What would Dr. House say to Job?

Dr. Greg House prides himself on being one of the best diagnosticians alive (FOX Mondays at 8 ct). He considers himself a great doctor, who has never had a case he can’t solve (although 3 people have died on his watch). What would happen if a self proclaimed atheist comes into contact with a broken man.

Dr. House always writes the symptoms on his white board (which always places room for a race joke with Foreman). So let’s go to the board.

Symptoms

Painful sores from head to toe (2.7; 7.5)

Disfigurement (2.12)

Afflicted by bad dreams and terrifying visions (7.13-14)

Deep rings around eyes (16.16)

Eyes were dim; weakness; skin and bones; no teeth (17.7; 19.20)

Bad breath (19.17)

Gnawing pain (30.17)

Skin peeling; turning black (30.28, 30a)

Fever (30.30b)

Job is in pretty bad shape: boils so bad that he scrapes himself with broken pottery (2.8), his best friends couldn’t even recognize him (2.12), and people spit at him and are appalled at his presence (17.6-8). This is a beaten and dejected man, who finds himself at the end of his rope. On top of all this he has a nagging wife (not really a symptom but still worth mentioning, see 2.9). All of these symptoms are because of Satan’s second visit to God in chapter 2.

What exactly are we looking at…obviously his body is shutting down. His body is dying. His skin is peeling and turning black. Blood flow is being shut down to his extremities. This causes extreme pain, which could even point toward a leprous condition which seems to be indicated by his living amongst the ashes. His dwelling alone in a nasty place could be because of his condition.

The symptom of bad breath could be anything from Job forgetting to brush his teeth to a symptom presenting because of a larger problem. Should his gnawing pain happen in his abdomen, it would be simple to assume that his bad breath is simply the effect of his abdomen dying. Literally speaking, he is rotting on the inside.

If we really wanted to combine a couple more symptoms: we could look at the deep rings around his eyes because of the lack of sleep that he is getting. He says that he is terrified at night by visions and dreams: could be night terrors. This also explains the weak eyes and the overall weakness that he distributes. Night terrors take place in stage 4 of sleep (the phase of sleep just prior to the REM cycle, where dreams occur). Night terror victims suddenly wake up sweating during this stage four sleep, thus preventing them from entering the REM cycle. During a study in which college students (they are the ones who most badly need the money, hence their willingness to volunteer) were awakened just as their body entered the REM sleep cycle. The study found that it was in REM sleep that the body really took care of itself and re-energized itself. Job obviously isn't getting the refresher that the REM cycle provides.

Ockham’s Razor is a theory that the simplest solution for a set of conditions is usually right. If this is true then we should be able to account for most of Job’s conditions with as few underlying ailments as possible. So with a couple ailments we have accounted for all of Job’s symptoms.

The same argument could be made for me, that Job made to his friends in Job 13.4: “You are worthless physicians, all of you!” But the overall statement can be made that Job is feeling this on every level. There is no way to hide his darkening skin. He feels the constant pain of his inner organs rotting. He finds no solace in sleep. Psychologically, he is worn out, isolated, and alone. His psyche and physiology is completely haywire.

But to what end; what was the purpose in Job’s suffering? The entire book of Job is centered on the question of love? In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Upon finishing creation, he made man in his own image. That image contained characteristics, personality, and overall understanding. God has the capacity for sacrificial love; but does man? There are a lot of things in life that are based on performance. Is man's love the same?

Satan comes to God in chapter 1 and proclaims God has babied Job. Satan charges Job with love based on performance. God has blessed Job; thus the reason for Job’s devotion, according to Satan.

However, the book of Job shows that man is capable of the same sacrificial love that God is capable of. Job shows that whatever the circumstances, man is capable of love. Job shows the ability of man to give love no matter the conditions. No matter the pain, agony, and soreness, man is still able to love without knowing all the answers. Aren’t you glad that Jesus was able to do that as well?