Despite being near the middle, the story of job is probably the first one written, even before the pentateuch. The introduction we are at once introduced to the leading person of this book. It is found in the third section of the biblical canon known as the ketuvim writings. Given how christians are yet inclined to look for a divine reason behind catastrophes and personal tragedies. The narrative framework of the book tells the story of job as a very rich man who lives in the land of uz. Career of evil is also a gripping story of a man and a woman at a crossroads in their personal and professional lives. The debate is about god, his attributes and how he interacts with humankind. In making sense of the undeniable presence of sin, along with. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Chapters 45 contain his first speech, which focuses on the theme of the innocent prospering. The consequences of evil in the book of job 1759 words. Here again is kushners form of the inconsistent triad.
Kushner offers an analysis of the book of job, one of. The book of job, book of hebrew scripture that is often counted among the masterpieces of world literature. Good and evil in the book of job the christian science journal. The point of the book of job is to teach us that the mystery of evil is a mystery of a wartorn and unfathomably complex creation, not the mystery of gods allcontrolling will. Kushner doesnt take the time to go verse by verse and explain what is being said and i think that is a good in this book, rabbi h. He worships god sincerely and regularly, and most importantly, is a truly righteous person in the sight of god job 1. Oct 22, 2016 jobs story invites us to consider what it means that god runs the world by wisdom, and how this truth can bring peace in dark times. For he himself eschewed evil, not evil which he came in contact with in the doing, but. The title of this book is one of the very few cases where the bible just says what it meansno deceptive advertising here. Aug 24, 2011 there are many different kinds of theodicy or defenses to rebut the problem of evil.
Another great doctrine of the faith, particularly set forth in the book of job, is that of providence. This is why many christians believe that suffering is not necessarily an evil. In this months feature, wayne jackson explores some of these queries. An analysis of the book of job and the problem of evil. Most books of the bible take place on larger stages, but the book of job goes down at a very specific and narrow point in the human life cycle. Or perhaps this is an at least partially an afterward because i write this after i have completed half of the melding together of roger hahns online crivoice bible study and the excerpts from john c. The book of job is one of the most problematic portions of the bible and has called forth a variety of interpretations. The book of job defends the character of a loving and righteous god in spite of earths obvious evils and injustices. In light of the evil that the world has seen surface in the last year911, the suicide bombings, all the othe. This is why our original job description a job description god is yet. Job pronounced jobe, was a rich farmer living in the land of uz, somewhere northeast of palestine. It is plain, from this history, that the lord watched over his servant job with the affection of a wise and loving father. One talmudic tradition suggests moses as author since the land of uz 1. God calls the man job a complete man, in other words a righteous man.
There was a man in the land of uz, whose name was job and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared god and eschewed evil. This sounds like an evil woman but she has no power over the. Although most of the book consists of the words of job and his friends, job himself was not the author. William blakes illustrations of the book of job primarily refers to a series of twentytwo engraved prints published 1826 by blake illustrating the biblical book of job. After jobs complaints in job 3, eliphaz is the first of the friends to speak. Satan in job is those who oppose gods opinion of righteous job. Gregory the great moralia in job morals on the book of. One cannot resolve the paradox by denying gods power kushners solution. God might not be the source of it, but he does allow it to happen. Job is the last of the three books that explore these themes. The book of job is the first document in history to take seriously the question of why really bad things happen to really good people. We are not to assume god has rejected all those that suffer. And there is a reality called satan who challenges god that his man is not as good as he thinks he is. The first verses of the first chapter of the book of job are explained first.
The books theme is the eternal problem of unmerited suffering, and it is named after its central. Why does evil exist, if god is allloving and all good. Bildad and zophar agree that job must have committed evil to offend gods justice and argue that he should strive to. Addressing the problem of theodicy the vindication of the justice of god in the light of humanitys suffering it is a. The 18th book in the christian bibles established order, and appearing in the ketuvim writings section of the hebrew tanakh. A comparative and critical analysis of the story of job as. I attempt to clear that up by offering a different perspective than most people know today. The book of job, in the old testament, opens with words both majestic and onceuponatimeish.
Evil posted on april 7, 2011 by lmwa223 when the story of job is preached from the pulpit of modern day churches, popular themes and lessons to be learned always seem to fall under the category of having faith in god in good times and bad. Her boss, private detective cormoran strike, is less surprised but no less alarmed. The new element in the second cycle is that elihus speech is interrupted by the dramatic appearance of god himself job 38. Jun 09, 2014 the book of job is one of the most misunderstood books in the bible. The book of job is the first poetic book in the old testament that addresses the problem of gods justice through the suffering of job who goes from having a life filled with joy, happiness, and blessings. In other words, eliphaz thought that job, who was obviously. Job is an unlikely candidate because the book s message rests on job s ignorance of the events that occurred in heaven as they were related to his ordeal. Literary structure the unity of the book of job will be assumed in the analysis of its literary structure.
One of these is to examine some of the penetrating questions that are posed in the book. If you were to fit it chronologically, it should be place in the early chapters of genesis. Job had a very large family with seven sons and three. Aug 21, 2017 career of evil by readbook 21 august 2017 when a mysterious package is delivered to robin ellacott, she is horrified to discover that it contains a womans severed leg. The normal analysis of the exile was that israel thoroughly deserved it.
A major difficulty in understanding the meaning of the book is, what insight leads job to submit so humbly to god at the end. The book of job, one of the wisdom books of the bible, deals with two issues crucial to every person. Job 1 niv prologue in the land of uz there bible gateway. The chief purpose of the book of job through careful analysis and thought poses the main purpose of the book of job. Evil exists and creatures bear moral responsibility for it. The book of job is a book in the ketuvim writings section of the hebrew bible tanakh, and. In the books first cycle, jobs friends speeches were halted by the revelation of gods wisdom. Job was blameless, meaning no sin was found in him.
Doc the problem of evil in the book of job bobby cohoon. William blakes illustrations of the book of job wikipedia. The problem of evil in the book of job servants of grace. Note that christ confronts evil in the power of god. The book of job gives an answer as to why bad things happen to good people. The book of job is the first poetic book in the old testament that addresses the problem of gods justice through the suffering of job who goes from having a life filled with joy, happiness, and blessings to having a life filled with pain, sorrow, and suffering. It is also, a book of almost endless endurance in the face of great stress. This is the typical approach of interpretation to many accounts in the old testament, and the same rings true with the book of job. This is why the book of job is considered the most theological book of the old testament. Every book on your english syllabus summed up in a quote from the office. Literary features of the book of job gordon college. In this weeks sermon, the historical dating and literary criticism is commented on in the beginning. It should be kept in mind that job is not the author.
Since the problem of evil is the greatest theological challenge christians face today, we will explore the meaning of theodicy in the book of job, christian theology, and also aim to help readers to form a christian response to the problem of evil. This treatise may be studied from several vantage points. Victor, 1985, 717, for nine reasons the book of job points to a patriarchal period. The book of job is a highly controversial book of mostly confusing information. As i read the bible i see a few different answers, but one extremely important theodicy in the scriptures is what i shall deem the job answer, which is found in the book of job, although a similar idea is touched upon by paul in romans. Satan is not so much an evil doer but is gods trouble shooter. It is regarded as one of jungs most controversial works. In the book of job, satan is sent by god to torment job. Waters ritten by an unknown author, possibly the most ancient literary account in the bible,1 the book of job is a mixture of divine and human wisdom that addresses a major life issue. Job, in the bible knowledge commentary, old testament, ed. A brief summary of the book of job may help refresh readers memories and explain nemos thoughtful book. Job does not believe he has sinned and doesnt understand why he is suffering.
He was a faithful servant of god, he owned thousands of animals, and had many servants and friends. The bible story of job, from the book of job, is a powerful tale of testing the devotion and fortitude of the human will. What does this tell us about the place of evil in the world. When the story of job is preached from the pulpit of modern day churches, popular themes and lessons to be learned always seem to fall under the category of having faith in god in good times and bad. Satan wants to do evil, and god allows him to do so in order to prove a point. For the rest of the lesson, the role of satan in the book of job is covered. The book of job is one of the most magnificent documents of literary history. The point of the book of job is to teach us that the mystery of evil is a. If we were to film this book, the whole movie would take place on a single set, probably in a single day.
Job is the central character of the book of job in the old testament. In this case, and ideally all cases, there is a purpose, which the book of job tries to persuade us is something that is there even though we dont understand it. This is the jealousies of men that contradict the truth of god that job was an upright man, job 1. The skeptical character of the symposium, with its challenge to timehonored views, most likely would have kept the book of job out of the canon of old testament writings had some additions not been made to the original book. God allows people to suffer for the good they will attain in the future, both immaterial and physical. They are symbols of the power of evil which are greater than jobs capacity. Addressing the problem of theodicy the vindication of the justice of god in the light of humanitys suffering it is a rich theological work setting out a variety of perspectives. Job pronounced yobe means hate or persecution in hebrew.
In this book, we can see the evidence of satan working to destroy man. Five truths for sufferers from the book of job the gospel coalition. According to biblical scholars, the book of job is the oldest book in the bible. This summary of the book of job provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of job.
The big picture of job is that there was a man who was, in one sense, blameless in gods sight. It also refers to two earlier sets of watercolours by blake on the same subject 1806 and 1821. In answer to job, jung demonstrates his indepth knowledge of the bible. Job is thus introduced to a realm of providence of which he is powerless. And his acting likewise is fitly designated hereby, in that the blessed job is said to eschew evil. Archer and others see the book of job as the oldest book in the bible gleason l.
The order of creation resists evila very different perspective from jobs in his protest. The bibles book of job, with its themes of suffering, divine justice, and the influence of evil, has long been referred to as a study guide for the human condition. The book of job has inspired much commentary about its presentation of the problem of evil, which is the question of how a god that is allegedly 1 allpowerful, 2. Book of job is accounted by most christians among the wisdom literature but not under major or minor prophets. Answer to job was first published in 1952 in german and was included in jungs collected works, as part of volume 11. For example, that the book of job is in fact in all likelihood a patchwork of at least 2 or 3 different works, written by different people in different times. This problem, known in theology as the problem of evil, can be rephrased as a question. Job 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Consequently it can be concluded that the book of job is a mixed genre in which its author expertly blended a variety of literary types in order to serve the function of the book. It still goes on rumbling a bit, like an earthquake. Job spends his entire book in a position of sadness and loss.
Jobs final speech in his own defense is probably where the book originally ended. We will also see that in some of our darkest hours, the battle must be our own. An analysis of the book of job and the problem of evil leightner, paul on. The first verse informs us where job lived and what his nature and character was in the eyes of god. This prepares people for christs sufferings that would otherwise be rejected. Job and three of his friends debate the cause of jobs tremendous loss and illnesses. In this epic wager between god and the devil, discover how job reacts to the shocking curses inflicted upon him and what we can learn from his incredible example of remaining faithful through suffering. Robert galbraith career of evil read book short summary. Literary features of the book of job 215 his polyphonic workwisdom types, a genre from psalms, and a genre from the legal sphere. The book of job begins with a prologue job 12, which describes a wager between satan and god, in which satan the adversary bets god that joba particularly pious manwill abandon his piety and curse god if all his wealth and wellbeing are taken away.
The book of job has inspired much commentary about its presentation of the problem of evil, which is the question of how a god that is allegedly 1 allpowerful, 2 allgood, and 3 allknowing. Some bible scholars debate whether he was an actual person or legend, but job is mentioned as a historical figure by the prophet ezekial ezekial 14. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of bible. There are many different kinds of theodicy or defenses to rebut the problem of evil.
Jul 22, 2011 book of job is accounted by most christians among the wisdom literature but not under major or minor prophets. San francisco jung institute library journal 21, no. Job is the subject of a bet between god and satan whereby satan told god that job would curse god if job lost all that he had including good health. Although job was unaware of the interaction between satan and god, job comes to the conclusion that god is just and good.