Contemplative Bible Reading

Job 30:1 (New International Version)

But now they mock me,
men younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to put with my sheep dogs.

The book of Job is filled with eloquent speeches, and those speeches contain countless wonderful phrases on which to contemplate. I could comment on nothing but such phrases for a year or three.

Here is one from Job himself. He laments how these young men are making fun of him in his misery. He thinks little of those young me. He thinks little of their fathers. Job wouldn’t have put their fathers with his sheep dogs as his sheep dogs were at least good at herding sheep.

There must be times when God thinks of me this way – not even as valuable to Him as a good sheep dog. I guess I take that back. God is gracious in ways and means that I cannot fathom. Maybe if I were God, I would look down on lots of people as being less than sheep dogs. That is one of the many reasons I am thankful that God is God and I am me. He thought enough of me to send his son to die for me. For that, and many other reasons, I am eternally grateful.