Thy Strong Word — Job 29: Job Grieves the Life He Lost

Have you ever caught yourself longing for the “good old days”? That’s exactly where we find Job as he reminisces about a time when he was honored in his community, when God’s favor felt almost tangible, and his counsel was eagerly sought by everyone around him. But those days now seem heartbreakingly distant. In this chapter, we hear the ache of a man desperate to reclaim a lost sense of blessing—and we’re reminded how quickly life can turn upside down.

The Rev. Doug Griebenaw, Mission Advocate at KFUO, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study Job 29.

Why do the righteous suffer? That’s the burning question at the heart of the book of Job—one of the most profound and challenging books in all of Scripture. From a Lutheran perspective, Job’s story isn’t just about a man enduring unimaginable hardship; it’s about wrestling with God’s will, grappling with well-meaning but misguided advice, and ultimately finding comfort in God’s grace rather than human understanding. As Job’s friends offer simplistic answers, Job demands the truth, and God’s response reminds us of His infinite wisdom and mercy. Through it all, we see glimpses of Christ—the truly innocent sufferer—who redeems our pain and points us to the cross, where suffering meets salvation. Join us as we journey through Job, confronting tough questions about faith, suffering, and God’s mysterious ways with hope grounded in Christ alone.

Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: thystrongword@kfuo.org.

Thy Strong Word is graciously underwritten by the Lutheran Heritage Foundation. Through the mission gifts of people like you, LHF translates, publishes, distributes and introduces books that are Bible-based, Christ-centered and Reformation-driven. Learn more at lhfmissions.org.

Job 29

Job’s Summary Defense

29 And Job again took up his discourse, and said:

²“Oh, that I were as in the months of old,
    as in the days when God watched over me,
³when his lamp shone upon my head,
    and by his light I walked through darkness,
⁴as I was in my prime,^[a]
    when the friendship of God was upon my tent,
⁵when the Almighty was yet with me,
    when my children were all around me,
⁶when my steps were washed with butter,
    and the rock poured out for me streams of oil!
⁷When I went out to the gate of the city,
    when I prepared my seat in the square,
⁸the young men saw me and withdrew,
    and the aged rose and stood;
⁹the princes refrained from talking
    and laid their hand on their mouth;
¹⁰the voice of the nobles was hushed,
    and their tongue stuck to the roof of their mouth.
¹¹When the ear heard, it called me blessed,
    and when the eye saw, it approved,
¹²because I delivered the poor who cried for help,
    and the fatherless who had none to help him.
¹³The blessing of him who was about to perish came upon me,
    and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.
¹⁴I put on righteousness, and it clothed me;
    my justice was like a robe and a turban.
¹⁵I was eyes to the blind
    and feet to the lame.
¹⁶I was a father to the needy,
    and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know.
¹⁷I broke the fangs of the unrighteous
    and made him drop his prey from his teeth.
¹⁸Then I thought, ‘I shall die in my nest,
    and I shall multiply my days as the sand,
¹⁹my roots spread out to the waters,
    with the dew all night on my branches,
²⁰my glory fresh with me,
    and my bow ever new in my hand.’

²¹“Men listened to me and waited
    and kept silence for my counsel.
²²After I spoke they did not speak again,
    and my word dropped upon them.
²³They waited for me as for the rain,
    and they opened their mouths as for the spring rain.
²⁴I smiled on them when they had no confidence,
    and the light of my face they did not cast down.
²⁵I chose their way and sat as chief,
    and I lived like a king among his troops,
    like one who comforts mourners.

Footnotes

Job 29:4 Hebrew my autumn days

Rev. Dr. Phil Booe

Native North Carolinian Rev. Dr. Phil Booe serves pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, and host of Thy Strong Word on KFUO Radio. His parishioners probably think he can’t teach Bible study without a mug of coffee in his hand, and he’ll always be happy to eat a plate of sushi. When he’s not shepherding his flock or teaching on the radio, you might find him watching bad movies from the 50s, 60s, and 70s, and especially binging RiffTrax and MST3K episodes. Some day he’d love to travel to the Lutheran homeland in Germany, but for now he spends time in Minnesota with his wife, son, daughter, and cat, and looks forward to Holy Week every year.