NOTE: I will be posting my Job study notes for your consideration. Please comment with your questions, concerns, corrections, or opinions. Wherever I can, I will also clean up the notes and make them a little more readable.
This is the introduction to section One of Six.
INTRODUCTION
The Jewish Bible is made up of three sections, the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. It is commonly known as the תנך, (TeNaKh) which in Hebrew is Torah (the Law), Nevi'im (the prophets), and Ketuvim (the writings). Our English Bible is made up of two sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament, obviously. These two sections are further broken up into smaller sections. Our first five books are the same as the Hebrew Bible, Genesis through Deuteronomy, which the Jews call, The Pentateuch, or Torah. Then we have the next section which is primarily made up of Narrative and is Joshua through Esther. These 17 books make up the history of the Hebrew people. They deal primarily with the Jews. The next section is the books of poetry which are the book of Job through Song of Solomon. The former books were historical and dealt with one people group, these books of poetry deal with humanity, and the human heart. The next section is the Prophets, Major and Minor (dealing with the size of material), then the New Testament, which is further broken up into smaller sections.
The Book of Job is poetry and falls into that category. But none of these, including the Book of Job, should be thought of as fake or made up to make a point. From Job to the Song of Solomon, these were real situations, dealing with real people, and written so that it could communicate in a way that would be preserved for generations.
HEBREW POETRY
Hebrew poetry doesn’t rhyme, but it lays ideas side by side that match in three ways, completive, contrasting, and in construction.
Verses that start with one point, and are further developed in the second section are completive. Here are some examples:
“The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,
He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.”
(Psalm 92v12, NKJV)
“God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.”
(Psalm 46v1, NKJV)
For time purposes, I’ll show you some examples of the other two:
Contrasting, meaning the second part contrasts with the first, here is a few examples:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;”
(Proverbs 3v5, NKJV)
“Faithful are the wounds of a friend,
But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.”
(Proverbs 27v6, NKJV)
And here are a few of the Constructive, defined as lines that parallel each other, construct, or are built into one solid idea. Here is an example of two completive parallels that build into one unified idea:
“The eye that mocks his father,
And scorns obedience to his mother,
The ravens of the valley will pick it out,
And the young eagles will eat it.”
(Proverbs 30v17, NKJV)
The following constructive verse utilizes the contrasting parallelism:
“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
But we will remember the name of the Lord our God.
They have bowed down and fallen;
But we have risen and stand upright.”
(Psalm 20vv7–8, NKJV)
Why is this important? Because it will help us when we are trying to interpret not only the Book of Job but also the other poetic books and sections in the Bible. I am not an expert on all of this, so I would suggest that if you are interested, study Hebrew poetry for yourself.
THE BOOK OF JOB
AUTHOR
It is unknown who actually wrote the Book of Job. It is possible that it was Job himself, with the earlier portion written later, as God revealed it to him. Jewish sources ascribe this book to Moses, not because he came up with it, but because he more than likely had access to ancient documents and was able to copy them, much like it is believed he did for the book of Genesis, especially from chapters 1-11. He had first-hand accounts of human beings from creation to the flood. After that, he compiled them into the book of Genesis.
TIME
Even though the book of Genesis comes first in our Bible, the book of Job is much older. Some have dated this book to the time of the patriarchs, especially Abraham, and could have been a relative of his according to some Jewish sources. There is a mention of a man named Job in Genesis 46:13, but it is thought that this was not the Job mentioned in this book, but only a distant relative who was probably named for him. Some believe that Job was Uz, and the land was named after him because he was the “greatest of all the people of the East.” (Job 1v3)
I know I keep using the words, “some believe.” Much of what we know about this book is based upon ancient tradition, but we don’t know who wrote the Book of Job. From the internal evidence, we could fairly accurately date this book around the time of Abraham. Job’s riches are counted in livestock, land, and family, which is how the patriarchs of the time of Abraham measured their wealth. The way it is written is almost in passing, as if the person writing it was not attempting to make it appear to be that time, but actually was in that time, just writing in the common vernacular.
Not only is Job the oldest book in the Bible, but it may be the oldest book ever written, which puts it on par with the Odyssey and the Iliad by Homer, which is written in similar poetry, also lending to Job’s ancient authenticity.
A REAL PERSON
When we hear about poems and even the writings of Homer, we may be tempted to believe that Job was not a real person. But he was so real that he is quoted in other parts of scripture as we will see as we discuss the first three chapters of Job. The prophet, Ezekiel, mentions him along with Noah and Daniel in Ezekiel 14:14. He is even mentioned, and this poem is referred to, in the New Testament book of James. (James 5:11) Keep that in the back of your mind. This is a real person a righteous man.
We will see a good man who struggles through a massive trial he believes wholeheartedly that he is innocent of deserving and will maintain that integrity until the bitter end. He is a man who loses everything — his wealth, his health, his relationships, his children, and most devastatingly, his religion. Everything he ever believed about God would be challenged.
Some believe that this book, this poem, is not about suffering as its main thesis, but about something else. I don’t necessarily hold to that view. I do believe it is about suffering, but that the answer is not what those who have suffered want to hear.
ONE MORE THING
Some people will read the first three chapters of Job, then skip to chapter 32 (When Elihu speaks) or 38 (When God first speaks) and finish with chapter 42 (Where things are resolved), not reading the tedious back-and-forth arguments from his three friends. I think that is a mistake and will actually change the way the Book of Job is interpreted. Every word in this book is inspired Scripture and is important for us to at least read. And that brings me to the homework. If you have not, please start reading the book of Job tonight as homework.
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