August 20, 2026 - Too Many Words Are Folly

Psalms 82:1-8

Job 23:1-17

Job 24:1-25

Bible in a Year Through Song - Day 232 of 365 - Bible App

Job 23:3-6 NIV

[3] If only I knew where to find him; if only I could go to his dwelling! [4] I would state my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments. [5] I would find out what he would answer me, and consider what he would say to me. [6] Would he vigorously oppose me? No, he would not press charges against me.

It is striking to me how far Job has gone down a path of complaint compared to the beginning.

After all his children and possessions were taken away.

Job 1:20At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship 21and said:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked I will depart.

The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;

may the name of the Lord be praised.”

And after he was struck with painful soars.

Job 2:9 His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!”

10He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”

In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

This got me thinking about what happened in between. When his friends came to him, he poured out all that he was dealing with. His pain his suffering his questions. His friends then shared their words which he felt a need to respond to. Over and over again he dwelt on his pain and his justification and his thoughts and feeling which was encouraged and fueled by his friends. His words of complaint, their words of advice, his words in response, their words of correction, his words of defense and on and on. It made me think of Proverbs 10:19 – Sin is not ended by multiplying words, but the prudent hold their tongues.

And Ecclesiastes 10:14–12 says.

12Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious, but fools are consumed by their own lips. 13At the beginning their words are folly; at the end they are wicked madness—

14and fools multiply words. No one knows what is coming—

who can tell someone else what will happen after them? Says that a fool multiplies words even though no one knows what the future holds.

Neither Job nor his friends knew what was going to happen or what the future would hold. If they all would have kept their words to a minimum and centered them on who God is not what they thought about things, perhaps Job would have felt less despair.

Friends can support each other in suffering by being present and listening. When suffering is being expressed if we can listen to and not responded to. It can be more helpful because often our words are foolish in light of God's plan. It will allow us to hear what their true need is which will likely be to point them back to Jesus. When we are the one suffering and we are not being properly supported by those who we are with then our words should also be few. Instead of explaining, complaining and defending we should just take it to God. There have been times that I have started to share something that is going on in my life with someone and they are so busy listening to respond instead of to hear, that they start giving a response or adding their story to mine before I am done. And I know I have done the same. When that happens I usually just stop sharing. I consider it to be God's way of keeping me from talking too much. There is nothing that I am going to say to them that I haven't already said to God and that is enough for me. He is the one who knows what the future holds and he will always listen.