The book of job is a very difficult book to understand, and remember that job never did receive an answer from god that we know of. Job explores the difficult question of gods relationship to human suffering, and invites us to trust gods wisdom and character. Job begins another section the poetical books of the bible which also includes psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, song of solomon, and the little book of lamentations, tucked in behind jeremiah. Hes blameless and upright, and he has kids, a wife, land, and a bunch of sheep.
I attempt to clear that up by offering a different perspective than most. The date of the authorship of the book of job would be determined by the author of the book of job. This reference in james is the only time job is mentioned by name in the n. The book of job opens with a scene in heaven where satan comes to accuse job before god. Summary of the book of job this summary of the book of job provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of job. So, when eliphaz saw jobs troubles, eliphaz had no explanation.
The book of job discusses why god allows pain and suffering. The book of job is one of the most problematic portions of the bible and has called forth a variety of interpretations. Misfortune befalls job, and, in three cycles of speeches, his three friends give the explanation that this must be punishment from god for his sins, and they urge him to repent. One day, satan the adversary appears before god in heaven. Watch our overview video on the book of job, which breaks down the. Copeland this study guide is from the executable outlines series, a collection of sermon outlines and bible study lessons by mark a. The book of job is a book in the ketuvim writings section of the hebrew bible tanakh, and. This wealthy landowner and father is one of the bestknown biblical heroes.
The characters in the book of job consist of job, his wife, his three friends bildad, eliphaz, and zophar, a man. The contents of the book, together with its artistic structure and elegant style, place it. Its subject matter is the allimportant question, why, in a world over which yahweh has jurisdiction, should innocent persons have to suffer when at the same time the wicked escape suffering and are permitted to have comfort and security. If you have not read this series from the beginning, i would highly recommend that you go back and start with part 1. I have not always been the best christian but i know jesus is god one on.
In job, this prologue serves as a literary device to give the reader a perspective that the characters in the story lack. Job begins another section the poetical books of the bible which also includes psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, song of solomon, and the little book of lamentations. Next, satan struck job with this terrible sickness. The book of job, named after its protagonist apparently not an israelite. God brags to satan about jobs virtue, but satan contends that job is only righteous because god has favored him generously. The old testament quizzes about important details and events in every.
Job pronounced jobe, was a rich farmer living in the land of uz, somewhere northeast of palestine. Up in the heavens, god brags to the divine assembly about job. Job is a wealthy man living in a land called uz with his large family and. Elihu, the fourth friend who spoke toward the end of the story. The big picture of job is that there was a man who was, in one sense, blameless in gods sight. According to biblical scholars, the book of job is the oldest book in the bible. Lo and behold, satan comes out and challenges god on jobs goodness.
To report dead links, typos, or html errors or suggestions about making these resources more useful use our convenient contact form. 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. He didnt understand why he suffered so much loss of life his family and health, and even his friends, so we may not understand whats happening to us or why, but dont ask why, but rather what. Book of job complete bible commentary verse by verse. In this bible story from the book of job, there is a wealthy man named job residing in an area called uz with his extended family and vast flocks. He insists job only serves god because god protects him and seeks gods permission to test jobs faith and loyalty. And there is a reality called satan who challenges god that his man is not as good as he thinks he is. He was the greatest man among all the people of the east. Aug 29, 2018 the bible story of job, from the book of job, is a powerful tale of testing the devotion and fortitude of the human will. The book of job is a book of the christian old testament that tells a story about job, who in jewish tradition is the son of uz, who was the son of nahor, the brother of abraham. He is blameless and upright, always careful to avoid doing evil 1. If you find this scriptural poetry nearly impossible to read, try this.
Visit the eo web site to browse and download the material for church or personal use. This is important, for the point of the whole narrative, we shall see, is to expose the. However, the name does occur in genesis 46 and ezekiel 14. The book of job is one of the most misunderstood books in the bible. If you were to fit it chronologically, it should be place in the early chapters of genesis. But satan the accuser comes before the lord, and god allows him to test job.
Job is a wealthy man living in a land called uz with his large family and extensive flocks. Job is a pious believer who is struck by misfortune so great that it cannot be explained in the usual way as a prompting to repentance, a warning, let alone a punishment the arguments later. At the same time, it also asks the question we rarely. But job answered and said, oh that my grief were thoroughly weighed, and my calamity laid in the balances together. Also, three false friends came and told him he had lived a bad life. The book of job is one of the wisdom books of the bible. The book of job is often referred to as one of the great classics of world literature.
There is an evil spirit, the enemy of god, and of all righteousness, who is continually seeking to distress, to lead astray, and, if possible, to destroy those who love god. Book of job overview insight for living ministries. This made jehovah very happy, and afterward he blessed job, as you can see in the picture. Every book on your english syllabus summed up in a quote from the office. The most likely candidates are job, elihu, moses, and solomon. Therefore i despise myself and repent in dust and ashes. Sep 07, 2010 the book of job has been widely given the theme of patience and we see this mentioned in the new testament book of james. 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. Book of job is poetry and to make matters worse it is poetry that has been translated from another language, hebrew. A free bible version and commentary on the old testament book of job in easyenglish. Job 1, new international version niv the bible app.
Job himself, who could have best recalled his own words. Key personalities of this book include job, eliphaz the temanite, bildad the shuhite, zophar the naamathite, and elihu the buzite. Job is the last of the three books that explore these themes of biblical wisdom. Its author is unknown yet it is possible that job himself wrote it. The book of job is the story of a normal human being who is beset by misfortune and suffering.
Job with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. The book of job does not specifically name its author. In addition to them, the patriarch job is pointed out in verse 11 as an outstanding example of steadfast faith in the way he handled severe trials. Set in uz, an obscure land far from israel, during an unknown time period, the book of job focuses on questions about gods justice and why good people suffer. 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. Too many christians want to put themselves into the role of a job. All 66 books of the bible in easy, onesentence summaries. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Job 1 kjv there was a man in the land of uz, bible gateway. It is possible that job is the oldest of any book of the bible written approximately 21001800 b. The name job is mentioned only 54 times and mostly just in the book of job. 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. Though it is hard and rare, it is not impossible for a rich man to enter into the kingdom.
The contents of the book, together with its artistic structure and elegant style, place it among the literary masterpieces of all time. Job free bible commentary in easy english easyenglish bible. At its beginning, job seems to be a book about human suffering. And here comes one of the most famous phrases in the bible. The difficulty in the book of job is over the nature and the cause of his afflictions, it touches on the philosophical discussion about the problem of evil, and human suffering which is a classic problem that has yet to be given a classic answer. Churches, theological seminaries and bible schools will find an excellent aid in this biblical commentary on the book of job.
Job spends his entire book in a position of sadness and loss. But after this experience, job came to embody for me a bible in my pocket answer to suffering, something that could be whipped out to explain. Misfortune befalls job, and, in three cycles of speeches, his three friends give the explanation that this must be. Jun 09, 2014 the book of job is one of the most misunderstood books in the bible. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of bible. This expression is used repeatedly to refer to inspired scripture. His speeches neither explain jobs suffering, nor defend divine justice, nor enter into the courtroom confrontation that job has demanded, nor. Since the text and audio content provided by blb represent a range of evangelical traditions, all of the ideas and principles conveyed in the resource materials are not. By its conclusion, the true subject of the book emerges. The book of job is a very tough book of the bible to understand using just the reasoning found within your human mind. The book of job was written like a historical poem, but was treated as an actual event in the bible. I love reading the book of jobi feel a connection, i lost my son to a pedestrian accident almost 3 years ago at 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.
I attempt to clear that up by offering a different perspective than most people know today. The book begins with the description of job as a just and upright man. However, the date when the book was written and by whom it was. The book of job is considered being part of the poetic books job, psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, and song of songs in todays bible editions. Dec 17, 2019 the book of job is a very difficult book to understand, and remember that job never did receive an answer from god that we know of.
Although most of the book consists of the words of job and his friends, job himself was not the author. He is blameless and upright, constantly mindful to live in a righteous manner. It should be kept in mind that job is not the author. Job s final speech in his own defense is probably where the book originally ended. God boasts to satan about jobs goodness, but satan argues that job is only good because god has. So when job suffered so grievously, they mistakenly concluded that he was guilty of grievous sins. If we were to film this book, the whole movie would take place on a single set, probably in a single day. About the author matthew henry was born at broad oak, iscoyd, a farmhouse on the borders of flintshire and shropshire, wales, united kingdom. The book of job consists of a prose prologue and epilogue narrative framing poetic dialogues and monologues. Look at the specific lessons we can learn about responding to trials as revealed in the book of job. Human beings are unable to understand why the righteous suffer job 28. 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. These stories focus on jobs trials at the hands of god and how he deals with them. Several suggestions have been put forth as plausible authors.
Jobs final speech in his own defense is probably where the book originally ended. 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 book of job has been widely given the theme of patience and we see this mentioned in the new testament book of james. As is customary with epic poems, it begins with a prologue that sets up the story line chs 12.