It’s been said that God gave satan permission to attack Job.  In other words, God set the devil loose on Job like a rabid dog.

This lie has been taught for years and has actually wreaked havoc with people’s understanding of God’s divine nature.  God has never chosen the curse for anyone, never in the history of the world has he ever put someone in satan’s hands.  God did not send the devil into Job’s life to test his faithfulness.  Let’s take a look at what really happened to Job.

Job was a man blessed in every way by God.  He was fruitful, he multiplied and he had dominion.  He reverenced God and steered clear of evil and he prospered in every way.  He had a wife and beautiful family – 7 sons and 3 daughters.  His finances had multiplied to the point where he was the wealthiest man in the east.

However, at some point, Job stepped out of faith and into fear..  He began worrying about his children sinning against God and instead of making his sacrifices in faith, he was making them in fear and unbelief.  Instead of having God’s faithfulness on his  mind while he was making his sacrifices, he had FEAR on his mind and eventually generated such terror in his life that he said “the thing which I FEARED has come upon me ….”  Job 3:25

Job was walking in FEAR concerning his children when he made statements such as this:  “It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.”  Job 1:5

Job’s FEAR, DOUBT and UNBELIEF is what opened the door to satan’s attack.  Job once had a hedge of protection around him because of his faith and obedience to God.  Satan knew that the only way he could attack Job was if that hedge of protection was destroyed.  Fear, doubt and unbelief destroyed Job’s hedge of protection.

The same is true for believers today.  Those of us who walk in faith and obedience to God’s Word have a supernatural hedge of protection around us with is impenetrable by satan and demonic forces.  However, one iota of sin (anything which is not of faith is SIN), can open the door to the enemy’s attacks.

Therefore, God did not ‘turn Satan loose” on Job.  In Job 1:12, the Lord told Satan “behold (look and see) all he has is in your power ….”  God was saying to the devil that “Job has already opened the door to you.”  Job had already broken down his protective edge with his own fear.  He had already put himself into the devil’s hand.  Once the devil realized Job had crippled the power of God’s blessings in his life, he went after Hob and caused all kinds of trouble.  He killed Job’s children.  Killed his cattle. Stripped him of his wealth and his health.  Then he brought Job’s friends around to tell him that God did it all to him.  All of this was designed to get Job to curse God.  But “In all things, Job did not sin with his lips.” Job 1:22, Job 2:10

Satan was successful in getting Job’s wife to side with him.  However, Job would not sin or charge God with any wrongdoing.  When one of Job’s friends, after observing the entire melee, rose up and preached some faith into Job and in the process Job stepped back into the place of faith and compassion.  Job believed God, loved his friends and prayed for their healing.  This brought the hedge of protection back in operation in Job’s life.  it destroyed the disease and destruction and reversed the effects of the curse satan had brought on Job.

The blessing of God went back to work creating the conditions of the garden of Eden around him, restoring everything he had lost and then doubling it.  Job ended up twice as strong in every way as he had before.

The blessings of the Lord makes rich and adds no sorrow.  Proverbs 10:22