The prologue introduces us to the characters and summarizes the theme of the book. Job s faith in god has become the object of a test by satan, in which god is planning to pull the rug out from under satan. Is he the devil, the source of all temptation and evil who shows up later in the judeochristian tradition. He was the greatest man among all the people of the east. What is the difference between hasatan, luficer and the. According to job s friends, job is being punished for no apparent reason. In the book of job, how was it possible for god and satan.
In hebrew, satan actually means the accuser or the prosecutor, and he is referred to as the satan, not just satan. 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. A person who had been reading the book of job responded and said god allows satan, the devil, to do things in our lives. Analysis this is a key passage for setting the stage for all that follows. 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. The book of job is not only the finest expression of the hebrew poetic genius. No red skin, no horns, no pointy teeth and tail, and no devilish grin. The book of job chapter 2 the dwelling place of satan.
It is possible that job is the oldest of any book of the bible written approximately 21001800 b. Another great doctrine of the faith, particularly set forth in the book of job, is that of providence. In this case, it made job even stronger in his loyalty to god. Of these five books, one stands out in bold relief, manifesting significant differences from the other four.
Ha satan with the definite article occurs times in the masoretic text, in two books of the hebrew bible. There are a variety of views on chance to be found in the hebrew bible, or old testament. The book of job consists of a prose prologue and epilogue narrative framing poetic dialogues and monologues. In the hebrew bible, yhwhs greatest enemies are not fallen angels commanding armies of demons, nor even the gods of other nations, but. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of bible. The more study one does on ha satan it becomes clear that ha satan in nothing more a servant of god, an instrument or person used to carry out the purposes of. The adversary satan insinuates himself among the angels of gods court and argues that job s virtue is not genuine. Satan s first attack 6 one day the sons of god came to present themselves before the lord, and satan also came with them.
The dialogue between god and satan about job was, by no means, a friendly conversation. Key personalities of this book include job, eliphaz the temanite, bildad the shuhite, zophar the naamathite, and elihu the buzite. Lo and behold, satan comes out and challenges god on job. He accuses god of cruel and monstrous behavior, while the friends try to defend god. Job is going about his private affairs, unaware that he has suddenly become the focus of satan s attention. In the book of job, satan had nothing much to do, so god gave him the challenge to put job to the test. And seven sons and three daughters were born to him. This is not simply a satan, an adversary, or some discontent human person. Job s final speech in his own defense is probably where the book originally ended. This is the reason for satan talking to god in chapter 2. Study questions on the book of job concordia college. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
He insists job only serves god because god protects him and seeks gods permission to test job s faith and loyalty. Though job mistakenly thought god was the one to steal, kill, and destroy as john 10. But that ignores the obvious hebrew wording for the sake of christian tradition again, the phrasing is actually the satan. The book of job opens with a scene in heaven where satan comes to accuse job before god. In the book of job, many english translations say that satan was in heaven. The book of job is a book in the ketuvim writings section of the hebrew bible tanakh, and the first poetic book in the old testament of the christian bible.
They are the books of proverbs, psalms, ecclesiastes, song of solomon, and job. Hes blameless and upright, and he has kids, a wife, land, and a bunch of sheep. How could satan access heaven in the books of job and the. The book of job god did not give satan power biblebro.
It is plain, from this history, that the lord watched over his servant job with the affection of a wise and loving father. A theodicy is an attempt to respond to the problem of suffering in a world ruled by an allpowerful, allgood god. It is common to view the narrative frame as the original core of the book, enlarged later by the poetic dialogues and discourses, and sections of the book such as the elihu speeches and the wisdom poem of chapter 28 as late insertions, but recent trends have tended to concentrate on the. For there is no one on earth like him, a man who is. Similarly, the book of job does not mention reward and punishment in the afterlife. Some bible commentators have professed great difficulty in understanding and explaining how satan could have access to heaven in job chapters 1 and 2, as well as in revelation chapter 12. What are two other time tables that people put on job. As in the book of job, satan is accusing people before god. There is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man who fears god and turns away from evil. Commentators like john macarthur note the hebrew is the same expression for what satan uses in job 1.
So as far as the book of job is concerned, there was indeed a designated angel whos job it was to accuse or oppose. In job, we see a man who god allows to be directly attacked by satan. Satan, also known as the devil, is an entity in the abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or falsehood. From roaming through the earth, he replied, and from walking back and forth in it. This is the jealousies of men that contradict the truth of god that job was an upright man, job 1.
If anything, job s satan is most similar to the satan of the book of zechariah, written in the early second temple period, which may indicate that job was written during the same period the late 6th century bce or the early 5th bce. Stephen cook is a phd candidate in the department of hebrew, biblical and jewish studies at the university of sydney. Job, a pious and blameless man, is perfectly happy and contented. This is the second of a threepart conversation on the book of. The wisdom that is found in the book of job is not communicated in the form of proverb. Therefore i despise myself and repent in dust and ashes. Here in the book of job the answer to that question is no. Seven lessons the book of job teaches us lessons from the book of job recently, i saw a post on facebook from a person who said it seemed like the devil is always bothering her.
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 job a particularly pious manwill abandon his piety and curse god if all his wealth and wellbeing are taken away. Satan in job is those who oppose gods opinion of righteous job. Satan without the definite article is used in 10 instances, of which two are translated diabolos in the septuagint and satan in the king james version kjv. They said he may have taken things away from poor people.
Lo and behold, satan comes out and challenges god on job s goodness. Job 1 nrsv job and his family there was once a bible gateway. It was orchestrated by god to show billions of people, who would read and hear about this account throughout the ages, that satan can do nothing without gods authorization and consent. What does god allow satan to do, and how does god think job will react. Up in the heavens, god brags to the divine assembly about job. Job 1, new international version niv the bible app. He was, in fact, the richest person in that entire area. There was a man in the land of uz, whose name was job. Although job was unaware of the interaction between satan and god, job comes to the conclusion that god is just and good. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans.
The challenge was that satan could do any evil that he wished, as long as he did not harm job. Job 1 new king james version nkjv job and his family in uz. In the book of job, it is the satan who is ultimately responsible for job s sufferings. Job 1 kjv there was a man in the land of uz, bible gateway.