A man wonders why he suffers.
The Book of Job is the timeless story of human beings trying to understand justice in the face of calamity. Job and his friends reasoned that bad things should happen to bad people as a punishment for sin, and good people should reap good rewards. But the overriding lesson of Job is that we cannot fully understand or explain misfortune because we do not have all the facts. Only God knows all the answers.
The book begins with Satan appearing before God, demanding permission to test Job, a righteous man. He argues that the Lord has bought Job’s devotion with a blessed life: take away the Lord’s gifts, and Job will respond with sin, cursing the Lord’s name. After God agrees to Satan’s proposal, Job is quickly stripped of his possessions, family, and health, and the book turns into a discussion between Job and his friends as they struggle to make sense of Job’s trials. The speakers take turns offering insights into the causes of suffering, for the most part accusing Job of hidden sin. Receiving little human comfort, Job cries out to God for vindication. When the Lord finally speaks, He restores His servant’s blessings twofold. However, God makes it clear that His gifts are not given as a reward for a blameless life. Rather, He reveals to Job his limitations. Only the Lord, who is perfect and all-powerful, is capable of administering ultimate justice. As sinners, we should be humble enough to admit that not only are we undeserving of prosperity but the very concept of justice—and God’s methods of delivering it—is beyond our full comprehension (1 Cor. 12:13).
The Book of Job is an example of a common genre of writing in the ancient world called Wisdom Literature. This type of literature offered instructions on life either through short, practical truisms such as proverbs, or through longer, more speculative discourses like the one seen in Job. The books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes as well as portions of Psalms (for example, Ps. 1; 19; 37; 73; 119) are other examples of biblical Wisdom Literature.
The fundamental questions raised in Job reflect many of the complex issues commonly addressed in Wisdom Literature: evil, suffering, justice, the meaning and value of life, and the extent to which human beings can understand God’s ways. These questions are universal, and the book is a cosmic drama played out on the stage of one man’s experience. As Christians, our quest for answers to these questions should not deter us from intellectual inquiry or efforts to comfort each other in our troubles. Instead, it should drive us to the place where Job ended up—at the feet of God, in humility and awe.
We do not know who wrote the magnificent epic poem of Job. The author was likely among a class of sages called wise men, or the wise (compare 1 Kin. 4:30, 31; Job 34:2; Eccl. 12:11). These were not the same sort of wise men who came to Judea in the time of Herod, seeking the King of the Jews (Matt. 2:1, 2). The producers of Wisdom Literature compiled wise sayings, stories, and examples from history to illustrate fundamental truths. This sophisticated intellectual craft can be seen in the highly stylized structure and vocabulary of the Book of Job.
Little is known of the time and place of Job’s life. The book says he was a man of Uz (Job 1:1), but the exact location of Uz remains unknown. The events may have occurred around the time of Abraham (c. 2000 B.C.), though the account could have been written later.
Key People in Job
• Job, a man who lost everything when God agreed to let Satan test his faith (Job 1:1).
• Job’s first family of children, whose lives ended tragically as they feasted at the oldest brother’s house (Job 1:13–15).
• Job’s wife, an anguished woman who told her husband to curse God and die (Job 2:9).
• Eliphaz, likely the oldest of three friends who comforted Job in his troubles (Job 4:1).
• Bildad, a friend who suggested that Job’s children deserved to die for their sins (Job 8:1).
• Zophar, a friend who claimed that Job’s hidden sins deserved even greater suffering (Job 11:1).
• Elihu, the youngest and most perceptive of Job’s counselors (Job 32:1).
• Job’s second family of children: seven sons and three daughters born after his restoration (Job 42:13–15).
Key Events in Job
• Job’s possessions and children are taken from him (Job 1).
• Job loses his health (Job 2:1–8).
• Job’s wife tells him to “curse God and die!” (Job 2:9).
• Job’s blessings are restored to him (Job 42:7–17).