The Book of Job: A Contemporary of King Jehoiakim

                                    The Book of Job: A Contemporary of King Jehoiakim

The Book of Job is one of the most mysterious books in the entire Bible. It has been debated whether it should be included at all. If yes, at what point in biblical history does it fit in? The general consensus of scholars suggests that the Book of Job belongs sometime near the patriarch period-specifically near the time of Jacob. Throughout this blog, I will refer to this as the faulty premise.  Contrary to popular opinion, I proposed that the Book of Job started to be written much later- sometime during the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah. It was then completed sometime during the period of the Persian Empire, where Aramaic was the dominating language. Below, I will provide several lines of evidence refuting the common misunderstandings of Job.

 

 

Is Job a Jew or Gentile?

Job is a Gentile due to the following reasons:

1)      The Land of Uz-Job 1:1-3, Jeremiah 25:20, Lamentations 4:21

2)      Job was near enough in proximity to know about the Jordan River-Job 40:23

3)      Job’s friends were from Edomite/Aramean countries-Job 2:11

4)      Job gave his daughter’s an inheritance amongst his sons; the Jews made a similar exception with the Daughters of Zelophehad- Job 42:15-16. Compare this with Numbers 27:1-7, 36:1-11.

5)      Job did not accompany the 12 Tribes of Israel. Other Gentile believers include Melchizedek, Jethro (limited time with the Tribes), Ruth, Uriah the Hittite, Widow of Zarephath, Naaman, and the Sailors in Jonah.

 

NOTE: It is presupposed that one of the multiple “Jobabs” in Genesis 36 is Job, but there is no definitive proof to support this claim. In terms of making a solid timeline, it is debatable amongst scholars-a glorified guessing game of sorts. Later on in scripture, Job is actually called Job in Ezekiel 14:14, 20. Not Jobab as some would have speculated. Another thing to consider is that the phrase “the people of the east” is associated with the Edomites/Arameans-Genesis 10:23, 28:5, 31:24, 29:1; Judges 6:3,33, 7:12,8:10; 1 Kings 4:30; Isaiah 11:14; Jeremiah 49:28; Ezekiel 25:4,10; 1 Chronicles 1:17.

 

 

Is the Sons of God/Morning Stars Angels?

No, the Sons of God and Mornings Stars are not Angels. The Sons of God are the Tribes of Israel and the Morning Stars are the Sun and the Moon.

·        Job 1:6 English Standard Version 6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them.

·        Job 2:1 English Standard Version 2 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. 

·        Job 38:6-7 English Standard Version 6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, 7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

NOTE 1: One of the things to consider is that when we compare Job 1-2 with the rest of scripture. We have many missing elements of the story.

First, there is no mention of God sitting on his throne (1 Kings 22:19-23, Isaiah 6:1, Psalm 47:8, Revelation 4:10), the people being under God’s feet (Exodus 24:9-10), and/or the Lord standing in Heaven (Amos 9:1, Acts 7:55). Therefore, there is no indication that Job 1-2 is occurring in Heaven. Furthermore, God’s presence can be manifested on earth as well (Genesis 3:8).

Second, as mentioned above, the Sons of God is a name given to Israel for their Firstborn Son status with Yahweh (Exodus 4:22; Deuteronomy 14:1 32:5,8; Hosea 1:10,11:1; Isaiah 43:6). It is to identify them as God’s own covenant people.

Third, the presence of Satan does not indicate that this event occurred in Heaven. The word Earth is synonymous with the land in the Hebrew and Greek languages (1 Chronicles 21:1).

Fourth, angels are mentioned in Job 4:18. The Hebrew word is Malak. It is not the same word used in Job 1-2. Also, Job 5:1, 15:15 (for context-see also Psalm 89:7) is describing Holy Ones in Heaven while Job 1 and 2’s Sons of God mentions nothing about Heaven.

NOTE 2: Job 38:6-7 uses both terms: Sons of God and Morning Stars. Morning Stars can be a figurative description to identify leaders (Isaiah 14:12-King of Babylon and Revelation 22:16-Jesus) or laymen depending on its context (Genesis 37:9; Daniel 12:3; Matthew 13:43; Revelation 2:28-12 Tribes and New Covenant believers). A Morning Star functions as a light bearer, messenger to the darkness, and a governor of light. Furthermore, they reveal, discern, provide safety, give insight, illuminate, and bring transparency to all daily matters. With this information in mind, the context of Job 38:6-7 makes sense post-diluvian (based on Job 12:14-15, 22:10-18), not the beginning of creation as described in Genesis 1 (If by holding to this premise consistently, Adam would be the only one alive after creation. Singing would be in the singular, not in the plural as it is in Job). After the judgment of the wicked, Noah and his family were established as the light bearers/leaders of the new world.  It is possible they sang and rejoiced over the new creation once all the water evaporated from the land.  The skeptic would then say what about Ham? He dishonored his father. How can he be a Morning Star? Just like Ham, the King of Babylon-Nebuchadnezzar was a wicked ruler who was considered a light bearer to the Jews and the rest of his Kingdom in Isaiah 14:12. Ezra 3:12-13 have similar phrasing as well, so this interpretation is plausible.

NOTE 3: An alternative interpretation, which I believe is a better view than the one described above, is that the Morning Stars are the Sun and the Moon (Genesis 1:16). By looking at Job 38:8-21, we can see how metaphorical language is employed throughout this section of scripture. As we can see there are reoccurring explanations about bodies of water, light, and darkness. For example, it is not farfetched to say that the Sun and Moon sing together in Job 38:6. Likewise, in Job 38:35, we see that the lightning SAYS “Here we are.” Also, in the New Testament, God is also called the “The Father of the Lights” in James 1:17. Similar metaphorical language can be found in Psalm148:3, 19:1, 65:13, 66:4, 89:5, and Isaiah 55:12.

If not Angels, what is the correct context of the Sons of God?

The Sons of God in The Book of Job is Israel’s Solemn Assembly/Feast Gathering

 

Joshua 24:1 English Standard Version ²⁴ Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel. And they presented themselves before God.

Joshua 23:2 English Standard Version² Joshua summoned all Israel, its elders and heads, its judges and officers, and said to them, “I am now old and well advanced in years.

Zechariah 14:18 English Standard Version 18 And if the family of Egypt does not go up and present themselves, then on them there shall be no rain; there shall be the plague with which the Lord afflicts the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Booths

 

Numbers 8:9 English Standard Version ⁹ And you shall bring the Levites before the tent of meeting and assemble the whole congregation of the people of Israel.

Joel 2:16 English Standard Version ¹⁶ Gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.

Joshua 7:14 English Standard Version ¹⁴ In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. And the tribe that the Lord takes by lot shall come near by clans. And the clan that the Lord takes shall come near by households. And the household that the Lord takes shall come near man by man.

Judges 20:1 English Standard Version ²⁰ Then all the people of Israel came out, from Dan to Beersheba, including the land of Gilead, and the congregation assembled as one man to the Lord at Mizpah

1 Samuel 7:5 English Standard Version ⁵ Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel at Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord for you.”

1 Samuel 10:17-19 English Standard Version ¹⁷ Now Samuel called the people together to the Lord at Mizpah. ¹⁸ And he said to the people of Israel, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’ ¹⁹ But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses, and you have said to him, ‘Set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by your thousands.”

Nehemiah 9:1 English Standard Version ⁹ Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the people of Israel were assembled with fasting and in sackcloth, and with earth on their heads

 

Deuteronomy 4:10 English Standard Version ¹⁰ how on the day that you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, the Lord said to me, ‘Gather the people to me, that I may let them hear my words, so that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children so.’

 

Deuteronomy 31:11 English Standard Version ¹¹ when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place that he will choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing.

 

Deuteronomy 31:28 English Standard Version ²⁸ Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officers, that I may speak these words in their ears and call heaven and earth to witness against them.

Deuteronomy 16:16 English Standard Version ¹⁶ “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God at the place that he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Booths. They shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed.

1 Chronicles 28:1 English Standard Version ¹ David assembled at Jerusalem all the officials of Israel, the officials of the tribes, the officers of the divisions that served the king, the commanders of thousands, the commanders of hundreds, the stewards of all the property and livestock of the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the mighty men and all the seasoned warriors

Amos 5:21 English Standard Version²¹ “I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

 

Isaiah 1:13-14 English Standard Version¹³ Bring no more vain offerings; incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations—I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly. ¹⁴ Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates; they have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them.

 

Jeremiah 9:2 Holman Christian Standard Bible ²If only I had a traveler’s lodging place in the wilderness, I would abandon my people and depart from them, for they are all adulterers, a solemn assembly of treacherous people.

 

Psalm 50:5 English Standard Version ⁵ “Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!

 

When did Job attend a Solemn Assembly?

It is very likely Job attended a Solemn Assembly/Jewish Feast during the time of King Jehoiakim’s reign.

 

NOTE: One of my reasons why the Book of Job occurred during the time of King Jehoiakim is that the Solemn Assembly/Jewish Feasts had to exist after the Jewish people’s time in Egypt when they met God in Mt. Sinai or some time later. Although Jehoiakim was a wicked king, it appears that he still appointed Solemn Assemblies/Jewish Feasts according to Lamentation 1:4 and 2:6. In Isaiah 1:13-14 and Amos 5:21, we can see God’s disdain over the shallow worship of His people.

 

The second reason for the Book of Job occurring during the reign of Jehoiakim is the presence of the Chaldeans and Sabeans. According to outside historical sources, the Chaldeans made their appearance around the 8^th century. The skeptic would say what about “Ur of the Chaldeans” mentioned in Genesis 11:28-31, 15:7? The issue is that the Chaldeans didn’t live there during that point in history. Ur of the Chaldeans is only known for Abraham leaving his home country to pursue Yahweh.  It is unusual to think that Ur of the Chaldeans would remain unnoticeable in most of the biblical narrative. Besides this fact, we know nothing else of Ur of the Chaldeans. It can be considered a later textual update or anachronism in order to distinguish Ur from the rest of the Mesopotamian cities. Around 625BC, the Chaldeans conquered Babylon, which later led to several uprisings against the Assyrian Empire. After 10 to 15 years later, the Assyrian Empire was defeated. At this point in time, we then see the Chaldeans make their biblical appearance during the reign of Hezekiah in 2 Kings 20:12-19/Isaiah 39:1/2 Chronicles 32:31.

 

 In regards to the Sabeans, there are two kinds: one from Africa (mentioned in Genesis) and the other from Arabia (mentioned in the historical section: the major and minor prophets). In terms of proximity, it’s unfounded to say that the African Sabeans attacked Job. The Sabeans and Chaldeans both lived near the Arabic region alongside Uz- an Edomite-dominated city. Furthermore, Teman who is also mentioned in Job 6:19 along with the Sabeans, is referred to as an Arabic nation in Isaiah 21:13-14.

 

The biblical narrative attributes both the Chaldeans and Sabeans as raiders of wealth. If we are to be consistent with the faulty premise view, this means that the Chaldeans and Sabeans suddenly disappeared from biblical history until the time of Hezekiah. That is a 1,500 year old plus absence! We know almost nothing characteristically about the Chaldeans and the Sabeans until their appearance in the historical sections of scripture. It is not exegetically correct to read these characteristics back into the Book of Genesis.

 

Third, Job’s children and the feast days play an important role in Job Chapter 1. It is unknown what the exact occasion was. Some suggest that this was one of their birthdays based on Job 3:3 using the same Hebrew word Yom. JB Lightfoot proposes that this is a Sabbath day. For me, I see this as one of the Jewish Feasts-specifically the Feast of Booths. Interestingly, the NKJV translators have Job 1:4 as “an appointed day” while Job 1:6, 2:1, and 3:3 is treated as a “non-appointed day.” The phrase “appointed day” is typically used in association with Jewish Feasts. Furthermore, a careful reading of Job 1:4 suggests that ONLY the sons went to the feasts, NOT the daughters. The sons went to the feasts and then invited their sisters later on to eat at their respective houses. These lines up with what is described in Deuteronomy 16:13-17. Compare this to the verses below for the “appointed time.”

 

Job 1:4 New King James Version 4 And his sons would go and feast in their houses, each on his appointed day, and would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them.

 

Leviticus 23:4 New King James Version 4 ‘These are the feasts of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at their appointed times.

 

Ezekiel 44:24 New King James Version 24 In controversy they shall stand as judges, and judge it according to My judgments. They shall keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed meetings, and they shall hallow My Sabbaths.

 

 

Lamentations 1:4 New International Version 4 The roads to Zion mourn, for no one comes to her appointed festivals. All her gateways are desolate, her priests groan, her young women grieve, and she is in bitter anguish.

 

Lamentations 2:6 New King James Version 6 He has done violence to His tabernacle, As if it were a garden; He has destroyed His place of assembly; The Lord has caused the appointed feasts and Sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion. In His burning indignation He has spurned the king and the priest.

 

 

Deuteronomy 16:13 English Standard Version 13 “You shall keep the Feast of Booths seven days, when you have gathered in the produce from your threshing floor and your winepress.

 

My reasoning for the Feast of Booths is that the Book of Job focuses on “House imagery.” In Job 1:19, Job’s children die from their house falling on them, this indicates that their house was taken away from them. Furthermore, we see Job’s friends leave their own homes in Job 2:11 and then in Job 2:8 we see Job sitting in the ash heap (the symbolic wilderness) far from home. We know this is far from home because in Job 42:11 we see him return home to eat with his community again.

 

Fourth, there are small interesting parallels between Isaiah and Job. For example, Isaiah 40:26=Job 9:12-12; Isaiah 41:20=Job 12:7-25; Isaiah 43:13=Job 9:12,11:10; Isaiah 44:5.45:4=Job 32:21-22; Isaiah 44:25-26=Job 5:12-13, 9:2-12,12:17; Isaiah 45:9=Job 9:12,25:2-4; Isaiah 53:9=Job 16:17. This reinforces the idea of an 8^th century to 6^th century date range for Job.

Fifth, in Job 28:1-3, the wisdom section, we can see Job describing his vast knowledge about smelting. Smelting activity has been documented in the infamous, Timna Copper Mines. This is north of Eilat, located in Edom. Excavators at Timna have dated their findings during the early Iron Age between the 11^th-9^th century. This further supports that the events of Job had to exist beyond the patriarch period in order to be aware of this kind of knowledge in Uz.

Sixth, the Aramaic language is another reason for a later date on the Book of Job. During the Neo Assyrian Empire period (circa 9^th century to the 6^th century), Akkadian was the official language used by the culture. At that time, the Aramaic language was only restricted to its designated local communities-Genesis 31:47, Deuteronomy 26:5. However, 2 Kings 18:26 demonstrates that the Aramaic language was started to gain traction around the 7^th century. Naturally, when the Chaldeans defeated the Assyrians, Aramaic replaced Akkadian-Daniel 2:4. Even after the Babylonians were defeated, Aramaic was still deemed the official language of the Persian Empire. Interestingly, the Jews did not learn Aramaic until they were taken into exile by the Babylonians -2 Kings 18:26. This is why we later see that the Jews were very proficient in speaking and understanding both Hebrew and Aramaic around the time of Daniel, Jeremiah, and Ezra (small portions were written in Aramaic) were written down. As scholars have demonstrated from their findings, the Book of Job was translated from an unknown language to Hebrew. According to Edward L Greenstein, author of the book “Job: A New Translation,” the manuscripts of Job consisted of an advanced dialect of blended Transjordanian languages; this included Aramaic. The writer of Job was familiar with these various linguistic colorings, modes, and expressions that only a Transjordanian audience would recognize during this period of transition. With this information in mind, it makes sense that the writing process of Job was sometime circa 6^th century or later.

 

When was Job considered the Greatest of all the People of the East

Job was considered the “Greatest of All” during a time when all the Kings of Judah were wicked. Like mentioned earlier, Job was the Greatest of all the East. Not the whole Planet Earth as some have claimed. Earth in the Bible can be translated as local land, not the actual planet. The local land is all the surrounding the nations, which I believe is near Israel/Jerusalem since Job had knowledge of the Jordan River (Job 40:23). I believe that Job carried this distinguished title when the Southern Kingdom leaders were at their peak of wickedness.

 

 

*Counterarguments by Skeptics under the Faulty Premise-Written during Patriarch Age*

 

Kesitah Money- In Job 42:11, the Hebrew/Aramaic word kesitah is used. It has been argued that this word is used in reference to Jacob buying a land in Genesis 33:19 and Joshua 24:32. Therefore, this proves that Job was written during the patriarch period. This is incorrect for several reasons: First, rabbis and scholars are not in agreement on what exactly a kesitah is. Second, shekels were used by Abraham in Genesis 23:16 and afterwards in Jeremiah 32:9. Third, based on the context, a kesitah could have been a sum of money counted out beforehand (Acts 7:16) or money used in a particular region-Arabic regions perhaps.

Livestock as Wealth-This argument states that Job was written during the time of the patriarchs because the livestock was considered the only form of wealth. Again, this is not true. The kesitah was used alongside the shekel. Livestock remained valuable even during the time of Jesus- hence the heated situation that involved the moneychangers’ incident.

Job’s Age- In Job 42:16, we see that Job lived 140 years more to see his posterity. Scholars have guessed Job to be over 200 years old. The skeptic would then claim that if Job died at age 200+, he must have lived during the times of the patriarchs such as Peleg, Reu, Serug, Nahor, and Terah who died in their late 100s/early 200s. This is problematic because the skeptic would use Psalm 90:10 as a proof-text for their claim. Psalm 90:10 is not saying that people can only live up to age 70 and 80. In its proper context, this is talking about the first generation Hebrews being judged for their idolatry in the wilderness. Their lives were cut short preventing them from reaching the Promised Land. By reading scripture very carefully, we can see that Jehoiada the priest lived up to 130 years old according to 2 Chronicles 24:15, so it isn’t a leap of faith to see Job live over a 100 years old. Furthermore, Hezekiah received an additional 15 years in 2 Kings 20:6. It is likely that Job was between the ages of 30-55 years old at the beginning of his story. I suggest this age because of the common marrying age between Isaac (married at age 40-Genesis 25:20), Esau (married at age 40-Genesis 25:20), and Joseph (married at age 30-Genesis 41:45-46). This would make Job die between the ages of 170-195 years old, so it isn’t farfetch to believe that he could have lived a little over 200 years old.

The Archaic Language- It has been said that since the language of Job was translated from an unknown archaic language, this indicates that it was written during the time of the patriarchs. Nevertheless, a better reason can be put forth.  For me, it has been hypothesized that since this was near the time of King Jehoiakim, a multilingual scribe could have written the events of Job. Then, it would have been passed down to another translator who edited it in Hebrew. Under the dominionship of the Assyrians and Babylonians, Aramaic was one of the most popular languages during those points in history. As mentioned above, we can see how this scribe used the Transjordan dialect in an unorthodox manner. This unique usage makes sense since this was a time of transition between the Jews and the Babylonians. By the time the Persians became the new, world power; most Jews were well-acquainted with both Hebrew and Aramaic fluently.

Written Before the Old Covenant System- This argument states that there is no explicit mention of Old Covenant practices. Therefore, the events of Job occurred during the times of the patriarchs. This is not good reasoning since the Books of Ruth and Esther do not have explicit details of Old Covenant practices. As mentioned per reasons above, we can see how the Book of Job was fulfilled during the reign of King Jehoiakim.

The Altar Argument-This argument states that since Job interceded for his family as a patriarch, this event had to precede the Old Covenant practices. The problem with this argument is that an altar (as a memorial) was built in an alternate location by the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Joshua 22:10-24. Other examples include Elijah in 1 Kings 18:32-34 and King David in 2 Samuel 24:25/1 Chronicles 21:26-27. With this mind, an altar was permitted unless its purpose was used for idolatry. Furthermore, this commandment only applied to the Israelites, not the Gentiles.

Primitive Enemies: Sheba and Teman-The primitive enemies’ argument states that Sheba and Teman (Job 1:15; 6:19) were no longer in existence after the period of the patriarchs. This is not true because they are mentioned in Joel 3:8 and Amos 1:12 as existing past this period. As mentioned above, the Chaldeans and Sabeans in Genesis should be considered an example of textual updating and /or anachronism because the skeptic would have difficulty explaining a 1,500 year plus absence from the biblical record. The only characteristics of the Chaldeans that are well-documented are within the historical section of the Bible-the major and minor prophets. During this time, we see that the Chaldeans are viewed as raiders of wealth as well as wisemen in the Book of Daniel: Daniel 1:4, 2:10, 3:8, 4:7, 5:7, 5:11. Interestingly, the Sabeans and Teman are also associated with wisdom in 1 Kings 10:1-13, Jeremiah 49:7, and Obadiah 1:8. It is logical to conclude that these nations who attacked Job occurred much later than the patriarch period.