Introduction
The book of Job is a book that teaches us many things, a rich poetry that recounts the suffering of a man who he himself considered unjust. However, every time we go to it we always find profound revelations. Job exclaimed how he felt, he wanted to expose his complaint before God, but he knew that before Him he was completely exposed.
Job understood that there was no way to pretend to be innocent, because he would always be pointed out as a sinner and guilty (Job 9:30-32). Did you know that:
- Sin distances us from God, it distances us from his presence.
- Man is guilty of all charges; the sentence is present.
- Sometimes we suffer and we don't know why.
Job was broken, confused and in the midst of pain he understood something: "God is holy... I am a man... who can bring us together?". Then he utters a desperate cry: "There is no referee between us!". Unknowingly, Job was prophesying one of humanity's greatest needs: We need a mediator, an Advocate.
1. Job Cries for an Arbiter
The King James version takes from the Hebrew the word "Arbitrator" or "Daysman", which is said Mokíaj (מוֹכִיחַ): to correct, resolve a conflict, decide between two parties, reconcile a dispute.
- Job was crying out for someone to mediate in this complicated situation. God is holy and His character does not allow Him to tolerate sin. Someone was needed to reconcile man to God (1 Timothy 2:5-7).
- The answer took a few thousand years to arrive, until Jesus Christ, the only mediator, appeared. There is no one else.
- That's why Job says: "Let him lay his hand on both of us". In the Hebrew mentality, this meant having the authority to reconcile two feuding parties.
- Job was saying: "I need someone with authority before God and who also understands me". Christ suffered and was tempted, so He can sympathize with our weaknesses (Hebrews 4:15).
2. God's Response to Job's Cry
Job believed that there was no arbitrator, but God answered that there is. In Greek, the word "Arbitrator" is translated as Mesites, which means "mediator, conciliator, guarantor."
a. The Mesites as Conciliator
- The Greeks understood this idea very well: when two people were at enmity, they appointed a Mesites (mediator) to advocate for both causes and remove the anger of both.
- Christ reconciled us to the Father (2 Corinthians 5:18-19). God's wrath rises against sin, but Christ took our place on the cross to cleanse the sinner of his corrupt nature (Hebrews 9:26-28).
- Jesus did not come to condemn us, he came to reconcile us.
b. The Mesites as Surety (Roman Perspective)
- The Romans had another even more powerful image: a Mesites could be a GUARANTOR, SURETY or SPONSOR. When someone had a debt that could not be paid, another man could say, "I will answer for him." If the debtor defaulted, the guarantor paid.
- We had an impossible debt with God: sin, guilt, condemnation. We couldn't pay. Christ appeared before the Father and said: "I answer for them". He is our Surety.
3. Why can only Jesus be the Referee?
Because He is the only one that can represent both sides perfectly.
- As True God: He represented the Father. "He who has seen me has seen the Father" (John 14:8-9).
- As True Man: He knows us and can represent us humanly. That is why he fulfilled Job's requirement to "lay his hand on both".
Conclusion
Christ is my Referee. The Hebrew announced it (mokiach). The Greeks understood him as a reconciler (mesites). The Romans saw him as a surety. The Gospel revealed him as Jesus Christ.
Irenaeus of Lyon described Jesus with these words: "hominibus ostendens deum, deo autem exhibens hominem" (He showed God to men, and he exhibited men before God).
Do you have any cause or impossible situation? Bring your complaint to Jesus and ask forgiveness for your sins (1 John 2:1). Job had no one to plead his cause at the time, but now, at this very moment, there is Christ who pleads for you.