Introduction to Job

Who was Job - Part 1

Babylonian Talmud, Sotah 11a:

Three noteworthy people were consulted by Pharaoh in that counsel where Pharaoh questioned what should be done with the Jewish people. They were Balaam, and Job, and Yitro. Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba teaches what occurred to each of them: Balaam, who advised Pharaoh to kill all sons born to the Jewish people, was punished by being killed in the war with Midian (see Numbers 31:8). Job, who was silent and neither advised nor protested, was punished by suffering, as detailed in the eponymous book in the Bible. Yitro, who ran away as a sign of protest, merited that some of his children’s children sat in the Sanhedrin in the Chamber of Hewn Stone

Who was Job? - Part 2

Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 15a-b

The Gemara relates that one of the Sages sat before Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani and he sat and said: Job never existed and was never created; there was never such a person as Job. Rather, his story was a parable. Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani said to him: In rebuttal to you, the verse states: “There was a man in the Land of Utz whose name was Job” (Job 1:1), which indicates that such a man did indeed exist.

Rabbi Elazar says: Job lived in the days of the judging of the Judges, as it is stated in connection with Job: “Behold, all you yourselves have seen it; why then have you become altogether vain?” (Job 27:12). Which generation was completely vain? You must say it was the generation of the judging of the Judges, when the people judged the Judges, as will be explained shortly.

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa says: Job lived in the days of Ahasuerus, as it is stated: “And in all the world were no women found so beautiful as the daughters of Job” (Job 42:15). In which generation were beautiful women sought? You must say it was the generation of Ahasuerus (Esther, chapter 2).

And some say that Job lived in the days of Jacob and that he married Dina, the daughter of Jacob. As it is written here: “You speak as one of the loathsome women speaks” (Job 2:10), and it is written there in the account of the incident involving Dina: “He has done a loathsome act in Israel” (Genesis 34:7). This concludes the text of the baraita.

The Gemara comments: And all these tanna’im hold that Job was a Jew except for the opinion introduced with the phrase: And some say, according to which Job lived in the time of Jacob, and he was certainly not one of Jacob’s sons.

And what is the proof that all these tanna’im maintain that Job was Jewish? As if it should enter your mind to say that he came from the nations of the world, there is a difficulty: After Moses died, did the Divine Presence rest any longer on the nations of the world? But doesn’t the Master say: Moses requested that the Divine Presence not rest again on the nations of the world, and his request was granted to him, as it is stated: “That we shall be differentiated, I and Your people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth” (Exodus 33:16), and it is stated there that God acceded to his request.

Malbim: Rabbi Meir Leibush ben Yehiel Michel Wisser (Russia, 18th century)

4. If a man is humiliated and disgraced in the eyes of the public he may break down; crushed in the gate, with none to save him (Job 5:4). But Job was a famous and respected man, the greatest man in all the East.

Malbim

A man can be destroyed by family dissension, as when brothers bear malice towards one another and fabricate hatred (Proverbs 12:20) in his house. This is what the enmity between Joseph and his brothers did to the patriarch Jacob. But Job's family lived in harmony and affection: [His sons held regular feasts etc.]

"Virtues are acquired by habit." ~~ Shem Tov ben Falaquera (Spain, 13th century)

Malbim

And so when God asks Satan from where he has come, he replies that he has been roving the earth, traveling its length and breadth. For Satan's role as the agent of extinction restricts him to the sublunar world of 'matter'.

But was Job really all that great?

Malbim:

Satan scorns this and asserts that Job is in fact motivated only by material self-interest. From philosophical considerations it is clear that worship of God that is motivated by hope of reward or fear of punishment is not a spiritual but a material act. The same can be said of foregoing bodily pleasures. The self-denial of a person who fasts in order to be rewarded is not a product of his 'form' but of his love of 'matter'. Such a person afflicts himself out of love for his body, in the expectation of gain and in order to acquire the means to satisfy his desires.⁷Spinoza's comments are apt here:
I see in what mud this man sticks...He is one of those who would follow after his own lusts, if he were not restrained by fear of hell. He abstains from evil actions and fulfills God's commands like a slave against his will, and for his bondage he expects to be rewarded God with gifts far more to his taste than Divine love, and great in proportion to his original dislike of virtue.
Again, at the close of the Ethics, he draws an ironic picture of the pious coming before God at the Judgment, and looking to be endowed with incalculable blessings in recompense for the grievous burden of their piety (R.H.M.Elwes, p.XXX).
Satan contends that Job's fear of God and his vigilance are not pure-minded. On the contrary, they are based on his expectation of physical reward and his fear of physical injury. And so Satan asks: Does Job fear God for nothing? Do You not protect him, his household and all that is around him? You have blessed everything he does and his possessions have spread far and wide.

Malbim on Job 1:10

If he is really sincere, then even were he denied all his Providential blessings, he would still continue in his righteous ways. If, on the other hand, his righteousness was in fact only instrumental, motivated by expectation of reward or avoidance of injury, then, were the blessings removed, not only would he stop acting righteously, there being no good reason to do so any longer, but he would also curse God. For having previously believed his blessings to be deserved, i.e., that he had merited his wealth and possessions by virtue of his righteous ways, he would now blame their removal on the capriciousness of Governance, declaring that God is not a just judge This would clearly prove that his worship had not been out of love. For had it been so, he would not now complain but would balance his good times against the bad.⁸

Malbim on Job 1:12

To summarize: It is clear that Job's suffering had nothing to do with any sin or punishment; he was guiltless. As God Himself had testified: ...there is no-one like him on earth; such a sincere and upright man; God-fearing; one who shuns wrongdoing. It was in fact a trial designed to determine the truth about his piety; to see whether he would remain righteous even in poverty. Neither Job nor his three friends were aware of this until it was revealed to them by Elihu. God agrees to the test. All of Job's possessions are handed over to Satan; only Job himself was to remain untouched. As Maimonides explains (Guide for the Perplexed, Part 3, Chapter 22):
There are people who though unshaken by the loss of their money, would be horrified by the death of their children, driven to death worrying about it; there are others who would not be broken even by the loss of their children, but who are unable to face personal physical pain.

Malbim

But Job stands the test. He neither denies that God governs the world, nor does he criticize this Governance. His possessions were not his own outright property; he had not been born with them. They were a gift or a loan from God, who had created them. They had been entrusted to him and had now been taken back. And taking them back was not an evil thing but was just a denial of bountiful good. God must have a good reason for doing this.

Malbim

The scene returns to Heaven where once again the Sons of God are in attendance before the Lord. However this time Satan too is in attendance before the Lord. This is because Job is now to be tried with diseases and bodily afflictions—evils of the third class. The harm visited upon Job so far has been in the shape of elemental disasters or acts of aggression, both of which are beyond the victim's control. However, the diseases and bodily afflictions about to be inflicted upon him are usually the result of the victim's own self-indulgence. A righteous person is not protected from elemental disasters or acts of aggression by the direct action of his righteousness on Nature, for righteousness is not a 'natural' cause but a 'providential' one. He is protected from such evils by Providence, which acts by virtue of his righteousness.

Malbim regarding 2:4 - "The Adversary answered the LORD, “Skin for skin—all that a man has he will give up for his life. But lay a hand on his bones and his flesh, and he will surely blaspheme You to Your face.”

Satan, however, is unrepentant and unconvinced. He demands a further test, this time one whose torment Job himself must bear. He argues that all that has been shown so far is that Job was not particularly sensitive to the loss of his possessions and children. 'A skin for a skin!' cries Satan. Job's own body has not been touched and it is only for fear that it might be that he has not yet complained against God. For it is well known that a man will always give up an outer 'skin' to save another more precious to him.

Job 2:10 - But he said to her, “You talk as any shameless woman might talk! Should we accept only good from God and not accept evil?” For all that, Job said nothing sinful.

Metzudat David: Even though he was struck on his whole body...he did not curse God in the way that he cursed his wife.

Eliphaz's first argument: The righteous do not suffer.

Eliphaz's argument, Part 2: God will not completely destroy you.

Malbim

Job's argument had been based on his claim that he had been unjustifiably victimized. Eliphaz challenges this. He maintains that no-one ever suffers without it being justified. Suffering is always warranted, for no-one is absolutely free of sin. However, whereas the suffering endured by the righteous is transient for he does not perish for ever, the proud and predatory are irrevocably and eternally condemned.

Job's Answer to Eliphaz (Job 6:1-22)

Part 1: I am miserable and I wish I were dead

Then Job said in reply:

If my anguish were weighed, My full calamity laid on the scales,

It would be heavier than the sand of the sea; That is why I spoke recklessly.

For the arrows of the Almighty are in me; My spirit absorbs their poison; God’s terrors are arrayed against me.

Does a wild ass bray when he has grass? Does a bull bellow over his fodder?

Can what is tasteless be eaten without salt? Does mallow juice have any flavor?

I refuse to touch them; They are like food when I am sick.

Would that my request were granted, That God gave me what I wished for;

Would that God consented to crush me, Loosed His hand and cut me off.

Then this would be my consolation,

As I writhed in unsparing pains: That I did not suppress my words against the Holy One.

What strength have I, that I should endure? How long have I to live, that I should be patient?

Is my strength the strength of rock? Is my flesh bronze?

Truly, I cannot help myself; I have been deprived of resourcefulness.

Part 2: My friends are fairweather friends

A friend owes loyalty to one who fails, Though he forsakes the fear of the Almighty;

My comrades are fickle, like a wadi, Like a bed on which streams once ran.

They are dark with ice; Snow obscures them;

But when they thaw, they vanish; In the heat, they disappear where they are.

Their course twists and turns; They run into the desert and perish.

Caravans from Tema look to them; Processions from Sheba count on them.

They are disappointed in their hopes; When they reach the place, they stand aghast.

So you are as nothing: At the sight of misfortune, you take fright.

Did I say to you, “I need your gift; Pay a bribe for me out of your wealth;

Deliver me from the clutches of my enemy; Redeem me from violent men”?

Teach me; I shall be silent; Tell me where I am wrong.

How trenchant honest words are; But what sort of reproof comes from you?

Do you devise words of reproof, But count a hopeless man’s words as wind?

You would even cast lots over an orphan, Or barter away your friend.

Part 3: What crime have I committed?

Malbim

Just the facts, ma'am!

Job insists that the debate be based on objective statements and not on unverified suppositions. His companions cannot infer from his suffering that he must have been wicked; independent proof must be brought. Accordingly, they must either accept that he was a truly righteous person—a claim supported by his reputation—or they must show that he had knowingly lied or could not recognize wrong.

Bildad, the second friend

1. Job, you are out of your mind.

2. Job, you should learn from our ancestors, the Torah says you're wrong.

3. The parable of the plants

Malbim

In the sayings of the wise, man is often likened to a plant. Taking up this metaphor, Bildad explains that the system of exchange he has proposed can be compared to the way Nature acts with regard to different plants. If a gardener uproots a plant that is growing in a rocky, dry and desolate site and replants it in a fresh and fertile plot, the uprooting obviously does it no harm. On the contrary, it is for its good so that it will grow as a noble vine (Jeremiah 2:21). However not every plant can take this sort of treatment. Plants which need lots of water to grow, and which are by their nature tender and soft, will not take root again after being transplanted but instead will wither quicker than any other plant (Job 8:12).

Job's Answer to Bildad: You can't make an argument from the fate of one person.

The third friend: Zophar the Naamathite, who says: "You *did* get mercy, God should have punished you *more*!

Next Passage: Job's answer to Zophar: Quiet, you idiot!