NAKED CAME I OUT OF MY MOTHER'S WOMB, AND NAKED SHALL I RETURN THITHER:THE LORD GAVE AND THE LORD HATH TAKEN AWAY; BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD.
Author The
authorship of Job is uncertain. Some scholars attribute this book to Moses.
Others attribute it to one of the ancient wise men whose works can be found in
Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, perhaps even to Solomon himself.
Date The
manners, customs, and general life-style of Job are from the patriarchal period
(about 2000-1800 B.C.). Scholars differ, however, regarding when it was
compiled, as its writing was an obvious recording of a long-standing oral
tradition. Those who attribute it to Moses opt for a fifteenth century B.C. date. Others opt for as late as the second century B.C. Most conservatives assign it to the Solomonic era, the mid-tenth century B.C.
Background Scripture itself attests that Job was a real person. He
is referred to in Ezekiel 14:14 and James 5:11. Job was a Gentile, is thought
to have been a descendant of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, and knew God by the name
of "Shaddai" - the Almighty. (There are 30
references to Shaddai in the Book of Job.) Job was a wealthy man living a
seminomadic life-style.
Content The Book of Job has been call "a dramatic poem framed in an
epic story" (J. Sidlow Baxter). Chapters 1 and 2 are prologue,
which give the setting of the story. Satan presents himself, with the sons of
God, and challenges the piety of Job, stating, "Doth job fear God for nought?" (1:9). He goes on to suggest that were everything to be taken away,
Job would curse God. God gives Satan permission to try Job’s faith by stripping
him of his wealth, his family, and finally, his health. Yet, "did not Job sin with his lips" (2:10). Job is then visited by three friends-Eliphaz, the Temanite,
Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite, who are so overwhelmed by Job’s
deplorable condition that they sit in silence with Job for seven days.
Job, the Good Man
1 – 5 A man named Job lived in the land of Uz. He was an honest and innocent man; he honored God and stayed away from evil. 2 Job had seven sons and three daughters. 3 He owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred teams of oxen, and five hundred female donkeys. He also had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.
4 Job’s sons took turns holding feasts in their homes and invited their sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 After a feast was over, Job would send and have them made clean. Early in the morning Job would offer a burnt offering for each of them, because he thought, “My children may have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” Job did this every time.
Satan Appears Before the Lord
6 – 19
20 When Job heard this, he got up and tore his robe and shaved his head to show how sad he was. Then he bowed down to the ground to worship God. 21 He said:
“I was naked when I was born,
and I will be naked when I die.
The LORD gave these things to me,
and he has taken them away.
Praise the name of the LORD.”
22 In all this Job did not sin or blame God.
1:6 Satan An opponent,
or the Opponent; the hater; the accuser; adversary; enemy; one who resists,
obstructs, and hinders whatever is good. Satan comes from the verb which means "to be an opponent," or "to
withstand." As a noun, satan can describe any "adversaries"
(2 Sam. 19:21, 22). However, when the form ha-satan (the Adversary) occurs, the translation is usually "Satan," not his name, but his accurate description: hateful enemy. Since Satan
is the Hater, he is all the more opposed to God, who is love (1John 3:10-15;
4:7,8). Mankind did not witness Satan’s beginning, but by God’s design
shall see his end, one of ceaseless, torment and humiliation.
1:1 This is not a
parable but an account of a real man who was acknowledged by man and God to be perfect
and upright.
1:6 – 2:7 Satan’s interviews
with God tell us that:
1.
Satan is
accountable to God (1:6), since he came to present himself to God
2.
Satan’s
mind is an open book to God – God’s questions are asked to compel Satan to
confess
3.
Satan is
behind the evils that curse the Earth (2:7);4) he is neither omnipresent (nor
omniscient)
4.
He is
neither omnipresent nor omniscient
5.
He can do
nothing without divine permission (1:10);6) when God gives permission to Satan.
He sets definite limits on his power.
1:6-12 Choose to trust God’s absolute sovereignty in any adversity.
1:6 Sons of God is the
same phrase that occurs in Gen. 6:2. Here, however, its meaning is clearly that
of celestial beings or angels God created as His servants. Satan is
among them. He appears as the "adversity" to disturb God’s kingdom
by causing trouble.
1:8 Job is declared
by God Himself to be a perfect and an upright man, and yet he is tried –
not because of his unrighteousness but in spite of his righteousness. His trial
was to establish his righteousness, as well as to give him deeper insight into his
relationship with God and a greater understand of his own nature. While Satan’s
goal was to prove Job to be a sinner, God’s goal was to establish forever the
sincerity of Job’s faith. God does not allow trials to see if we will fail; He
allows trials to strengthen our faith. The trial is, in fact; a statement of
God’s faith in our faithfulness and integrity.
1:9 For nought means "without
reason." He is implying that
Job’s good deeds spring from selfish motives of being blessed and protected by
God.
1:22 Understand that to
accuse God of any wrongdoing is the sin of blasphemy. Refuse to question
any of God’s workings. …to be cont’d
In Christ,
Playwright Janet Irene Thomas
Founder/CEO
Bible Stories Theatre of
Fine & Performing Arts
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