“Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.” (Job 23:12)

What was one of the Lord’s earliest commands to man? “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it” (Genesis 2:16-17). But Adam disobeyed this command and, in his shame, tried to hide from the Lord. Job was likely familiar with this narrative, even though he lived centuries before Moses, since he said, “If I covered my transgressions as Adam, by hiding mine iniquity in my bosom…” (Job 31:33).

So these words would have been among the “words of [God’s] mouth” that Job treasured and held in high regard. He tells his accusers that, unlike Adam, he follows God’s commands closely and has a higher esteem for God’s words than even the physical necessities of life. He valued his spiritual wellbeing and relationship with God over his physical wellbeing, “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26).

How would you rate your esteem of “the commandment of his lips”? King David shared Job’s attitude, saying, “Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments” (Psalm 119:6). Indeed, Jesus went 40 days without His “necessary food” before He quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 to the devil, saying, “It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God” (Luke 4:4). May we share their esteem for God’s words. BDT