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Job

the just man who suffered

Who was Job?

The name
A note in the NAB says it was a common name at that time, and that it originally meant “enemy.” NAB note on Job 1, 1
From
The land of Uz, which a note in the NAB places in Edom or in Arabia Job 1:1; NAB note on Job 1, 1
Occupation
Owner of many herds: sheep, camels, oxen and donkeys Job 1:3
Feast day
May 10: Saint Job
Job, an artistic recreation

What the Bible says

Job 1:1

There was a man in the land of Hus, whose name was Job, and that man was simple and upright, and fearing God, and avoiding evil.

Job 1:13-22; Job 2:7-10

13Now upon a certain day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in the house of their eldest brother, 14There came a messenger to Job, and said: The oxen were ploughing, and the asses feeding beside them, 15And the Sabeans rushed in, and took all away, and slew the servants with the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell thee. 16And while he was yet speaking, another came, and said: The fire of God fell from heaven, and striking the sheep and the servants, hath consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell thee. 17And while he also was yet speaking, there came another, and said: The Chaldeans made three troops, and have fallen upon the camels, and taken them, moreover they have slain the servants with the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell thee. 18He was yet speaking, and behold another came in, and said: Thy sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in the house of their elder brother: 19A violent wind came on a sudden from the side of the desert, and shook the four corners of the house, and it fell upon thy children and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to fell thee. 20Then Job rose up, and rent his garments, and having shaven his head fell down upon the ground and worshipped, 21And said: Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away: as it hath pleased the Lord so is it done: blessed be the name of the Lord. 22In all these things Job sinned not by his lips, nor spoke he any foolish thing against God.

Job 38:1; Job 42:8-10

Then the Lord answered Job out of a whirlwind, and said:

Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.

The path of Job

  1. Before Jesus. Job was a just and very rich man. He had seven sons and three daughters, and he offered sacrifices for them. Job 1:1-5
  2. With Jesus. Satan, “the adversary,” asked the Lord whether Job served him for nothing. The Lord let Satan touch everything Job had, but not Job himself. Job 1:9-12
  3. With Jesus. In a single day he lost his animals and his servants. A wind knocked down the house, and his children died. Job 1:13-19
  4. With Jesus. Job tore his cloak, fell to the ground and blessed the name of the Lord. In all this he did not sin. Job 1:20-22
  5. With Jesus. Then sores broke out all over his body. He sat in the ashes, and his wife told him to curse God. Job 2:7-9
  6. With Jesus. Three friends came to comfort him and sat in silence for seven days. Then Job cursed the day he was born and argued with them. Job 2:11-13; Job 3:1-3
  7. Afterward. The Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. Job acknowledged that God can do all things. Job 38:1; Job 42:1-2
  8. Afterward. Job prayed for his friends, and the Lord gave him twice what he had before. He died old and full of days. Job 42:10, 17

Words of Job

“Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away: as it hath pleased the Lord so is it done: blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job 1:21

When he learned he had lost everything, his children too.

“If we have received good things at the hand of God, why should we not receive evil?” Job 2:10

To his wife, when she told him to curse God.

“Let the day perish wherein I was born, and the night in which it was said: A man child is conceived.” Job 3:3

After seven days of silence, when at last he spoke of his pain.

“For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and in the last day I shall rise out of the earth…” Job 19:25

In the midst of his suffering, before his friends.

“With the hearing of the ear, I have heard thee, but now my eye seeth thee.” Job 42:5

At the end, when he answered the Lord.

What they were like

The greatest thing they did

Not to be confused with

In the Church today

Feast day: May 10, Saint Job (commemoration (not on the General Roman Calendar or the U.S. calendar)). Martyrology of the Latin Church, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia (1910), “Job”

What people ask

Did God punish Job for his sins?

No. The Bible says Job was just. At the end, the Lord told his friends that they had not spoken rightly about God, as Job had. Job 1:1, 8; Job 42:7

What is the “patience of Job”?

The Letter of James recalls how Job endured, and that the Lord is compassionate and merciful. James 5:11

Did Job really exist?

The Fathers of the Church held him to be a real person. The NAB introduction says the book was written to teach. Catholic Encyclopedia (1910), “Job”; NAB introduction to Job

How did his story end?

Again he had seven sons and three daughters, and he gave his daughters an inheritance just as he did their brothers. He lived a hundred and forty years. Job 42:13-16

His complaint He cursed the day he was born. Job 3:1-3 He admitted before the Lord that he had spoken of things he did not understand. Job 42:3, 6 Little…

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Who Job is connected to

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All the people of the Bible · The Twelve Apostles · Women of the Bible

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