Bernard and Job

Bernard finishes cleaning the windows at veterinarian Traci Mulligan’s home and hears about her daughter Lisa’s latest rescued pet: an old, toothless, flea-covered dog named Wolf. Lisa and Wolf have become inseparable. As Traci speaks, they hear a terrible noise outside. Nick has been practicing driving and has accidentally backed into the dog. Although he insists he never saw Wolf and did not hit him on purpose, Lisa knows Nick has never liked the dog and angrily refuses his help.

While Traci examines Wolf, Lisa complains that everything has gone wrong. She has lost her homework, had her backpack stolen, and now may lose her dog. Bernard says her troubles remind him of Job, a righteous and prosperous man in the Old Testament. Job lives in the land of Uz with seven sons, three daughters, great herds, and many servants. He takes his faith seriously enough to offer sacrifices for his children in case they have sinned during one of their celebrations.

In heaven, God points to Job as a man who fears Him and turns away from evil. Satan argues that Job is faithful only because God has protected and prospered him. He claims Job will curse God if his blessings disappear. God permits Satan to test that claim by taking everything Job owns, but He forbids Satan to touch Job himself.

Disaster follows with horrifying speed. Raiders steal Job’s oxen and donkeys and kill the servants caring for them. Fire destroys his sheep and more servants. Other raiders seize his camels. Then a mighty wind collapses the house where his sons and daughters are feasting, killing them all. Yet Job does not curse God. In his grief, he recognizes that he entered the world with nothing and will leave it the same way, and he continues praising the Lord.

Satan next argues that Job will surrender his faith to save his own life. God allows him to attack Job’s body but not kill him. Painful sores cover Job from head to foot, leaving him sitting in ashes and scraping himself with broken pottery. His wife urges him to curse God and die. Job refuses, asking whether people should accept good from God but reject every trouble.

Job’s friends Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu come to see him. At first they grieve silently beside him for seven days and nights. Once they begin talking, however, the discussion stretches on and on. Job cries out over his misery and asks God why he has become a target. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar repeatedly assume that suffering must be punishment for secret sin. They urge Job to confess, while he insists that he has committed no offense to explain his ruin and demands that God show him what he has done.

Elihu finally condemns both sides. He is angry that the others cannot answer Job, but he also declares that Job has sinned through his proud accusations against God. God understands and administers justice even when He does not answer immediately, and He does not have to reshape the universe around one person’s demands.

Before Bernard can finish, Traci brings heartbreaking news: Wolf’s age and injuries have been too much, and the dog has died. Lisa calls Nick a murderer and accuses him of striking Wolf deliberately. Nick protests that it was an accident and runs away. Later, Bernard finds Lisa hiding in the barn loft. By pretending to slip from the ladder, he draws out her natural compassion, then gently points out that compassion has become mixed with self-righteousness. Like Job, she is so certain of her own goodness and judgment that she has begun accusing others - and even God - without understanding everything.

Bernard resumes Job’s story. God speaks from a whirlwind and challenges Job to explain the foundations of the earth, the boundaries of the sea, the coming of morning, the storehouses of snow and hail, and the laws that govern the heavens. Job cannot answer. God asks why Job condemns divine justice merely to prove himself right and whether Job possesses the strength to humble every wicked person and save himself. Confronted with the vast difference between God’s knowledge and his own, Job admits that he has spoken about wonders he does not understand and repents in dust and ashes.

God forgives Job and restores his property with even greater flocks and herds. He blesses Job with ten more children, and Job lives another 140 years to see four generations of his family. Lisa understands that hardship may come through evil, through other people, or through her own actions, but God remains in control even when she cannot see the reason. Her task is to trust Him instead of putting Him on trial.

Nick returns with a litter of free puppies, hoping they may help after Wolf’s death. Lisa knows they cannot replace Wolf, but she realizes she can grieve for him and still love new animals. Bernard reminds her that Nick is hurting too. Lisa apologizes for treating him cruelly and lets him choose a puppy of his own. Nick names his new dog Job, giving both children a lively reminder of the faith and humility they need when life hurts.