Commentary on Job: Introduction and Part 1 (No. F018)

Introduction

The Book of Job is one of the oldest and greatest works of Hebrew literature to come down to us as Scripture. Job is widely considered to be the third son of Issachar listed in Gen. 46:13 as Tola, Phuvah, Job and Shimron. It is also accredited to Moses as the first work of the Bible text, written by Moses in his sojourn in Midian under Hobab, the Jethro, High Priest of Midian, who taught Moses, his son-in-law, husband of Zipporah. He was taught in Midian, before, and so that he could be, and was, called by Christ and sent to Egypt to bring Israel out of Egypt in the First Exodus. We will allow Bullinger to discuss the point further below, with notes on the dates. The work of Job was written before the Pentateuch was written in Sinai forty years before entry to the Promised Land. (The timeline is detailed in the Outline Timetable of the Age (No. 272.) Job was alive when Moses was in Midian over the last fifteen or so years of his life and the first fifteen, or so, years that Moses was there under instruction. This gives us the time frame in which the text is written and it concerns a number of highly significant aspects. The text deals with the sequence of the creation and the place of the Elohim Host in their relationship with both mankind and with the One True God Eloah. The misapplication of the sequence of the creation comes from the relocation of Job well into the later OT writings rather than in the sequence of the creation and that fraud is supported by all later scholars including the Trinitarians, as devotees of the Triune God, that seek to attribute the Creation away from Eloah to the Elohim of Psalm 45:6-7 that is identified as the being that became the Christ (Heb. 1:8-9). In so doing they attribute the re-creation of Gen. Chapter 1 as the primary creation so as to use that record in John 1:1-18 as the primary creation and in so doing misdirect the Theology of the Scriptures in accord with Satan's system of deception to establish Trinitarian Theology and Hadithic Islam, and the Sun and Mystery Cults throughout the world religions. The reality was that the world was created hundreds of millions of years ago and saw many sequences of humanoid creations under the activities of Satan and the Fallen Host and none were successful. The earth became tohu and bohu (Gen. 1:1-2) between the Twelfth and Fifth Millennia BCE and the Elohim were sent by the One True God to refurbish the earth in 4004 BCE, which they did with the re-creation of the planet and the creation of Adam and Eve, as we see in Gen. Ch. 1. God gave the law to Adam and under that law Adam could not come under Judgment until he was thirty which was in 3974 BCE. Adam and Eve were judged and the Garden of Eden was closed in 3974 BCE and Satan’s Rule of the Earth began in 3973 BCE. We see in Chs. 1 and 2 of Job that the Elohim host including Satan had access to the Throne of God at that time (Job. 1:6 and 2:1). We see also that at this time long before the law was given to Moses at Sinai that the Law of God (L1) and sin was attributed to mankind and Satan used the Law to test mankind as he did here with Job and with his family who were in effect destroyed by sin under the law.

What transpires in the text is the fact that God allowed Satan to test a righteous man and his family and acquaintances against the Law and the Testimony in order to teach them, and the nations subsequently, concerning their trials and sins and their punishment. We also see that God intervened, firstly, by placing a limit to the test and, secondly, by reinstating Job, after he had been tested, both physically and spiritually, and in the eyes of his brethren. This whole sequence took place, in the first two centuries, while Israel was in Egypt. This sequence is thus an historical event under Moses.

Job Introduction - Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes (bibliaplus.org)

JOB. THE STRUCTURE OF THE BOOK AS A WHOLE.

Job 1:1-5. INTRODUCTION. HISTORICAL.

Job 1:6; Job 2:10. SATAN''S ASSAULT. JOB STRIPPED OF ALL.

Job 2:11-13. THE THREE FRIENDS. THEIR ARRIVAL.

Job 3:1; Job 31:40. JOB AND HIS FRIENDS.

Job 32:1; Job 37:24. THE MINISTRY OF ELIHU: THE MEDIATOR*.

Job 38:1; Job 42:6. JOB AND JEHOVAH.

Job 42:7-9. THE THREE FRIENDS. THEIR DEPARTURE.

Job 42:10-13. SATAN''S DEFEAT. JOB BLESSED WITH DOUBLE.

Job 42:14-17. CONCLUSION. HISTORICAL.

*Note that by this grand Introversion the ministry of Elihu, the Mediator, is placed in the middle, summing up the ministry of Job’s three friends, and introducing the ministry of Jehovah [Yahovah].

NOTE ON THE DATE AND AUTHORSHIP OF THE BOOK OF JOB.

A lengthened account of the discussion of these questions would be without profit. But, if JOB was the son of ISSACHAR (Genesis 46:13), then we have a clue that may help us to a decision of both.

It is better to keep within the Bible itself for the settlement of its problems; and to treat the whole Book as the context of all its parts. There is no reason why JOB should not be the son of ISSACHAR, and no better evidence is forthcoming for a different view.

The three friends of Job were descendants of ESAU; they would therefore be contemporaries.

ELIPHAZ of TEMAN, in Idumea, was a son of ESAU, and had a son called TEMAN, from whom his country took its name (Genesis 36:10; Genesis 36:11). It was noted for its "wise men" (Jeremiah 49:7); and is mentioned with EDOM (Amos 1:11). Compare Jeremiah 25:23, where both are connected with Buz, the brother of Uz (Genesis 22:21).

BILDAD the Shuhite. SHUAH was the sixth son of ABRAHAM by KETURAH (Genesis 25:2); and is mentioned in connection with ESAU, EDOM, and TEMAN (Jeremiah 49:8).

ZOPHAR the Naamathite. NAAMAH (now Nd''aneh, six miles south of Lod, in the lowlands of Judah).

If JOB was the son of ISSACHAR (Genesis 46:13), he would have gone down to Egypt with his father. ISSACHAR was forty at "the going down to Egypt". (See Appdx-50. III, p. 52.)

If JOB was the third son (Genesis 46:13), he would have been about twenty at that time (1706 B.C). [Bullinger's timings are incorrect as a result of 19^th century errors in scholarship; Issachar was born in 1748 BCE as detailed in Outline Timetable of the Age (No. 272 ed.].

We are told that he lived 140 years after his "double" blessing (Job 42:10). If that "double" blessing included length of years, then his age would have been 70. 140. 210 (i.e. three seventies of years). His lifetime would be from 1726-1516 B. C. [1728- 1516/1514 BCE ed.]

According to this, he was born the year after JOSEPH was sold, and died 119 years after the death of JOSEPH (in 1635 B.C). When JOSEPH died, JOB was ninety-one. If his "double" blessing did include length of years, then his affliction took place twenty-one years previously, when he was seventy. His removal from EGYPT to Uz must therefore have taken place earlier still.

When JOB died (1516 B.C.) MOSES was fifty-five, and had been in MIDIAN fifteen years (twenty-five years before the Exodus).

This would account for JOB being a worshipper of the God of ABRAHAM, and explains how Moses could have been the author of the book, and perhaps an eye-and ear-witness of the events it records in Midian. If so, the time has come (as Dr. Stier foretold and hoped 1) when this book would be regarded as "the Porch of the Sanctuary"; and when this "fundamental wisdom of original revelation will cease to be ascribed, as it now is by some of the best, to a later poet in Israel".

TITLE, The Book of Job has always formed an integral part of the Hebrew Canon; and some fifty-seven passages in it are quoted or referred to in the other books of the Bible. See Appdx-61.

The object of the book is to show "the end of the LORD" (James 5:11): the end to which Job was brought in Job 40:4; Job 40:5; Job 42:5; Job 42:6. viz. the confession of human impotence in attaining righteousness, and thankfully casting himself on Divine omnipotence for salvation. All tends to this "end". The three friends show the impotence of human experience (Eliphaz), human tradition (Bildad), and human merit (Zophar). Elihu points to God as the giver of Divine righteousness for helpless guilty sinners. See note on p. 666. Job 1:1

Job Chapters 1-6 (RSV)

Chapter 1

Job and His Family

¹There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God, and turned away from evil. ²There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. ³He had seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she-asses, and very many servants; so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. ⁴His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each on his day; and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. ⁵And when the days of the feast had run their course, Job would send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all; for Job said, “It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually.

Attack on Job’s Character

⁶Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. ⁷The Lord said to Satan, “Whence have you come?” Satan answered the Lord, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” ⁸And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” ⁹Then Satan answered the Lord, “Does Job fear God for nought? ¹⁰Hast thou not put a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. ¹¹But put forth thy hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will curse thee to thy face.” ¹²And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power; only upon himself do not put forth your hand.” So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord.

Job Loses Property and Children

¹³Now there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house; ¹⁴and there came a messenger to Job, and said, “The oxen were plowing and the asses feeding beside them; ¹⁵and the Sabe′ans fell upon them and took them, and slew the servants with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ¹⁶While he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed them; and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ¹⁷While he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, “The Chalde′ans formed three companies, and made a raid upon the camels and took them, and slew the servants with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ¹⁸While he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house; ¹⁹and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness, and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead; and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ²⁰Then Job arose, and rent his robe, and shaved his head, and fell upon the ground, and worshiped. ²¹And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” ²²In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.

Intent of Chapter 1

vv. 1:1-2:13 The Prologue. The Opening scene is in the land of Uz. A blameless man is brought up before the Heavenly Council. He is wealthy and a man of exemplary virtue and piety. He is blessed by God with material blessings and held as an example to the Host. Satan is the Elohim of the Earth, placed in charge from the Closure of Eden from the first Jubilee of his rule, commencing in 3973 BCE. Job has an ideal family of seven sons and three daughters. Satan is allowed to act as the invigilator of Job and to test him in his righteous demeanour towards God under the Law. God holds up Job as an example to the Host and Satan accuses Job unjustly as he did to all mankind over the Age. Satan is then allowed by God to test Job but he is not allowed to lay a hand upon Job's person.

The third scene then returns to Uz and misfortune destroys Job and his family like hammer blows. Job is deprived of wealth, posterity, and health and his family is destroyed, but he keeps his faith in God.

The sequence thus mirrors the role Satan and the Fallen Host were given in the testing of men before the throne of God, in the Plan of Salvation (No. 001A). Thus the text is an example to all mankind of the test before them in this Age under Satan and his accusations before the Host.

The Land of Uz is considered to be Edom although some authorities place it in Transjordan. The Soncino considers it to be the East of the Holy Land and North of Edom (cf. Lam. 4:21; so Rambam and Ibn Ezra).

v. 1 The name Job may mean “hostile” or “penitent.” Blameless, i.e. healthy, whole, and socially responsible.

v. 2 Seven sons and three daughters.

v. 3 Job's pastoral wealth was great and he was greatest of these Eastern pastoralists.

v. 4 His day These were the ancient feast days of the Birthday where individuals were celebrated as God for that day and the practice is still held all over the world today.

v. 5 Job understood the dangerous nature of this practice and offered sacrifices in case they had sinned. See Birthdays (No. 287).

vv. 6-8 Here we see that sons of God came to present themselves before the Throne of God and Satan was among them. The word is adversary and is rendered here as Satan. Satan reported that he was going up and down upon the earth as was his responsibility, and God then asked him concerning Job. Here Satan and the Host had access to God (cf. 2:1) and had not yet fallen (comp. 1Chron. 21:1).

vv. 9-10 God’s comment regarding Job and Satan’s response.

v. 11 Satan demands that Job be punished and that he will curse God.

v. 12 God here limits Satan in testing Job to not lay a hand on him personally.

v. 13-19 The calamities of the family and the death of the children.

v. 15 Sabiens, nomads Chaldeans from Arabia.

v. 17 Chaldeans, originally from southern Mesopotamia. The attack from three sides was to prevent the camels from escaping (Metsudath David). (cf. Judg. 6:16; 9:43; 1Sam. 11:11).

v. 19 (Lit. the Young men but implies the daughters i.e. the young people (Sonc).

v. 20 The acceptance and resignation of Job.

v. 21 Naked I came from my mother's womb and naked shall I return (Heb. adds there). And “The Lord gave and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

v. 22 God is thus not accused of capricious malevolence; and Job is justified.

Chapter 2

Attack on Job’s Health

¹Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. ²And the Lord said to Satan, “Whence have you come?” Satan answered the Lord, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” ³And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil? He still holds fast his integrity, although you moved me against him, to destroy him without cause.” ⁴Then Satan answered the Lord, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. ⁵But put forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.” ⁶And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power; only spare his life.” ⁷So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord, and afflicted Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. ⁸And he took a potsherd with which to scrape himself, and sat among the ashes. ⁹Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God, and die.” ¹⁰But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Job’s Three Friends

¹¹Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eli′phaz the Te′manite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Na′amathite. They made an appointment together to come to condole with him and comfort him. ¹²And when they saw him from afar, they did not recognize him; and they raised their voices and wept; and they rent their robes and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven. ¹³And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great.

Intent of Chapter 2

2:1 Again we see Satan and the Host before God, and Satan again tested God regarding the justice of the actions in testing Job by Satan. Here again he did not understand that what he was doing was unrighteous, in his accusations of mankind, and here Job, in particular.

v. 4 skin for skin, a hide for a hide, a proverb probably used by tradesmen.

v. 7 loathsome sores, not necessarily leprosy (Hansen’s disease) but a skin ailment, one of many in the Near East.

v. 9 curse God and die, Job’s wife still believed in his integrity but wished to shorten his torture (see also 4:6 n). Her name is not supplied in Scripture, but the Targum says it is Dinah, daughter of Jacob (Midrash Aboth).

v. 10 foolish woman, i.e. Those who do not believe in divine intervention into human affairs (see Ps. 14.1 n.).

v. 11 The friends of Job came from North-West Arabia. They sat with him for seven days and they saw his suffering was very great (vv. 12-13).

Chapter 3

Job Curses the Day He Was Born

¹After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. ²And Job said: ³“Let the day perish wherein I was born, and the night which said, ‘A man-child is conceived.’ ⁴Let that day be darkness! May God above not seek it, nor light shine upon it. ⁵Let gloom and deep darkness claim it. Let clouds dwell upon it; let the blackness of the day terrify it. ⁶That night—let thick darkness seize it! let it not rejoice among the days of the year, let it not come into the number of the months. ⁷Yea, let that night be barren; let no joyful cry be heard in it. ⁸Let those curse it who curse the day, who are skilled to rouse up Levi′athan. ⁹Let the stars of its dawn be dark; let it hope for light, but have none, nor see the eyelids of the morning; ¹⁰because it did not shut the doors of my mother’s womb, nor hide trouble from my eyes. ¹¹“Why did I not die at birth, come forth from the womb and expire? ¹²Why did the knees receive me? Or why the breasts, that I should suck? ¹³For then I should have lain down and been quiet; I should have slept; then I should have been at rest, ¹⁴with kings and counselors of the earth who rebuilt ruins for themselves, ¹⁵or with princes who had gold, who filled their houses with silver. ¹⁶Or why was I not as a hidden untimely birth, as infants that never see the light? ¹⁷There the wicked cease from troubling, and there the weary are at rest. ¹⁸There the prisoners are at ease together; they hear not the voice of the taskmaster. ¹⁹The small and the great are there, and the slave is free from his master. ²⁰“Why is light given to him that is in misery, and life to the bitter in soul, ²¹who long for death, but it comes not, and dig for it more than for hid treasures; ²²who rejoice exceedingly, and are glad, when they find the grave? ²³Why is light given to a man whose way is hid, whom God has hedged in? ²⁴For my sighing comes as my bread, and my groanings are poured out like water. ²⁵For the thing that I fear comes upon me, and what I dread befalls me. ²⁶I am not at ease, nor am I quiet; I have no rest; but trouble comes.”

Intent of Chapter 3

3. 1-26: Job’s Soliloquy.

v. 1 After this Job opened his mouth. Kimchi calls attention to the similarity to Jer. 20:14. Some rabbis assert “Comforters are not permitted to speak until a mourner opens the conversation (Soncino p. 8).

v. 7 Galmud (adj.) means hard and stony. In Isa. 49:21 it is rendered Solitary for exiled Zion.

v. 8 Those who are skilled to rouse Leviathan are magicians, astrologers and calendar-makers, who were believed to produce as well as announce eclipses. Leviathan, the sea monster (7.12), like Rahab (9.13; 26.12; Isa. 51.9), threatens to engulf the created order and the succession of days and nights, especially during eclipses of the sun or moon.

v. 14 Ruins, probably pyramids. The thought of a happy afterlife is not Hebraic but Egyptian.

v. 23 God, Hebrew Eloah, a name which stresses the terrible aspect of the Deity, whose omnipotence is never doubted by Job. Job’s dilemma is directly related to his theological view that God is the cause of both good and evil (disaster, calamities, etc.); see 2.10; Is. 45.7; Am. 3.6.

Chapter 4

Eliphaz Speaks: Job Has Sinned

¹Then Eli′phaz the Te′manite answered: ²“If one ventures a word with you, will you be offended? Yet who can keep from speaking? ³Behold, you have instructed many, and you have strengthened the weak hands. ⁴Your words have upheld him who was stumbling, and you have made firm the feeble knees. ⁵But now it has come to you, and you are impatient; it touches you, and you are dismayed. ⁶Is not your fear of God your confidence, and the integrity of your ways your hope? ⁷“Think now, who that was innocent ever perished? Or where were the upright cut off? ⁸As I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same. ⁹By the breath of God they perish, and by the blast of his anger they are consumed. ¹⁰The roar of the lion, the voice of the fierce lion, the teeth of the young lions, are broken.¹¹The strong lion perishes for lack of prey, and the whelps of the lioness are scattered. ¹²“Now a word was brought to me stealthily, my ear received the whisper of it.¹³Amid thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, ¹⁴dread came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones shake. ¹⁵A spirit glided past my face; the hair of my flesh stood up. ¹⁶It stood still, but I could not discern its appearance. A form was before my eyes; there was silence, then I heard a voice: ¹⁷‘Can mortal man be righteous before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker? ¹⁸Even in his servants he puts no trust, and his angels he charges with error; ¹⁹how much more those who dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, who are crushed before the moth. ²⁰Between morning and evening they are destroyed; they perish for ever without any regarding it. ²¹If their tent-cord is plucked up within them, do they not die, and that without wisdom?’

Intent of Chapter 4

4.1-5.27. First discourse of Eliphaz. Eliphaz is the son of Esau. Rashi holds that as he rested in the bosom of Isaac he merited that the shekinah rested upon him.

vv. 1-4 The opening words are courteous. The poet insists on the sincerity of Job’s comforters.

v. 3 Thou hast instructed many. The verb yasar means to “discipline or admonish” those who uttered words against the Most High.

v. 4 Eliphaz is here appealing to Job to apply to himself the counsel which he formerly gave to others (Soncino).

v. 5 God's rod has barely touched him and he is affrighted (so Malbim ).

v. 6 Job’s integrity (Hebrew word related to “blame``less” in 1.1; (see 2.9 n) is not yet questioned. Heb. Yirathcha is elliptical for yirath shamayim “Thy fear of God.”

v. 7 The dogma of individual, this worldly retribution is upheld. This argument put forward by Eliphaz was the same put forward by Abraham pleading for Sodom and Gomorrah Shall not the judge of all the earth do justly? (Gen. 18:25 (Soncino) (Gen. 18:22-33)).

vv. 12-16 Eliphaz appeals to a supernatural, almost prophetic, source of authority. He does not speak in the name of tradition, or experience, as wise men generally do.

v. 17 Surely no mortal man is righteous before God, and Job should adopt an attitude of humility instead of rebelling against the divine will.

v. 21 The word translated tent-cord has two separate meanings; here it should be translated “pre-eminence” or “excellency”; men’s pre-eminence or excellency is of no avail. They have only an illusion of “wisdom”.

Chapter 5

Job Is Corrected by God

¹“Call now; is there any one who will answer you? To which of the holy ones will you turn? ²Surely vexation kills the fool, and jealousy slays the simple. ³I have seen the fool taking root, but suddenly I cursed his dwelling. ⁴His sons are far from safety, they are crushed in the gate, and there is no one to deliver them. ⁵His harvest the hungry eat, and he takes it even out of thorns; and the thirsty pant after his^[^c^] wealth. ⁶For affliction does not come from the dust, nor does trouble sprout from the ground; ⁷but man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward. ⁸“As for me, I would seek God, and to God would I commit my cause; ⁹who does great things and unsearchable, marvelous things without number: ¹⁰he gives rain upon the earth and sends waters upon the fields; ¹¹he sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn are lifted to safety. ¹²He frustrates the devices of the crafty, so that their hands achieve no success.¹³He takes the wise in their own craftiness; and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end. ¹⁴They meet with darkness in the daytime, and grope at noonday as in the night. ¹⁵But he saves the fatherless from their mouth, the needy from the hand of the mighty.¹⁶So the poor have hope, and injustice shuts her mouth. ¹⁷“Behold, happy is the man whom God reproves; therefore despise not the chastening of the Almighty. ¹⁸For he wounds, but he binds up; he smites, but his hands heal. ¹⁹He will deliver you from six troubles; in seven there shall no evil touch you. ²⁰In famine he will redeem you from death, and in war from the power of the sword. ²¹You shall be hid from the scourge of the tongue, and shall not fear destruction when it comes. ²²At destruction and famine you shall laugh, and shall not fear the beasts of the earth. ²³For you shall be in league with the stones of the field, and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you. ²⁴You shall know that your tent is safe, and you shall inspect your fold and miss nothing. ²⁵You shall know also that your descendants shall be many, and your offspring as the grass of the earth. ²⁶You shall come to your grave in ripe old age, as a shock of grain comes up to the threshing floor in its season. ²⁷Lo, this we have searched out; it is true. Hear, and know it for your good.”

Intent of Chapter 5

5.1 The Holy Ones, Divine Beings (see 15.15; Ex. 15.11 n.; Ps. 82.1 n.) Members of the heavenly court cannot be intercessors. Eliphaz suspects, perhaps, that Job has attempted to justify himself by invoking other Gods.

v. 8 I would, that is, were I in Job’s place; if Job would only turn from his arrogance, his present misery would be ended.

vv. 17-27 Suffering must be accepted as the chastening of the Almighty. The poet refers to the doctrine of musar (chastening or correction), which is characteristic of Jewish orthodoxy.

Chapter 6

Job Replies: My Complaint Is Just

¹Then Job answered: ²“O that my vexation were weighed, and all my calamity laid in the balances! ³For then it would be heavier than the sand of the sea; therefore my words have been rash. ⁴For the arrows of the Almighty are in me; my spirit drinks their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me. ⁵Does the wild ass bray when he has grass, or the ox low over his fodder? ⁶Can that which is tasteless be eaten without salt, or is there any taste in the slime of the purslane? ⁷My appetite refuses to touch them; they are as food that is loathsome to me. ⁸“O that I might have my request, and that God would grant my desire; ⁹that it would please God to crush me, that he would let loose his hand and cut me off! ¹⁰This would be my consolation; I would even exult in pain unsparing; for I have not denied the words of the Holy One. ¹¹What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that I should be patient? ¹²Is my strength the strength of stones, or is my flesh bronze? ¹³In truth I have no help in me, and any resource is driven from me. ¹⁴“He who withholds kindness from a friend forsakes the fear of the Almighty. ¹⁵My brethren are treacherous as a torrent-bed, as freshets that pass away, ¹⁶which are dark with ice, and where the snow hides itself. ¹⁷In time of heat they disappear; when it is hot, they vanish from their place. ¹⁸The caravans turn aside from their course; they go up into the waste, and perish. ¹⁹The caravans of Tema look, the travelers of Sheba hope. ²⁰They are disappointed because they were confident; they come thither and are confounded. ²¹Such you have now become to me; you see my calamity, and are afraid. ²²Have I said, ‘Make me a gift’? Or, ‘From your wealth offer a bribe for me’? ²³Or, ‘Deliver me from the adversary’s hand’? Or, ‘Ransom me from the hand of oppressors’? ²⁴“Teach me, and I will be silent; make me understand how I have erred. ²⁵How forceful are honest words! But what does reproof from you reprove? ²⁶Do you think that you can reprove words, when the speech of a despairing man is wind? ²⁷You would even cast lots over the fatherless, and bargain over your friend. ²⁸“But now, be pleased to look at me; for I will not lie to your face. ²⁹Turn, I pray, let no wrong be done. Turn now, my vindication is at stake. ³⁰Is there any wrong on my tongue? Cannot my taste discern calamity?

Intent of Chapter 6

6.1-7.21 Reply of Job. The orthodox explanation cannot be valid in Job’s case, for his calamity exceeds all ordinary misfortunes.

v. 6 Slime of the purslane, an insipid and repulsive food. Purslane is a potherb.

vv. 8-11 The Egyptian theme of desire for an early death reappears (see Ch. 3). Job fears that, if his days (hence, his tortures) are prolonged, he may deny the words of the Holy One (v.10). The poet suggests there by the complexity of the hero’s personality; Job is an unwilling blasphemer.

v. 14 The test of true religion lies in human compassion for others. Another rendering is; “a man should show kindness to a man in despair, even to one who forsakes the fear of the Almighty.” Job expected aid from others (Ibn Ezra).

vv. 15-20 Friendship fails precisely when it is needed. This is the major lesson in this section. The detailed discussion of the text in the Soncino is of interest. The requirement of brethren to render adequate support is critical to the maintenance of good morale and expectations. Morale is damaged when, like water, the streams of goodwill evaporate in the summer sun. Words, in self justification, are insufficient when positive support is needed.

v. 24 Job is willing to admit that he has erred, if only convincing evidence is brought forward.

v. 30 His conscience is able to discern the right of his case. He has a sound ability to reason, according to the Will of God.

Bullinger’s Notes on Chs. 1-6 (for KJV)

Chapter 1

Verse 1

There was a man = A man came to be. This settles the question as to the historical fact. was = came to be. See note on p. 666.

man. Hebrew. 'ish. App-14 .

Uz. In Genesis 22:20 , Genesis 22:21 , immediately after the offering of Isaac, Abraham hears that his brother Nahor has eight sons, and among them two named Uz and Buz, and Kemuel the father of Aram. Uz gives his name to the land. Buz and Aram are connected with Elihu (Job 32:2 ). See App-62 . The land of Uz is mentioned in Jeremiah 25:20 and Lamentations 4:21 . South of Edom, west of Arabia, extending to the borders of Chaldea.

Job. In Hebrew. 'Iyyob = afflicted.

that = this.

was = came to be, as in Genesis 1:2 .

perfect = inoffensive. None are "perfect" in the English sense of the word. Hebrew. tam. See Genesis 20:5 .

God. Hebrew. Elohim. App-4 .

evil. Hebrew. ra'a. App-44 .

Verse 3

and. Note the Figure of speech Polysyndeton. App-6 .

men = sons.

Verse 4

one = man, as in Job 1:1 .

his day. Probably = birthday. Compare Job 1:5 ; Job 3:3 .Genesis 40:20 .

Verse 5

were gone about = came round.

offered = offered up. App-43 . Showing that, from Genesis 4:0 onward, the institution was observed.

sinned. Hebrew. chata'. App-44 .

cursed. One of the eighteen emendations of the Sopherim ( App-33 ), by which the primitive Hebrew text, kalal = to curse, was changed to barak = to bless, as in Job 1:11 with Job 2:5 , Job 2:9 . Translated "cursed" in Authorized Version, and "renounced" in Revised Version, in spite of barak (blessed) standing in the printed text. See notes on 2 Samuel 12:14 and Psalms 10:3 .

Verse 6

sons of God = the angels. Compare Job 38:7 , and see App-23 .

present themselves = take their stations.

the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. App-4 .

Satan = the Adversary.

Verse 9

Doth Job . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

Verse 10

Hast not Thou . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

Verse 11

hand. Put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of Cause), App-6 , for power exercised by it.

touch = hurt. Figure of speech Tapeinosis ( App-6 ), meaning much more than "touch".

Verse 12

power. Hebrew "hand". Put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of Cause), App-6 , for power exercised by it.

Verse 13

there was a day = the fit, or usual day. When Job was seventy. See notes on p. 666.

wine. Hebrew. yayin. App-27 .

Verse 14

and. Note the Figure of speech Polysyndeton ( App-6 ), to emphasize the details in all these reports of the calamities.

Verse 15

the Sabeans. Hebrew Sheba. Put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of the Subject), for the people of Sheba. Compare Job 6:19 . Isaiah 60:6 .

servants = young men.

Verse 16

While he was yet speaking. Repeated three times to show the rapidity and vehemence of Satan's assault.

The fire of God = A fire of Elohim. Figure of speech Enallage ( App-6 ) = a great (or terrible) fire. Elohim used as an adjective. Compare Song of Solomon 8:6 . Psalms 80:10 .

Verse 19

wind. Hebrew. ruach. App-9 .

Verse 20

shaved his head. Symbolic of mourning (Leviticus 21:5 .Jeremiah 7:29 ; Jeremiah 16:6 . Micah 1:16 ).

Verse 22

this: i.e. these calamities.

sinned. Hebrew. chata'. App-44 .

foolishly = with injustice.

Chapter 2

Verse 1

was = came to be.

a day = the fit, or usual.

the sons of God. See note on Job 1:6 .

God. Hebrew. Elohim. App-4 .

the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. App-4 and App-23 .

Satan = the Adversary.

Verse 3

perfect and an upright. See note on Job 1:1 .

Skin. Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Part), App-6 , one part of the body put for the whole.

life = soul. Hebrew. nephesh. App-13 .

Verse 5

But = However.

put forth Thine hand. See note on Job 1:11 .

touch = touch bone to his.

curse. See note on Job 1:5 .

Verse 6

save his life

ullet = save his soul. Hebrew. Nephesh. App-13 .

Verse 8

sat down = was sitting.

Verse 9

Dost thou . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

retain = remain firm in.

Verse 10

What? shall we . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

the hand = from. Figure of speech Metonymy (of Cause), App-6 .

God. Hebrew. Elohim. (with Art.) = the [true] God. App-4 .

this = these calamities.

sin. Hebrew. chata'. App-44 .

Verse 11

every one. Hebrew. 'ish. App-14 .

Eliphaz. From Teman, which is connected with Esau and Edom (Genesis 36:4 , Genesis 36:11 . 1Ch 1:35 , 1 Chronicles 1:36 , 1 Chronicles 1:53 , &c). Temanites famed for wisdom. He argued from the standpoint of human experience.

Bildad. Probably descended from Shuah, youngest son of Keturah by Abraham (Genesis 25:2 ). Settled east of Palestine (Genesis 25:6 ). He argued from human tradition.

Zophar. Probably from Naamah, southern frontier of Judah. He argued from the ground of human merit.

Chapter 3

Verse 1

After this: i.e. after this long restraint.

cursed. Here we have the Hebrew kalal, which was in the primitive text. See note on Job 1:5 .

his day: i.e. his birthday. Compare Job 3:3 .

Verse 2

spake = answered, i.e. began, or lamented. Hebrew idiom. See note on Deuteronomy 1:41 .

Verse 3

and = or. He knew not which it was. Compare Judges 11:31 .

man. Hebrew. geber. App-14 .

Verse 4

darkness. Hebrew. hashak. GOD. Hebrew Eloah. See App-4 .

Verse 5

the shadow of death. Hebrew. zalmaveth = the darkness of death.

stain it = pollute it. Hebrew. ga'al, to pollute; not ga'al, to redeem.

Verse 6

darkness = intense or thick darkness. Hebrew. 'ophel. Not hashak (verses: Job 3:4 , Job 3:5 , Job 3:9 ) which is less intense.

Verse 7

Lo. Figure of speech Asterismos. App-6 .

Verse 8

their mourning = a dragon. Referring probably to what the constellation signified.

Verse 9

dark. Hebrew. hashak. See Job 3:4 .

let it look. Figure of speech Prosopopoeia. App-6 .

Verse 11

Why . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

from = in, or within.

give up the ghost = die. Hebrew. gava', to expire. Compare Job 10:18 ; Job 13:19 ; Job 14:10 .

Verse 12

the knees [of the mother]. Figure of speech Ellipsis. App-6 .

prevent = come before, so as to meet.

Verse 14

desolate places = ruins: i.e. places (tombs or monuments) already going to ruins.

Verse 17

wicked = lawless agitators. Hebrew. rasha'. App-44 .

weary = worn out [of strength].

Verse 18

oppressor = taskmaster.

Verse 19

master = masters. Hebrew, plural for emphasis.

Verse 20

Wherefore . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

soul. Hebrew. nephesh. App-13 .

Verse 21

long = wait, or look for.

Verse 22

grave = sepulchre. Hebrew. keber. See App-35 .

Verse 23

Why . . . ? Figure of speech Ellipsis. App-6 . supplies the sentence from v- 20; but it may be repeated from Job 3:22 , "the grave", regarding verses: Job 21:22 as a parenthesis.

GOD. Hebrew Eloah. App-4 .

Verse 24

I eat = my food.

Chapter 4

Verse 1

answered and said = replied and said. The idiom ( App-6 ) requires that the first verb (where nothing has been as yet said) must be rendered according to the context: "spake", "prayed", "began", "concluded", &c. Here it = replied and said. See note on Deuteronomy 1:41 .

Verse 2

assay = attempt, or try.

to commune = a word.

who . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

speaking. Hebrew. millah = words composing the matter of what is said.

Verse 4

words = sayings. Hebrew. millah. See note on "speaking" (Job 4:2 ).

falling = stumbling.

Verse 6

Is not . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 . The Authorized Version of 1611 reads "confidence; the uprightness of thy ways and thy hope? "First altered in the Cambridge edition of 1638. Name of editor is unknown.

Verse 7

who . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

Verse 9

blast. Hebrew. neshamah. App-16 .

breath = spirit. Hebrew. ruach. App-9 .

nostrils. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia.

Verse 12

a little = a whispering.

Verse 13

men. Hebrew, plural of 'enosh. App-14 .

Verse 14

all = the multitude of.

Verse 15

a spirit. Hebrew. ruach. App-9 :. a movement of air, caused by something unseen.

Verse 17

Shall. ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

mortal man. Hebrew. 'enosh. App-14 .

man = strong man. Hebrew. geber. App-14 .

Verse 18

put no trust = putteth no faith in. Hebrew. 'aman. App-69 . Compare Job 15:15 , Job 15:31 .

servants = messengers (Psalms 104:4 ).

charged = will charge.

Verse 19

houses of clay. Compare 2 Corinthians 5:1 .

before = sooner than.

Chapter 5

Verse 1

Verse 2

assay = attempt, or try.

to commune = a word.

who . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

speaking. Hebrew. millah = words composing the matter of what is said.

Verse 4

words = sayings. Hebrew. millah. See note on "speaking" (Job 4:2 ).

falling = stumbling.

Verse 6

Verse 7

who . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

Verse 9

blast. Hebrew. neshamah. App-16 .

breath = spirit. Hebrew. ruach. App-9 .

nostrils. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia.

Verse 12

a little = a whispering.

Verse 13

men. Hebrew, plural of 'enosh. App-14 .

Verse 14

all = the multitude of.

Verse 15

a spirit. Hebrew. ruach. App-9 :. a movement of air, caused by something unseen.

Verse 17

Shall. ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

mortal man. Hebrew. 'enosh. App-14 .

man = strong man. Hebrew. geber. App-14 .

Verse 18

put no trust = putteth no faith in. Hebrew. 'aman. App-69 . Compare Job 15:15 , Job 15:31 .

servants = messengers (Psalms 104:4 ).

charged = will charge.

Verse 19

houses of clay. Compare 2 Corinthians 5:1 .

before = sooner than.

Chapter 6

Verse 1

answered = spake, but Hebrew Idiom = replied. See note on Job 4:1 and Deuteronomy 1:41 .

Verse 2

Oh. Figure of speech Ecphonesis. App-6 .

my grief: i.e. the cause of my grief.

Verse 4

arrows. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia. App-6 . Compare Deuteronomy 32:23 , Deuteronomy 32:42 .Psalms 38:2 .Ezekiel 5:16 . Zechariah 9:14 .

THE ALMIGHTY. Hebrew Shaddai. App-4 .

drinketh = draineth.

spirit. Hebrew. ruach. App-9 . Perhaps in the sense of taking away his courage.

terrors. Only here and Psalms 88:16 .

GOD. Hebrew Eloah. App-4 .

Verse 5

Doth . . . loweth . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 . Only here and 1 Samuel 6:12 .

bray. Only here and Job 30:7 .

when he hath = over.

Verse 6

Can . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

white of an egg. "Egg" occurs only here. "White" (Hebrew. rir) is found elsewhere only in 1 Samuel 21:13 , where it is rendered "spittle".

Verse 7

soul. Hebrew. nephesh. App-13 .

meat = bread. Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Species), App-6 , put for all kinds of food.

Verse 8

the thing that I long for = my expectation. Figure of speech Metonymy (of Adjunct), App-6 , put for the thing desired.

Verse 9

destroy = crush.

Verse 10

I would harden, &c. Occurs only here. = Let me even exult in my anguish (should He not spare) that I have not concealed, &c.

Verse 13

wisdom = stability. See note on Proverbs 2:7 .

Verse 15

the stream of brooks. Hebrew. , aphik = a, torrent restrained in a narrow channel, natural or artificial, open as in a gorge, or covered as in an aqueduct, passing away, inaccessible, and out of sight. See note on first occurrence, 2 Samuel 22:16 .

Verse 18

to nothings into a waste. Hebrew. tohu, as in Genesis 1:2 .

Verse 19

troops = caravans.

companies = travellers.

Verse 22

Did I say . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 . Continued in Job 6:23 .

substance. Hebrew strength; put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of Adjunct), App-6 , for what is produced by it.

Verse 23

mighty = adversary. Compare Job 1:0 . and Job 2:0 .

Verse 25

words = sayings.

reprove = convince, or confute: i.e. what can a reproof from you reprove? See translation, below.

Verse 26

wind. Hebrew. ruach. App-9 .Verse 30

Is there . . . ? cannot . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .

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