Trials and Tribulations for Everyone
The Book of Job is one of the writings in the Hebrew Bible Old Testament. According to many scholars, it dates back to between the 7th and 4th centuries BCE; however, the author remains unknown (Walker). Throughout the scriptures, it mentions Job and his friends, but Job is not the author. Many theories have been about that say the author must be of Israelite descendants and somehow came upon a story of a righteous man who was tested by God and suffered but still remained loyal to Him (Job 5:11). The Book of Job is often considered difficult to comprehend but within its text lies a meaningful message that many people often look over and lose sight of.
Job was a very prosperous, wealthy man as well as a family man that was considered a prophet in Islam. He was “blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil” (1:1). Job was blessed beyond compare because he honored God and God’s laws. He was often referred to as one of the most loyal servants to the Lord and because of that he was rewarded for his behavior. He had many children and an abundance of livestock. Throughout the main theme in the Book of Job, Job was challenged by the Devil to see if he would ever lose faith in God because God knew that Job was one of his most strongest believers. God told the Devil that he could test Job with whatever he wanted he just could not kill him. So the Devil took his chance, he cursed Job with many
Whitty 2 diseases, murdered all of his family members, killed all of his animals and made him the outcast of society (2). Job said, “Naked came I from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (1:21). Job had absolutel...
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...im. Only God can allow bad things to happen but those who remain loyal will never go without because he takes care of all (1 Pet. 5:7). Even though bad things do come about He is there through it all and never will leave anyone alone. He will bless everyone with what they need, when they need it.
Throughout the Bible many servants’ faith are tested, one of them being Job. Job can be used as an example for everyone, he was a good person, Job had everything taken from him and never lost his faith in God. Thus, the lesson from Job is that bad things do come about, but those bad things should not mold shape someone’s personality for the worst and deter them away from something they believe in. But instead, it should be something to push them even harder and make them want to be a better person and remain loyal to the one who has given them everything, just as he did.
Second, the story line. Although Archibald MacLeish wrote the play based on the story of Job in The Bible, there are many differences in the story line. In The Bible, Job’s misfortune was spawned by Satan trying to show God that Job was not as holy as God had thought. God gave Satan the power to destroy everything Job had, including his health. Job’s children all died together when the roof of the house collapsed on them while they were all dining at the house of the oldest brother. His wife died also, and all of his possessions was taken from him. Furthermore, he contracted painful sores all over his body. As for J.B., his children died separately, one after the other. The oldest had died in the army. Two were involved in a car accident. One daughter was killed by an explosion that also took out J.B.’s millions. And the youngest was raped. However, J.B.’s wife, Sarah, was not killed, but instead she left him. In The Bible, Job is confronted by his three friends. His friends encourages him to turn against God and to curse him, but he refused to do so. On the other hand, J.B. was confronted with four friends, the first three encouraging him to turn against God but the fourth telling him to pray to God and to praise Him.
...n the world. Job questions what god is really doing for him. Then god talks to job in question form about the creation of the earth. This shows that jobs is very small compared to god, so small that he cannot even being to understand some of the the things god is telling him. Chapter 38 proves to job that humans are far below the power of god then in chapter 42 job quickly shames himself for the previous things he said.
There is one significant difference that stands out between Job and Odysseus. That is the reason for their loss of agency and suffering. The reason in for Odysseus’ torment is obvious: he blinded Poseidon’s son. How anyone could not expect some form of vengeance, and sometimes I get the feeling Odysseus is caught unaware by Poseidon, is a mystery to me. The rationale behind Job’s reduction in agency is much less clear and is never addressed by God, who was an accessory to the whole affair by knowingly allowing it to take place. The comforters suggest possible explanations, unhidden sin or a lesson from God, but neither suggestions are confirmed or denied. The reason God accepted Satan’s wager remains a playground for speculation.
He wants to find a way to justify God’s actions, but he cannot understand why there are evil people who “harm the childless woman, / and do no good to the widow,” only to be rewarded with long, successful lives (Job 24:21). Job’s friends, say that God distributes outcomes to each person as his or her actions deserve. As a result of this belief, they insist that Job has committed some wrongdoing to merit his punishment. God himself declines to present a rational explanation for the unfair distribution of blessings and curses. He still suggests that people should not discuss divine justice since God’s power is so great that humans cannot possibly justify his
The Book of Job is a very complex translation in which two images of evil are presented. Steven Mitchell calls them the Accusing Angel (Accuser) and the Serpent. They are both very powerful and portrayed as supernatural beings. His first reference to the Accusing Angel appears early on, however references throughout the story do not exist. Unlike the Accusing Angel, the Serpent is mentioned throughout the book. Disturbing imagery and ideas from the unnamable voice from the whirlwind help to give the reader an accurate perception of the Serpent. Although the context in which they are presented is different, the way that both are talked about, and defined, are very similar and lead the reader to believe that the two may be the same entity.
Like Kushner, I think God gives us the strength to cope with bad things when they come our way. Ultimately, I believe the nature of reality is blind as to weather you’re a good or evil. You could be a good person your whole life and then one day something tragic happens; you lose your job, your house
The Book of Job is one of the three books in the Hebrew bible whose genre is described as wisdom literature.1 Certainly the Book of Job satisfies the literary conventions that qualify a biblical book for such status. 2 Yet Job may be associated with wisdom in a much more literal sense. The Book of Job attempts to deal with a problematic question that confronts suffering humanity: why do bad things happen to good people? The variety and vehemence of commentators' contemporary responses to this chapter of the Bible is testament to the continued relevance of the Book of Job's wisdom thousands of years after it was written. Although the commentators examined herein arrive at differing and sometimes conflicting conclusions after reading the story of "the holy Arab"3, none are left indifferent.
...ade to choose him for the spiritual task. Job realized he had to experience loss and suffering in the name of God to pass the test God bestowed upon him. God stated “Who is that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up your loins like a man, I will question you, and you shall declare to me... Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth” (p.667) God notified Job he was in no position to question the loss he must undertake in order to complete his mission. Job realized the meaning of his life, when he realized the magnitude God went to convince him of his calling. Job forgave himself for his sacrifices, because he realized it was instructed by God.
We hear about the murders, assaults, robberies, natural disasters and all other evil or natural destructive events in the world, we have to ask the question, how could God let such bad things happen to good people or to let these disastrous events happen at all. Now think about the world and its population if evil or natural disasters did not exist; the world population would be unimaginable. Natural disasters are beyond human control, but murders, assaults, robberies and all other evil or bad deeds committed by human beings is a matter of exercising bad choice or misuse of free will.
The Book of Job shows a change in God's attitude from the beginning to the end. At the beginning of the book, He is presented as Job's protector and defender. At the end He appears as the supreme being lecturing and preaching to Job with hostility, despite the fact that Job never cursed his name, and never did anything wrong. Job's only question was why God had beseeched this terrible disease on him. I intend to analyze and discuss the different roles God played in the Book of Job.
Job was a man of the purest faith. When the world shunned God, Job's faith never declined. Job was a wealthy, handsome man with a beautiful wife and a vast amount of property. At some point in time, Satan made a bet with God that if Job situation was changed, his faith would quickly falter. On this note, God took Job's wealth, his property, his family, and his wife. When times were at their worst, God gave Job pus welts on Job's face, taking his looks. Job's faith, however, did not falter, instead it becamestronger. Job passed the test. God then healed Job, gave him more land, greater wealth , and a better wife. Job was baffled, he wondered the purpose behind his fall and rise. When he asked God this, God replied: "...Because I'm God." That was answer enough.
The whole Book is a “double” journey for Job. He shows God his faith and realizes the faith God has that Job will not stray from his path. Job knows deep down that God has not forsaken him.
The Book of Job The Book of Job Job was a righteous man who lived in Uz. He had 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.
We can trust God as being all-powerful that he would take care of
In The Book of Job, one of the main themes is desire, more specifically the desire to know the actuality. Job is a wealthy man living in a land of Uz with his family minding his own business. He is a very religious man and usually strives to do what he believes is morally right. Satan one day challenges God that Job will lose his faith in him if he allows Satan to torture Job. God accepts the challenge and Job greatly suffers. Job at the beginning of the story had no desires or intentions at all, but as his condition gets worse and worse. Job mindset about God and his belief begins to shift. At this point in the story desire starts to play a key role in Job’s life. Desire is shown in Job when he demands answers from God and why God is putting him through all of this. The idea of questioning God terrifies Job but his desire for an answer ultimately overshadows his fear of questioning God, “Here is my desire...