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The phrase "the patience of Job" could not be further from the mark. Job is , for all but 3 of the 42 chapters,exasperated by his comforters, reduced to abject misery by his afflictions, and disillusioned and furious with God. "The defiance of Job" would have been a far more apposite figure of speech to have passed into the language. Most people don't have god talking to them either, unless you went crazy which it seems Job had by the end of the story.
The book of job is just a story, but its lessons are easily misread. If God is omnipotent, we cannot blame anything on the Devil, and if God is no help, we have to do his work for Him. We construe his absence either as non-existence , hubris, apathy or an admission of guilt. We miss Him, we would dearly like to see Him going to and fro in the Earth and walking up and down in it , but we can admire tyranny no longer , and we desire justice more than we are awed by vainglorious assertions of magnificence.
2007-08-13 03:17:45 · 18 answers · asked by Memetics 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Does it bother anyone that in this story God decided to murder all of Job's children and his animals, then curse his body with disease simply because he wanted to make a bet with the devil?
If God and the devil exist, we have a problem. They are either on equal footing, or they're actually friends and religious people have got it all backwards about this god fellow being fair.
2007-08-13 03:26:05 · update #1
Job's story is basically this.
The benevolent, loving God decides to make a bet with Satan, and Job pays for this bet by watching all of his kids, wives, and family die, wealth disappear, friends abandon him and accuse him of sinfulness, and health deteriorate until Job is so sad and beaten that he curses the very fact that he was ever born.
Then, the tribal, misogonistic, jealous, wrathful, immature God of the Bible has the AUDACITY to chastize Job for being anguished.
The New Testament refers to God as like a father to us puny humans.
I wonder what any christian would think of me as a father if I made a bet with one of my buddies from work that if he made my son's life absolutely miserable, and could do anything to him short of killing him,
WHAT KIND OF A FATHER WOULD I BE???
A sad one. That's what!
EDIT: 08/13/07
Most people who haven't read Job carefully make the mistake of thinking that God put all that misfortune on Job. Actually, God allowed Satan to do all of those terrible things to him.
That is just as bad, especially for a stand-up guy as Job supposedly was.
"HEY!!! I'm God and I love my creation like a daddy. But you know what, just for the hell of it, I'm going to make a little wager with my worst enemy (Satan) and allow him to simply wreck the life of a guy who has kept my word, believed in me, and done everything I've asked of him. Then, when Job is depressed, destitute, friendless, homeless, broke, in constant pain, disabled from disease, widowed, childless, and still hasn't cursed me, I'll scold him anyway!"
Sound reasonable?
Not to me. Of course, I think it's just a fictional story. If it's real, then the God of the Bible is heartless, cruel, and immature.
You who are christians can have him.
El Chistoso
2007-08-13 03:34:36 · answer #1 · answered by elchistoso69 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
The book of job is a horrible story. I can not imagine how anybody could read it and still have a shred of respect for the god of the bible.
As to allowing the murder of 12 children - remember god did make it up to Job by giving him replacement children that were probably better than the first. (SIC!!!)
Also, interestingly enough, we are always told that the Devil will try to tempt us. Well apparently the Devil is really, really good because he managed to tempt god. Apparently he made god feel like he had to prove something to the Devil rather than being content in his own knowledge.
Yes, The Book of Job is a nightmare. Why would people who are reading the bible read that story and then not shut the book and throw it in the trash is beyond me.
2007-08-13 03:37:55 · answer #2 · answered by Alan 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
First and foremost, the bible talks about the Entire Old testament being written for our Learning and Admonition so that we could gain patience and comfort through seeing what other people went through and the ultimate result. No, God and the Devil aren't on an equal platform. The devil got his permission from GOD to test Job on a level that he could handle. Whether a Person is saved or unsaved Sin has gained access into the world and caused grief to us all. whereas JOB went through a few months period, some go through a lifetime. So the question we all gain is this-no matter how things appear at one time, it's not the final verdict on our lives and GOD is no respector of persons. The ultimate reward for those who perservere in him will be an Eternal reward in heaven.
2007-08-13 03:41:52 · answer #3 · answered by James L 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
There are no fallen angels. The actual word that is translated as Lucifer is the word Hillel and it means the bright or shiny one and it was a title that Nebuchadnezzar gave to him self to make himself into the god as many other leaders have tried and still do. All the books of the bible were written at different times and neither Ezekiel or the book of isaiah ever mention the word satan even once yet theology has come up with all kinds of wacky stuff like this. The king of Tyre was most likely either a reference to Ethbaal the father of Jezebul or one of his descendants.
2016-05-21 05:49:38 · answer #4 · answered by dominique 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sure Job was angry, anyone would be, he was very sincere.
However, his wife left him and said "renounce God and
die" but this Job did NOT do - he is patient for continuing
to seek an answer. He was wiser than the friends
who spoke with him. In the end, he succeeded far above
almost anyone would and found wonderful answers to all the questions he had. He had great peace and was not afflicted with insanity at all. He learned great wisdom that one can only learn (because our hearts are so hard) through tough
times. Do not be hard of hearing God. It is wise to
listen - that is the basic lesson of Job - there is much
more of course. Job is a fascinating book and many say
it's the oldest written book of the Bible. God knew how
he would respond.
2007-08-13 03:32:35 · answer #5 · answered by Nickel-for-your-thoughts 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Job never cursed God for his troubles.
He was down and depressed but he never lost faith in God. This is what this book is about.
In the end Job was blessed by God greater than he had been before. His reward in heaven is great as well.
Job 1:22
In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
Job 2:10
But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.
James 5:11
Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.
2007-08-13 05:08:32 · answer #6 · answered by Old Hickory 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ahh, I don't think most people have really read the book.
A strange thing happens to a man, who is set up to believe and support the story as a parable about living through bad times for an ultimate reward...
...
when they realize God just replaced Job's real human being daughters, after killing them to make Job miserable, with new children, as if they were puppies or goldfish you could just get from the pet store every time one dies.
2007-08-13 03:26:12 · answer #7 · answered by Just Jess 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
As with pretty much every book of the Bible, there is the actual story, and there is the interpreted and reshaped story that believers change it into in order to fit with their personal theology.
Amos: Wrong. Job is about a game that God and Satan played with a man to see how much torture and grief they could put him through before he would renounce God. It was done to satisfy their curiosity. I'm sure the several dozen members of his household who were slain, along with all of his livestock, were happy to die once they knew that it was an important part of settling a bet.
Again, you give us a perfect example of how believers don't read the actual story, but some retelling of it that is consistent with their own preferences.
2007-08-13 03:24:38 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
The book of Job is about a man who let his faith fail because of his own fears, but how his dependency on the Lord is what got him through, and saved him from worse things.
He might have escaped all his losses had he not been lead into fear over the actions of his children. Everything followed that action.
God loves faith, the opposite of that is fear. Fear drives us from God, and his protection. As Job learned.
2007-08-13 03:25:20 · answer #9 · answered by amosunknown 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
In my humble opinion, Revelation is the most misunderstood. It still blows my mind how much tome and effort loving Christians devote to figuring out who or what is the beast and what 666 means. Sorry that does not really answer your question.
OOPS! That should be TIME and effort. Although tome is not completely out of place here either.
2007-08-13 03:22:51 · answer #10 · answered by Adoptive Father 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋