Through The Bible

Session #16 – Job

June 5, 2002

Different views of Job:

1. Job is a historical person.
• Contemporary of the Patriarchs (Abram, etc.). So Job was prior to the times of Moses, i.e., the book of Genesis.
• The names of Job and his friends are real names. They should not be taken symbolically and were not made up by the author.
• Some have identified Job as the son of Issachar (Genesis 46:13) and in our NRSV they have the name Jashub. Most do not argue strongly for this connection.
• Historically, it’s very hard to place the person of Job anywhere.

2. Job is an example.
• See James 5:11. The statement here certainly applies to the Job we meet in the Prologue (1:1-2:13) and the Epilogue (42:7-17) but much of what we see of Job in between is of a man of impatience and rebellion.
• Seeing Job as an example to follow is mostly based on the Prologue and Epilogue.
• While there is much about Job’s grumbling and arguing with God we would not want to follow, we can see the story of Job as an example of how a human being suffering physical and spiritual distress may become involved in rebellion against God and others.

3. Job is a parable.
• Certain rabbis could never swallow the idea that God enters into a wager with Satan so they decided Job was a parable without historical background.
• Not many argue that the parable of the Good Samaritan (see Luke 10) is historically factual but the truths contained within the story need not have a historical basis to be effective.
• Most would not opt for seeing Job as a parable.

4. Job is an allegory.
• An allegory is a story where symbolic fictional figures act and are presented as a representation of a real-life human condition.
• So if Job is an allegory, what condition is the story representing?
• The suffering of the hero and his desperate search for God who does not seem to be willing to give an answer to his complaint could represent the spiritual confusion the people of Judea felt when the Temple was destroyed and the people went into exile.
• Many have used Job as an allegory of their own situation.

5. Job is to be understood Christologically.
• In the Prologue and Epilogue, God calls Job “my servant” – this is the same expression we find in the song of the suffering servant (Isa. 52.13-53.12). The early church also applied this term to Jesus (Acts 4.27).
• Many have imagined Jesus quoting some of the dialogue in Job.

When was Job written?

• The quotation used in Job 12:9 is from Isaiah 41:20. There are also similarities in word usage in Job with Isaiah 40-55 which lead many to believe that Job was written after the Babylonian exile – sometime after the 5^th century BC.
• More certain dating cannot be deduced.

Job is Wisdom Literature. What is Wisdom Literature?

• It has it’s roots in the ancient Near Eastern culture.
• Wise men often served as guides and tutors to the royal families and pharaohs.
• These sages would dispense advice on ‘how to succeed’ in life. Wisdom brings order into the chaotic conditions of life. Wisdom also helps to make sense of those events which are arbitrary and accidental.
• The Wisdom Literature section of our Bible begins with Job and includes: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon.
• This type of Literature was common among all people and religions. Israel’s version of this literature was governed by Proverbs 9:10 – “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”

Job operates on different levels

• There is not just a debate going on between Job and his three friends, but there is also this wager between God and Satan.

- Job is involved in a struggle with his friends but at the same time God is involved in a dispute with Satan. If Job were to lose his battle, God would lose His.

- At stake is Job’s life but also God’s honor and integrity.

- God wants to prove his confidence in Job is justified.

- Throughout the book, the issue is simultaneously God’s honor and Job’s.

• Notice in the dialogue that Job’s friends address him (Job) but often in Job’s replies, he (Job) addresses God.

Summary of Job

1. The human condition is a testament to the fact that life is often full of unsolvable riddles. Things happen that don’t make sense. Sometimes the faithful do suffer and those who ignore God do advance.
2. Our friends cannot always provide the answers to some things.
3. In the end, Job doesn’t get answers to his questions but he does get God.

Brief Outline of Job

I. Prologue (1:1-2:13)

II. Job’s Curse – Lament (3:1-26)

III. The Dialogue between Job and his friends (4:1-27:23)

Eliphaz (4:1-5:27; 15:1-35; 22:1-30)

Bildad (8:1-22; 18:1-21; 25:1-6)

Zophar (11:1-20; 20:1-29)

IV. Hymn to Wisdom (28:1-28)

V. Job’s vow of Innocence (29:1-31:40)

VI. The Elihu Speeches (32:1-37:24)

VII. The Yahweh Speeches (38:1-42:6)

VIII. Epilogue (42:7-17)