Marked for the Sword
He does not believe that he will return out of darkness, and he is marked for the sword. He wanders abroad for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’ He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand; distress and anguish terrify him; they prevail against him, like a king ready for battle.
Job 15:22-24
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Marked for the Sword
The fate of the wicked is not an envious one. Eliphaz continues to paint a very vivid picture of the life of the wicked. His hope is that Job will see his life in the portrait and repent of his wickedness and receive restoration. Eliphaz warns Job that his life is marked for the sword, that is to say, death is in his future because of his sin. This of course is true. As Paul tells us, “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23a). Yet what Job’s friend does not recognize is that death come to all, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). This truth is not a license to do as we please since wea re all bound for the grave. It is however a call to repentance. This knowledge of the Law shows us our sin and our complete inability to save ourselves from its deadly consequences. It drives us to recognize our need for a Savior outside of ourselves. This is where the Gospel of Jesus Christ sooths the convicted soul. For as we know, “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). We are rescued for the condemnation of the Law and our heads are pulled of the chopping block, as we are no longer marked for the sword. Instead, we are marked for glory, we are marked for salvation. In your Baptism God chose you as His child, “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:4-7).
Job 15:22-24
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Marked for the Sword
The fate of the wicked is not an envious one. Eliphaz continues to paint a very vivid picture of the life of the wicked. His hope is that Job will see his life in the portrait and repent of his wickedness and receive restoration. Eliphaz warns Job that his life is marked for the sword, that is to say, death is in his future because of his sin. This of course is true. As Paul tells us, “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23a). Yet what Job’s friend does not recognize is that death come to all, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). This truth is not a license to do as we please since wea re all bound for the grave. It is however a call to repentance. This knowledge of the Law shows us our sin and our complete inability to save ourselves from its deadly consequences. It drives us to recognize our need for a Savior outside of ourselves. This is where the Gospel of Jesus Christ sooths the convicted soul. For as we know, “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). We are rescued for the condemnation of the Law and our heads are pulled of the chopping block, as we are no longer marked for the sword. Instead, we are marked for glory, we are marked for salvation. In your Baptism God chose you as His child, “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:4-7).
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2026
January
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