Book of Job

The Book of Job (; Hebrew: אִיוֹב‎ ʾ iyobh), commonly referred to simply as Job, is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible. It relates the story of Job, who in Jewish tradition is the son of Uz, who was the son of Nahor, the brother of Abraham. It tells of his trials at the hands of God, his theological discussions with friends on the origins and nature of his suffering, his challenge to God, and finally a response from God. The book comprises a didactic poem set in a prose frame and has been called "the most profound literary work of the entire Old Testament". The book and its numerous exegeses are attempts to address the problem of evil. The over-riding and oft-asked question manifestly revealed in the book of Job is, "Why do the righteous suffer?"

Narrative

The Book tells the story of an extremely pious man named Job, who was very prosperous and had seven sons and three daughters. Constantly fearing that his sons may have sinned and "cursed God in their hearts", he habitually offered burnt offerings as a pardon for their sins. The "sons of God" and Satan (literally "the adversary") present themselves to God. God asks Satan his opinion on Job. Satan answers that Job is pious only because God put a "wall around" him and "blessed" his favorite servant with prosperity. But if God touches "his possessions", then Job would curse him. God gives Satan permission to test Job's righteousness.

All of Job's possessions are destroyed and a 'ruach' (wind/spirit) causes the house of the firstborn to collapse killing all of Job's offspring who were gathered for a feast. Job does not curse God after this but instead shaves his head, tears his clothes and says, "Naked I came out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return: Lord has given, and Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of Lord" (Simplified).

As Job endures these calamities without reproaching Divine Providence, Satan solicits permission to afflict his person as well, and God says, "Behold, he is in your hand, but don't touch his life." Satan, therefore, smites him with dreadful boils, and Job, seated in ashes, scrapes his skin with broken pottery. His wife prompts him to "curse God, and die" but Job answers, "You speak as one of the foolish speaks. Moreover, shall we receive good from God and shall not receive evil?"

Three friends of Job, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite, come to console him. And the three of Job's friends heard all this evil that came on him, and they came every man from his place — Eliphaz the Temanite (Heb: Aliphaz the Thimanite), Bildad the Shuhite (Heb: Bildad the Shuchite), and Zophar Naamathite (Heb: Zuphar the Nomathite). A fourth, Elihu the Buzite (Heb: Alieua ben Barakal the Buzite), first begins talking in Chapter 32 and plays a significant role in the dialogue; however, his arrival is not described. The friends spend seven days sitting on the ground with Job, without saying anything to him because they see that he is suffering and in much pain. Job at last breaks his silence and "curses the day he was born".

Structure

The book of Job has a fairly simple structure. Job 1 and 2 are the prologue, written in prose. Job 3:1-42:6 is poetry that consists of a cycle of speeches between Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar and later Elihu, and then the dialogue between Yahweh and Job. Job 42:7-14 is the epilogue, which is written in prose.

Speech cycles

The dialogues of chapters 3-31 are, in general, a cycle of speeches between Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar that are structured as follows:

Cycle 1 Job Chapters 3 Eliphaz 4-5 Job 6-7 Bildad 8 Job 9-10 Zophar 11

Cycle 2 Job Chapters 12-14 Eliphaz 15 Job 16-17 Bildad 18 Job 19 Zophar 20

Cycle 3 Job Chapters 21 Eliphaz 22 Job 23-24 Bildad 25:1-5 Job 26; 27-28; 29-31

The third cycle, it should be noted, does not follow the pattern of the first two cycles. Zophar does not give a speech and Bildad's speech is significantly shorter than his previous speeches. His speech maintains that Job, while righteous, is not perfect. Job does not disagree with this and God does not rebuke Elihu as he does Bildad, Zophar, and Eliphaz. After Elihu's speech ends with the last verse of Chapter 37, God appears and in the second verse of Chapter 38, God says, speaking of Job: “Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?"

God's response

After several rounds of debate between Job and his friends, in a divine voice, described as coming from a "cloud" or "whirlwind", God describes, in evocative and lyrical language, what the experience of being the creator of the world is like, and rhetorically asks if Job has ever had the experiences or the authority that God has had. God's answer underscores that Job shares the world with numerous powerful and remarkable creatures. (Also compare with which was possibly in response to ).

God's speech also emphasizes his sovereignty in creating and maintaining the world. The thrust is not merely that God has experiences that Job does not, but that God is king over the world and is not necessarily subject to questions from his creatures, including men. The point of these speeches, and ultimately the entire book of Job, is to proclaim the absolute freedom of God over His creation. God is not in need of the approval of his creation. Notably, it is only the reader of the book who learns the backstory of God's conversations with Satan; Job himself remains unaware of the reason or source of his sufferings until the end. Finally, humbled by God's chastising, Job turns speechless, giving up and repenting his previous requests of justice.

In the epilogue, God condemns Job's friends for their ignorance and lack of understanding while commending Job for his righteous words, commands them to prepare burnt offerings and reassures them that Job will pray for their forgiveness. Job is restored to health, gaining double the riches he possessed before and having new children, 7 sons and 3 daughters (his wife did not die in this ordeal). His new daughters (Jemima, Keziah and Keren-Happuch) were the most beautiful in the land, and were given inheritance along with their brothers. Job is blessed once again and lives on another 140 years after the ordeal, living to see his children to the fourth generation and dying peacefully of old age.

Satan in the Book of Job

Satan appears in the prose prologue of Job, with Satan's usual connotation of "the adversary", as a distinct being. He is shown as one of the celestial beings before the deity, replying to the inquiry of God as to whence he had come with the words: "from going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it" (Job 1:7).

The dialogue that ensues characterizes Satan as a member of the divine council who observes human activity, but with the purpose of searching out men's sins and appearing as their accuser. He is, as it were, a celestial "prosecutor". He persists in his opinion of Job even after he has passed through his first trial by surrendering to the will of God, whereupon the Satan demands another test through physical suffering (Job 2:3–5). Satan challenges Job's righteousness by saying that his belief is built only upon the material goods he has been given, and that his faith will disappear as soon as they are taken from him.

The introduction of "the adversary" occurs in the framing story alone: he is never clearly alluded to in the central poem at all, although Sheol is mentioned in the central poem, as well as Job's need for an adversary (although it is doubtful that he is referring to the original adversary of the story).

In Job "Satan" is not yet the devil's personal name, as in later Judeo-Christian works. In Job, both Behemoth (Job 40.15-24) and Leviathan (Job 41.1-34) are depicted as insurmountable foes to the mortal, yet it is stated that Yahweh made them just as Yahweh made Job (Job 40.15).

Origin and textual history

Most modern scholars date the extant text to the 4th century BCE, prior to Ecclesiastes in the development of Wisdom literature. While "there is an intentional editorial unity with a cohesive purpose and message in the canonical form of the book," Job contains many separate elements, some of which may have had an independent existence prior to being incorporated into the present text.

Scholars agree that the introductory and concluding sections of the book, the framing devices, were composed to set the central poem into a prose "folk-book", as the compilers of the Jewish Encyclopedia expressed it. The central poem is from another source.

Among the Dead Sea Scrolls is the Targum of Job 11Q10. Another example of text from the last chapter or epilogue of Job can be found in the book The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Translation, showing examples of how fragments of The Book of Job found among the scrolls differ from the text as now known.

The "Job Motif" in earlier literature

The Assyriologist and Sumerologist Samuel Noah Kramer in 1954 presented a Sumerian text treating the "Job motif" of the righteous sufferer. The Sumerian text is known as "A man and his god", after the incipit lu₂-ulu₃ nam-mah dingir-ra-na. Ludlul bēl nēmeqi is a Babylonian text, also known as the "Babylonian Job", which concerns itself with the unjust suffering of an afflicted man, named Shubshi-meshre-Shakkan.

"The Protestation of Guiltlessness," from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, is a collection of assertions of innocence which were included in ancient Egyptian burial rites, and is often compared to Job, especially chapter 31.

While these and other ancient Near Eastern texts consider comparable issues, scholars have not found a direct antecedent to Job. However, the similarity between the central concerns of Job and those of certain ancient Babylonian and Egyptian texts reveals a shared interest in the question of why the innocent suffer. These texts also share an interest in challenging traditional views of the nature of divine justice. J.B. Curtis in his 1979 paper "On Job's Response to Yahweh", argues that Job's final responses to Yahweh are a total rejection of Yahweh rather than an expression of repentance, and translates Job 42:6 as "Therefore I feel loathing contempt and revulsion (toward you, O God); and I am sorry for frail man."

Talmudic tradition

The Talmudic Tractate Bava Batra 15a-b maintains that Job was written by Moses, although nowhere does it name its author. Other opinions in the Talmud ascribe it to the period of before the First Temple, the time of the patriarch Jacob, or King Ahaserus.

The medieval exegete Abraham ibn Ezra believed that Job was translated from another language and it is therefore unclear "like all translated books" (Ibn Ezra Job 2:11). It is set in the land of Edom, which has been retained as the background, and in the prologue and epilogue, the name of God is YHVH, a name that even the Edomites used.

Job is prominent in haggadic legends. The later Greek Testament of Job figures among the apocrypha.

Dissenting/Speculative Wisdom

Michael Coogan writes in regards to both Ecclesiastes and Job that “Both take positions opposed to the mainstream of the wisdom tradition in the Bible, as exemplified in the book of Proverbs…” Job, along with Ecclesiastes is part of the dissenting or speculative group of wisdom literature within the Old Testament. In the narrative there are conversations that occur between Job and family, Job and friends, and Job and God. Conventional wisdom may be applied to the questions and advice given by Job’s friends or family, yet it is Job’s responses that make this book part of the dissenting wisdom or “anti-wisdom wisdom”

In Judaism

The Talmud occasionally discusses Job. Most traditional Torah scholarship has not doubted Job's existence. He was seen as a real and powerful figure. One Talmudic opinion has it that Job was in fact one of three advisors that Pharaoh consulted, prior to taking action against the increasingly multiplying "Children of Israel" mentioned in the Book of Exodus during the time of Moses' birth. The episode is mentioned in the Talmud (Tractate Sotah): Balaam gives evil advice urging Pharaoh to kill the Hebrew male new-born babies, Jethro opposes Pharaoh and tells him not to harm the Hebrews at all, and Job keeps silent and does not reveal his mind even though he was personally opposed to Pharaoh's destructive plans. It is for his silence that God subsequently punishes him with his bitter afflictions.

There is a minority view among the rabbis of the Talmud, that of Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish, that Job never existed (Midrash Genesis Rabbah LXVII, Talmud Bavli, Bava Batra 15a). In this view, Job was a literary creation by a prophet who used this form of writing to convey a divine message or parable. On the other hand, the Talmud (in Tractate Baba Batra 15a-16b) goes to great lengths trying to ascertain when Job actually lived, citing many opinions and interpretations by the leading sages. Job is further mentioned in the Talmud as follows :

Job's resignation to his fate (in Tractate Pesachim 2b)

Anyone who associated with Job when he was prosperous, including to buy from him or sell to him, was blessed (in Tractate Pesachim 112a)

Job's reward for being generous (in Tractate Megillah 28a)

King David, Job, and Ezekiel described the Torah's length without putting a number to it (in Tractate Eruvin 21a)

Two further Talmudic traditions hold that Job either lived in the time of Abraham or of Jacob. Levi ben Laḥma held that Job lived in the time of Moses, by whom the Book of Job was written. Others argue that it was written by Job himself (see ), or by Elihu, or Isaiah.

Source for Jewish Law

Some of the laws and customs of mourning in Judaism are derived from the Book of Job's depiction of Job's mourning and the behavior of his companions. For example, according to , the behavior of Job's comforters, who kept silence until he spoke to them, is the source for a norm applicable to contemporary traditional Jewish practice, that visitors to a house of mourning should not speak to the mourner until they are spoken to.

Liturgical use

In most traditions of Jewish liturgy, the Book of Job is not read publicly in the manner of the Pentateuch, Prophets, or megillot. However, there are some Jews, particularly the Spanish and Portuguese Jews, who do hold public readings of the Book of Job on the Tisha B'Av fast (a day of mourning over the destruction of the First and Second Temples and other tragedies).

The cantillation signs for the large poetic section in the middle of the Book of Job differ from those of most of the biblical books, using a system shared with it only by Psalms and Proverbs. A sample of how the cantillations are chanted is found below.

Many quotes from the Book of Job are used throughout Jewish liturgy, especially at funerals and times of mourning.

Philosophical approach

Maimonides, a twelfth century rabbi, discusses Job in his work The Guide for the Perplexed. According to Maimonides (III 22–23), each of Job's friends represents famous, distinct schools of thought concerning God and divine providence. According to Maimonides, the correct view of providence lies with Elihu, who teaches Job that one must examine his religion (Job 33). This view corresponds with the notion that "the only worthy religion in the world is an examined religion." A habit religion, such as that originally practiced by Job, is never enough. One has to look deep into the meaning of religion in order to fully appreciate it and make it a genuine part of one's life. Elihu believed in the concepts of divine providence, rewards to individuals, as well as punishments. He believed, according to Maimonides, that one has to practice religion in a rational way. The more one investigates religion, the more he will be rewarded or find it rewarding. In the beginning, Job was an unexamining, pious man, not a philosopher, and he did not have providence. He was unwise, simply grateful for what he had. God, according to Elihu, did not single out Job for punishment, but rather abandoned him and let him be dealt with by natural, unfriendly forces.

Conversely, in more recent times, Russian existentialist philosopher Lev Shestov viewed Job as the embodiment of the battle between reason (which offers general and seemingly comforting explanations for complex events) and faith in a personal god, and one man's desperate cry for him. In fact, Shestov used the story of Job as a central signifier for his core philosophy (the vast critique of the history of Western philosophy, which he saw broadly as a monumental battle between Reason and Faith, Athens and Jerusalem, secular and religious outlook):

"The whole book is one uninterrupted contest between the 'cries' of the much-afflicted Job and the 'reflections' of his rational friends. The friends, as true thinkers, look not at Job but at the 'general.' Job, however, does not wish to hear about the 'general'; he knows that the general is deaf and dumb - and that it is impossible to speak with it. 'But I would speak to the Almighty, and I desire to argue my case with God' (13:3). The friends are horrified at Job's words: they are convinced that it is not possible to speak with God and that the Almighty is concerned about the firmness of his power and the unchangeability of his laws but not about the fate of the people created by him. Perhaps they are convinced that in general God does not know any concerns but that he only rules. That is why they answer, 'You who tear yourself in your anger, shall the earth be forsaken for you or the rock be removed from its place?' (18:4). And, indeed, shall rocks really be removed from their place for the sake of Job? And shall necessity renounce its sacred rights? This would truly be the summit of human audacity, this would truly be a 'mutiny,' a 'revolt' of the single human personality against the eternal laws of the all-unity of being!" (Speculation and Apocalypse).

Mystical approach

According to the mystical approach, Job is being punished because he is a heretic. According to Nachmanides, Job's children did not die in the beginning of the story, but rather were taken captive and then return from captivity by the end of the story.

In Christianity

Christians accept the Book of Job as part of the Old Testament canon. The character of Job is also mentioned in the New Testament, as an example of perseverance in suffering (). There are several references to the Book of Job throughout the New Testament, especially the Epistles. Specifically:

Rev. 9:6 alludes to ; compare 2 Thes. 2:8 to ; 1 Cor. 3:19 quotes ; Heb. 12:5, Jas. 1:12, and Rev. 3:19 all parallel and ; compare Jas. 4:14 to ; compare Heb. 2:6 with ; compare Heb. 12:26 with ; Rom. 9:20 alludes to ; Rom. 11:33 parallels ; compare Acts 17:28 with ; compare 1 Cor. 4:5 with ; compare 1 Pet. 1:24 with ; compare Lk. 19:22 with ; Rom. 1:9 parallels ; compare 1 John 3:2 with ; Rev. 14:10, 19:15 parallel ; both Rom. 11:34 and 1 Cor. 2:16 quote Isa. 40:13, which parallels ; Mt. 25:42 alludes to ; Jas. 4:6 and 1 Pet. 5:5 both quote Prov. 3:34, which parallels ; compare Acts 1:7 with ; Heb. 4:13 parallels ; Mt. 16:26 alludes to ; compare Jas. 1:5 with ; 1 Jo. 1:9 alludes to ; Jas. 5:4 alludes to ; Rev. 16:21 alludes to ; Mt. 6:26 alludes to ; and finally, Rom. 11:35 quotes . (see Good News Bible special edition)

Christian themes include God's mercy (not treating sinners as they truly deserve), grace (treating unworthy sinners as they do not deserve), compassion (toleration of much discrediting, inappropriate mortal speculation impugning the divine character, and allegations of unrighteous/unfair dealings with men), restoration (where sin abounds, generosity superabounds) omnipotence, omnisapience , omnipresence, omniliberty, aseity and infinite love.

Messianic anticipation in the book

In Chapter nine, Job recognizes the chasm that exists between him and God: “For he is not a man, as I am, that I might answer him, that we should come to trial together.” Job’s regret is that he has no arbiter to act as a go-between; that Job can not reconcile himself with God anticipates the need for the Messiah to become Incarnate. In verse 33, Job wishes that there was an “umpire” (Heb. mokiah) to decide between him and God. One scholar says, “This person would have to be superior in authority to either party, ”; thus the arbiter for whom Job hopes would have to himself be divine, or else he would no more be qualified to “lay his hand upon” God than is Job.

This idea of a divine arbiter is returned to at Job 16:19. Job again expresses his desire for a witness, and then declares, “my eyes pour out tears to God, that he would maintain the right of a man with God”. Job addresses God, desiring that God will advocate on Job’s behalf with himself. Job knows that no man such as himself, conceived in sin, can appeal to God on his behalf; so God must do it himself. The language used earlier is that of a judicial judgement , in which God is both judge of and lawyer for Job. Job “draws a distinction in God” , and this distinction anticipates the multiplicity of God’s persons.

Job’s faith in this arbiter is again brought up in chapter 19. It is commonly accepted that the “Redeemer” of 19:25 is the same person as the witness of 16:19. This verse in particular is often seen as an anticipation of Christianity. Telgren notes that it has been suggested that verses 25 and 26 have a poetic structure of ABBA. If this is true it would support the notion that God is himself the Redeemer, by associating him with the living Redeemer in the parallel structure. The RSV’s “Redeemer” is a translation of the Hebrew go’el. That this go’el could refer to God is explicitly demonstrated in the Psalms and Proverbs, and elsewhere.

This translation of go'el in Job 19:25-26 as "Redeemer" has been made famous by its use in Handel's Messiah and in the lectionary during the Easter season. The go'el was a kinsman redeemer whose role included avenging bloodshed, redeeming land sold to others outside the family, and redeeming family members sold into slavery. The Christ, as both God and Man, is seen in Christian theology as fulfilling this role in the redemption of man and of the earth and in the final judgment against evil.

An alternative translation of the passage reads as follows:

The capitalization of "Redeemer" (here translated as "vindicator") is a choice of the translator. The Hebrew language has no capital letters. The capitalization is used in preference to the idea that the passage references the Messiah . However the use of "go'el" here can also be taken to reference a human avenger-of-blood. According to this reading, Job is asserting that after he is dead, his go'el will take up his case. However, he would rather it happen before he dies. This interpretation is supported with the argument that there is nowhere else in the book where Job express a wish for bodily resurrection, only for someone to intervene as an "umpire", a "vindicator", a "go'el", on his behalf as an impartial judge between himself and God in the present.

Liturgical use

The Eastern Orthodox Church reads from Job during Holy Week.

The Roman Catholic Church traditionally reads from the Book of Job during Matins in the first two weeks of September, as well as in the Office of the Dead. In the revised Liturgy of the Hours, Job is read during the Eighth and Ninth Weeks in Ordinary Time.

Middle Eastern folk traditions on Job

In Palestinian folk tradition, Ayyub's place of trial is Al-Joura, a village outside the town of Al Majdal (Ashkelon). It was there, God rewarded him with a Fountain of Youth that removed whatever illnesses he had, and restored his youth. The town of Al-Joura was a place of annual festivities (4 days in all) when people of many faiths gathered and bathed in a natural spring. In Turkey, Job is known as Eyüp, and he is supposed to have lived in Şanlıurfa. There is also a tomb of Job outside the city of Salalah in Oman.

References to Ayyub (Job) in the Qur'an

Job's prophecy: 4:163, 6:84

Trial and patience: 21:83-84, 38:41

In Islam, Job (ايوب) was a prophet renowned for his endurance (assumed to be of pain and suffering). One tradition holds that his tomb is located near Salalah, in the Sultanate of Oman, possibly indicating he made his wealth in the frankincense trade.

Modern approaches to Job

Essays and non-fiction

Carl Jung, Answer to Job (1952)

Harold Kushner, "When Bad Things Happen to Good People"

William Safire, The First Dissident: The Book of Job in Today's Politics

Ethan Dor-Shav, "Job’s Path to Enlightenment", Azure (Spring 2008)

C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain

Henry M. Morris, "The Remarkable Record of Job"

Gustavo Gutierrez, "On Job"

Antonio Negri, "The Labor of Job: The Biblical Text as a Parable of Human Labor"

Literature

Hanoch Levin, Job's Passion (play)

Robert A. Heinlein, (novel)

Joseph Roth, Job (novel)

Kim Deitch - The Story of Job (Graphic novel), published in "Outrageous Tales from the Old Testament" by Knockabout Comics 1987

G. K. Chesterton, The Man Who Was Thursday (novel)

Neil Simon, God's Favorite (play)

Robert Frost, A Masque of Reason (play)

Bernard Malamud - "Angel Levine" (short story)

Archibald MacLeish, J.B. (play)

David Adams Richards, Mercy among the Children (novel)

James Morrow, "Blameless in Abaddon" (novel)

Stephen Mitchell, The Book of Job (adaptation)

Robert McCammon, "Swan Song" (novel)

Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

Charlotte Brontë, Villette

Craig Davis, "The Job: Based on a True Story (I Mean, This is Bound to have Happened Somewhere)" (novel)

Muriel Spark, "The Only Problem" (novel)

Margaret Atwood, "The Handmaiden's Tale" (novel) Chapter 28

Film

Adam's Apples, (Adams Æbler) Danish film from 2005

The Coen Brothers, A Serious Man, American film from 2009

In culture

William Blake famously illustrated the Book of Job, including imagery of Satan.

Ralph Vaughan Williams' orchestral work, was directly inspired by Blake's work.

Joni Mitchell's song The Sire of Sorrow (Job's Sad Song), on Turbulent Indigo, is inspired by the Book of Job.

Sir Peter Maxwell Davies composed an oratorio, Job, to the text of the Stephen Mitchell translation, focusing on the moral questions it raises.

Brett Gurewitz, "Sorrow (Bad Religion song)"

Disturbed, Prayer (song)

The Golden Gate Quartet have a song about Job

O Brother Where Art Thou - Constant Sorrow

The two part play Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is inspired by the Book of Job

U2's song "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" is an interpretation of the story of Job

Smashing Pumpkins' song "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" mentions Job

Godspell' song All For the Best "...Your mood and your robe Are both a deep blue, You'd bet that Job Had nothing on you..."

In the film the antagonists codename their operation Job 314, a reference to the chapter 3, verse 14 of the book of Job.

Kyle is told the story of Job by his parents in the episode Cartmanland of South Park (and is disgusted by his perception of the immorality of God playing sick games with a perfectly innocent man simply to prove a point to Satan).

The Coen Brothers have a 2009 film called "A Serious Man" which is a modern telling of the book of Job.

Book of Job in Byzantine Illuminated Manuscripts

Jan Garbarek's song "Parce Mihi Domine" is an interpretation of the verses from the Book of Job

In the 1991 Movie Cape Fear Max Cady advises Sam Bowden to check out "the book between Esther and Psalms". This is later revealed to be the book of Job, which Bowden reads later in the movie.

The forthcoming biography of Apple founder and CEO Steve Jobs entitled "iSteve: The Book of Jobs" is both a reference to - and directly inspired by - the Book of Job.

References

Michael Wise, Martin Abegg, Jr, and Edward Cook, The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Translation, (1996), HarperSanFrancisco paperback 1999, ISBN 0-06-069201-4, (contains the non-biblical portion of the scrolls), Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale

Stella Papadaki-Oekland,"Byzantine Illuminated Manuscripts of the Book of Job",ISBN 2-503-53232-2,

Tracy Byrd in "Walking to Jeresalum"

Notes

Further reading

Books of Wisdom by Robert Alter

External links

The History and Life of Job: A man with great patience

Sephardic Cantillations for the Book of Job by David M. Betesh and the Sephardic Pizmonim Project

Introduction to The Book of Job by Stephen Mitchell

">Excerpts from "Answer to Job" by Carl Jung

Jewish Encyclopedia: Job; Book of Job

Job at the Catholic Encyclopedia

The Paramount Lesson of Job: God's Glory Magnified by Faith Triumphant over Tribulation by J.T. Mueller

A Proposed Connection between Job and Tobias, Tobit's son

Job's Path to Enlightenment by Ethan Dor-Shav, Azure, Spring 2008

Translations of The Book of Job at BibleGateway.com

Hebrew and English Parallel and Complete Text of the Book of Job English Translation is the 1917 Old JPS

Putting God on Trial: The Biblical Book of Job- a literary, legal and philosophical commentary

Job at Chabad.org

Category:Ancient Middle Eastern wisdom literature Category:Job (biblical figure) Category:Ketuvim Category:Ninth of Av Category:Texts which have been attributed to Moses Category:Book of Job