Job1

The chapter introduces Job, a man of great wealth and righteousness in the land of Uz, who feared God and eschewed evil. In a heavenly council, Satan challenges Job's integrity, asserting that Job serves God only because of divine protection and blessings. The LORD grants Satan permission to test Job by afflicting his possessions and children, but forbids him from harming Job personally. Consequently, Job suffers the rapid loss of all his livestock, servants, and his ten children, yet he responds by worshipping God without sinning or charging God foolishly.

Job's Character and Prosperity

1
There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job. That man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God, and turned away from evil. ​
2
There were born to him seven sons and three daughters.
3
His possessions also were seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred female donkeys, and a very great household; so that this man was the greatest of all the children of the east. ​
4
His sons went and held a feast in the house of each one on his birthday; and they sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.
5
It was so, when the days of their feasting had run their course, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, “It may be that my sons have sinned, and renounced God in their hearts.” Job did so continually. ​

Satan Challenges Job's Integrity

6
Now on the day when God’s sons came to present themselves before the LORD, Satan also came among them. ​
7
The LORD said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, “From going back and forth in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.” ​
8
The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant, Job? For there is no one like him in the earth, a blameless and an upright man, one who fears God, and turns away from evil.” ​
9
Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? ​
10
Haven’t you made a hedge around him, and around his house, and around all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11
But stretch out your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will renounce you to your face.”
12
The LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power. Only on himself don’t stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD. ​

The Calamities Begin

13
It fell on a day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house, ​
14
that there came a messenger to Job, and said, “The oxen were plowing, and the donkeys feeding beside them,
15
and the Sabeans attacked, and took them away. Yes, they have killed the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ​
16
While he was still speaking, there also came another, and said, “The fire of God has fallen from the sky, and has burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ​
17
While he was still speaking, there came also another, and said, “The Kasdim made three bands, and swept down on the camels, and have taken them away, yes, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you.”
18
While he was still speaking, there came also another, and said, “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house,
19
and behold, there came a great wind from the wilderness, and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young men, and they are dead. I alone have escaped to tell you.” ​

Job's Faithful Response

20
Then Job arose, and tore his robe, and shaved his head, and fell down on the ground, and worshiped. ​
21
He said, “Naked I came out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the LORD’s name.” ​
22
In all this, Job did not sin, nor charge God with wrongdoing. ​

Study Notes for Job 1

Verse 1

Job is introduced as a historical figure dwelling in Uz (likely Edom or Northern Arabia). 'Perfect and upright' signifies moral integrity and completeness, not sinlessness, while 'feared God' is the biblical definition of wisdom.

Verse 3

Job’s immense wealth—measured specifically in livestock—establishes him as the 'greatest of all the men of the east,' emphasizing the great scale of his future loss.

Verse 5

Job’s practice of offering burnt offerings after his children’s feasts shows his profound, proactive piety, fearing that they might have 'cursed God' (blasphemed or failed to honor Him) in their revelry.

Verse 6

The 'sons of God' (bene elohim) are members of the divine council, likely angelic beings. Satan (Hebrew: Ha-Satan, 'the accuser') is introduced not as God's equal, but as an adversarial figure subordinate to God.

Verse 7

Satan’s answer indicates his continuous activity as a roaming investigator and accuser on earth, contrasting with the heavenly setting of the divine council.

Verse 8

God initiates the discussion about Job, proving that the trial is not a random attack but a test ordained within a divine plan, centered on Job's exceptional righteousness.

Verse 9

Satan challenges the purity of Job’s devotion, arguing that Job serves God only because God has protected and rewarded him (a mercenary faith argument).

Verse 12

God grants Satan permission to proceed, but sets a clear boundary: Satan may touch Job's possessions, but not Job himself. This establishes the limits of evil power under divine sovereignty.

Verse 13

This verse sets the scene for the disasters, emphasizing that they occurred suddenly while the family was gathered, maximizing the shock and loss.

Verse 15

The Sabeans (likely marauders from the south) and the Chaldeans (v. 17, from the northeast) represent human agents of destruction, highlighting the worldly dangers Job faced.

Verse 16

'The fire of God' (likely lightning) is attributed to a natural phenomenon, showing that both human violence and natural disaster were used to strip Job of his wealth.

Verse 19

The death of all ten children is the most devastating loss, demonstrating the completeness of Job’s suffering and confirming the total removal of the 'hedge' mentioned in verse 10.

Verse 20

Job's actions—rending his mantle and shaving his head—are traditional signs of profound mourning. Falling down to worship demonstrates immediate submission, not rebellion.

Verse 21

This profound confession is the theological high point of the chapter, affirming God’s sovereignty over both giving and taking life and possessions. It directly contradicts Satan’s prediction that Job would curse God.

Verse 22

The narrator's concluding verdict confirms that Job passed the first test, maintaining his integrity and refusing to attribute moral wrongdoing or foolishness to God.

Use ← → arrow keys to navigate
Settings

Reading Style

Typeface

Font Size 19px

Reading Width 45 chars

Options