Well i gotta admit, i had not considered that at all. Can you share more thoughts and insights into Job "loving" those that sorely added to his misery profoundly and were most likely being used of Satan to further buffet and torture Job?
Another thought i'm pondering on.....why do you think that Satan took out all ten of Job's children but not his wife?
Thank you for your thoughtful post.
Just my op:
Job was sacrificing for his children ... not his wife. IOW, his children were faithlessly letting someone else sacrifice
for them. If they had been people of faith, they would have sought righteousness themselves and not relied upon another person to cover this for them. So by their faithlessness, they were basically at risk for the enemy to get at them. And by their lifestyle, they were already "playing in the world", so to speak.
It caught up with them. The first one's attacked by the enemy, were them. Job's servant's, I'm guessing they were killed as well because they knew of the children's actions and did nothing about it. That's a total guess. Job's loss of physical property and belongings ... Job already understood that "stuff is just stuff". He showed this by sacrificing his stuff for the benefit of others already. So when this stuff was taken, it was already something he was willing to sacrifice anyway.
Think of it like a soldier: if the enemy has access to something you love and are protecting, there is a risk that you will experience loss and/or suffering as long as the enemy has that access. With his children, there was access. With his stuff and things ... he probably already understood that it was just "stuff". And we see that when he DID experience the loss, his words and reactions reflect that he had some understanding of the risks involved by being a righteous person, and having family members who didn't have the same faith as him.
As far as why his wife and friends weren't attacked ... it could be because he wasn't sacrificing for them, and so they weren't looking to him to be their righteousness. Also, if his wife is being essentially an advocate for the enemy (attempting to get Job to do the very thing the enemy wanted him to do), why would the enemy attack her ? Why not keep her healthy and good to go, so she could be a puppet for him ? Likewise with Job's friends ... they spoke untruths. They were USEFUL to the enemy. Job's children appear basically useless and ignorant ... too busy living for the flesh, serving neither God nor the enemy but themselves. But Job's wife and friends, perhaps, had use.
In fact ... when it's all over with, God says that Job may sacrifice for his friends and that he would accept it. I don't believe this is because God "loves sacrifices" ... I think it's to try and teach his friends about the difference between Himself, and the enemy. In the story of Job, who is it that sought suffering, sacrifice, and death in order to prove something ? The enemy did. God didn't kill or harm anyone in this story. It was the enemy. God didn't even kill or harm those who spoke untruth's about Him. Yet the enemy provoked, was okay with causing suffering, loss, death, etc. Job's friends ... didn't understand "the sides". They didn't understand God, nor who or what was responsible for all the suffering and loss. The sacrifice of animals is like a way to teach a lesson about the differences between God and the enemy, without harming human beings in the process. To show what believing lies COSTS, and who it is that you open yourself up to who may request access to your life if you go that route.
And I think Job loved his wife and friends, and children ... by standing in the gap for them. He didn't blame them, accuse them, or see the work of the devil in their lives even to where he finally "gave up" and said, "Okay, to h e double hockey sticks with you all ! I'm done, leave me be !" He stuck it out, he suffered in front of them, put up with their insults and lies. Jesus did the same thing. He suffered in front of those whom spoke falsely about him, antagonized him, etc. Moses did the same thing: he asked God to not destroy the Hebrews whom he couldn't leave alone for ten minutes without them building a golden calf, or grumbling against him, or arguing, or disbelieving. Love does not keep a record of wrongs, it does not delight in evil, it always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres, always protects, etc. Even to the point of God dying in a body like ours, in a humiliating and horrific fashion by the hands of the ignorant, the children of the devil. He still loved them and asked for their forgiveness. So I think Job had a similar heart. I know that I'm not like Job, unfortunately ... I come to breaking points and I'm like, "Away with all of them !" unfortunately. Job, wasn't like that. Jonah, probably was like that. Peter, probably was like that. David, may have been a mix. But Job ... Job is a shining example of how God and His children behave. I think Job loved his wife and friends, and did not see certain sides of them because he was full of faith and hope towards them.
