The Book of Job: To Suffer vs. To Struggle

Paper Summary:

This paper analyzes the Book of Job and the suffering and struggle that Job lives with. The paper discusses each specific section of the book and then looks at the cumulative book as a whole. By investigating the nature of each section, the paper attempts to answer some religious questions specific to the text. Primarily, the paper focuses on whether a man would be religious if not for the expectation of reward or punishment.

From the Paper:

"With the Epilogue comes the restoration of Job's material and familial wealth. He is given vindication over his narrow-minded friends and granted a long, full life. What about our many questions? Can man remain faithful to a "religion" without the expectation of reward or punishment? With regard to Job's complete immersion in suffering, the answer would appear to be "yes" and "no." We are given an example in which the main character looses everything, suffers, humbles himself, and is then vindication. What would happen in the case of a character who lost everything, suffered, and what never vindicated? In the context of this particular Biblical text, none can understand the will of God. He does what he pleases and because he is our Maker, those actions are justified."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Coogan, Michael D. Ed. The Oxford Annotated Bible, Third Edition. Oxford UP, New York: 2001.
• Freehof, Solomon B. Book of Job: A Commentary. Union of American Hebrew Congregations, New York: 1958.
• McKeating, Henry. "The Central Issue of the Book of Job." ExpTim. 1971.
• Pope, Marvin H. The Anchor Bible: Job. Doubleday, New York: 1965.
• Steinmann, Andrew E. "The Structure and Message of the Book of Job." Vetus Testamentum. Jan 1996.

More papers on The Book of Job: To Suffer vs. To Struggle:

• Term Paper # 124028 : "The Book of Job and Wisdom"
• Analytical Essay # 67602 : "The Book of Job"
• Analytical Essay # 122280 : "The Book of Job and its Relevance Today"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: