Book of Job

The Attitude of Gratitude
Who was is that said “Yahweh gave, and Yahweh hath taken away; blessed be the name of Yahweh.” I'm more familiar with “God giveth, and God taketh away” ;but it was Job that said that, right after his wife advised him to curse God and die! Boy, was she ever demanding!!
I suppose I have to give her some room to be human, after all, unbeknown to her or faithful Job, Satan made a wager with God that Job would lose his perfect faith if he lost his property and family. And when that did not take Job's faith, he was overcome with skin-sore diseases, black leprosy, deadly and loathsome in other men's minds because the Hebrew mind believed if you were struck down with bad things, God was punishing you for something.
Job is the first of five books commonly referred to as the 'books of poetry', because of their poetic style of narrative. Most of it reads like a poem and can be as difficult to understand. The other books include Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon. Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes are also known as the 'wisdom literature,' because the teachings within are the real 'hot sheets' for getting your life in order.
Solomon, Isaiah, Hezekiah, and even Job have all been suggested as the author of the Book of Job, but Jewish tradition teaches that it was Moses.
Here is something I read and found to be an interesting insight to pass on to you; a summary written of these five 'books of poetry' by a Scottish minister and teacher, Oswald Chambers (1874-1917).
Job - How to suffer
Psalms - How to pray
Proverbs - How to act
Ecclesiastes - How to enjoy
Song of Solomon - How to love
I chose to do my Bible Literature final paper on the Book of Job because at the time, I was feeling like I was being tested by God, in fact our whole class seemed to be getting a taste of Job, so I thought the timing was right for the Book of Job. I know that we all have our 'days of Job'; just think back on all the challenging events this one class has dealt with this very semester. I had low grade fevers for three weeks and still coughing, my oldest son fell from a ladder and broke his collar-bone, my youngest got thrown out of rehab for allowing the kid's father to visit, and there's more, there's always more, isn't there!?! Sounds campy, but bear with me, this is the Book of Job I'm talking about, and that's some pretty dramatic out of the ordinary happenings that happened, and to only one person, me..., I mean Job.
A little background on Job:
The name Job is derived from an Arabic word describing 'repentance,' (how befitting!).
Book of Job is fundamentally the inner experience of one man.
Job was a prosperous, yet pious Hebrew landowner, who had health, wealth, family and honor, he was distinguished far and wide; He feared God, was obedient to his religion, and turned away from evil.
It's been suggested that the Book of Job is not a real narrative, but artificial, or even an allegory; hence the sacred numbers three, five and seven; seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred donkeys, seven sons, three daughters, three friends sat with him seven days and seven nights.
Throughout Job's trials, he kept a constant attitude of worship.
a. He offered burnt sacrifices to God when he thought his children 'may have sinned.'
b. When he was told all his children and possessions were gone (Ch1:20), “Then Job arose, tore his robe, shaved his head (extreme move for a Hebrew), and fell on the ground and worshiped.” (Over head or Ppt)
“ 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.”
Job's wisdom was tested when his wife suggested 'he give up the goat,' he asked her “Shall we receive the good at the hand of God, and not receive the bad?”
In my life, I discovered that when I count my blessings and I am grateful for what I have, my life just flows easier.
Job and his friends Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu discussed the question about why innocent people suffer.
Job curses the day he was born, but never curses God. His friend Eliphaz reminds Job how he was patient for others, but now impatient with himself; that his fear of God is his confidence, and Job's integrity of his ways are his hope.
His friend Bildad assures him (Ch8:20), “See, God will not reject a blameless person, nor take the hand of evildoers.”
His friend Zophar admonishes him (Ch11:9), “Know then that God exacts of you less than your guilt deserves.”
His friend Elihu rebukes him, proclaims God's Justice, condemns self-righteousness, exalts God's Goodness, and proclaims God's Majesty.
With all their talk, they believed Job guilty of something.
The Lord answers Job, and he is humbled and satisfied
Job's friends are humiliated by the Lord (Ch 42:7); “for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.”
When Job had prayed for his friends; (Ch 42:10), “...the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.” He had a thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand donkeys; he also had seven sons and three daughters and lived another one hundred and forty years to see his children, and his children's children, four generations.
Job rose from the depths of spiritual gloom and doubt to a new dawn of insight and faith, and (Ch42:17), “...died, old and full of days.
For me the themes and lessons in the Book of Job have to do with:
The sovereignty of God
How to be a comfort to others
Remaining faithful to God in times of distress
Our attitude toward suffering is important
Have faith that God's ways are perfect, even if we don't comprehend them.
This semester I learned that the Bible is a book of stories whose intent is to teach the human race about their past. Comprehending the Bible teachings affords you the ability to apply this knowledge to your own personal and contemporary life. And remember to be grateful.