What follows is a brief summary of some of the most basic features of. Tomorrow, if all literature was to be destroyed and it was left to me to retain one work only, i should save job. There are no references to the law of moses, the tabernacle, the priesthood, the judges or kings, etc. Job analysis information can be gathered in a variety of ways. On the contrary, god speaks directly to job, just as he does in the. In the poem, if he does not begin by cursing god explicitly, he. As a whole, the book appears to have been written as a direct challenge to the timehonored doctrine that people are rewarded or. Major poems of the hebrew bible at the interface of prosody and. If we were to film this book, the whole movie would take place on a single set, probably in a single day. Job with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. Theological themes and the book of job miryea gist medium. William blake, blakes illustrations of the book of job 1823. The book is the only of the bible to take on the problem of suffering as its sole purpose as is therefore one of the first great pieces of literature to formulate a.
Up in the heavens, god brags to the divine assembly about job. Irving jensen, jensens survey of the old testament, p. The unique literary form of the book of job 411 as an epic as an epic, one of the significant features of the book of job is the use of speeches. Some people, and i will admit i am one, find it difficult to read poetry. Gods answer to the problem of undeserved suffering. The recent publication of a commentary on the book of job by.
The book of job consists of a prose prologue and epilogue narrative framing poetic dialogues and monologues. The first edition of the novel was published in 1827, and was written by william blake. The structure of the book of job, and why it matters. The book of job 4 is dull and uninteresting have a real surprise awaiting them as we enter into as interesting a story as anyone as ever read anywhere the book of job.
A short summary of the speeches of these men reveals this. The book of job contains the only sustained, through composed work in verse in the hebrew bible. In general, these sayings represent wisdom derived from practical experience. It is the first of the poetical books which also include psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, song of solomon, and lamentations. And god will help them, although sometimes they must be patient. Third, the article concludes with a brief analysis of the consequences of the interaction of metaphors within the wisdom literature and contemporary art. In the long poem at the centre of the book of job, we encounter a decidedly impatient job. First the author presents the various hypotheses about the literary genre of the book of job. Job is the first of the books found in the poetry and wisdom section of the old testament, along with ecclesiastes, psalms, proverbs, and the song of solomon.
For one thing, song of songs is written in poetry and excluded from the hebrew arrangement. Because so much of job is poetry, a deep immersion in the book will help you develop your emotional and affectional pallet to use a painting metaphor, so that you will learn to feel, to desire, and to grow more sensitive to all manner of experiences in life. Although they contain no profound contributions to theological ideas, they constitute wholesome advice about the. Unlike other books of the bible, the book of job details a conflict between man and god, and it is within this poetic structure that the brilliance of human expression is presented. At the interface of prosody and structural analysis, volume iv. An examination of all of the stories, fables, proverbs, and histories of the bible, the book of job is one of the most compelling due to its unique literary style and the complex treatment of the issue of suffering. The book of job is considered being part of the poetic books job, psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, and song of songs in todays bible editions. Edward greensteins new translation of job is the culmination of decades of intensive research and painstaking philological and literary analysis, offering a major reinterpretation of this canonical text. The ludlulbelnimeqi is a babylonian poem which chronicles the lament of a good man suffering undeservedly. The book of job is usually dated in the 5 th to 4 th centuries bce, but seems to be an adaptation of an earlier akkadian writing from around the year bce. Even if it was based on real historical characters and events, the sole fact that it is in poetry should immediately tell us that this is a. This alone should tell us that the book of job is not historical narrative. Its most elaborate literary expressions, however, are found in the long poem i will praise. But poetry is often highly symbolic and figurative.
Depending on which of the methods discussed next is used, others who often participate are. In the english bible the poetic books also include ecclesiastes and the song of songs. Man is unable to subject the painful experiences of human existence to a meaningful analysis. Literary features of the book of job 215 his polyphonic workwisdom types, a genre from psalms, and a genre from the legal sphere. Free download or read online the complete poems pdf epub book. The next section to be covered, the poetical, is a much smaller section consisting of five books job, psalms, proverbs. The majority of the book of job is poetry and to make matters worse it is poetry that has been translated from another language, hebrew. Of so fragmentary a production as the marriage of heaven and hell, no analysis is. I noted earlier that the book of job is largely poetry. The division of the book of job the division of the book of job is not difficult to make. The literary genre of the book of job researchgate. The hebrew bible regards only job, psalms and proverbs as poetic books.
The book of job contains the only sustained, throughcomposed work in verse in the hebrew bible. Pdf or ebook was created from the html version of this book and is part of the portable. These include job, psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, and the song of solomon. The misery of job and the mercy of god desiring god. John pipers interpretive poem together with photographer ric ergenbrights stunning visuals, remind you of the unshakable fact that god governs all things for his good purposes. Job is the first of five books commonly referred to as the books of poetry. Scheindlin seems to have devoted a greater deal of study than maybe most, and his is. In the poem, tabuutulbel, age 52, an official of the city of nippur, cries out that he has been afflicted with various pains and injustices and, asserting his own righteous. Rossetti, which may be regarded as the works of blakes own hand, in which he most unreservedly competes with others,belonging, as they do, in style, to the accepted category of engraved designs,consist of twentyone subjects, each highly wrought in light and shade, and each surrounded by a border of allusive design and. Because the book of job is so often neglected, yet presents a valuable lesson and is so highly praised by even people of the world, christians should certainly take the time to study this portion of gods word. The book of isaiah, which dates back to 8 th century bce, mentions the suffering righteous servant in chapter 53. The 3 plus 3 meter in the book of job is unmistakable.
It is a long narrative poem of job s trial and his sufferings. On the contrary, god speaks directly to job, just as he does in the patriarchal age with noah, abraham, isaac, jacob, and other heads of. The end of the sidewalk poem book more than four and a half million copies of where the sidewalk ends have been sold, making it the bestselling childrens poetry book ever. Others have sought to make the case that careful analysis reveals that the language of the narrative framework is late.
Hes blameless and upright, and he has kids, a wife, land, and a bunch of sheep. The book of job discusses why innocent people suffer. It is the book of the bible that ive studied the most, and im always interested in what scholars have to say about it. The book has consequently been misunderstood in innumerable details and in its main themes. The book of job seeks to present god as right in all he does by contrasting his wisdom with mankinds insufficient knowledge. Let your eyes see all of life and god himself in new, powerful ways. If you find this scriptural poetry nearly impossible to read, try this. It is common to view the narrative frame as the original core of the book, enlarged later by the poetic dialogues and discourses, and sections of the book such as the elihu speeches and the wisdom poem of chapter 28 as late insertions, but recent trends have tended to concentrate on the. The book of job may be divided into two sections of prose narrative, consisting of a prologue chapters 12 and an epilogue chapter 42. A lengthy summary of a whole chapter would therefore not. The book of job in the bibles old testament is a long poem.
The prose narratives date to before the 6th century bce, and the poetry has been dated between the 6th and the 4th century bce. Most frequently, a member of the hr staff coordinates this effort. This post is adapted from the bible study job by eric ortlund. Most of the lords second speech is devoted to a description of the. Lo and behold, satan comes out and challenges god on job. Blakes illustrations of the book of job online library of liberty. The only problem is that much of it was penned in ancient hebrew, a language that few people can read and even fewer are fluent enough in to appreciate the power of the verse. The book of job is a book in the ketuvim writings section of the hebrew bible tanakh, and. The book of job introduction the book of job has long been praised as a masterpiece of. Most books of the bible take place on larger stages, but the book of job goes down at a very specific and narrow point in the human life cycle. Nabors english 4206 11 november 2010 the book of job. The speeches of job, his three friends, and the lord, are all in poetry.
To a superficial reader, the paradoxical thing about this poem is the surprising. Literary analysis on the book of job essay 3073 words cram. The book of job is the first poetic book in the old testament that addresses the problem of gods justice through the suffering of job who goes from having a life filled with joy, happiness, and blessings to having a life filled with pain, sorrow, and suffering. Matitiahu tsevat, the meaning of the book of job, hebrew union college annual 37. The book of job has long been praised as a masterpiece of literature. It is a series of poetic conversations between job and his friends, sandwiched between two shorter sections of prose, that describe the setting and the conclusion of the events contained. Job is the first old testament book of poetry the others are psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, song of solomon, and lamentations. Waters ritten by an unknown author, possibly the most ancient literary account in the bible,1 the book of job is a mixture of divine and human wisdom that addresses a major life issue. All the remaining books, poetical and prophetical, fit somewhere into the history of those seventeen books.
Introduction the previous survey of the first seventeen books law and history, genesis through nehemiah, covered the whole history of the old testament. There is first a prologue, that is followed by the main portion of the book, and in conclusion we have an epilogue. We divide the book into seven parts which we shall follow in a closer analysis with the annotations on the most important truths. Yet its secluded, internal course was full of poetry. Job spends his entire book in a position of sadness and loss. The book, in its present form, loosely divides into five parts.
Victor hugo the greatest poem, whether of ancient or modern literature. The reference poetical books denotes form rather than imaginative or capricious content. The best commentary on the book of job i have read in full so far. In the historical books of the hebrew bible, as well as in the prophetic books, we have the combination of prose and poetry, but not in the same manner as job.
A poem to wisdom chapter 28, previously read as part of the speech of job, now regarded. The book of job is best known as one of the poetic book of the old testament of the bible. Blakes illustrations of the book of job online library. Jobs description of gods greatness continued as he said that god.
The book of job is a true story set in poetry, which delves into the feelings and emotions of the human mind when faced with trauma and suffering, since poetry is the language of the heart, job reveals the innermost thoughts of men more so than outward deeds. The book of job is not only the finest expression of the hebrew poetic genius. Literary features of the book of job gordon college. The bible contains some of the most beautiful poetry ever written. The name job is the english translation of the hebrew name iyov which means persecuted, hated on the surface job is a long, boring, somewhat confusing book and one might question how it ever came to be grouped with the wisdom books as it is hard to ascertain any wisdom in this tale of woe. This poem, the longest in the old testament, is unique in that it combines prose and poetry and utilizes the dialogue, the narrative being in prose and the dialogue in poetry. A comparative and critical analysis of the story of job as. Let us first try to understand what is job analysis. Metaphors in the wisdom literature of the hebrew bible and. Although the book of job is best known for its story, only three of the 42 chapters are narrative. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 1072 pages and is available in paperback format.
Consequently it can be concluded that the book of job is a mixed genre in which its author expertly blended a variety of literary types in order to serve the function of the book. The work is grouped with proverbs and ecclesiastes as a product of the wisdom movement, even though it contains what might be called an antiwisdom strain in that the hero protests. The main characters of this poetry, classics story are. Job analysis is defined as the systematic process for identifying.
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