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Job 37:8
8 Then the beasts [chay] go [bow'] into [bamow] dens ['ereb], and remain [shakan] in their places [ma`ownah]. KJV-Interlinear
8 'Then the beast goes into its lair, And remains in its den. NASB
Helplessness is the theme, and even when the winter sets in, God protects the animals during times when food is scarce.
Some animals migrate to warmer climates. Some animals move into dens and hibernate for the season.
But when the spring thaw comes around again, as it does each year, animal life leaps into abundance each year as it has for thousands of years.
Animals do not possess the intellect of man. Animals cannot plant or plan for bad times. Animals are dependent totally on nature, and the weather, and the seasons. They have no control over anything in nature. They have no control over anything in life.
Likewise, man has no similar controls in life, despite his presumption that he has. Man has no ability to control or even manage the climate, despite his presumption that only his actions will somehow alter climate behavior.
Not to say that we should do nothing. Being responsible and innovative is a fundamental attribute of Christianity. And often times, high prices and circumstances drive mans innovation out of necessity. For example the high prices of oil are serving as a catalyst for driving research into alternative sources of energy.
When the price of a barrel of oil was only four dollars some forty years ago, there wasn't much incentive to pursue extremely expensive alternatives. But today, that situation has changed.
You can argue that politics and activists are partly to blame for the high prices, but all of that is irrelevant. The situation we have today is what we have, and unless new oil is discovered, the current reserves will run out in thirty or forty years. Needless to say, energy prices are only going to get worse. That will make everything else in life cost more. So tighten your belts.
Helplessness? What will you do when gas prices are ten times what they are today? What will you do when you get into an accident and become disabled? What will you do when life pushes you into the corner of helplessness?
And here Elihu asks that question, in so many words. When will you realize that your only hope is God, and that your only access to God is through your daily study?
Of course we can always look to elected leaders for 'change.' But what are they are going to change, or how will they make their changes? Who is really going to pay the price for change? You are.
Don't become the fool who follows the leader of fools. Your spiritual life is your only survivable path through the inevitable trail that history is going to take us all. Let God manage it and you, through His Word.
