I’m going to wax, momentarily, philosophical. The Book of Job is what’s called a theodicy. The basic premise of a theodicy is that all the power and goodness in the universe is vested in God. And so, as seems to pop up in youtube and tiktok videos and more, the question gets asked, “If God is benevolent and all powerful, how does he allow evil to exist in the world?” The response is usually a defense, which gets tied into all sorts of things like free will, motives, circumstances, temptations, etc., etc. A theodicy on the other hand, in simplest terms, abides in the premise that God simply knows that he, and goodness, will, in the end, win out over the lesser powers of darkness. Any deviations from that path are temporary, and will, some day, be resolved. And all you have to do is have faith in him. It is, to be sure, a very “the ends justify the means” approach to theology.
- This is an opening scene worthy of Hollywood. Job is a faithful man. He has a big family, he has a huge ranch, and he has lots of money. His kids love to celebrate their privileged lives, balanced with appropriate acts of contrition and sacrifice. God and “The Adversary” (the term “HaSatan”, was used throughout the Hebrew bible, it wasn’t until the Christian bible that it became a name, Satan) are chatting, and the latter proposes that this most upright of men, Job, would curse God and stray from his faith, if he lost everything. God says, “go for it”. And he does – all his cows, sheep, and camels are carried off by raiders, who also kill all the boys tending them, and the home where his ten children are collapses, killing all of them. Job’s response is “God gives, God takes”, and he blesses God for the things and people he had had.