Why should we read the book of job today Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Why should we read the book of job today - Essay Example More than a masterpiece of literature, however, the Book of Job it provides an insight on the nature of God, on the relationship of God and man, and a criticism to man’s understanding of God’s laws. Most people would say that the Book of Job provides man a guideline on how to suffer (Copeland 2006; Goldberg 2010), but it is more than that. It serves to answer three of the most difficult questions on suffering: What is suffering? Why do people suffer undeservedly? What kind of lessons can be taken from suffering? ALL ABOUT THE BOOK OF JOB According to Mark Copeland (2006), the Book of Job belongs to the Books of Poetry, along with Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon. Just like the others, it is written in poetic style. Its author is unknown and the date of writing has been hotly debated among scholars. â€Å"All that can be said with certainty is that the author is a loyal Hebrew who was not bound by the popular creed that assumed suffering was alway s a direct result of sin† (Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown in Copeland 2006:4). It is often referred to as the â€Å"prime example of Hebrew wisdom literature† (Waters 1997:436) because it deals with a number of issues never discussed in the previous books of the Old Testament: the concept of theodicy1 and an understanding of the just and righteous God who allows underserved suffering in the world. At the start of the Book, the reader is introduced to Job, a man of remarkable character who was blessed with a huge family and a good fortune. This was then by a controversy presented through a conversation between God and Satan (Job 1:8-11): Has thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? †¦[T]hou hast blessed the work of his hand, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now, a nd touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face To determine the veracity of Satan’s claim, God allow Satan to test Job. Job then lost everything he had – his children, his possessions, and was even inflicted with a sickness. But still he remained faithful and said â€Å"Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away† (Job 1:21). After relating Job’s distress, the rest of the Book relates conversation (speeches in fact) between Job and his three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar. These three friends have incited him to repent from his sins, after all, this could be the only reason he is sufferng. Once he has repented, his friends claim, the Lord’s blessings will be restored and he will be prosperous again. Job was of course, confused. He has always been faithful to the Lord, and he even asked for forgiveness for his children’s errors, what secret sin was he being punished for? After three cycles of speeches wherein Job also expressed his confusion: â€Å"Wherefore the wicked live, become old†¦Their seed established in their sight with them†¦Their houses are safe from fear† (Job 21:7-9), a new character, Elihu, is introduced. He explains why he does not speak earlier: â€Å"Now Elihu has waited till Job has spoken, because they were elder than he† (Job 32:4). Elihu’s views about suffering was unlike the other three friends. Like Job, he knew that he lived according to God’