1 February 2011

Job, Chapter One By Alan P Harrison (Guest Edition)


There lived in Uz a man named Job,
Whom of the things of God would probe,
This Job was blameless and upright,
There was no evil in his sight.

His seven sons were tall and true,
God gave to him three daughters too,
With many camels, ox and sheep,
His stature great, his wealth was deep.

Job’s children would enjoy a feast,
Their father thought it was the least,
That he could do to make him sure,
That in their hearts his kids were pure.

There came a day when angels, lo,
Met from above and from below,
To show themselves before the LORD,
Including one whom he abhorred.

God said to Satan, “Where’ve you been?”
He answered slyly, “Haven’t you seen?”
“I’ve been out walking on the earth,”
“To see what there was of much worth.”

And God said proudly, “See this guy,”
“He does not steal or kill or lie,”
“He conducts his life without blame,”
“His upright ways put you to shame.”

The snake replied, “I’ve seen this chap,”
“You’ve stretched his home across the map,”
“A shield of yours protects his place,”
“Remove it and he’ll curse your face”.

And staying in complete command,
The LORD said, “Fine, stretch out your hand”,
“Take some or all of what he owns”,
“But I warn you: do not touch his bones.”

So Satan went and had his way,
Job lost it all one fateful day,
Through violent wind and hateful foe,
This day became Job’s day of woe.

In agony he tore his robe,
But this was not the end of Job,
Instead of thinking himself dead,
He worshipped God and shaved his head.

And through the tears some heard him say,
“The LORD gives and He takes away,”
“I’ll leave my life with nothing stored,”
“Blessed be the name of the LORD”.

But through all this one cannot say,
That Job had cursed the LORD this day,
Though broken his resolve was strong,
And so Job proved the devil wrong.

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