The Book of Job

The Book of Job is not simply a story, but a fable, rich with meaning and lessons to be learned. I found Job to be one of the most interesting accounts in the Bible, especially because it attempts to rationalize human suffering and the ways of the Lord. It seems to me that the idea came first, and a story was found to fit it, or one was made up, but that the entire reason for the Book of Job to be included in the Bible is for its purpose in teaching us that we must endure what troubles we are given, because it is the Will of God. I have many questions about this book, none of which can be easily answered by anyone living today: Who wrote this tale, and how did they know what took place in heaven? Did they just see Job suffering his losses, only to regain them tenfold when his faith did not swerve? These are only a few of my thoughts as I read Job, but overall, I found it a fascinating story that I wanted to explore in detail, and that is why I chose to write on it. Job was a righteous man who lived in Uz with his seven sons and three daughters. He owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yokes of oxen, five hundred donkeys and many slaves. Each year, he held a banquet where Job would have each of his children purified, for fear that they might have sinned and cursed God in their hearts. On the day that the angels came to attest before God, God pointed out to the accusing angel (Satan) how righteous and respectful Job was to Him. Satan claimed that Job's actions and character originated with evil and self-serving motives: Job is so righteous and respectful because he has no reason to act otherwise, but if God were to give him hardship, he would curse the name of the Lord. Satan challenges God to test Job, and reluctantly, God accepts. Here, we see Satan prodding the Lord, who is supposed to be almighty and knowledgable about everything, into testing one of his faithful servants for no reason other than to prove his loyalty. This explains why God sometimes strikes down the righteous for no apparent reason, but it also makes us question whether or not God truly has our best interest at heart. God seems to have the character of a small child here, wanting to uphold his name, to show Satan that he can too prove that Job is faithful. On Earth, Job was stricken with misfortune. All his children died of one tragedy or another, his animals were either stolen or struck by lightning. Job did not curse God, he rationalized the act, what God gives, He can also take away. He bragged to Satan about how faithful and righteous his servant Job was, like the small child we saw him as before. Again, Satan pushed God on, claiming that Job was still faithful and righteous because he had not been affected directly by God's test. He persuades God to test Job once more. This time, Job's health is destroyed in a most horrifying form. Job is covered in boils from head to toe so badly, that he uses a piece of broken pottery to scratch the dead flesh off with. At this point, Job's faith in the Lord is tested by his wife, who wondered why he is still so faithful to God. As we all know, the hardest part of faith is to believe when others around you do not, and can convince you that they are right while you are wrong. Still, Job rebuked his wife and refused to sin. Job had three friends: Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Namathite. These three friends heard of what happened to Job and came to offer their sympathy and grief. After about a week of prayers, Job finally broke down and cursed the day he was born. He wondered why life should be given to a person who desires only death, who has ceased to find any value in life, who has lost all hope of escape from continuous terror and torment. His friends answer him in a series of three rounds, the first being the most significant of the three. Eliphaz answered him first, saying that Job helped others with encouraging words but now that the tables are turned, he impatiently gave up. The righteous living that he had in the past should sustain him through his trials now. No man is ever capable of a totally righteous relationship with God, it is a cycle of sin and forgiveness. Job's resentment of discipline is very unwise, for God will not change your circumstances and a stubborn refusal to learn from them will result in death. The source of the problem is not man's circumstances, but his heart. Eliphaz says that Job should look to God for deliverance. God does astonishing things, He helps those who are hurt and oppressed but destroys the corrupt. He tells Job to accept God's discipline, he will learn from it and then God will bless him in many ways. Job argued that his complaint is justifiable, and if Eliphaz would comprehend his anguish, then he would understand that what God had done to him was wrong. Job does not accept Eliphaz's view that he must have sinned and feels that his speech was inappropriate for the circumstances. Job wishes God would give him death, so he could die with the consolation that he had remained faithful to God all the way to the end. What other hope does he have? Why should he wait quietly for something to happen, when all his belongings and loved ones had been destroyed? Job also feels that Eliphaz has failed in his obligations toward him as a friend, because he doubts Job in his time of need. Job asks Eliphaz to point out his errors, to look at his sincerity and not to accuse him without giving good cause. Job asks why God treats him like an enemy, why He will not even let sleep ease his pain. Job asks why God is focusing so much attention on him. Even if he did sin, it would not have hurt Him. So why not, in that case, show mercy and forgive him? Once he dies, it would be too late to do so. Bildad's answers him by saying that God does not distort what is right. Job's children died because of sin. If Job repents, God will not give him death but blessings beyond imagination. Repents of what? Job believes he is without sin. Job agrees that God does not pervert justice but does not understand how he can demonstrate his righteousness to Him. Job speaks of God's power in creation and how he works in catastrophic events. His works are beyond comprehension. These events are all merely the effects of His presence. In all, God does as he pleases, and no enemy can oppose Him or even question Him. Because of His greatness, Job is helpless to defend himself and if he tried, he would probably be destroyed. In His sight, Job could not even utter a word without sounding guilty. Nonetheless, Job feels that he is blameless and wants to die. God, for some reason, lets the blameless people suffer just like the wicked. If it is not God doing it, then who is it? Job's days are ending and unrealistic thinking cannot change reality. Anything that he might do to prove himself innocent would be of no value. He cannot approach God in court as he would