Job 22:21 - Getting to know God brings peace and blessings beyond conprehension.
Job 22:21; Getting to know God brings peace and blessings beyond
conprehension.
Job 22:21 (KJV) Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace:
thereby good shall come unto thee.
Job 22:21 (NIV) "Submit to God and be at peace with him; in
this way prosperity will come to you.
CONTEXT
Eliphaz's Third Response to Job
Make Peace with God
CROSS REFERENCES
1 Chron. 28:9 (KJV) And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God
of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a
willing mind: for the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all
the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found
of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.
Acts 10:36 (KJV) The word which God sent unto the children of
Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)
Ephes. 2:14 (KJV) For he is our peace, who hath made both one,
and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
Philip. 4:7 (KJV) And the peace of God, which passeth all
understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
John 17:3 (KJV) And this is life eternal, that they might know
thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
1 John 5:11, 12 And this is the record, that God hath given to
us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son
hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
COMMENTARY / APPLICATION
This verse begins Eliphaz' appeal to Job to mend his ways.
Eliphaz takes it for granted that Job is a sinner, wholly unreconciled
to God and unacquainted with Him. The appeal is beautiful but
incorrectly applied. [SDA Commentary]
Eliphaz makes one last attempt to reach Job. In many ways it is
a commendable call to repentance: Submit to God (v. 21), lay up
God's words in your heart (v. 22), return to the Almighty and forsake
wickedness (v. 23), find your delight in God rather than in gold (vv.
24-26), pray and obey (v. 27) and become concerned about sinners (vv.
29-30). [NIV SB]
An analysis of the "good" that results from communion with God
reveals that it includes the following: (1) pardon of sin, (2) assurance
of salvation, (3) peace of conscience, (4) victory over sin, (5)
support in trial, (6) joy of service, (7) citizenship in the kingdom of
glory. [SDA Commentary]
When the mind of man is brought into communion with the mind of
God, the finite with the Infinite, the effect on body and mind and
soul is beyond estimate. In such communion is found the highest
education. It is God's own method of development. "Acquaint now thyself
with Him" (Job 22:21), is His message to mankind. {AA 126.1}
If we would rightly "acquaint ourselves with God, and be at
peace," we must know him as he has revealed himself, not only in the
unity of his essence and subsistence, but also in the plurality of his
persons. God said, "Let us make man in our own image"-let not man be
content until he knows something of the "us" from whom his being was
derived. Endeavour to know the Father; bury your head in his bosom in
deep repentance, and confess that you are not worthy to be called his
son; receive the kiss of his love; let the ring which is the token of
his eternal faithfulness be on your finger; sit at his table and let
your heart make merry in his grace. Then press forward and seek to
know much of the Son of God who is the brightness of his Father's
glory, and yet in unspeakable condescension of grace became man for our
sakes; know him in the singular complexity of his nature: eternal God,
and yet suffering, finite man; follow him as he walks the waters
with the tread of deity, and as he sits upon the well in the
weariness of humanity. Be not satisfied unless you know much of Jesus
Christ as your Friend, your Brother, your Husband, your all. Forget not
the Holy Spirit; endeavour to obtain a clear view of his nature and
character, his attributes, and his works. Behold that Spirit of the Lord,
who first of all moved upon chaos, and brought forth order; who now
visits the chaos of your soul, and creates the order of holiness.
Behold him as the Lord and giver of spiritual life, the Illuminator,
the Instructor, the Comforter, and the Sanctifier. Behold him as,
like holy unction, he descends upon the head of Jesus, and then
afterwards rests upon you who are as the skirts of his garments. Such an
intelligent, scriptural, and experimental belief in the Trinity in Unity is
yours if you truly know God; and such knowledge brings peace indeed.
[Morning and Evening by Charles H. Spurgeon]
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