Job 2:7-10

Summary: Satan does as promised, putting a disease on Job's skin that gave him boils from head to toe, itchy lesions that needed painfully scraped so as not to get worse. Job's wife tells him to end his suffering by cursing God and dying. Job replies that he should accept all that God gives, whether it seems good to him or not. 

Response: Many, many people have argued over the guilt of Job's wife (she's fine, just doesn't want to see her husband suffer and is mourning the death of all her children at once) and over 'can God do evil' (Satan did it anyway, I hear you cry, but of course Job has no way of knowing that). But through all of this, Job has no "rebel sigh" (at least not yet). Lord, give me your peace, grace, and strength to smile through the day so that Your love is known to others. 

Job 2:1-6

Summary: Having taken Job's early possessions (therefore his social standing and legacy), Satan returns to God's presence only to hear God tell again of Job's perseverance. Satan (at least outwardly) shakes this off, giving another oath that Job would surely curse God if he suffered bodily harm. God offers Job to Satan, but on the condition that Satan now protects Job's life from ending. 

Response: Something something "move the goalposts." Both entities seem to keep their cool, but I love how God plays shrewd back, twisting Satan's words to fit His purposes. God,I know You have good planned for me even if it doesn't look it at the moment. Help me to trust You. 

Job 1:13-22

Summary: Satan gets to work. Through a series of messengers, Job hears of several calamities: his livestock are all captured, his servants are slain and, in what can only seem to him to be divine judgement, his sons and daughters are killed when the house they are in collapses. Job mourns, but does not sin in cursing God. 

Response: Now I know I probably would've failed this test. I would've at least asked God why a few hundred times by that point. Even in this earliest of stories, could this be the Holy Spirit propping Job up? I mean, I'm just dumbstruck by this effort. Lord, help me to trust you even half as much as this man. 

Job 1:6-12

Summary: Meanwhile, back at the ra- I mean, meanwhile, God holds an audience with other heavenly beings. Satan, an accuser, steps up, announcing he's been eagerly investigating Earth. God brings Job to mind, repeating the narrator's superlatives. Satan promises, under oath, that if Job were to lose all of his stuff, he would surely curse God to His face. God takes him up on this bet, giving Satan permission to take all of Job's things but not harm him directly. Satisfied for now, Satan is granted leave from God's presence and gets to work on his plan. 

Response: We're somewhere between courtroom drama and royal court intrigue here but, either way, the message is clear: God is the One calling the shots. Satan only acts within the limits God grants him. The accuser tries to weasel and connive his way to bits of power, but God here shows His wisdom. Also, I like how God shows off Job like a proud parent with a million pictures on His phone.

Quick aside, I have read a copypasta that, as you read the Bible often and put it into practice, you weaken Satan's power. If anything, this seems to imply the opposite. 

As you're opening the Bible, Satan's ears prick up. 

Turning its pages, he begins his investigation. 

As you study, he perfects plans and machinations. 

As breakthroughs happen, he mobilizes his prosecution. 

But!

You are not alone. 

Yes, Satan does gear up when you take the Bible seriously. The only reason it looks like he flees is not for you, little Mouse, but for the great God standing at your back. Yes, this is a Gruffalo reference. 

Job 1:1-5

Summary: Job is a pretty good dude. He is very blessed, with land and means and possessions and family and peace. Well, lack of war anyway. His seven sons have a habit of hosting parties, each one in turn, every day of the week, after which he purifies them before God just in case they sinned.

Response: Like any good teacher, Job didn't wait for trouble to respond to but prepared for trouble even if things looked okay. Not that he was prepared for what happened next (yes, I've read this before, hush), but that was better than a what a lot of early OT fathers seemed to do, finding their children in all sorts of messes. God, help me to watch for my kids. Help me to rejoice in my blessings while I have them, and to praise You for them.