Holy Fool

The next reference that we will cover in this series is found in the book of Job.  Job 7:9 is the first reference to sheol in this book of the Bible.  As a bit of background Job is in the wisdom group of the Bible.  Whether or not Job is a historical/literal book has been a debate, but the literary style and the theological content of Job lead me to place it more in the classification of allegory.  That is not to say that there could not have been a counterpart to Abraham in a similar time period that could have had these events befall them, but as I said there are some questions theologically that lead me to question it as a historical/literal book.

The first argument I would have is that it has never been classified as a historical reference, like the books of 1st and 2nd Kings.  The second is the familiarity and the ease with which God abides the presence of 'the accuser' of Satan in his throne room.  There is humor as God asks of Satan, "where did you come from?"  This is similar to the Adam and Eve after the fall when God asks, 'where are you?'  The dialogue and rebuttals are crafted in such a way that they deal with specific arguments around the place of suffering.  Indeed it's ability to neatly cover these arguments between Job and his friends, and summarize it with God's triumphant response at the end and Job's restoration portray a 'perfect ending' picture that is unique to a particular type of fable and allegory that was similar in literary form and structure to some other writings from the same time period. I don't say all of that to take away the 'inspiration' of the book, but rather to be honest and upfront that the literary context and style would ask us to take this book as allegory first, and historical record somewhere further down the list.  It is also important to remember that an allegory can be just as 'inspired' and revealing of God's nature than a historic-literal writing can.

Job is chock full of references to the place of the dead, to sheol.  Each time, as Job progresses further into despair and depression his understanding of sheol becomes darker and more hopeless.  He is projecting his current strife into his human based belief and understanding of the afterlife. Job 7:9 is part of Job's response to his friend Eliphaz which begins in chapter 4.  Eliphaz is exhorting Job to turn to God, so that God could ease his suffering.  However Job was righteous in the sight of God, he indeed had done nothing in need of a sacrificial offering.  Earlier we see a scenario which illustrates the example of suffering as judgment we alluded to in the last post.  When God removes his hand of protection, Satan does what is in his nature; he kills, destroys, and afflicts.

It is indeed hard to reconcile how/why God can let that happen, but I want to appeal again to the illustration of God's justice/judgment being like fire.  Throughout the book of Job, Job suffers immensely as God's protection is removed from him, but his fire is such that it does not consume or annihilate Job, but instead it refines him and brings glory to God.  I am jumping ahead a bit here though. In chapter 6, Job begins his response to Eliphaz.  Job asserts his right to lament his condition, God's protective hand has been removed from him.  It is important to realize that Job did not sin in this.  When you have been dealt a bad hand, when you have been taken down, when God's protective hand was not in place it is not sinful to mourn, lament, and curse your condition.  We have reversed this in our society, rather it is now a sin to not keep a stiff upper lip, to contend our 'fineness'.  How sad is it when we see someone is in obvious pain, and yet they contend their health?  Job embraces his suffering, he lives in it, and he mourns that God has not protected him; and yet he does not sin. As we progress through Job's response/lament into chapter 7 Job begins to turn his response from Eliphaz and to address God directly.

⁶“My days fly faster than a weaver’s shuttle.

They end without hope.

⁷O God, remember that my life is but a breath,

and I will never again feel happiness.

⁸You see me now, but not for long.

You will look for me, but I will be gone.

⁹Just as a cloud dissipates and vanishes,

those who ^jdie will not come back.

¹⁰They are gone forever from their home—

never to be seen again.

The first reference to 'hell' that we will review is found in Deuteronomy chapter 32.  Deuteronomy 32:22 is the exact reference.  In the New Living Translation (NLT) they refer to 'the grave' which is the translation of the Hebrew word sheol.

The book of Deuteronomy is the final writing of Moses, and is both a reminder of the covenant begun at Sinai, and also serves as a binding contract between God and the nation of Israel.  Almighty God promises to care and provide for Israel based upon their unwavering commitment to serving God alone.  Chapter 32 is an inspired song of consecration by Moses that reminds Israel of God's goodness and faithfulness, but also his soverignty and jealousy.  The stanza in which verse 22 is found is a verse that illustrates God's righteous judgment for a rebellious and idolotrous people.  In the verse he reminds his people that his power extends even to the grave, to the places of the dead.  There are no places in which God's judgment is not law.  Here is the stanza in context:

¹⁹“The Lord saw this and drew back,

provoked to anger by his own sons and daughters.

²⁰He said, ‘I will abandon them;

then see what becomes of them.

For they are a twisted generation,

children without integrity.

²¹They have roused my jealousy by worshiping things that are not God;

they have provoked my anger with their useless idols.

Now I will rouse their jealousy through people who are not even a people;

I will provoke their anger through the foolish Gentiles.

²²For my anger blazes forth like fire

and burns to the depths of the grave.

It devours the earth and all its crops

and ignites the foundations of the mountains.

²³I will heap disasters upon them

and shoot them down with my arrows.

²⁴I will weaken them with famine,

burning fever, and deadly disease.

I will send the fangs of wild beasts

and poisonous snakes that glide in the dust.

²⁵Outside, the sword will bring death,

and inside, terror will strike

both young men and young women,

both infants and the aged.

²⁶I would have annihilated them,

wiping out even the memory of them.

²⁷But I feared the taunt of Israel’s enemy,

who might misunderstand and say,

“Our own power has triumphed!

The Lord had nothing to do with this!” ’

Let's first gain an understanding of 'the grave' or sheol.  In the classic Jewish understanding of death everyone went to a shadowy, veiled, concealed existence somewhere below, in the depths, after they died.  There was no dichotomy of an immediate delivery of the soul to a heaven/hell.  In the Jewish understanding heaven was where God was, where God reigned from and where God reached into existence.  In the shared space of sheol the righteous awaited a promised resurrection in relative comfort, in 'Abraham's Bosom' while the unrighteous lived in a state of anguish, anxiety and unrest as they too awaited the resurrection.  Sheol was not thought of as 'eternal' or 'without end' but was a place of transition between death, resurrection and final judgment.  It was thought of to be 'below'.  In an ancient understanding there were 'levels' or strata of existence.  Earth was where mortals lived, somewhere below us was sheol and above us were the heavens from where God reigned.  Sheol was understood to be 'real' but a temporary place where people awaited God to resurrect and judge them.

In looking at verse 22 in context we must wrestle with the truth that our God is a jealous God, not a sinful jealousy, but a burning sense of justice.  When we attribute God's sovereignty to things that are not God it awakens his anger at the injustice that it does him.  God says he will 'rouse their jealousy through people who are not even a people.'  That is God's sovereignty of judgment extends beyond the bounds of his 'chosen' people.  God is establishing his ability to both bless, and remove his protection from whomever he chooses.  Evil events like famine and disease are not God vindictively punishing, it is God removing his protection.  To accept this belief it is important to understand that evil had entered the universe before man was created.  Also we must accept that God's judgment at times is letting the forces of evil do what is in their nature to do, which is death and destruction.  God's covenant is such that he protects and shields those that maintain the covenant by honoring him alone, if they break the covenant they are no longer protected from the evil that is being held back.

In verse 22 God says through Moses, 'my anger blazes forth like fire'.  It's important to notice the use of simile here.  'like fire' not 'fire'.  This reminds me of the 'burning bush' in which the bush was on fire but not consumed.  God's fire is one of justice, in that if the bush had been unrighteous in the site of God it would have been consumed, or 'annihilated' or 'wiped out' as is alluded to in verse 26, however the bush was not consumed, but made a symbol of God's righteousness and power.  When we are in covenant with God his presence, his anger, does not annihilate or consume, but instead transforms the object into something that resounds God's glory.  In verse 22 God asserts this 'flame' burns in the depths of 'the grave' that is his judgment is universal.

To our modern ears verse 25 burns in our minds.  As he speaks of his judgment extending to 'young men and women, both infants and the aged.'  This is a hard image to reconcile with Christ and his example.  We would affirm indeed that Christ is the best example we have of who God is, so we need to consider the context here.  God is speaking to a people that have broken their covenant, and as such the protection of God has been removed and his sovereign will is to let evil run its course.  If we, who are under covenant whether old or new, return to 'other god's' then we risk that evil will run it's course over even our children.

Again, in this modern day this concept burns in our minds.  How can a loving God let this happen, is a common question.  Indeed though we have to remember that we are not the sovereigns, we are the ones in need of protection.  The covenant of Deuteronomy is understood to be a suzerain-vassal treaty.  The suzerain-vassal treaty was a treaty between a very powerful king and a less powerful people.  God is the Suzerain, and we are the vassal.  Our world wants us to dictate our covenant as 'equals' but we are no equal for God.  We are not the dictators of our salvation, God is the sovereign and powerful.  This does not mean however that we are 'forced into' this treaty, we can take or leave it.  But if we do not accept God's covenant than we are not entitled to it's provisions and promises. Of note here though is that God establishes that he can protect even those who are not 'a people' the 'gentiles' from this evil.  Our God is stating that he can do what he wills, and he can protect whomever he wishes.  For theologians of the Wesleyan/Arminius thread this should burn in our ears a bit, that God could choose to shelter some from evil without their explicit ascent or formal agreement.  We have tended to place God's salvation in an either/or logic.  But a suzerain-vassal covenant is a both/and relationship.  God has the ability to both protect whomever he wishes, and in that choice to protect an 'outsider' still remain faithful to the contract he has set forth with his 'chosen people'.  This is because of his sovereign ability to show grace as he wishes.  We would add though that with the new covenant of Christ, God has extended the 'chosen people' status to all of humanity.

In summary, God is soverign and the dictator of the terms for our salvation and protection from evil, not us.  Whether we enter into the grave under the protection of God is within our willingness to abide his covenant, and our willigness to accept that we are not the dictates of our salvation, God is.  With the caveat that God can extend that protecting grace to whomever he chooses.