The Bible tells us that Job continually made the same sacrifice for his children. The sacrifice was to be made only once. Because he did it continually, he sacrificed in unbelief instead of faith; as a result, the thing he feared came upon him (Job 3:25).

Since Job was not aware of a personal devil, he naturally believed everything that happened to him, whether good or bad, came from God. That's why Job made the statement, "The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away..." (Job 1:21). He had no knowledge that Satan was the thief; he thought God was!

We understand that Job finally realized the truth of his plight by the statement he made in Job 42:3, "...therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not." Job had begun to see that God was not the cause of his trouble. When Job made a sacrifice in faith for his three friends, the Lord turned Job's captivity and gave him twice as much as he had before (Job 42:10). Job's suffering, according to Bible scholars, only lasted about 9 months. After that, Job lived 140 more years, according to Job 42:16.

The year of his testing was about 1845 B.C., and if Job was written during Job's life, it was probably written between 1843 and 1703 B.C.

Through all of his life, Job was safe until he feared and lost his faith. And it wasn't until his faith was restored that God was able to bless him again. The shield of faith is the only protection from Satan that Job had, or that anyone else has (Ephesians 6:16). When our shield of faith is down, Satan is able to devour us (1 Peter 5:8). God leaves the choice up to us - we can choose life or death, blessing or cursing (Deuteronomy 30:19).

If you want to choose life and blessing as Job realized he had to, then pray this prayer of dedication:

Father, I come before You, in the Name of Jesus, and I choose life today! I will walk in faith and not in fear. Because the Lord is on my side, I will not fear what any man can do to me. Father, in the Name of Jesus, I ask You to open my eyes to any hidden areas of fear in my life.

Lord, Your Word says that faith comes by hearing the Word of God, and I will build up my faith today by reading Your Word and acting upon it. Thank You, Father, for the hedge of protection that You bring in response to my faith. Thank You that through the righteousness of Jesus I can confidently trust in Your peace and safety for my life and home knowing that Your angels are always on guard. I believe today! In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Prayer References: Deuteronomy 30:19; 2 Corinthians 5:7; Psalm 118:6; Romans 10:17; Job 1:10; Isaiah 32:17-18 (The Amplified Bible); Psalm 34:7, 91:11.