Alfred smith has contributed prac tical insights for lessons and sermons on the book of job. However, the date when the book was written and by whom it was. Book of job read, study bible verses online bible study tools. On the contrary, god speaks directly to job, just as he does in the patriarchal. At the same time, it also asks the question we rarely. Book of job overview insight for living ministries. 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. In old testament times, authors sometimes referred to themselves in the third person, so jobs authorship is a strong possibility. Do not declare me guilty, but tell me what charges you have against me. But he has promised the holy spirit to help us understand john 16.
You might have heard someone say, they have the patience of job. Guidelines for understanding and proclaiming the book of job. The book of job discusses why god allows pain and suffering. Job pronounced jobe, was a rich farmer living in the land of uz, somewhere northeast of palestine. Overcome by the appearance of god, job recognizes gods infinite power and accepts the constraints of his human understanding. Though it is hard and rare, it is not impossible for a rich man to enter into the kingdom. Job 4 nlt eliphazs first response to job bible gateway. As is customary with epic poems, it begins with a prologue that sets up the story line chs 12. 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 book of job is one of the most problematic portions of the bible and has called forth a variety of interpretations. To report dead links, typos, or html errors or suggestions about making these resources more useful use our convenient contact form. 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. This was to show satan how job loved worshiped god. By its conclusion, the true subject of the book emerges.
These stories focus on jobs trials at the hands of god and how he deals with them. 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. The bible uses figurative language all the time, and this passage is certainly filled with it as is very common in poetic passages job, psalms, most of chapters in the prophets. Every book on your english syllabus summed up in a quote from the office. The book of job is often referred to as one of the great classics of world literature.
The book of job is one of the most celebrated pieces of biblical literature, not only because it explores some of the most profound questions humans ask about their lives, but also because it is extremely well. If we were to film this book, the whole movie would take place on a single set, probably in a single day. The book of job is one of the wisdom books of the bible. At its beginning, job seems to be a book about human suffering. Elihu had silenced job, but had not brought him to admit his guilt before god. Elihu, the fourth friend who spoke toward the end of the story. Job is a wealthy man living in a land called uz with his large family and extensive flocks. Human beings are unable to understand why the righteous suffer job 28. J ust about everyone has heard of the suffering of job in the old testament.
There are no references to the law of moses, the tabernacle, the priesthood, the judges or kings, etc. The book of job was written like a historical poem, but was treated as an actual event in the bible. Next, satan struck job with this terrible sickness. Eliphazs first response to job then eliphaz the temanite replied to job. An explanation of the biblical book of job the book job is composed of three parts. So, whenever you open the sacred word, also open your heart to god in prayer, allowing the words of this commentary to direct your thoughts to the scriptures and to the one they tell us about. The old testament quizzes about important details and events in every. Visit the eo web site to browse and download the material for church or personal use. Go to the bottom of that page to see the index chapters, which are hot links. Copeland this study guide is from the executable outlines series, a collection of sermon outlines and bible study lessons by mark a. Job concluded his rant against the injustice of the world by challenging god and his friends to make me a liar and that he was wrong. Jun 09, 2014 the book of job is one of the most misunderstood books in the bible. Addressing the problem of theodicy the vindication of the justice of god in the light of humanitys suffering it is a. I attempt to clear that up by offering a different perspective than most people know today.
Although most of the book consists of the words of job and his friends, job himself was not the author. Also, three false friends came and told him he had lived a bad life. The book of job, named after its protagonist apparently not an israelite. Satan said he could have job eating out of his hand turn him away from god. If you find this scriptural poetry nearly impossible to read, try this. 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.
Several suggestions have been put forth as plausible authors. Book of job is poetry and to make matters worse it is poetry that has been translated from another language, hebrew. 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. For a broader view look at the comments in the right column. The book of job is a book in the ketuvim writings section of the hebrew bible tanakh, and. This is important, for the point of the whole narrative, we shall see, is to expose the.
The book of job is the first book of the wisdom literature of hebrew scripture. Up in the heavens, god brags to the divine assembly about job. Job is an easy candidate for the old testaments most. According to biblical scholars, the book of job is the oldest book in the bible. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the. The book of job is the story of a normal human being who is beset by misfortune and suffering. The larger context of the book demonstrates that job was certain that god knew him and the truth of his character, but his words here reveal how vexed he was by the extent of his suffering psalm 11. The word of god is precious and far beyond human wisdom isa.
However, the name does occur in genesis 46 and ezekiel 14. Bible explained bible commentary study of each verse in. A major difficulty in understanding the meaning of the book is, what insight leads job to submit so humbly to god at the end. The contents of the book, together with its artistic structure and elegant style, place it.
Job 8 commentary explaining the book bible study guide. It is possible that job is the oldest of any book of the bible written approximately 21001800 b. 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. This made jehovah very happy, and afterward he blessed job, as you can see in the picture. When a chapter or section is finished, you will see at the bottom of the page over the links, go to the next section.
And like all good, classical poetry, it is never particularly difficult to recognize figures or to understand how they are to be applied and all the more so in. 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. Job himself, who could have best recalled his own words. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of god to be revealed. This expression is used repeatedly to refer to inspired scripture. In job, this prologue serves as a literary device to give the reader a perspective that the characters in the story lack. Job spends his entire book in a position of sadness and loss. But job answered and said, oh that my grief were thoroughly weighed, and my calamity laid in the balances together. 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.
Key personalities of this book include job, eliphaz the temanite, bildad the shuhite, zophar the naamathite, and elihu the buzite. And there is a reality called satan who challenges god that his man is not as good as he thinks he is. Study scripture verses with commentary, concordances, and use highlighting, underlining, take notes in the bible. One day, satan the adversary appears before god in heaven. 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. About the author matthew henry was born at broad oak, iscoyd, a farmhouse on the borders of flintshire and shropshire, wales, united kingdom. Recommended sites bible info questions with answers in major world languages. The name job is mentioned only 54 times and mostly just in the book of job. Look at the specific lessons we can learn about responding to trials as revealed in the book of job.
Job is the last of the three books that explore these themes of biblical wisdom. God returns jobs health, providing him with twice as much property as before, new children, and an extremely long life. 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. 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. His speeches neither explain jobs suffering, nor defend divine justice, nor enter into the courtroom confrontation that job has demanded, nor. 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. He is blameless and upright, always careful to avoid doing evil 1. Five truths for sufferers from the book of job the. The contents of the book, together with its artistic structure and elegant style, place it among the literary masterpieces of all time. Hes blameless and upright, and he has kids, a wife, land, and a bunch of sheep. For personal study, i suggest you start at the beginning of a chapter or book. 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.
Its author is unknown yet it is possible that job himself wrote it. The big picture of job is that there was a man who was, in one sense, blameless in gods sight. God boasts to satan about jobs goodness, but satan argues that job is only good because god has. 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. Lo and behold, satan comes out and challenges god on job s goodness. How does the book of job help disciples of jesus christ remain faithful to god as they sufferor walk alongside others who sufferin ways that are extreme and inexplicable. 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. Read your own bible, the bible as quoted on this site, and my comments.
Job is an obvious place to turn to when one is overwhelmed with pain, but it is easy for a casual reader to leave the book more mystified than encouraged. Churches, theological seminaries and bible schools will find an excellent aid in this biblical commentary on the book of job. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. Book of job complete bible commentary verse by verse.
This reference in james is the only time job is mentioned by name in the n. Job with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. Click on a book listed below which will take you to its introduction page. God allows satan to torment job to test this bold claim, but he forbids satan to. The book of job is considered being part of the poetic books job, psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, and song of songs in todays bible editions. Old testament of the bible cliffsnotes study guides book. You can read our explanation of job 8 meaning of verses 11 through 22 of chapter 8 as well open your bible to job, chapter 8. 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. God is unseen, and his ways are inscrutable and beyond human understanding. Well be studying the 8 th chapter of the old testament book of job weve been reminded throughout this book that when we dont understand gods ways, we must trust his wisdom. Job 1 kjv there was a man in the land of uz, bible gateway. All 66 books of the bible in easy, onesentence summaries. Habel has contributed a small but helpful study for preaching the whole book of job.