Responding to Suffering
A proverb is a saying which states a general truth. One such example is a man will reap what he sows. Does that not imply a righteous man will gain good fortune for his good deeds? This good harvest is often what comes about but what about when the generalization is not met? What about the times when a righteous man suffers undeservingly?
The person of Job is one good example of this undeserved suffering. The book of Job shows how all of this came about as well as the end result. What this paper intends to do is take a detailed look at Job’s immediate responses to his afflictions in a manner that one may have an example of how a blameless and upright man should confront suffering. This will be accomplished by taking a look at the blameless and upright aspect of Job, the heavenly scenes, the afflictions of Job, and then the detailed look at his responses. Looking at his reactions within the historical and especially literary context should give more understanding to his responses. Whether these responses by Job are to be admired and emulated will be determined by this study.
HISTORICAL-CULTURAL CONTEXT
The authorship of Job is unknown and unlike other books where the author is left anonymous, there are not even any candidates to attribute the authorship. Speculation is Job may have been written by multiple people over an extended period of time after a possibly period of oral tradition. [1]
The time of writing is also another complicated situation and has two parts. Due to the context of the book, it seems as if Job quite possibly lived during the time of the Patriarchs as evidenced by living such a long life, and his life was one that is real opposed to fiction. [2] If he had not existed, the book would still be able to teach its real to life principles. As for the writing down of the book itself, it could have been written anytime from Moses to the intertestamental period. As stated previously, many may have played a part in the writing of Job over a period of time. Biblical evidence does not state otherwise. [3]
As for where the book of Job was written and where Job lived, it is stated within Job 1:1 that he lived in the land of Uz. Other mentions of Uz within the Bible show it was east of Palestine. The specifics of that area are less known though Job did live near a town or village as mentioned in places such as Job 28:7. Also, the language used in the book of Job has an Aramaic influence which further narrows down the possible locations of the writer(s) and/or Job. [4]
LITERARY CONTEXT
The book of Job begins by introducing Job and his character. Verse 1:1 begins by showing how he “was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.” Several verses later in verse 8, God quotes this statement again which shows again just how godly of a character Job had. Not only did he seek to live a righteous life but he wanted his family to also live a righteous life. There was nothing to fault about Job, at least not enough to warrant his oncoming affliction.
Not only was Job rich in character but he was rich in possessions. He had the ideal number of children and as well as a large number of livestock. Between Job’s immense character and personal fortune, “this man was the greatest of all the people of the east.”
The text continues by showing the first of two heavenly scenes featuring God, Satan, and the heavenly beings. Satan arrived after roaming the earth seeking to find one to accuse (1 Peter 5:8). He wished to destroy Job and accused him of seeking after God only because of the blessings bestowed upon him.
Some argue that it is Satan who later afflicts Job but in reality, none of it would have happened without God’s permission for God had “put a hedge of protection around him and his house and all that he” had (1:10). It is God who is in control here as God has the power to bind Satan anytime he desires, and he does it for a thousand years in the book of Revelation (20:12). “Satan is on a leash, one held firmly by God’s sovereign hand.” [5]
God grants Satan’s wish of stretching out his hand toward Job as a means to see whether or not Job will bless God or curse God (1:11). This opportunity is giving Job a chance to either bring glory to God or turn from him. Satan’s accusation is that Job will turn against God. God lets Satan do as he pleases but with the disclaimer that he must not directly harm Job physically.
The first affliction of Job is an attack upon the great possessions of Job. Job’s oxen and donkeys were taken by the Sabeans and the servants tending to them were killed. The fire of God killed his sheep and the servants guarding them. More servants were killed and his camels taken by the Chaldeans. Lastly, a strong wind came by and struck the house of his oldest son with the rest of his children inside. All of Job’s children were killed in the collapse (1:13-19). Here is where Job gives his first reaction to his afflictions (1:20-22). The exegesis will go into detail as to what all this encompasses.
Chapter two of Job continues with the second heavenly scene. The scene is very much like the previous one in that Satan is still accusing Job of having the wrong motivation and of wrongdoing. This time instead of attacking what Job owns, Satan wants God to attack Job’s health. God grants this request with the disclaimer that Job’s life must be preserved (2:1-6).
Job as a result is given sores across his body. He then proceeds to scrape the sores as a result of the tremendous itch (2:7-8). Other places throughout Job give further description of what illness fell upon Job but it clearly was a skin disease. Not enough descriptions are given to determine just what Job had but whatever it may have been, it was torturous for him. [6]
Job’s wife then responds to his illness and Job responds to her reaction to Job’s infirmities (2:9). The second section of the exegesis goes into further detail regarding Job’s second response.
EXEGESIS
As seen previously, Job had two separate onslaughts of affliction set upon him. The following exegesis looks at each one of these passages and compares them when necessary. A simple reading of the verse beforehand will be of help though most of the verse is typically mentioned within the text.
First Response of Job
1:20) Job begins his response to his first attack not with words but with action. “Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped.” The very first thing Job did was rise to his feet. As was the custom in many Middle Eastern societies, men would sit while receiving visitors. [7]
After rising to his feet, Job proceeded to rip his robes as was another custom of that day for men of stature. This tearing of the robes is seen in other passages of scripture like Gen. 37:29; Josh. 7:6; 2 Sam. 13:19; and Lev. 10:6. Another mourning ritual in the area of Mesopotamia and Canaan was to shave the mourner’s head. There are also other examples of shaving one’s head out of mourning within scripture (cf. Isa. 15:2; Jer. 7:29; Ezek 7:18; Amos 8:10; Mic. 1:16). Clearly seen is the loss of Job’s possessions, servants, and children greatly affected him. The coming of this news was of deep anguish to him and could not have come easily. [8]
Not only did Job show signs of deep pain but he went to God in his pain. Job fell to the ground and worshiped. This worshiping clearly had God as the object of the worship. Thinking of this being worship no doubt gives new light into how one can worship. Not only in times of blessing did he worship but in times of sorrow. Out of Job’s deepest possible pain Job went to God and continued to praise his name. The worship given to God through this action is also done out of deep humility as seen from Job falling to the ground.
Instead of Job responding to the bad news by means of vengeance towards God, Job responded in the way that glorified God. Earlier in the chapter Satan sought to prove that Job would curse the name of God. His accusation of Job was him cursing God at the loss of his blessings. For Job to continue to worship God shows his strength of character and faith. There is no surprise that God said of Job, “there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil” (1:8). Job lived up to his description in every situation.
Job was not the only person within scripture who responded in a very similar manner to bad news and loss. King Hezekiah in 2 Kings 19:1 responds in very much the same way as Job when he “tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of the LORD.” David also responds in a likewise manner in 2 Samuel 12:20 which states, ”Then David arose from the earth and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes. And he went into the house of the LORD and worshiped.”
1:21) Job continues his response to his afflictions with words and a praise to God. The first part of his words are that of “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return.” Job states that he came naked from his mother’s womb. This nakedness is merely stating that he had no possessions when entering into this world. He then continues to say he will return to his mother’s womb naked. He will not return to his mother’s womb literally or to mother earth’s womb but he simply means he will die with no more than how much he had in the beginning.
Job continues by saying, “The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away.” Job acknowledges his blessings coming from God and therefore he has the right as the giver of blessings to take them away. He acknowledges who God is and the simple fact that he can do as he chooses. In these words Job also used the personal name of God. Job is praising the great I AM, the great YHWH, the covenant giving God for who he is and what he can do. Job might very well have not known the personal name of God not being a Hebrew living during the time of the Patriarchs, but the author of Job wants the reader to understand that it is the very same God that Job is speaking. [9]
Against the assumptions made by Satan, Job did not curse God but instead blessed God by praising, “blessed be the name of the LORD.” Job not only praised God through the times of blessing but he also praised God through times of pain and suffering. Job did just as God would have him do, to bring glory to his name. In reference to this whole verse, “The well-balanced poem that Job speaks in his grief is a model of submissive piety and obedient surrender to God whose ways are not our ways and whose thoughts are not our thoughts.” [10]
Through all of these praises, Job knows it is God who gave his blessings and misfortunes. This awareness does not mean Job was aware of the heavenly meetings however. The author of Job is conscious of the meetings and makes a connection between the two. The Hebrew word that Job used here for bless was brk. This same word is also used in verses 1:11, 2:5, and 2:9 as an euphemism with the opposite meaning when Satan said Job would curse God. Each time the word is used towards God it was translated bless possibly out of respect and reverence toward God. [11] The author of Job seems to have been making a connection between these two verses and the expected reaction by Satan. [12]
1:22) The end of Job’s response a short description of how Job handled the situation. Even though Satan accused Job of cursing the name of God “Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.” Job’s deep faith does not seem to have relieved his agony but possibly added to it. As Job loved God, Job had the same good opinion of God even when things went wrong. “Because Job sees nothing but the Lord’s hand in everything, how can he escape the horrible thought that God has done something bad?” [13] Saying “Praise the Lord” is much more difficult during times of pain than it is when God blesses. “Job assumed no inherent right to his possessions. In sorrow as well as blessing he praised God’s name.” [14] Job continuing to praise God even during this time shows Job’s strong faith.
Even though Job attributes his pain to God he never blames God for his struggle. Job neither attributes his affliction to deserved punishment in his life. He never gets a true understanding of why God puts this struggle in his life until the end of the book of Job. Despite Job’s lack of knowledge of why he is facing struggle, he still praised God. Job “refuses in his agony to accuse god of having done anything remiss or out of character.” [15] This is as if to say Job is saying, “Lord, I do not know why this is happening to me but I will praise you and serve you Lord despite the situations in my life.”
Second Response of Job
After Job’s first response came the second heavenly scene, another set of afflictions upon Job, and finally Job’s second response. This second attack upon Job was upon his body as opposed to his possessions like previously in the form of sores covering his entire body.
2:9) After seeing all the misery Job was going through, Job’s wife makes her first and only appearance by saying to Job, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.” This statement by Job’s wife draws up many questions with only a few that can be answered. If Job cursed God then he would die and end his suffering? Job’s wife may have believed this as many seemed to hold to the Principle of Retribution within the book of Job. This principle states that those who do good will receive the blessings of God while those who curse the name of God by their actions and words will receive curses in return. Could she have believed Job cursing God would cause him to die? Did she believe he deserved this punishment?
Was Job’s wife acting out of hatred in her telling him to die or was it out of sympathy? Was she mad at Job as she too received much of Job’s own affliction? Or was her telling Job to do this out of love for her husband? What can be seen in this statement is that she saw how Job believed himself to be blameless. Her asking whether he still held that belief signifies her own belief in the absolute nature of the Principle of Retribution.
One may not be able to find out whether or not Job’s wife had good intentions in her questioning and statement but regardless of her intentions, it was not the most godly response she could have made. Her telling Job to do this would mean Job would have to curse God. Job cursing God would therefore show a weakness in Job’s faith and therefore Satan would have been correct in his accusations toward Job which is repeated in Job 2:5.
Though Job’s wife is never mentioned directly, she is implied within Job 42:12-17 as Job later has more children. Either the two of them made their peace with one another if she indeed did not have good intentions for her husband or Job is married to another woman. Perhaps the best assumption is that he is indeed married to the same woman. [16]
2:10) Job’s second response to his afflictions are instead of being a praise toward God, it is a rebuttal against his wife. Job’s first sentence towards his wife is, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak.” This statement seems to in part signify that what she told Job was outside of her typical character. He seems to be very aware that cursing God would be the foolish thing for him to do.
Job continues to say to her, “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” Job states their willingness to take the blessings from God and notes they must also be willing to take the evil. “But Job speaks only of blessing and its opposite, deprivation of blessing, or harm.” [17] Job does not question the goodness of God here but only addresses human’s response toward God. Job expects the attitude of man to be “God being God, we are bound to have whatever he chooses to give us, good or bad; protest is therefore idle, resignation the only reasonable response.” [18]
Even after saying all these things the last part of the verse says of Job, “In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” In just the same way as “Job did not sin or charge God with wrong” in 1:22, Job also responded in a manner that would most bring glory to God. Despite Job’s inability to understand why God put harm in his life as is especially more apparent in later texts, Job continued to glorify God and praise his name.
Yet again the accusations of Satan were false against Job. Job continued to be “blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil” (1:1). Job may not have always understood what was going on but he continued to trust his Lord through each circumstance.
APPLICATION
Throughout this study of the responses of Job to his suffering and pain his righteous behavior is easily apparent in his actions, words, and description of himself. Seeing as he behaved in a manner which brought glory to God, an emulation of his actions should be lived out in the lives of God’s followers. In just the same way as Satan accused Job, he will do the same thing to us. We must be strong in our faith and our walk when we too face pain and suffering as to not curse the name of God but give glory to him.
As Job did not always know why he was facing these trials but still remained faithful, we too must also remain faithful despite our inability to truly understand everything occurring. We too must ask ourselves, “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” Do we seek to please God because of the blessings he’s put in our lives or because we want him to be gloried with our lives despite our circumstances?
Job also never blamed or accused God of doing wrongdoing when he was under the fire of God. Job never claimed he deserved any of it but claimed his innocence. Often times we may indeed not be innocent, but we must not attribute a specific burden in our lives to a specific sin unless we have revelation of such or it’s blatantly obvious. Suffering is not always the byproduct of our own specific sin but simply living in a fallen world. No matter whether we feel we deserve suffering or not we must realize who God is to be in our lives.
CONCLUSION
What this paper intended was to take a detailed look at Job’s immediate responses to his afflictions so that one may have an example of how a blameless and upright man should face suffering. Satan’s accusation of Job stated he would curse the name of God if Job himself received torments. Despite these accusations, Job lived up to the righteous description given to him by God. Job continued to glorify God despite the situation and his motivations were tested.
Continuing to glorify God and praise his name is how this righteous man handled his afflictions. One who seeks to live the righteous life like that of Job must also seek to handle his or her own situations in the same way. Job had God as his priority instead of himself.
Works Cited
1. Robert L. Alden, The New American Commentary: Job, vol. 11 (Nashville, TN: Broadman and Holman Publishers, 1993), 28.
2. Walter A. Elwell and Robert W. Yarbrough, Encountering the New Testament: A Historical and Theological Survey (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1998), 298.
3. Alden, 25.
4. Ibid, 29.
5. Normon Geisler, Systematic Theology, vol. 2 (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 2002), 541.
6. John H. Walton, Victor H. Matthews, and Mark W. Chavalas, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament, (Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 2000), 496.
7. David J. A. Clines, Word Bible Commentary: Job 1-20, vol. 17 (Dallas, TX: Word Books, 1989), 34.
8. Francis I. Andersen, Job: An Introduction and Commentary (Downders Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1976), 87.
9. Frank E. Gaebelein, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, vol 4 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1988), 882-83.
10. Alden, 62.
11. John R. Kohlenberger and James A. Swanson, The Hebrew English Concordance to the Old Testament: With New International Version, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1998), 675.
12. Joseph S. Exell, The Biblical Illustrator: Job (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1973), 44.
13. Andersen, 89.
14. John E. Hartley, The Book of Job (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1988), 78.
15. John C. L. Gibson, The Daily Study Bible Series: Job (Philadelphia, PN: Westminster Press, 1985), 19.
16. Michael C. Legaspi, “Job’s Wives in the Testament of Job: A Note on the Syntheses of Two Traditions,” Journal of Biblical Literature, 127 (2008): 71.
17. Clines, 54.
18. Ibid.
