3Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what is right? 4When you children sinned against him, he gave them over to the penalty of their sin.
Jumping to a conclusion is a dangerous thing. Job’s next friend, Bildad, now joins in the blame game. He claims to know for a fact that Job’s children were sinning and in fact were judged by God. Bildad might know that they sinned; he might have witnessed their sin, but there is no way he can know that what has happened is the result of God’s judgment. His assumption is that bad things happen to bad people. He speaks from a place of authority without actually possessing that authority. The error in his thinking is not with his premise in verse three, that God always does what is right. That is correct. His error happens when he looks at the present circumstance and thinks this is God’s final word on justice. His timeframe is too small. When bad things happen, sometimes they are a result of universal sin. The whole world has been negatively affected by sin, and sometimes people who don’t deserve those negative consequences receive them anyway. But justice has a timeframe much longer than these moments on this earth. Often justice does not happen here. But Bildad does not leave it there. He makes it very personal for Job. He points his finger at Job’s children and says, “Your kids got what they deserved.” He becomes judge, jury and executioner. He claims to have God’s perspective, a fatal claim. So next time you are tempted to judge, remember Bildad. He claimed to speak for God, but his claim was nothing more than an empty boast.
The Arnold Journey 