Symposium—Synopsis of the Dialogues from the Book of Job
Socrates (470-399 B.C.) was a famous Greek philosopher from Athens who taught Plato, and Plato taught Aristotle, and Aristotle taught Alexander the Great. Socrates created the concept of convening a “Symposium” for his students as a modus operandi for developing a simple but cleverly profound method of fostering critical thinking –teaching by asking penetrating, revelatory, and psychologically probing questions. The Greeks called this form, Dialectic – starting from a thesis or question, then discussing ideas and moving back and forth between points-of-view to determine how well ideas stand up to critical review with the ultimate principle of the dialogue being Veritas – Truth.
Dedications
To The William “Bill” and Gwendolyn Smith Family of Greencastle (now Terra Haute), Indiana (including children – Jeffrey, Wade, Judy, David, Michael). When I graduated from college (DePauw University, 1983) I attended a wonderful church called Mt. Zion Baptist Church for 3 years during my college years there. The Smith Family were the pillar of that church community and from DAY ONE they welcomed me as their Son. One of their son’s (Wade) who was studying to become a Pastor, gave me a wonderful book as a graduation gift that I used for 40 years in my Christian development and in composing this Symposium on the Book of Job – H. L. Willmington, Willmington’s Guide to the Bible (1982).
Original Dedication to Ellis Washington by Rev. Wade and Jeri Smith
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*N.B.: This Socratic Dialogue is also Dedicated To An Unknown English Literature Teacher during my Junior Year at Cass Technical Highschool, Detroit, Michigan (circa 1977). He’s unknown because I can’t recall his name however, this White man (who always dressed modestly like a Mormon with black pants and a white starched shirt) was a wonderful teacher whose revelatory methods first taught me how to appreciate, compose and present to an audience the proper style of poetry, prose and about understanding and delineating the arguments and counter-arguments contained in the Book of Job which we studied in great detail in the Detroit Public Schools(!) of this Unknown English Literature teacher’s class.
*N.B.: For further reading about my life, times and epiphany at Cass Tech, see, I Remember Chiarina Green (my Highschool Friend).
Characters:
Socrates {Narrator}
Publius {Stone – a precocious and devoted young student of Socrates whose blog: Socrates Corner is dedicated to proclaiming the wisdom and knowledge, critical thinking and philosophy of Socrates}
Job: {Old Testament Patriarch who lived sometime between Abraham and Moses who led the Children of Israel out of Egypt}
Job’s Wife
{Job’s 3 friends who tried to “comfort” him in his tribulation and a youth, Elihu who most likely was the chronicler or scribe for the Book of Job}
Eliphaz {Friend #1}
Bildad {Friend #2}
Zophar {Friend #3}
Elihu {“Friend #4” – a youth who was perhaps the writer or chronicler of the Book of Job. He was quite until the end and offered several impressive monologues which ironically neither Job nor God responded to}
God
Jesus Christ
Satan {Among his many names is the Great Accuser [e.g., a Prosecutor in a court of law who brings charges against a defendant] and the Adversary}
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About the Author—Professor Ellis Washington, J.D.—I went to Harvard Law School for 1 year (1988-89) with future POTUS Barack Hussein Obama, (b. 1960 – d. 09/29/2019), a Rothschild and a blood grandson of the German NAZI dictator, Adolph HITLER! – but I took the opposite path in Life—New World Order, Communism, Treason, Pedophilia and Satanic Ritual Abuse vs. Christianity, Conservatism, Protecting the Children & TRUMPism. I repeatedly refused to take the “Satan OATH” which is why I’ve been blacklisted since 1989 – for over 35 years—for my entire legal and academic career, yet I Fight on! Why? To avenge Harvard University’s original 1692 motto—Veritas pro Christo et Ecclesia {= Truth for Christ and the Church}. How do We the People escape the 150-year Rothschild Chattel Slavery systems (e.g., Birth certificates, Death certificates, Social Security numbers bought, sold and trading people’s identities like animals on Wall Street) and Rothschild Debt Slavery systems (e.g., IRS, Income Taxes, Death Taxes, Fiat or Counterfeit currency not based on Gold or Silver, but based on NOTHING! Cui bono?– Who benefits? Why are all national currencies of the world promiscuously printed at will by the Rothschild Central Bankers? Is it to fund perpetual False Flag Wars while keeping the entire world enslaved inside an existential – Birth-School-Labor-Taxes-Debts-Retirement-Death cycle of the Rothschild Khazarian Mafia Matrix (1871-2021)? Further answers can be learned by reading, studying and sharing the Truth of my Critical Thinking blog that has just surpassed 24 million views@ EllisWashingtonReport.com and on Facebook, Twitter/X— #JesusIsGod (Isaiah 9:6) #DCActof1871 |
Neither is there any Daysman [e.g., Mediator, Redeemer] betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both. ~ Job 9:33
I know that my Redeemer liveth, and the He shall stand upon the latter day, upon the earth. And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.
~ Job 19:25-27
*N.B.: Suggested listening music for this Symposium, I know that my Redeemer Liveth from Messiah by G. F. Handel; Choruses from Messiah.
Prologue—Synopsis of the Dialogues from the Book of Job
Socrates: Job is the central figure of the Book of Job in the Bible. In Islam, Job (Arabic: أيوب, Romanized: Ayyūb) is also considered a prophet. Job is presented as a good and prosperous family man who is suddenly beset with horrendous disasters that take away all he holds dear—a scenario intended to test Job’s faith in God. Struggling mightily to understand this situation, Job reflects on his despair but consistently remains devout.
Publius: Professor Socrates, did the ancient Greeks invent Dialogue writing or Dialectic form?
Socrates: Technically, No. Although history gives the ancient Greeks and my Symposium the credit for “inventing” the dialectical form, I didn’t create Dialectic or Dialogue, God did it. I merely used dialectic as a vehicle for teaching my students philosophy as some of the earliest examples dialogue or dialectical form, the dialogues contained in the Book of Job predates the Greeks by over 1,000 years written sometime during the Patriarch era (2000-1800 B.C.) between the times of the Patriarchs Abraham and Moses (c. 1450 B.C.), whereas the Iliad and the Odyssey, which are presented as extended historical narratives or epic poems, are foundational poems of ancient Greek literature which are conventionally dated to the late 8th or early 7th century BC.
In chapter 1, the Prologue on Earth introduces Job as a righteous man, blessed with wealth, sons, and daughters, who lives in the land of Uz. The scene then shifts to Heaven, where God asks Satan (Biblical Hebrew: הַשָּׂטָן, Romanized: haśśāṭān, lit. ‘the adversary’) for his opinion of Job’s piety. Satan arrogantly retorts back to God, “Skin for skin,” while accusing Job of being pious only because he believes God is responsible for his happiness; if God were to take away everything that Job has, then he would surely curse God to his face.
Socrates: One day the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satana also came with them.
God: {To Satan} 7“Where have you come from?” said the LORD to Satan.
Satan: “From roaming through the earth,” he replied, “and walking back and forth in it.”
God: 8Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one on earth like him, a man who is blameless and upright, who fears God and shuns evil.”
Satan: 9Satan answered the LORD, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10Have You not placed a hedge on every side around him and his household and all that he owns? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11But stretch out Your hand and strike all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face.”
God: 12“Very well,” said the LORD to Satan. “Everything he has is in your hands, but you must not lay a hand on the man himself.”
Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.
Socrates: God gives Satan permission to strip Job of his wealth and kill his children and servants, but Job, despite all of these misfortunes, remains devoted to and praises God:
Job: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Socrates: In chapter 2, God further allows Satan to afflict Job’s body with disfiguring and painful boils. As Job sits in the ashes of his former estate.
Job’s Wife: {to her husband, Job} Curse God and die.
Job: Shall we receive good from God and shall we not receive evil?
Illustration of the Book of Job by William Blake (1757-1827) (c. 1925-26) – Job accused by his three “friends”—Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar. Elihu, who is the youngest of the group, is seated behind Job causing some theologians to speculate that he was probably the author, scribe, or chronicler of the Book of Job. Other Jewish sources attribute the author to be Moses or Solomon.
Socrates: God allowed Satan in a series of three cruel events to lose all of his material possessions including – thousands of animals and his home destroyed killing all of his 10 children.
Job: Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped, 21saying:
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
and naked I will 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 wrongdoing.
*N.B.: EvidenceUnseen.com – Introduction to the Book of Job
The Defenses and Dialogues of Job
Socrates: The suffering patriarch responds to his accusers in nine separate speeches—
First: chapter 3; Second: 6-7; Third: 9-10; Fourth: 12-14; Fifth: 16-17; Sixth: 19; Seventh: 21; Eighth: 23-24; Ninth: 26-31
During these nine speeches Job discusses fourteen topics. These are:
Job:
1. I am righteous, and therefore not suffering for my sin (27:6; 31:10-30).
“My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go; my heart shall not reproach me as long as I live” (27:6)
2. In the past I have performed many good works (29:12-17; 30:25)
3. Oh, for those good old days when I enjoyed health, wealth, and respect (29:1-11, 20-25)
4. But now I am being unfairly punished by God (9:16, 17, 30-33:13:26-27; 10:2, 7-8; 19:6-11; 30:20-21).
5. My three so-called friends are miserable comforters (12:2; 13:4; 16:2; 19:3).
6. If they were in my place, I would help them (16:4-5).
7. Even my neighbors, associates, and servants have turned against me (19:13-22; 301, 9-10).
8. I wish I could find the answers for all this (28:12-28).
9. I wish I could find God (23:8-9).
10. My flesh is clothed with worms (7:5; 30:17-18, 30).
11. I wish I had never been born (3:3-11, 16; 10:18).
12. I wish I were dead (6:8, 9; 7:15-16).
13. I have no hope (10:20-22).
14. In spite of all, I’ll trust God (13:15; 16:19; 23:10).
ELIPHAZ {Job’s 1st Friend} – Arguments against Job based on Experience
Eliphaz: My name “Eliphaz” and was considered the chief spokesman of the group. I am an Edomite which may have been suggested to the author of Job by the tradition which gave the name Eliphaz to Esau‘s eldest son, the father of Teman (Genesis 36:11; 1 Chronicles 1:35–36).
In the arguments that pass between Job and his friends, it is I, Eliphaz who opens each of the three series of discussions:
· Chapters 4-5, with Job’s reply in chapters 6-7
· Chapter 15, with Job’s reply in chapters 16-17
· Chapter 22, with Job’s reply in chapters 23-24.
Socrates: American theologian Albert Barnes suggests that, because he spoke first each time, Eliphaz may have been the eldest of the friends.[2] Eliphaz appears mild and modest. In his first reply to Job’s complaints, he argues that those who are truly good are never entirely forsaken by Providence, but that punishment may justly be inflicted for secret sins. He denies that any man is innocent and censures Job for asserting his freedom from guilt. Eliphaz exhorts Job to confess any concealed iniquities to alleviate his punishment. His arguments are well supported but God declares at the end of the book that Eliphaz has made a serious error in his speaking.[3] Job offers a sacrifice to God for Eliphaz’s error.[4]
His primary belief was that the righteous do not perish; the wicked alone suffer, and in measure as they have sinned (Job 4:7–9).
Synopsis of Eliphaz Speeches (Chp. 4, 5, 15, 22)
See Genesis 36:10
1. Eliphaz: I declared that Job was suffering for his sins. “Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? Or where were the righteous cut off? Even as I have seen, they that plot iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.” (4:7, 8)
“Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I: yea, thine own life testify against thee” (15:6)
Eliphaz then accuses Job of the following:
a. That he had cheated the poor (22:6)
b. That he had withheld bread from the hungry (22:7)
c. That he had mistreated widows and orphans (22:9)
d. That he was a windbag (15:2).
See Genesis 36:10
2. He bases his conclusions on personal experience. (See 4:8, 12-16; 5:3, 27; 15:17.)
3. He relates his night vision “ghost story” (4:12-17)
Eliphaz’ Dream
“The Vision of Eliphaz”, from Illustrations of the Book of Job, by William Blake (c. 1825–26).
Eliphaz’ argument is, in part, rooted in what he believes to have been a personal revelation which he received through a dream (Job 4:12-16): “an elusive word [stealed] past, quiet like a whisper“,[5] and after a silence he heard a voice saying:
Eliphaz: Can mankind be just before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker? He puts no trust even in His servants; And against His angels He charges error. How much more those who dwell in houses of clay”.[6]
Socrates: Eliphaz feels empowered to confront Job because of his dream. Crenshaw notes that he missed “the irony of this reference to God’s lack of trust in his servants”.[5]
Eliphaz’ final speech
Socrates: Although quick-witted, and quick to respond, Eliphaz loses his composure in chapter 22, in the third and final round of speeches, accusing Job of specific faults.
Eliphaz: “Sins against justice and charity towards others”:[11] oppressing widows and orphans, refusing bread to the hungry: a far cry from how he had originally described Job in his first address to him:
Behold you have admonished many, and you have strengthened weak hands. Your words have helped the tottering to stand, and you have strengthened feeble knees. But now it has come to you, and you are impatient; it touches you, and you are dismayed. Is not your fear of God your confidence, and the integrity of your ways your hope?[12]
Socrates: Eliphaz also misconstrues Job’s message as he scrambles to summarize Job’s thoughts from chapter 21:
Eliphaz: You say, “What does God know? Can He judge through the thick darkness? Clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see; And He walks on the vault of heaven.”[13]
Socrates: Job did not argue that God could not prevent evil. Job was observing that in this life God often chooses not to prevent evil. Conventional wisdom told Eliphaz that God should immediately punish the wicked as that would be the just thing to do. Job, however, saw it differently, and in 24:1, Job laments
Job: Why does the Almighty not set times for judgment? Why must those who know him look in vain for such days?
Socrates: Job yearns for the justice Eliphaz claims exists – an immediate punishment of the wicked. However, that simply did not hold true according to Job’s observations. Nevertheless, Job does not question God’s ultimate justice. He knows justice will eventually be served. Job asks,
Job: “For what hope have the godless when they are cut off, when God takes away their life? Does God listen to their cry when distress comes upon them?”[14]
1. Eliphaz: Urges Job to repent and turn back to God (22:21-28). “If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, thou shalt put away iniquity very far from thy tents” (22:23).
Socrates: Let us hear a synopsis of the arguments of against Job by his second friend, comforter and enemy, Bildad.
Bildad {Job’s 2nd Friend} – Arguments against Job based on Tradition
Bildad: This is my name (Biblical Hebrew: בִּלְדַּד, Romanized: Bildaḏ; Ancient Greek: Βαλδάδ, Romanized: Baldád), the Shuhite, was one of Job‘s three friends who visited the patriarch in the Hebrew Bible‘s Book of Job. He was a descendant of Shuah, son of Abraham and Keturah (Genesis 25:1–2),[2] whose family lived in the deserts of Arabia, or a resident of the district.[3] In speaking with Job, his intent was consolation, but he became an accuser, asking Job what he has done to deserve God’s wrath.
Speeches of Bildad
Socrates: The three speeches of Bildad are contained in Job 8,[4] Job 18[5] and Job 25.[6] In substance, they were largely an echo of what had been maintained by Eliphaz the Temanite,[7] the first of Job’s friends to speak, but charged with somewhat increased vehemence because he deemed Job’s words so impious and wrathful. Bildad was the first to attribute Job’s calamity to actual wickedness, albeit indirectly, by accusing his children (who were destroyed, Job 1:19)[8] of sin to warrant their punishment (Job 8:4).[9] His brief third speech, just five verses in length,[10] marked the silencing of the friends.[11]
Some authors consider that Job’s words in Job 9:2 are a response to this “revelation” of Eliphaz:
Job: In truth I know that this is so; but how can a man be in the right before God? If one wished to dispute with Him, he could not answer Him once in a thousand times.
Bildad: I also refer to Eliphaz’ revelation in chapter 25, although I presented the concept as my own. Job rebukes me for my tendencies of presenting other ideas as my own:
Job: “What a help you are to the weak! How you have saved the arm without strength! What counsel you have given to one without wisdom! What helpful insight you have abundantly provided! To whom have you uttered words? And whose spirit was expressed through you?”[10]
Socrates: Job pokes fun at Bildad asking him what spirit revealed it to him because he recognizes the argument as Eliphaz’s spiritual revelation.
Zophar {3rd Friend of Job}
Zophar: In the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Book of Job (c. 6th century BCE?), Zophar (Hebrew: צוֹפַר Ṣōp̄ar, “chirping; rising early”; also Tzofar) the Naamathite is one of the three friends of Job who visit to comfort him during his illness. My comments can be found in Job 11:1–20 and Job 20:1–29. He suggests that Job’s suffering could be divine punishment, and goes into great detail about the consequences of living a life of sin.
“Naamathite” (na’-a-ma-thit) is a Gentile name,[1] suggesting he was from a city called Naamah, perhaps in Arabia.
Speeches of Zophar—Arguments against Job based on Dogmatism
Socrates: Unlike friends Bildad and Eliphaz, Zophar only speaks twice to Job. He is the most impetuous and dogmatic of the three. He believes that principles and God’s laws are incontrovertibly true without exception. Zophar is the first to accuse Job directly of wickedness; averring indeed that his punishment is too good for him (Job 11:6), he rebukes Job’s impious presumption in trying to find out the unsearchable secrets of God (Job 11:7–12); and yet, like Job’s other friends, he promises peace and restoration on condition of penitence and putting away iniquity (Job 11:13–19).[2] Zophar’s second speech is a lecture on the fate of the wicked, ending with a summary appraisal in the style of his friend Bildad,
This is the portion of the wicked, the heritage appointed him by God.[3]
5. Zophar: I claimed Job was suffering for his sins. “Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man, neither will he help the evildoers” (8:20)
6. I based my conclusions on TRADITION. “For inquire, I pray thee, of the former age, and prepare thyself to the search of their fathers” (8:8). (See also 8:9, 10.)
7. I urged Job to repent and turn back to God. “If thou wouldest seek unto God betimes and make they supplication to the Almighty; If thou wert pure and upright; surely now he would awake for thee and make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous” (8:5, 6).
William Blake’s Illustrations of the Book of Job (c. 1925-26) – Job bewailing his suffering as unjust while upholding his righteousness before God and against the relentless arguments by his three “friends” who were supposed to comfort him during his tribulation. His three friends all believes that Job’s suffering is due to him being a great sinner and that it is impossible that the righteous should suffer because all pain being a punishment for some sin.
The Speeches of Zophar—Arguments based on Dogmatism (e.g., opinionated, authoritarian, domineering)
8. Zophar: I claimed Job was suffering for his sins. “For thou hast said, My doctrine is pure, and I am clean. . . . But oh, that God would speak, and open his lips against the. . l Know, therefore, that God exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth” (11:4-6)
9. He bases his conclusions on sheer dogmatism. (See 11:6; 20:4)
10. He urges Job to repent and turn back to God. “If thou prepare thine heart, and stretch out thine hands toward Him. If iniquity be in thine hand, put if far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tents. For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be steadfast, and shalt not fear.” (11:13-15)
Elihu {Job’s “4th Friend” and the Witness who probably wrote the Book of Job}
Elihu: (Hebrew: אֱלִיהוּא ’Elihu, ‘my God is he’) is a critic of Job and his three friends in the Hebrew Bible‘s Book of Job. He is said to have been the son of Barachel and a descendant of Buz, who may have been from the line of Abraham (Genesis 22:20–21 mentions Buz as a nephew of Abraham).
Elihu’s monologues against Job based on his Perceived Inherent Wisdom of Youth
Socrates: Elihu is introduced in Job 32:2, towards the end of the book. His speeches comprise chapters 32-37,[1] and he opens his discourse with more modesty than displayed by the other comforters. Elihu addresses Job by name (Job 33:1, 33:31, 37:14),[2] and his words differ from those of the three friends in that his monologues discuss divine providence, which he insists is full of wisdom and mercy.
The narrator’s preface Job 32:4–5 and Elihu’s own words in Job 32:11 indicate that he has been listening intently to the conversation between Job and the other three men. He also admits his status as one who is not an elder (32:6–7). As Elihu’s monologue reveals, his anger against the three older men was so strong he could not contain himself (32:2–4). An “angry young man”,[3][4] he is critical of both Job and his friends:
*N.B.: William Blake, “The Wrath of Elihu” (c. 1826). See Sermon #3 – “What Good People Do When Bad Things Happen” (July 5, 2020).
Elihu: I have words for a reply to you and your friends as well.[5] I claim that the righteous have their share of prosperity in this life, no less than the wicked. He teaches that God is supreme, and that one must acknowledge and submit to that supremacy because of God’s wisdom. He draws instances of benignity from, for example, the constant wonders of creation and of the seasons.
Socrates: Elihu’s speeches finish abruptly, and he disappears “without a trace”,[1] at the end of Chapter 37. The speeches of Elihu (who is not mentioned in the prologue) contradict the fundamental opinions expressed by the ‘friendly accusers’ in the central body of the text, that it is impossible that the righteous should suffer, all pain being a punishment for some sin. On the contrary, Elihu states that suffering may be decreed for the righteous as a protection against greater sin, for moral betterment and warning, and to elicit greater trust and dependence on a merciful, compassionate God in the midst of adversity.
The Speeches of Elihu—Arguments from a Youth Worldview
11. Elihu: I waited awhile before speaking because of my youth (32:4-7).
12. However, once begun, I feel as confident and qualified to straighten out Job as the former three did. In fact, he actually suggests that he is the one whom Job seeks! Elihu: “Behold I am according to thy wish in god’s stead; I also am formed out of the clay.” (33:6)
13. Elihu is angry at all four, at Job because of his self-righteousness, and at the three friends because they had “found no answers, and yet had condemned Job” (32:3)
God’s First Reply to Job
Socrates: Suddenly from out of a whirlwind comes the mighty voice of God. The sullen Job is then subjected to a 60-question quiz. Note God’s first series of questions are made directly to Job alone (Job 38-39)—
God: Job 38:4: “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding.”
· Job 38:18: “Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth? Declare if thou knowest it all.”
· Job 38:19: “Where is the way where light dwelleth? And as for darkness, where is the place thereof?”
· Job 38:24: “By what way is the light parted, which scattereth the east wind upon the earth?”
· Job 38:28: “Hath the rain a father? Or who hath begotten the drops of dew?”
· Job 40:2: “Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct Him? He that reproveth God, let him answer it.”
Job’s First Reply to God (40:4-5)
Job: “Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth. Once have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further.”
God’s Second Reply to Job (40:6—41:34)
God: Job:40:15: “Behold now Behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox.”
· Job 41:1: “Canst thou draw out Leviathan with an hook? On his tongue with a cord which thou lettest down?”
Socrates: These two creatures may very well refer to a land dinosaur (Brontosaurus) and a sea dinosaur (Leviathan) disproving the long-held evolutionary theory that dinosaurs lived millions of years before mankind.
Job’s Second Reply to God (42:1-5)
Job: “I know that thou canst do everything, and that no thought can be withholden from thee. Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? Therefore, have I uttered that I understood not ; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not. Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me, I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth thee: Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
Jesus Christ: Job has been subjected to five fiery trials and has participated in five painful debates, but now he receives at the hand of God a tenfold blessing.
1. He is allowed to see the glory of God.
2. He sees himself as God sees him.
3. He is vindicated by God before the eyes of his three critical friends.
4. He discovers the joy of praying for these three friends.
5. His former health is full restored.
6. He is comforted by his brothers and sister.
7. He is given double his former wealth.
8. He is given seven more sons and three more daughters. (The previous 10 children who were killed at the beginning of Job, Job will see in the resurrection).
9. He lives to enjoy his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
10. He is given an additional 140 years—twice the number normally accorded a man (See Ps. 90:10).
Publius: {emotional} But Professor Socrates, what reasons do you believe are the causes for Job’s horrible sufferings?
Socrates: Only God really knows the ultimate answer to this question, but consider these six possibilities that are implied by God in His monologue rebuttals to Job at the end of the dialogues —
1. That Satan might be silenced (1:9-11; 2:4-5).
2. That Job might see God (42:5).
3. That Job might see himself (40:4; 42:6).
4. That Job’s friends might learn not to judge (42:7).
5. That Job might learn to pray for, rather than to lash out against his critics (42:10).
6. That Job suffering has meaning to God and to demonstrate that all God’s plans for His own eventually have happy endings (42:10).
Classic Statements from the Book of Job affirmed in the New Testament
1. “He taketh the wise in their own craftiness…” (5:13). Quoted by Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:19.
2. “Behold, happy is the man who God correcteth; therefore, despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty” (5:17). Quoted in Hebrews 12:5-6.
3. “Neither is there any Daysman between us that might lay his hand upon us both” (9:33). The word daysman refers to a mediator. In the New Testament of course, all this would change with the appearance of Jesus Christ our Great Mediator (Redeemer) between God and Mankind. See 1 Timothy 2:5.
4. “Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down; he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not” (14:1-2).
“I know that my Redeemer liveth, and the He shall stand upon the latter day, upon the earth.” Job 19:25.
Socrates: Job and his 3 Daughters Illustration by William Blake (c. 1925-26)—After Job’s tribulation was consummated God gave him double of everything he had lost including 7 more sons and 3 more daughters. God did not give Job 20 children because the first 10 were resurrected to Heaven after Satan had killed them. Breaking with tradition, Job made his 3 daughters’ equal heirs of his estate as his 7 sons.
Illustration by William Blake of Job and his family after his tribulation where God restored to Job double of everything he had lost.
Jesus: In the Bible, Job is said to have given his three daughters, Jemimah, Keziah, and Keren-happuch, an inheritance along with their brothers. Job 42:13-17 states, “And he called the name of the first, Jemimah; and the name of the second, Keziah; and the name of the third, Keren-happuch. And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren.”
References
1. H. L. Willmington, Willmington’s Guide to the Bible (1982), Notes and Outline of the Book of Job, pp. 59-63.
2. Article on the Book of Job, Wikipedia.com.
3. William Blake, Blake’s Illustrations for the Book of Job (1825-26).
4. Article on the Book of Job, Bible.com.
5. *N.B.: For further reading on this subject, please examine my son Stone Washington’s outstanding and interesting 2018 Symposium on Socrates’ Dialectical work on the Book of Job.
Category: Commentary
