The Book of Job is mostly a historical
poem, based on an event in the life of the greatest and most widely known
man in his part of the world in his day. It has been eulogised as "perhaps
the Greatest Masterpiece of the Human Mind" (Victor Hugo), as "one
of the grandest things ever written" (Thomas Carlyle), and as rising
"like a pyramid in the history of literature, without a predecessor
and without rival" (Philip Schaff) – but surely is not solely the
product of human mind.
The first two chapters
and the greater part of the last chapter are written in prose. The intervening
chapters, giving the content of the discourses recorded, are presented
in poetical form. We are concerned in a general way with the book as a
whole, but with the prose section in particular, and shall present a summary
in an Excursus for some of the richly significant insights it affords
in regard to both the malevolent agency of Satan and the problem of human
suffering that has been with every generation of mankind.
SCENE I. On a day when
"the sons of God [angels of God likely, as will be discussed later]
came to present themselves before Jehovah [in the court of heaven, no
doubt, for making reports and receiving assignments as well as for worship],
that Satan came among them [apparently as an intruder]. And Jehovah said
unto Satan, Whence comest thou? [evidently not for his own information
regarding Satan and his doings, but to direct the attention of the angels
present to such and put them on guard]. Then Satan answered Jehovah, and
said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down
in it [seeking whom he might devour?]. And Jehovah [especially proud of
Job] said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job? For there is
none like him in all the earth, a perfect [‘wholehearted,’ Jewish tradition
to be sited again under SCENE VI, next page] and an upright man, one that
feareth God, and turneth away from evil. Then Satan answered Jehovah,
and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast thou not made a hedge about
him, and about his house, and about all that he hath, on every side? Thou
hast blessed the works of his hands, and his substance is increased in
the land. But put forth thy hand now, and touch all that he hath [that
is, to destroy it], and he will renounce thee to thy face. And Jehovah
said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only
upon himself put not forth thy hand. So Satan went forth from the presence
of Jehovah." (1:6-12.)
SCENE II. Then, on a
day that Job’s seven sons and three daughters were having a celebration
in their eldest brother’s house, all the following calamities, one right
after the other, were reported: (1) While the oxen [he had 500 yoke of
them] were plowing and the asses [he had 500 she-asses] were feeding beside
them, the Sabeans fell upon them and took them away, and killed the servants
attending them except the bearer of the report. (2) Fire of God fallen
from heaven [lightening] burned up and consumed all the sheep [he had
7,000] and the servants attending them except the one making the report.
(3) Three bands of Chaldeans fell upon the camels [he had 3,000], taking
them away and slaying all servants with the exception of the reporter.
And (4) a windstorm struck the house where his sons and daughters were
entertaining themselves, killing everybody in it except the one fortunate
enough to escape and make the report. (1:13-19.)
"Then Job arose,
and rent his robe, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground,
and worshipped: and he said, Naked came I out of my mothers womb, and
naked shall I return thither: Jehovah gave, and Jehovah taketh away; blessed
be the name of Jehovah. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly."
(1:20-22.)
SCENE III. Again it
came to pass on a subsequent day "when the sons of God came to present
themselves before Jehovah, that Satan came also among them to present
himself before Jehovah … and Jehovah said unto Satan, Hast thou considered
my servant Job? For there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and
upright man, one that feareth God, and turneth away from evil: and
he still holdeth fast to his INTEGRITY, although thou movedst me against
him, to destroy him without cause. And Satan answered Jehovah, and
said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.
But put forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will
renounce thee to thy face. And Jehovah said unto Satan, Behold, he is
in thy hand; only spare his life." (2:1-6.)
SCENE IV. "So Satan
went forth from the presence of Jehovah, and smote Job with sore boils
from the sole of his foot unto his crown. And he took him a potsherd {a
pottery fragment} to scrape himself therewith; and sat among the ashes.
Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still hold thine INTEGRITY?
Renounce God, and die. But he said to her, Thou speakest as one of
the foolish women speaketh. What? Shall we receive good at the hand of
God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his
lips." (2:7-10.)
SCENE V. "Now when
Job’s friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him, they came
every one from his own place: Eliphaz the Temanite {close to Median where
Moses father -in-law, Jethro, lived} and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar
the Naamathite; and they made an appointment together to come to bemoan
him and to comfort him. And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and
knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every
one his robe, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven. So they
sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none
of them spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great."
(2:11-13.)
SCENE VI. After this
Job broke silence, and cursed his day. Then followed three rounds of speeches
by his friends taking turns, with Job replying to each as soon as he had
finished speaking. Each one was certain that Job must be guilty of some
heinous sin or sins, however secret they may have been, else Jehovah would
not be afflicting him as he was – even becoming more vehement against
Job at times – with him just as vehemently protesting his innocence and
charging them with false judgments and theology.
Job was full of complaints
and of feeling that he was being unjustly punished – utterly unable to
understand why, yet hopeful of somehow being ultimately vindicated – once
exclaiming, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him; But
I will argue my ways before him" (13:15, Translation of Jewish
Publication society of America, 1955, fifth Printing, 1969, referred to
above under SCENE I, preceding page) – and another time saying "But
he knoweth the way that I take; when he hath tried me, I shall come forth
as gold: (23:10).
Finally, his "comforters,"
almost his adversaries by now (with Eliphaz having gone so far as to accuse
him of flagrant specific sins 22:1-11), had no more to say, and Job finished
his "say" in three sections, Chapter 26, Chapters 27-18, and
Chapters 29-31, as if giving opportunities for reply. The last sentence
of Chapter 31 reads, "The words of Job are ended." (3:1 - 31:40.)
NOTE: In one of Job’s
speeches (Chapter 19), in which he bared the great anguish and perplexity
of soul, he included a description of how completely ostracized and alone
and despised and ignored and forlorn he had become as follows: "He
hath put my brethren far from me [thinking God had done it but not knowing
why], And mine acquaintance are wholly estranged from me. My kinfolk have
failed, And my familiar friends have forgotten me. They that dwell in
my house [he had a ‘very great household,’ 1:3], and my maids, count me
for a stranger: I am an alien in their sight. I call unto my servant,
and he giveth me no answer, Though I entreat him with my mouth. My breath
is strange to my wife, And my supplication to the children of my mother.
Even young children despise me; If I arise they speak against me. And
my familiar friends abhor me, and they whom I loved have turned against
me." (Vs.13-19.)
SCENE VII. A young,
arrogant, self-opinionated, highly articulate onlooker by the name of
Elihu, who may have chanced to come that way and out of curiosity stopped
when aware of what was taking place, was now so worked up and even angry
at both Job and his three friends that he just had to speak. Six chapters
record his harangue, which seems to have paused three times to allow for
reply, with no one responding. Notwithstanding all its rhetoric and oratory,
and indeed greater philosophical and theological content, with his implying
divine inspiration (32:6-22), it was not essentially different in sentiment
from speeches of Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar.
Chapter 32:1-5 introduces Elihu’s speech as follows: "so these three
ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. Then was
kindled the wrath of Elihu, the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family
of Ram" against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified himself
rather than God. also Against his three friends, because they had found
no answer, and yet had condemned Job. Now Elihu had waited to speak unto
Job, because they were elder than he. And when Elihu saw that there was
no answer in the mouth of these men, his wrath was kindled."
Elihu’s speech ends with Chapter 37. Whether that is because he
had finished or because interrupted by God, is not stated, too. God, too,
ignored Elihu except for an indirect reference to one of his accusations
of Job.
SCENE VIII. At any rate, Jehovah
intervened (38:1), speaking to Job out of a whirlwind and asking, "who
is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?" – Elihu
having accused him of "multiplying words without knowledge"
(35:16). Then he challenged Job saying, "Gird up now your lions like
a man; for I will demand of thee, and declare thee unto me." Continuing
with a barrage of questions exposing the ignorance, impotence, helplessness,
and infinitesimal smallness of man compared to God" (filling Chapters
38-41), he awed Job into the following reverential and penitential response:
"I know that thou canst do all things, And that no purpose of thine
can be restrained. Who is this that hideth counsel without knowledge?
Therefore have I uttered that which I understood not. Things too wonderful
for me, which I knew not … Wherefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust
and ashes" (42:2-6).
Whereupon, still ignoring Elihu, Jehovah said to Eliphaz the Temanite,
My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends; for ye
have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath.
Now therefore, take unto you seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to
my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant
Job shall pray for you; for him I will accept, that I deal not with you
after your folly; for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right,
as my servant Job hath." This they did, "and Jehovah accepted
Job." (42:7-9.)
"And Jehovah turned the captivity of Job, when he had prayed
for his friends: and Jehovah gave him twice as he had before." All
his brothers and sisters, and all his acquaintances that he had previously
entertained in his home, came to see him, bemoaning him and comforting
him "concerning all that Jehovah had brought upon him." Every
man gave him a piece of money and a gold ring. …He had also seven sons
and three daughters … And in all the land were no women found so fair
as the daughters of Job: .. And after this Job lived a hundred and forty,
years and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons even four generations. So Job
died, being old and full of days." (42:10-17._
With reference to this, we read in the New Testament: "Behold,
we call them blessed that endured: ye have heard of the patience [endurance,
or perseverance] of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord, how that the
Lord is full of pity, and merciful" (James 5:11).
Observations
on the Above
1. The "sons of God" (1:6; 2:1) were likely the same
as those of 38:4-7, in which Jehovah is represented as asking Job"
"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? … When
the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted
for joy?" These must have been the angelic creation, for that was
before there were "sons of God" on the earth – before mankind
had been created. And the presentation of the "sons of God"
before Jehovah, as mentioned in the above passages, must have been in
the court of heaven, with Satan entering as an intruder and accuser –
being "the accuser of our brethren …, who accuseth them before God
day and night" (Revelation 12:10).
NOTE: The foregoing gives no credence to the popular notion, extant
as early as the period between the Old and New Testaments, that "sons
of God" who married "daughters of men" and had children
by them, as mentioned in Genesis 6:1-4, were fallen angels. It is much
more likely that they were men who were worshippers of God and women who
were not. For, according to Christ, heavenly angels neither marry nor
are given in marriage (Matthew 22:30; Mark 12:25; Luke 20:34-36). And
fallen angels are not likely to have acquired sex by sinning. But, if
so, it is not likely that they could have had children by "daughters
of men," for, according to Genesis every creature of God that reproduces
itself does so after its kind." And "angelkind" and "womankind"
would not be the same kind – one "spirit" and the other "flesh"
in addition to being spirit. And even two kinds of flesh have to be essentially
alike in order to reproduce my mating. If simply of the border line and
perchance able to produce offspring, it is infertile. Witness the Mule.
2. Satan, "without cause," moved Jehovah against Job,
to "destroy" him (2:3). While God did not move against Job except
indirectly by allowing Satan to do so, he also placed limits beyond which
Satan was not allowed to go. And he has promised to do so in regard to
ourselves. "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted
above that ye are able; but will with the temptation provide a way of
escape, that ye may be able to endure it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Christians have not been promised immunity from temptation, but
only from such as would be beyond our ability to resist. God allows us
to be tempted by Satan within limits, to test us – limits are not necessarily
the same for everyone. In the case of Job, he did not allow his life to
be taken. But he has not promised Christians even that limitation (for
there are experiences worse than death itself, and from which death can
be a relief, particularly for the Christian); he has promised only to
reward them more than commensurately, as he did Job in the end. "If
any man would come after me." Said Jesus, "let him deny himself,
and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever would save his life
[in this world] shall lose it [in the world to come]: and whosoever shall
lose his life for my sake shall find it" (Matthew 16:24-25). In other
words, death is not defeat in any final sense, but compromise of discipleship
to avoid death is defeat in the long run.
Accordingly, we read "… the sufferings of the present time
are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed to
usward’ (Romans8:18). "For our light affliction, which is for the
moment, worketh for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight
of glory while we look not at the things that are seen, but at the
things which are not seen: for the things that are seen are temporal;
but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:17-18).
Christians at Smyrna were told by Christ: "Fear not the thing you
are about to suffer: behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into
prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days.
But be thou faithful unto death [that is, unto the point of dying,
if necessary, to keep from compromising their faithfulness to him], and
I will give thee the crown of life [that is , eternal life]"
(Revelation 2:10) – "not be{ing} hurt of the second death" (v.10)
– "the lake of fire" (20:14; 21:8). And the inspired apostle
Paul wrote that, if "for thy sake [Christ sake] we are killed all
day long; [and] accounted as sheep for the slaughter, … we are more
than conquerers through him that loved us" (Romans 8:36-37),
for nothing, including "death .. shall be able to separate
us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (v.39).
3. Satan had at first said that if his substance were all destroyed
he would renounce God to his face (1:11). That was saying Job was not
outwardly righteous because of personal integrity (genuine goodness and
piety), but because of earthly prosperity. And when God had still greater
reason to be proud of him, now that he had proved Satan’s acquisition
to be false, Satan retorted, "Skin for skin, yea, all that a man
hath he will give for his life." And insisted that if only his bone
and flesh were "touched" he would renounce God to his face (2:4-5).
By the no doubt proverbial saying, "Skin for Skin," he likely
meant to say (a) that, to keep his own "skin" intact, a man
will sacrifice another’s "skin," even that of his nearest and
dearest, and (b) to insinuate that Job had submitted to the loss of his
children with murmuring because he feared that otherwise God would stretch
forth his hand against his own person, and smite or destroy it (Pulpit
Commentary).
Yet Job unknowingly proved Satan wrong again by maintaining his
integrity notwithstanding Satan’s onslaught against his person. And, what
may have been even harder to endure, and to hold out against, were the
social and domestic conflicts and burdens that resulted – (a) his wife’s
insistence that he sacrifice his integrity and die, (b) the inattention
and desertion of servants and relatives and friends and neighbors, and
(c) the adverse moral judgments and arguments of no doubt his most highly
respected friends who had come with the idea of "comforting"
him – likely reflecting the attitude of society at large.
4. Like Job, we may not always know why we or others suffer as
we or they do. Suffering may be (a) punitive (as for the incorrigibly
wicked, Matthew 25:46); or (b) disciplinary (for correction and/or molding
character, as per Hebrews 12:4-11; James 1:2; Romans 5:3-5; 2 Corinthians
12:7-10); or © for trials or testing (1 Thessalonians 5:3-5; James 1:12;
1 Peter 1:6-9) – and/or maybe for other reasons, as when the innocent
suffer from the sins of others. As for Job, he seems to have had at least
a vague notion of the possibility of being "tried," and of favorable
outcome (Job 23:10), which actually eventuated.
And an over-all purpose of God seems to be to provide us with a
knowledge of good and evil, so that we shall seek an eternity of good
rather than evil. That no doubt was why the tree forbidden to Adam and
Eve was called "the tree of the knowledge of good and evil"
(Genesis 2:0). Before eating of it. they knew only good. But if they did
eat of it, they would know both good and evil – a mixture of both. And
their posterity has had and will continue to have such upon earth, in
a period of probation, before an eternity to come in which destiny will
be all good (eternal life) or all bad (eternal punishment). Not having
experienced evil before eating the tree of life, they did not know how
to appreciate how good they were having it or what they would lose by
disobedience to God.
Were it not for the benevolent purpose of God and his recompense
in eternity for faithfulness under trial, this life would be grossly
unfair for many and no doubt most. For the innocent as well as the guilty
suffer, and in many instances much more so – the wicked often even prospering
and the righteous not (see Psalm 73). The Book of Job appears to be designed
to assure us that, regardless of life’s vicissitudes and no matter how
much they may seem against us, God is in control and, if we retain our
INTEGRITY toward him, "all things [will] work together for good"
(Romans 8:28).
Satan would have us disbelieve that, and disregard God. Both of
them try us – God to test our loyalty and obedience to him, while soliciting
it; but Satan in order to prevent our favorable responding to God, and
doing so by all kinds of tactics. God allows him thus to operate within
certain limitations but not to go beyond what we can resist if
we will (see 1 Corinthians 10:13).
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