Journal: Bibliotheca Sacra
Volume: BSAC 173:690 (Apr 2016)
Article: Job’s Hope: Redeemer Or Retribution?
Author: Brian P. Gault

BSac 173:690 (April-June 2016) p. 147

Job’s Hope:
Redeemer Or Retribution?

Brian P. Gault

Brian P. Gault is Assistant Professor of Hebrew and Old Testament, Columbia International University, Columbia, South Carolina.

Abstract

The book of Job depicts Job as both a devout worshiper and a doubting foe. Yet in the pulpit and the pew, devout Job nearly always trumps doubting Job. Oftentimes, a handful of passages are woven together to paint a portrait of Job’s unwavering faith in God, whereas a closer look at Job’s own words shows that his steadfast hope is not in God but in his own righteous innocence. Pastors and teachers must honestly wrestle with Job’s angry accusations, for only then does God’s focus on his wise, just rule make sense. For the reader, both ancient and modern, God’s character provides more comfort and clarity than grasping at the reason for suffering.

Introduction

“The Hebrew book of Job is by all accounts an exquisite piece of literary art that has its rightful place among the most outstanding compositions in world literature. It is a work of remarkable theological richness, passion, and honesty. Yet it is also widely recognized as an immensely difficult text to understand.”1 In the Vulgate preface to Job, Jerome comments, “An indirectness and a slipperiness attaches to the whole book, even in the Hebrew. . . . It is tricked out with figures of speech, and while it says one thing, it does another; just as if you close your hand to hold an eel, the more you squeeze it, the sooner it escapes.”2

BSac 173:690 (April-June 2016) p. 148

One problem is the conflicting portraits of Job, with the prose frame (1:1-2:13; 42:7-17) in tension with the cycles of poetic dialogue at the center (3:1-42:6). In the frame, Job is characterized as a God-fearer who maintains his devotion amidst great calamity, resulting in God’s repeated praise (1:8, 22; 2:3, 10; 42:7-9). In contrast, Job’s dialogue with his friends in the poetic center records his repeated assault on divine wisdom and justice, resulting in God’s closing rebuke (9:17-24; 12:13-25; 16:7-17; You must have a subscription and be logged in to read the entire article.
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