Theodicy in the Book of Job

1998-04-16

Introduction

When Satan touched Job’s life and took his family away, along with his health and his property, he did not curse God. Job’s loss of patience in his endless grief and pain, however, caused him to be very angry with God, because he knew of no ill he committed to deserve drastic misfortune. Job simply wants to know why everything was taken away from him. In the book of Job, seemingly unjust suffering is a main theme that is addressed. Job suffered physically and emotionally, and he debated with different people on his understanding of why these horrible things had happened to him.

There are five basic parts to the book of Job, the first section being the prologue. The prologue begins with how Job once lived, and proceeds to tell about his series of misfortunes. The second part is the longest part; these are the cycles of dialogues between Job and his three friends (Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar) that accuse him of sin. The third part consists of the speeches of Elihu, who reacted to Job after hearing the eighth dialogue. Following this is the fourth section, which is the Theophany, where God spoke to Job directly. Finally, the epilogue shows God’s restoration to Job.

Little is known about the author, not even his identity. The author is not even known to be necessarily an Israelite, though many people feel that he is (Pope xxxviii). Whoever this author was, he was “a poet of genius”, for “his work has been acclaimed as one of the great masterpieces of world literature” (Pope xxxvii). The book is the oldest in the Bible as evidenced by the archaic Hebrew that is used.

Prologue to the Book of Job (1:1-2:13)

The prologue encompasses the first two chapters of the book of Job. Job is portrayed as exceedingly blessed by God, not only according to wealth, but with a wife, seven sons and three daughters that live harmoniously together. Job has many servants, sheep, camels, oxen, and donkeys, and was referred to as “the greatest of all the men of the east” (Job 1:3). He is also referred to as a man who feared God and was perfect (Job 1:1). God sets him as an example to the sons of God because of his steadfastness. But little does Job know that his perfect life was about to change as Satan stood before God. Satan argued that Job feared God for nothing, and if God took away his comfortable lifestyle, then Job would turn his back on the Lord. So God turns over Job’s life to Satan, but not the physical health of Job. All of Job’s animals were swept away, and his servants were killed. His children were killed by great winds while they were feasting (Job 1:18-19). Job’s reaction was to immediately shave his head, a sign of lamentation, and he fell to his knees and worshipped God.

Satan came again before God, and God again told about how righteous Job was, and that there was no other like him. Satan was still not satisfied at this point, for Job still had perfect health. God proceeded further, and told Satan to contaminate Job’s health, but to not take his life. Job’s skin at that point became infested with boils, leaving Job only with his wife and his loyalty to God. Job’s wife asked why he would not “curse God, and die” (Job 2:9). She tried to tempt him to do so, but he held steadfast to God. At the end of the prologue, Job’ three friends came to comfort him in his anguish, and remained with Job in silence before any word was spoken.

Dialogue Cycles Between Job and His Friends (3:1-31:40)

Today, suffering, without visible reasons, causes many people to question the existence of God. This is not the case with Job, and one should take notice that Job does not see the scene in heaven to know the cause of his trials. The existence of God was assumed.

According to many in the days of Job, such as Job’s friends, suffering showed who were sinners, and who were not faithful to God. It was common to think that the faithful did not suffer, and the sinner was marked with suffering by God for a public example. Job began to argue that this was not so, for he could see no sin in himself. The righteous can suffer, Job argued, and such people can be outcasts while the wicked seem to go unpunished by God. In Job’s case, people would see that “Job is suffering, therefore he must have... sinned grossly, and must repent and wait for God’s good pleasure” (Hanson 18). But in the dialogues of the second portion of the book, we see Job arguing his innocence while speaking with his self-righteous friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, who began consoling him, but ended up chiding him for his alleged sin.

After seven days of silence of being in the presence of his three friends, Job broke the silence with a speech of despair. He wished the day of his birth “to be each year a day forgotten of God and marked by ill-omened happenings” (Hanson 43). Job went on to say that he would prefer to dwell in the grave than to live with his current suffering. The eldest of the three companions, Eliphaz, gave his answer, with his knowledge and piety, that Job must have deviated from his faithfulness to God, and this endless suffering was his punishment. “...who ever perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous cut off?” is Eliphaz’s reply to Job in Job 4:7.

Job wished for death and held scorn for his friend’s unkindness. Bildad commenced in an argument that Job’s children were sinners themselves to have their lives taken from them. Imagine the gall of this man! His children just died an awful death, and Job is in physical and emotional pain, having lost everything. So Job retorted, “how should man be just with God?” (Job 9:2). Humankind cannot stand before God because of their imperfect nature, yet Job was assumed “perfect” in the first line of the first chapter of the book because He trusted in God. Job wanted to present his case to God Himself directly (Hanson 51). Zophar’s first speech condemned Job, that in the event that God would speak, He would have much to say against Job. Zophar went on to say that God has no limits on power, knows who is vain, and seeks those who are wicked, so God has already considered Job’s case (Job 10:10-11). Yet Job still held steadfast, that he did not suffer because of sin, but placed his faith in the hands of God (Job 13:14-15).

In the second and third rounds of speeches, the discussions of Job and his companions consist of more accusations. Job insisted of his innocence, yet his friends did not listen to him and continued to chide him. Eliphaz, after hearing all of the words of Job, decided that he is impious. Despite all of Job’s physical and emotional pain, the three companions could not see anything other that Job’s suffering being his own fault. Job’s friends were “miserable comforters”, and were originally with Job to console him, but failed (Job 16:2). Slowly, as the speeches go on, the three companions backed Job into a corner, pointing their fingers at him with certain anger, while Job still held strong, declaring his innocence to the three men. The friends of Job were astonished that they could not convince him. We can appreciate why the friends were so much shocked at Job’s arguments; if you abandon the traditional account of God’s justice, you must choose one of two courses. You may accept the appalling conclusion that there is no rhyme or reason in the universe at all. Job skirted this conclusion but could not accept it. Otherwise, you must find a deeper interpretation of God’s nature. This task put too great a strain on the resources of most men (Hanson 105). Living in a cursed world where no person is exempt from pain never seems to be anyone’s conclusion yet so far in the narrative.

Elihu’s Speech (32:1-37:24)

When the three companions cannot answer Job, the third section of the Book of Job begins with a younger man named Elihu who overheard Job and considered it very carefully. Though intimidated because he is not as aged and knowledgeable as Job’s friends, Elihu came forth with “the inspiration of the Almighty,” or so he believed, that gave him understanding (Job 32:8). Elihu was angry at the companions because none of them could answer Job (Job 32:12). Elihu became angry with Job because he spoke of God as seemingly unjust (Job 34:5). God on the other hand cannot be unjust or be wicked as man can be (Job 34:10). Elihu primarily asked, how could one question God’s doing, for He should be feared because of what He can do and the great works He has done.

The Theophany and Epilogue (38:1-42:16)

From the whirlwind, God then spoke and convinced Job of his ignorance. He asked Job, where was he when He “laid the foundations of the earth”, meaning Job counldn’t understand even the most minute bit about God’s power and will if Job hadn’t even lived all the years God has been around (Job 38:4). If Job was not powerful as God is, how could Job have the wisdom to understand what is going on in God’s plan? Job could not defeat a foe like Leviathan as God did. Job submited himself to God, and told Him he did not understand His ways, and repents. The book then closes, as Job’s property was restored twofold, and he lived a full life of one hundred forty additional years, living happily for the rest of his days (Job 42:17).

Conclusion

“Instead of the pious patriarch of the prologue and epilogue, we find an indignant sufferer,” shaking his fist in the air because he does not understand why he has to suffer (Hanson 12). Though Job is righteous and is referred to as perfect in the first chapter, “all of men are imperfect in the eyes of God, therefore, even the suffering of the righteous has its justification” (Gordis 41). A person’s body is imperfect because of the Fall, and is prone to sin and evil, and this is why they are mortal. It makes sense that sickness and death are evils. God asked Job, does he have the wisdom to understand the creatures of the earth or have the power to defeat Leviathan in chapter 41. If man could avoid physical and emotional suffering, he would be able to avoid all evils, like death, and would be immortal and god-like. The reason why people suffer is because of the world we live: it is cursed because of humankind’s sin in the Garden, and there are spiritual forces such as Satan that seek to cause us to stumble, as is Job’s case here. Yet God allows evil to continue, but He will not allow it to happen forever.

Job, who once had uncountable wealth, had everything taken away. This shows that God is unpredictable, and this in turn is another theme in the book of Job (Hanson 25). Though we may ask God for something, like Job asking why he suffers, He may not answer the way we would expect.

The wisdom book Job suggests that suffering is not something limited to the wicked, but something that all of humanity will experience. By God’s rewarding of Job, it is clear that those who suffer are not necessarily condemned by God, and may be even those who are most righteous (Jesus had no sin, and great was His suffering!). It says a lot for a man completely immersed in anguish to continue to trust God, biting his tongue in the temptation to curse God. Job bears great witness to the faith he comes from. Though he did question God’s justice, he never did curse Him, for Job knew that God was the One who gave him blessing in the former part of his life, and God is the One who was listening to his cries of anguish. This ability to cling to God in times of trouble comes from God Himself... and we must cling to Him in these times; there is no one else to turn to for help.

But as I said, God will not allow suffering to happen forever. God stopped the painful boils and gave Job new property. Job even had more children, though one might argue that does not make up for the other children he had lost. But this situation is only one man in history. Some people may never see the end of suffering this side of heaven. But one thing I can guarantee, that suffering is a symptom of this world devastated by sin and it will not be around forever. God sent His Son Jesus to die for our sins and the sins of the world to bring us to God. Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after His death. He ascended to heaven to wait for the Day where He will return to the earth to judge it. He will eradicate pain and suffering and will create a new heaven and a new earth that will not have the effects of humankind’s original sin. If you trust in Jesus alone to be saved from your sins, you will take part in this new creation God will bring about. Take heart in this: the imperfect lives we live in this imperfect world are only temporary. We must be encouraged by this and trust in Him until that time comes. God alone is good, and when we trust in Him we will see the result of His perfect will at the end of time.

Sources

Gordis, Robert. The Book of Job, Commentary, New Translation, and Special Studies. New York: The Jewish Theological Seminary of America, 1978.

Hanson, Anthony and Miriam. The Book of Job: A Commentary. New York: Collier Books, 1962.

Pope, Marvin H. The Anchor Bible, Job: Introduction, Translation, and Notes. Garden City: Doubleday and Company, Inc., 1965.