Out of the Storm
“Brace yourself like a man.”
It is a stern directive that sounds as though it is coming from a commanding officer or an overbearing father. In reality, it is the voice of the loving and compassionate God in Job 40:7.
My wife, Brooke, shared from this passage as she reflected on her mom’s recent passing. Job, a man of God, has been through the wringer. He has been stripped of all he had and subjected to great affliction. He has suffered mightily and is engaged with God in a conversation about his affliction.
In verse two, God asks Job, “Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him?
Job replies, “I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. I spoke once, but I have no answer—twice, but I will say no more” (v. 3-4).
God’s response is extremely direct: “Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm: ‘Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me’” (v. 6-7).
Your life has storms. It is a certainty of life—there will be hard times. This passage affords you two specific assurances and safe harbors amid those storms.
First, your God is in the midst of the storm. The phrase, “out of the storm” appears multiple times in Job. Unlike the miracle of Jesus calming the storms (which proves He can do it), God chooses to speak to Job from the midst of the storm. He is specifically declining to reduce the pressure of the moment and is instead demonstrating the truth that He—and He alone—can withstand the storm. It may have been the storm that got Job’s attention initially, but ultimately Job’s attention was fixed on the God who spoke out of the storm.
Next, God is God, and you are not. Even after Job concedes he is unworthy to question God or His purposes, the voice of the Lord is direct. Essentially, God says, “I will do the talking and ask the questions, and you will answer to me.”
It sounds like anger, but it is really just a plain reminder of Who is in control, and Who deserves your ultimate devotion.
When Jesus walked the Earth, He personally demonstrated the value of growing in wisdom and understanding (Lk. 2:52). But it is easy to conclude our primary goal is to know as God knows, when in reality He has asked that we simply surrender to obedience even when our understanding falls short (1 Sam. 15:22, Micah 6:6-8, Matt. 9:13).
God is God, and He calls to you from out of the storms of your life. He can calm the storms and He often will (I contend the story of Habakkuk grants you great latitude to petition God for such intervention). But ultimately, God is asking if you will submit to His Lordship. Will you surrender to His authority to do the final questioning? When He calls—no matter the ask—will you answer and obey?
“Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice” (1 Sam. 15:22).
The following article originally appeared in Thann’s “The Equipped” Weekly Newsletter. For more information on Thann’s weekly email, click here.