Elihu continued, he again showed that Job was laying too much stress on his own righteousness. Attention should be focused on our Grand Maker. (Job 35:2, 6, 10) God “will not preserve anyone wicked alive, but the judgment of the afflicted ones he will give,” said Elihu. (Job 36:6) No one can call God’s way to account and say that he has been unrighteous. He is more exalted than we can know, and his years are unsearchably endless. (Job 36:22-26) When sorely tested, remember that our ever-living God is righteous and will reward us for our faithful activities to his praise.

12. What do Elihu’s concluding expressions indicate about God’s execution of judgment on the wicked?

¹² While Elihu spoke, a storm was brewing. As it drew near, his heart began to leap and tremble. He spoke of great things done by Jehovah and said: “Do give ear to this, O Job; stand still and show yourself attentive to the wonderful works of God.” Like Job, we need to consider God’s wonderful works and fear-inspiring dignity. “As for the Almighty, we have not found him out,” said Elihu. “He is exalted in power, and justice and abundance of righteousness he will not belittle. Therefore let men fear him.” (Job 37:1, 14, 23, 24) Elihu’s concluding expressions remind us that when God soon executes judgment on the wicked, he will not belittle justice and righteousness and will preserve those fearing him as his reverential worshipers. What a privilege to be among such integrity keepers who acknowledge Jehovah as the Universal Sovereign! Endure as Job did, and never let the Devil draw you away from your blessed place among these happy throngs.

Jehovah Answers Job

13, 14. (a) Concerning what did Jehovah begin to question Job? (b) What points can be drawn from other questions that God asked Job?

¹³ How amazed Job must have been when Jehovah spoke to him out of the windstorm! That storm was an act of God, unlike the great wind Satan used to collapse the house and kill Job’s children. Job was speechless as God asked: “Where did you happen to be when I founded the earth? . . . Who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars joyfully cried out together, and all the sons of God began shouting in applause?” (Job 38:4, 6, 7) Jehovah plied Job with one question after another about the sea, its garment of cloud, the dawn, the gates of death, light and darkness, and the constellations. Job could say nothing when asked: “Have you come to know the statutes of the heavens?”​—Job 38:33.

¹⁴ Other questions indicated that before man was created and given dominion over the fish, fowl, beasts, and creeping things, God was providing for them​—without any human help or advice. Jehovah’s further questions cited such creatures as the wild bull, the ostrich, and the horse. Job was asked: “Is it at your order that an eagle flies upward and that it builds its nest high up?” (Job 39:27) Of course not! Imagine Job’s reaction when God asked him: “Should there be any contending of a faultfinder with the Almighty?” No wonder Job said: “Look! I have become of little account. What shall I reply to you? My hand I have put over my mouth.” (Job 40:2, 4) Since Jehovah is always right, if we should ever be tempted to complain against him, we should ‘put our hand over our mouth.’ God’s questions also magnified his superiority, dignity, and strength, as displayed in creation.

Behemoth and Leviathan

15. Behemoth is generally considered to be what animal, and what are some of its characteristics?

¹⁵ Jehovah next mentioned Behemoth, generally considered to be the hippopotamus. (Job 40:15-24) Remarkable for its huge size, great weight, and tough hide, this herbivorous animal ‘eats green grass.’ Sources of its power and energy are in its hips and the tendons of its belly. The bones of its legs are as strong as “tubes of copper.” Behemoth does not panic in torrential waters but easily swims against the tide.

16. (a) The description of Leviathan fits what creature, and what are some facts about it? (b) The power of Behemoth and Leviathan may suggest what about fulfilling assignments in Jehovah’s service?

¹⁶ God also asked Job: “Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook, or with a rope can you hold down its tongue?” The description of Leviathan fits the crocodile. (Job 41:1-34) It will not conclude a covenant of peace with anyone, and no wise human is so audacious that he would arouse this reptile. Arrows do not chase it away, and “it laughs at the rattling of a javelin.” Raging Leviathan makes the depths boil like a brewing pot of ointment. The fact that Leviathan and Behemoth were much more powerful than Job helped to humble him. We too must humbly acknowledge that we are not mighty in ourselves. We need God-given wisdom and strength to elude the fangs of Satan, the Serpent, and to fulfill our assignments in Jehovah’s service.​—Philippians 4:13; Revelation 12:9.

17. (a) How did Job “behold God”? (b) What was proved by the questions Job was unable to answer, and how can this help us?

¹⁷ Completely humbled, Job acknowledged his wrong viewpoint and admitted that he had spoken without knowledge. Yet, he had expressed faith that he would “behold God.” (Job 19:25-27) How could that happen, since no human can see Jehovah and live on? (Exodus 33:20) Actually, Job saw the manifestation of divine power, heard God’s word, and had his eyes of understanding opened to see the truth about Jehovah. Job therefore ‘made a retraction and repented in dust and ashes.’ (Job 42:1-6) The many questions that he had been unable to answer had proved God’s supremacy and had shown the smallness of man, even one as devoted to Jehovah as Job was. This helps us to see that our interests are not to be put above the sanctification of Jehovah’s name and the vindication of his sovereignty. (Matthew 6:9, 10) Our prime concern should be maintaining integrity to Jehovah and honoring his name.

18. What did Job’s false comforters need to do?

¹⁸ What, though, about the self-righteous false comforters? Jehovah could rightly have killed Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar for not speaking the truth about him, as Job had. “Take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job,” said God, “and you men must offer up a burnt sacrifice in your own behalf; and Job my servant will himself pray for you.” The trio had to humble themselves to comply. Integrity-keeping Job was to pray for them, and Jehovah found his prayer acceptable. (Job 42:7-9) But what about Job’s wife, who had urged him to curse God and die? It appears that she was reconciled to him by God’s mercy.

Promised Rewards Give Us Hope

19. In connection with Job, how did Jehovah show His superiority over the Devil?

¹⁹ As soon as Job quit worrying about his sufferings and was revived in God’s service, Jehovah changed matters for him. After Job prayed for the trio, God ‘turned back his captive condition’ and gave him ‘all that had been his in double amount.’ Jehovah showed His superiority over the Devil by turning back Satan’s disease-infecting hand and miraculously healing Job. God also pushed back the demon hordes and held them at bay by again putting a hedge about Job with His angelic encampment.​—Job 42:10; Psalm 34:7.

20. In what ways did Jehovah reward and bless Job?

²⁰ Job’s brothers, sisters, and former acquaintances kept coming to eat with him, sympathize with him, and comfort him over the calamity Jehovah had allowed to come upon him. Each of them gave Job money and a gold ring. Jehovah blessed the end of Job more than his beginning, so that he came to have 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 spans of cattle, and 1,000 she-asses. Job also came to have seven sons and three daughters, the same number he previously had. His daughters​—Jemimah, Keziah, and Keren-happuch—​were the prettiest women in the land, and Job gave them an inheritance among their brothers. (Job 42:11-15) Moreover, Job lived another 140 years and saw four generations of his offspring. The account concludes: “Gradually Job died, old and satisfied with days.” (Job 42:16, 17) The extension of his life was the miraculous work of Jehovah God.

21. How are we helped by the Scriptural account regarding Job, and what should we be determined to do?

²¹ The Scriptural account regarding Job makes us more aware of Satan’s devices and helps us to see how universal sovereignty is related to human integrity. Like Job, all who love God will be tested. But we can endure as Job did. He emerged from his trials with faith and hope, and his rewards were many. As Jehovah’s servants today, we have true faith and hope. And what a grand hope the Great Rewarder has set before each of us! Keeping in mind the heavenly reward will help anointed ones to serve God loyally for the rest of their life on earth. Many with earthly prospects will never die at all, but those who do will be rewarded with a resurrection in Paradise on earth, along with Job himself. With such genuine hope in heart and mind, let all who love God prove Satan a liar by standing firmly on Jehovah’s side as integrity keepers and staunch supporters of his universal sovereignty.