Happy is the Man Whom God Correcteth

Job 5:17, “[17] Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty:”

This is a very interesting verse. It says, “Happy is the man whom God correcteth.” I don’t know anyone who likes being corrected, but that is not what this verse is saying. It is not talking about being happy WHILE being corrected. It’s taking about being happy in the big picture AFTER being corrected.

Correction is a good thing. The rest of the verse tells us not to despise the chastening of God. Proverbs 3:11 says, “[11] My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord ; neither be weary of his correction:” Again in Hebrews 12:5-6, the Bible says, “[5] And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: [6] For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”

If we never get corrected, we will continue to err in our own ways instead of getting things right. Continuing in wrong is not the recipe for happiness. Thats the recipe for a life of heartache. I believe a verse that greatly complements this verse is Hebrews 12:11. It says, “[11] Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.”

Let us remember that correction is GOOD for us. God does it out of love, so we do not destroy our lives. It may not be enjoyable in the moment, but the Bible says it “yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness.” Let us never despise the Lord when He chastens us because it is for our good. Let us take the correction with a good attitude and fix what we are being corrected about. According to the first verse above, we will be happy if we do.