Job’s Physical Affliction

Satan did everything possible to verify his hypothesis that Job was serving God only because God had blessed him. In one dark day, he took away Job’s children and his wealth. But despite his very real grief and agony in the midst of these afflictions, Job “holds fast to his integrity,” as God puts it. In other words, Job has not cracked as Satan said he would. He recognizes God’s right to deal with him as He pleases, and continues to worship and serve Him despite his pain.

But Satan isn’t finished. He believes that God has unfairly stacked the deck by denying him the ability to afflict Job in his body. “Stretch out Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will surely curse You to Your face!” the Devil says to God. With that, God agrees to allow Satan to test Job with physical affliction. And so Job is covered with painful boils from his head to his feet, and sits down in an ash heap to scrape them with a piece of pottery. He is in deep misery, probably crying and whimpering because of his pain.

This is misery of a different kind. Humans are psychosomatic creatures—we are soul-body beings. Another way to express this truth is to say that there are two dimensions to our being—the spiritual and the physical. The loss of possessions or loved ones, which Job already has experienced, causes pain in the soul, such as grief, anguish, and sorrow. But it is something else again to suffer bodily pain, especially chronic, lingering pain. This is the affliction Satan is bringing upon Job now.

But still Job does not break. He simply will not question God’s power or lovingkindness. Even his wife notices this steadfast refusal to lash out at God. Perhaps because it breaks her heart to see him so destitute and miserable, she gives him some very bad advice: “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!” She can see no point in Job putting himself through this misery. In her mind, it would be better for him to sacrifice his integrity and find relief from his pain in death. But Job rejects this counsel categorically, saying his wife is speaking like a “foolish woman” in giving such advice. His conclusion: It would not be right to joyously take God’s blessings but complain if, for His own reasons, He chooses to send affliction. Thus, in all his misery, Job does not “sin with his lips.”