PyramidHead

From what I have read of both OT and NT (nothing other than that in terms of biblical scholarship, I admit), the book of Job stands out in a way that starkly contrasts many of the other books, namely in its portrayal of Yahweh/Jehovah. I mean, he basically tells Job, who has lost his family, his home, his health and well-being: Don't even try to understand why this happened or why I did it, because I'm so much higher than you that you'll never come close to comprehending even a fraction of what's going through my mind; I do whatever I do and your welfare is none of my concern as a vastly superior being.

To my knowledge, this is the only book that describes Yahweh/Jehova as a few steps away from being a disinterested, deistic god. In other stories he's always ruffled about something his creation is doing, or sending plagues to right the wrongs of some empire, implying that his temper is predictable and can be reliably prodded by humankind's actions. The god in Job appears much more distant, the whole conceit of basically having a gentleman's wager at Job's expense further illustrating just how little anything on earth matters to him. Do you agree with this difference, and/or know where it may have originated?

Andykiwi

I believe the text originated in the area of Babylon.
The Jews acquired it when they were taken into captivity there.
The may have made a few minor changes to it.
The Jews had no concept of "Satan" until they got to Babylon.

Zeluvia

Not only does it say that, but it also says that when bad things happen to you, it isn't because you DESERVE them, or you need to be punished, or that it has anything to do with YOUR actions at all.

In sum...

Shit happens, if it's bad shit, just suffer, if it's good shit, thank god.

TheRealityOfMan

and don't listen to your friends' advice too much, it seems.

show_no_mercy

I think Job is one of the earliest books in the Hebrew bible.

Andykiwi

It may have been written early (not by the Jews) but it wasn't added to their scriptures until later - after their captivity in Babylon.

show_no_mercy

Yeah, there is some weird-ish language at the beginning of the chapter implying that it was edited somewhat by monotheistic (thus post-exile) Jews.

"[S]ons of [the] God" (b'ni ha-El) sounds suspiciously pre-exilic, and is similar to the polytheistic language elsewhere, like the Dead Sea Scrolls version of Deuteronomy 32:8

Check out Psalm 82:1

[quote Psalm 82]
1 God [Elohim] stands in the council of God [El] and judges the gods [Elohim][/quote]

Thus the beginning of Job might have originally been closer to this Psalm, where El[ohim], not YHWH, was having his sons present themselves to him.

And then

Usually it's written as "fears YHWH" or "fears the LORD", not "god".

Mageth

If I recall, Job may be a recordation of a pre-existing oral folk tale, with some embellishments.

John Kesler

The ancients believed that God was active in the world and caused everything. When something bad or good happened, it was because God either punished or rewarded people for their actions. The Deuteronomic Historian subscribed to this view. Just read the books of Kings, for example. (Israel wasn't alone in this. The Moabite Stone expresses this perspective as well: "Omri, king of Israel -- he oppressed Moab many days, because Chemosh was angry with his land.") Job's theology counters this outlook: When bad things happen, it isn't always because someone sinned; and the righteousness of God cannot be understood by mortals and is not necessarily reflected in the world.

bacht

Nice summary, but note that Job recovers everything he lost and more, so the message still implies rewards for the righteous (but no afterlife)