Abraham and Job both had incredible faith. God either tested or allowed the faith of both men to be tested. Abraham was willing to give up the one thing he had been waiting for his entire life. He was willing, with his own hand, to destroy the very thing that God had promised him; the one person upon which he had placed all his hopes and dreams.
Job did not have a choice. Job was a godly man, who cared for his family more than anything else, excluding his relationship with God. God allowed this to be taken from him suddenly and without warning.
Which trial would be more difficult? For Abraham, he had to make the choice between God and God's promise, Isaac. This choice must have been excruciating to make, especially since he had a few days to think about it. After he made the choice, he had to kill Isaac with his own hand. Yet he still had a degree of control, he could have refused to sacrifice Isaac to God.
On the other hand, Job had no choice, he was a victim of circumstances and had absolutely no control over what happened to him. He was completely powerless and not only did he lose his family, he lost all his possessions and his health as well. Once one loses their health, it makes it infinitely more difficult to make right decisions.
Both men kept their faith and did not deny God what he asked for. Both men were rewarded similarly, but differently. Abraham was allowed to keep that which we was willing to give up. The ram appeared and Isaac lived. God gave Job his health back and another family.
It seems to me that Abraham's reward was greater than Job's. Abraham had surrendered Isaac to God but received him back. Abraham's joy must have been even greater than when he first received Isaac. Yes, Job received another family, but he still had to deal with the memories of his first family and the emotional scars of his trial. He did not receive that which he lost, but replacements. I wonder if Abraham's greater reward is an indication that his trial was greater?
More on Abraham's trial coming soon...
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2 comments:
Maybe one should consider also what Job would have chosen given the same kind of choice as Abraham. He was a strong man of faith, like you said, and may have been a large factor in making a choice.
In the same token, it may have been more difficult for Job because he actually did lose something, whereas Abraham only almost lost something. Had God allowed Abraham to follow through with the act, I think his loss would have been greater.
Yeah, I too wonder what Job would have done if God gave him the choice he gave Abraham. In the first couple chapters of Job it mentions how he would make sacrifices for them after they would feast just in case they did anything wrong while they were drinking. With that kind of sacrificial love I wonder if he would have chosen to somehow try and take the punishment upon himself instead of letting anything bad befall his children.
God never tests us beyond what we can handle and I wonder if Job, as great a man as he was, would have been able to withstand such a test. I guess we'll never know.
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