Chapter 20: Job

Ptahhotep

The earliest of the Egyptian instructional wisdom collections claims to originate with ______________, vizer of King Izeri of the Fifth Dynasty (about 2450 BC). The instruction of ______________ contains thirty-seven maxims given by ______________ to his son and designated successor. The collection seeks to train the son in human relations, preparing him for the actions and attitudes that will make him a successful official of the state.

What is the central message of the book?

Wisdom belongs to God

What biblical books do modern scholars designate as "Wisdom literature"?

"Wisdom Literature" Designation that modern scholars use for three books that share "wisdom" features: Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes. Selected Psalms are not part of the collection and Song of Songs is also similar to Wisdom literature in its didactic function and literary form. Although all the books included in the poetic section of the canon are related to Wisdom literature, wisdom ideas reach beyond the poetical books of the Bible. Several of the prophets use wisdom sayings and parables in their sermons, as did Jesus in many of his teachings. Mesopotamian discoursive material - rarely have moral content and generally refer instead to skills in magical practices VERSUS Israelite Wisdom Literature - "wise" person is the one who fears the Lord Israelites and Ancient Near East worldview - comfortable incorporating materials from other cultures (eliminate polytheism) - Wisdom Literature is an example of cross-cultural communication of faith - sometimes adopted material with no alterations - used pagan literature but made theological modifications at times - others changed so much Israelite theological alternations materials was hardly recognizable Old Testament foundation of wisdom - fear of the Lord expressed in genuine faith Topic of Wisdom Literature - undeserved suffering and attendant problem of theodicy (attempt to vindicate the justice and holiness of God in light of the existence of evil in the world)

Theodicy

Attempt to vindicate the justice and holiness of God in light of the existence of evil in the world. If God is both all-powerful and all-loving, as the Bible everywhere claims, then how can evil continue to exist in the world? How can the wicked prosper if God is just? Why do good people suffer, and how could God let it happen? The book of Job is one of biblical response to this question.

What is known about the writing of Job and the geographical setting of the book?

Author, setting, and time the book of Job was written is unknown - Job's home in the land of Uz was probably between Edom and north Arabia, and his friends came out from the vicinity of Edom - many of the events seem patriarchal (e.g., sacrifices, wealth measured in flocks and servants, long life span (140 years) - some theorized pre-Mosaic origin - scholarly debate ranges from the early eighth century BC (contemporary with Isaiah; MOST likely) to the third century BC (postexilic Judah)

Wisdom literature

Designation that modern scholars use for three books that share "wisdom" features: Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes. Selected Psalms are not part of the collection and Song of Songs is also similar to Wisdom literature in its didactic function and literary form. Although all the books included in the poetic section of the canon are related to Wisdom literature, wisdom ideas reach beyond the poetical books of the Bible. Several of the prophets use wisdom sayings and parables in their sermons, as did Jesus in many of his teachings. Old Testament Wisdom literature had an international backdrop, for each nation apparently had wisdom teachers who reflected their own particular nationalistic wisdom traditions, and archeologists have discovered examples of Wisdom literature from all parts of the ancient Near East. While "wisdom" in the Israelites literature refers to the fear of God, it generally refers in other cultures to skill in magical practices rather than moral content. The content of these documents does, however, invite comparison with Job and Ecclesiastes and with the book of Proverbs, which contains more direct parallels with ancient Near Eastern literature than any other book of the Bible. Thus Wisdom literature provides an example of cross-cultural communication of faith, as the ancient Israelites interacted with the literature of worldview of their neighbors and were comfortable incorporating materials from other cultures and eliminating polytheistic elements. Sometimes the Israelites adapted material with little or no alterations, such as Proverbs and the Egyptian wisdom materials; at other times, the author used pagan literature with theological modifications.

What are the difficult questions of life addressed in Job? What aspects of God's character are challenged by the presence of evil in the world?

Difficult questions addressed: 1) If God is both all-powerful and all-loving, then how can evil exist? 2) How can wicked people prosper if God is just? 3) Why do good people suffer, and how could God let it happen? Aspects of God's character challenged in an evil world: - all-powerful - all-good - all-loving

Retribution

Doctrine that hold that goodness results in prosperity and wickedness leads to suffering; Mesopotamian dialogue material accepted the doctrine of retribution presented in Job and Ecclesiastes.

How does Elihu characterize Job's problem? To what does he attribute God's silence? What does he see as the key to alleviating Job's suffering?

Elihu - begins with a long apology for his youth and a plea for them pay careful attention, since wisdom is a gift of God rather than a consequence of age - addresses Job directly and recapitulates the problem as one of unanswered prayer - contends that God uses suffering and chastisement to correct humankind, and that prayer is humanity's method of acknowledgement and submitting to God's correction - second speech: reproaches Job for questioning God's justice because God is just and by denying this, Job has added rebellion to his sin - third speech: informs Job that God is unaffected by events on earth God's silence - if God has been silent, it is because he has recognized insecurity in Job's requests Key to alleviating suffering - Elihu speaks on God's behalf and informs Job and his counselors that God is just in his treatment to king and slave alike, and in any situation, repentance is key - as in other cases, Job's afflictions and suffering may be the means of deliverance * emphasis on God's omnipotence and justice and on humanity's ultimate need for genuine repentance

Describe the points of view of Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. Where did they place the blame for Job's suffering? What was Job's response?

Elphaz - emphasizes God's justice and purity and teaches that people (including Job) bring trouble on themselves Bildad - appeals to tradition and considers himself a defender of the orthodox doctrine - explains that an individual who pursues wickedness (like Job) should not be surprised by divine punishment Zophar - considers himself a rationalist (individual who accepts reason as the supreme authority in matters of opinion, belief, or conduct, holding that human reason, unaided by divine revelation, is an adequate or sole guide to all attainable religious truth) - reasons Job's punishment is no less than can be reasonably expected Blame for Job's suffering - Though Job's friends are approaching the problem from the perspective of monotheism, their solutions fail to transcend the Mesopotamian solutions. They continue to place the blame on Job. Job's response - God's reproof out of proportion to his sin

How does God respond to Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar? What is the final outcome for Job?

God's response to Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar - the Lord reprimands them for not speaking rightly on His behalf Final outcome - the Lord restores the fortunes of Job to the extent that Job's latter days are better than his former days - Job's faithfulness is vindicated and God's is illustrated

Leviathan

In Job 40, probably refers to the crocodile as a picture of strength, resilience, and apparent indestructiblity. God uses it to contrast his mighty power with the weakness and ignorance of humans.

Behemoth

In Job 40, probably refers to the hippopotamus as a picture of strength, resilience, and apparent indestructible that God uses to contrast his mighty power with the weakness and ignorance of humans.

Rationalist

Individual who accepts reason as the supreme authority in matters of opinion, belief, or conduct, holding that human reason, unaided by divine revelation, is an adequate or sole guide to all attainable religious truth. Zophar, one of Job's friends, considered himself a ______________, reasoning that Job's punishment was expected and concluding that Job should put his iniquity and wickedness "far away" (11:14 NRSV).

Edom

Job's home in the land of Uz was probably between __________ and northern Arabia, and his friends came from the vicinity of __________.

Uz

Job's home in the land of _____ was probably between Edom and northern Arabia, and his friends came from the vicinity of Edom.

Dialogue

Literary works in the form of a conversation between two or more persons. ________________ were often found in ancient Mesopotamian discoursive Wisdom literature, that is, documents produced by ancient Near Eastern sage containing lengthy discourses or essays grappling with life's most difficult problems.

How does the Lord rebuke Job in 38:1-42:6? What is Job's response?

Lord's rebuke - the Lord rebukes Job for speaking in ignorance and reminds him of his mortality - challenges Job to answer a series of questions centering on the awesome strength and power of God as Creator and Sustainer of the universe: What does Job know and understand of such things as the founding of the earth, the confining of the sea, the courses of the constellations, and more? - the Lord challenges Job to answer Job's response - speechless and simply acknowledges his inadequacy and agrees to keep silent before God Lord's rebuke - the Lord challenges Job to compare his own strengths with that of God - followed by poems about two of God's creatures, Behemoth (hippopotamus) and Leviathan (crocodile), in which God underscores their strength, residence, and apparent indestructibility Job's response - immediately acknowledges God's omnipotence and his own ignorance * the Lord's speeches stripped Job of his pride and self-sufficiency, and all that remains is a debasing need to repent

Sages

Men renowned for wisdom who in the ancient Near East produced documents containing lengthy discourses or essays grappling with life's most difficult problems.

Kassite period

Period of Mesopotamian history from the fourteenth to twelfth centuries BC, during which we find examples of Mesopotamian dialogue literature such as the Ludlul bél nēmeqi ("I will praise the Lord of wisdom"), a lengthy monologue in which a noble Babylonian recounts how he met with every sort of disaster before the god Marduk eventually restored him to his position. The Kassites were a people '"from the eastern hill" who gradually took over Babylon and ruled for a time.

Prologue

Preface or introductory part of a discourse, poem, or novel; in Job, the prose prologue helps to create a literary frame for the poetic speeches.

Monologues

Prolonged talk or discourse by a single speaker or any composition, such as a poem or drama, in which a single person or actor speaks alone. _________________ were often found in ancient Mesopotamian discoursive Wisdom literature, that is, documents produced by ancient Near Eastern sages containing lengthy discourses or essays grappling with life's most difficult problems.

Monotheistic

Relating to the biblically grounded belief that there is only one God.

How does Job contribute to an understanding of retribution theology? How does the book answer the problem of theodicy?

Retribution Theology - this doctrine of retribution is a general moral principle of God's administration of justice; not a hard-and-fast rule to be applied to every individual case (Job's friends failed to understand this; he needed compassion, not advice) - conflict of retribution theology illustrated by an equilateral triangle: top corner - God, another corner - Job, last corner - doctrine of retribution, held to by all speakers - by the end God eliminated their understanding and application of the retribution theology Theodicy - Job provides the biblical answer to the problem of theodicy - God is able to work all things--even evil things--together for good, and those who are faithful to Him to the end will benefit from the evil they must suffer