In this chapter, God shows Job what little acquaintance he had with the untamed creatures that run wild in the deserts and live at large, but are the care of the divine Providence.
1. The wild goats and the hinds, though they bring forth their young with a great deal of difficulty and sorrow, and have no assistance from man, yet, by the good providence of God, their young ones are safely produced, and their sorrows cast out and forgotten (v.1-4).
2. The free spirit of the wild ass (v.5-8),
3. The untameable strength of the unicorn (v.9-12),
4. The silly ostrich which lays her eggs in the sand wanders away from them, and does not stay near them to guard them, as most other birds do (v.13-18),
5. The horse which knows no fear but charges into the battle (v.19-25),
6. The wise eagle which builds her nest high up on the rocks (v.26-30).
The object is to show the infinite wisdom of God, and the utter incompetence of man to explain the mysteries of nature. God is telling Job this: “I know what is going on. How do the wild beasts and birds survive without the care of man? Do you think I would just leave you in this condition and not care about you?”
The lesson for us is this: God cares and provides. “Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?” (Matthew 6:26).
Yes, God knows and He cares. God is telling men not to worry too much about their lives: “Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” (Matthew 6:25).
The problem with us is that we worry too much. It is rightly said that for most of the time, the things we worry about do not happen. My grandfather would not believe a house can cost more than a hundred thousand dollars. Well, I got my house for more than that amount. I thought it won’t go higher but I was wrong; a house costs half a million bucks today. I don’t want to speculate how much it will cost when it’s my grandchildren’s turn to buy a house. Should I begin to worry for them?
Why do some worry so much? It is because of the lack of faith. Worry causes us to be fearful and lose faith in God: “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26). Some things we just have to leave them to God because they are not within our control. We cannot control what will happen tomorrow. We just need to continue to trust in God: “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3: 5-6).
God will take care of us. The animals in the wild survive without men’s help. They never have to attend school. They never have to worry about tomorrow. Yet they survive. God wants us to look at nature and trust in Him.
Let us seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness and He will provide for us (Matthew 6: 33). So, DON’T WORRY – HAVE FAITH IN GOD.
Jimmy Lau
Psa 119:97 Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.