Job 38:1-11 is the First Reading appointed for the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost in the Year of Mark. It is paired with the story of the stilling of the storm in Mark 4 and as such highlights God's sovereignty over all of creation. The Lord's opening line is the crux of it: "Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?" This is an indictment of our hubris, our insistence that we know better than God. This is a hard word that the preacher is called to share.
(The following questions have been developed to highlight the way the Word functions in the text, a fundamental concern of Law and Gospel preachers. These questions are best used in conjunction with other fine sets of questions which explore other issues. For more on this method and on Law and Gospel preaching in general, see my brief guide, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com or amazon.)
1. How does the Word function in the text? It is clear that the Law is at work here, calling into question Job's insistence that he knows best. (see 31:35-37) Job and his friends are surely those who "darken counsel by words without knowledge."
2. How is the Word not functioning in the text? Though numerous commentators have tried, it seems unlikely that a Word of Gospel can be found here, one that proclaims what God has done in Christ. Luther, in his commentaries, often lifts up 38:8-11 as evidence that God sets boundaries for chaos and evil, not allowing them to overwhelm us. This is certainly a gospel notion, but not one that is explicit here.
3. With whom are you identifying in the text? It is always important to identify with those addressed by the Word, and this text is no different: we are those who also darken counsel by words without knowledge.
4. What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text? The implicit call in this text is the call to repentance, to humility, and to a new posture before God. This is not the call to obedience, but to a renewal of faith.
5. What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text? Without a gospel word we shall have to supply the couplets from the vocabulary given. Some ideas: hubris/humility; ignorance/revelation.
6. Exegetical work: Biblical scholar Carol Newsom, in her commentary, The Book of Job: A Contest of Moral Imaginations, says that the simple summary of God's word here is "God is God, and Job is not." That can be viewed as either good news or bad news. It is good news in the sense that we don't have to pretend we are in charge anymore. It is bad news in the sense that our illusions are shattered. Having said that, it is always good when illusions are shattered. Stan Mast, in his online commentary notes Richard Rohr's similar take on God's speech. Rohr reportedly sums it up like this: "Aw, shut up, Job." Rohr goes on to say that when the Church tries to be the "answer box" it usually does more harm than good. One contextual note: Elihu's final line in his long rebuke of Job in chapters 32-37 ends with this line: "[God] does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit." (37:24b). Perhaps this is a hint of what is to come.
7. Consider the insights of the pioneers of the New Homiletic? Eugene Lowry always insisted that the work of the preacher was to bring the listeners from disequilibrium to equilibrium. Because this text is so much about disequilibrium it will be even more important here to bring a word of Gospel that provides the listener equilibrium.
Blessings on your proclamation!
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