Job and God...Shutup!

Last night I decided to embark into the Book of Job. Like Plotz, I had somehow lived a fairly normal life without reading Job. And to be completely honest I have never heard anyone make reference to “the patience of Job” in my life until class yesterday. Perhaps I am even further behind than our friend, David Plotz.


So, there I am only a few verses into Job and I have to ask myself if this is just another example of God’s arrogance? Of course it is! Someone (Satan in this case) challenges God and he just can’t back down. However, if God is really the omniscient God the Bible claims him to be then he would know exactly how all of this would turn out. At times I feel that God has the cognitive ability of a sixth-grader and can’t see the full picture.

Satan destroys everything that Job has (as God sits back with a smirk on his face) and “Then Job arose, tore his robe, shaved his head, and fell on the ground and worshiped. He said, “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 1:20-21) How is God not wrenched with sorrow? How does he sit there and still allow Satan to next inflict Job with “loathsome sores” without even considering that this wicked bet has gone too far? Over and over I have read Job 1:20-21 and am filled with the most wretched pain and sorrow for a simple literary character. What beautiful text! These verses are fine examples of why the Bible is excellent literature (in my humble opinion). 

I need to point out something that makes me laugh…that being Job’s wife. Everyone else in Job’s family is killed, but not his wife. It makes me wonder if perhaps she was not as important to him, as say his children and livestock. No wonder women get a bad rap when even in the Bible Job’s wife is telling him to curse God and Job replies with what I imagine to be “You silly woman! God is the coolest and you are just my baby-maker. I’m not going to listen to your bs when God is the one who gives me everything I need.” Then, as Plotz also points out, Eliphaz says that after God tests Job he will heal him and give him wealth, health, and the ability to “never fail” when Job visits his wife. I read and relate that as again Job just using his wife and punishing her stupidness with getting her pregnant every time he “visits her.” I suppose Job isn’t that bad of a guy…perhaps this is just another example of how woman play a role in the Bible.

So now Job and his buddies are starting to annoy me. Round and round they go about Job’s suffering. I have to admit that I too would be cranky and dramatic if I were Job. I must ask though, why did Job’s friends stay silent for 7 days because they saw how great Job’s suffering was and then all of a sudden they start speaking about how Job is out of line? Lame. After what seems to be a million chapters of back and forth bickering God finally steps in and boy is he angry! And arrogant! We get another few chapters of God patting himself on his back for be the Almighty and awesome and then FINALLY he sees poor whimpering Job and comes to the rescue. Huh, what lesson did we learn here?

I'll be the first to admit that I am not that impressed with Job or God.  In fact, about half way through Job's suffering and God's arrogance I wanted to say "Both of you, Shut the hell up!"  On and on and on they go...  Nevertheless it was probably long over due for me to read about our new friend Job and his horrible suffering.  Honestly, I'd take King Leer any day.