etation: A jo u rn ai

ln te
of«‫^־‬

Text and S e ^ e n Between ‫ﺟﺔامﺀ‬،‫ﻫﺂة‬

The Author(s©
2014 (
A h| ‫د‬ :and permissions
sagepub.co.ul،/journalsPerm
□٠
١10.1177/0020964314552640 :
int.sagepub.eom
James L. Crenshaw ®SAGE
D u k e U niversity Divinity S chool, D u rh a m , N C
Email: Jcren sh aw @ d iv .d u k e.ed u

Job’s story does not begin with cursing words. They are his third utterance, and their sentiment is
worlds apart from his first two brief remarks: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked
I shall return there; Y h w h has given, and Y h w h has taken, may the name of Y h w h be blessed”
(1:20, author’s translation, throughout: and “You are talking like one of the foolish women. We
reeeive good from Elohim, shall we not aeeept evil?” (2:10). Another observation by Job is best
understood as an unexpressed thought: “It may be that my ehildren have sinned and blessed Y h w h
in their minds” (1:5). Before blessing Yhwh, that is, one must ^knowledge any guilt and ask to be
forgiven. Job’s two speeehes are suffieiently different to indieate slippage in reverence, something
possibly implied by the narrator’s addition to his first summation (“In all this Job did not sin with
his lips [2:10]). As some later rabbis wondered, “Did he sin in his thoughts?” ?erhaps Job’s shift
from Yhwh to Elohim in the second utteranee supports their speeulation. At the very least, the
rebuke of his wife reveals remarkable insensitivity.

The abrupt transition from prose to poetry in 2:11-13 focuses on a physically unrecognizable
Job that brought tears. The language heard by the friends from afar in chapter 3 is even more alien.
“Blessed be the name of Y hwh ” has become “Damned be the day of my birth.” Gone is the uncer-
tainty introduced by the verb bärak٠ which has opposite senses, “bless” and “curse,” in the seven
uses within the prologue. But why qälal rather than the stronger verbs ‘ärur and qäbab, both of
which occur in verse 8 with respect to cursing the deities Yam and Leviathan ofCanaanite mythol-
ogy? Perhaps they indicate low esteem, a complete loss of honor by one who had received unquali-
fied approval from both the narrator andYHWJi (1:1,8 and 2:3). In their eyes, Job was “a man who
has integrity, is both moral and religious, and turns away from evil.”

The first and last words ofthe poetic dialogue, “damned” (yöbad: see 3:3) and “turmoil” (rôgez),
mark two units comprising verses 1-10 and 11-26. The first is punctiliar, emphasizing the present
moment. The second is continual, pointing to ceaseless activity. A pall hangs over the initial unit,
while death reigns in what follows. Both the futile hope for light to erase foe gloom and foe much
desired but long-delayed death in the two sections end with the same particle expressing non-
existence. Anticipations result in an absence, something nowhere to be found.

In part 1 (3:1-10), darkness matches foe emotional pitch of the curse, to use foe narrator’s
description ofJo b ’s explosion that breaks a seven-day silence. The rich vocabulary for an absence
86 Interpretation: Ajournai ofBible ٠٨ ^ Theology 69(1)

An iconic representation of trauma and faith is the biblical figure of Job, as depicted by Leon Bonnat (1833‫־‬
1922).Job ( 18 8 0 ).‫ ا؛ه‬on canvas. Photo: R.G. Ojeda, ^ u se e Bonnat.©RM N-Grand Palais/Art Resource, NY.

of light includes the personification of night, the probable bearer of good tidings (“A boy has been
eoneeived”). ?erfect ^ b o l i s m - t h r e e uses of “night” and four uses of “day”— emphasizes the
unrelenting nature of Job’s misery. The source ofthat distress is said to be Eloah, a deity who would
have been revered by a foreigner like Job. The bizarre request for a ^rm anently pregnant mother
corresponds to a similar wish by the prophet Jeremiah (20:17). In his words, the reason for the hor-
rendous thought is shame Çhöseth), its result unmitigated misery ( ‘ämäl).

Part 2 has two strophes (3:11-19 and 20-23) plus a rationale (vv. 24-26). The two strophes
begin with the interrogative “Why?” (lämäh). Why was I bom? Why did 1 not die at birth? Rest,
the theme of the strophes, is stated in verse 11. Comforting intimacy at a mother’s breast is trans-
formed into something undesirable. Job’s imagination soars as he thinks that his repose in Sheol
will be among kings and princes who had amassed considerable wealth, and his shame vanishes
with the thought of such elite company. Returning to his death wish, Job considers a stillborn pref-
erable to a viable birth, since it is quickly hidden. Now he expands the earlier notion of rest in
Sheol, shifting to universal coverage. Linguistic niceties, in this case merisms, cover a wide spec-
trum of inhabitants. The dualities of wicked and oppressed, small and great, servant and master
Between Text ‫ س‬Sermon 87

encompass virtually everybody. Their reduced status in Sheol brings an end to turmoil (rogez) that
imitates the stillness of death.

Ironically, the second strophe juxtaposes joy over the discovery of hidden treasure with the
onset of death. Behind the striking image is the ancient practice of burying prominent people (like
King Tutankhamen) with huge sums of gold, silver, lapis lazuli, ivory, and other valuable items to
make the next life comfortable. In many instances, however, thieves broke into the burial sites and
stole the precious metals. Job’s misery takes a sharp turn, erupting into language that concentrates
on its corporeal effect. He thinks of his body wasting away even as he eats. He mentions knees,
breasts, eyes, belly, womb, eyelids, and even the sounds made by his vocal chords under extreme
duress. Importantly, a change has taken place in toe identification of the oppressor. The unnamed
“he” of verse 20 has become Eloah in verse 23. Moreover, toe imagined rest has eluded Job, who
experiences only turmoil {rögez).

In chapter 3 toe focus is on Job’s suffering. The prologue describes his suffering broadly by describ-
ing his ten children, his wife, and even many of his servants who perished trying to protect his posses-
sions. Links with toe prose are therefore significant: a protective hedge (1:10 and 3:23); toe adverb
“there” (1:213:11 ‫ ;)؛‬a birthday (1:4; 3:1)‫ ؛‬and dread (1:53:25 ‫)؛‬. fob-th^patient of the prologue has
become Job-the-impatient in toe poetry. Were the narrator andYHWH mistaken about him?

What possible explanation can be offered for toe shift from devout worshiper to someone pre-
pared to curse toe day of his birth? Answers may come from psychology (remorse over toe harsh
words spoken to his wife), sociology (anger that his relatives have abandoned him), and theology
(fury at God for failing to govern toe universe fairly). Job’s roller coaster ride from euphoria to
depression recalls a similar shift by Elijah after his heroic defense of Y hwh against proponents of
Baal on Mt. Carmel (1 Kgs 18). How could a fearless prophet take flight when threatened by toe
queen? How could a paragon of virtue like Job become something quite different? Adversity takes
a heavy toll even on good people.

In reality, emotional swings are activated by a variety ofunknowns. They may arise from threats,
d i^ ^ in tm e n ts , illness, national and international events, even something as seemingly innocuous
as a change in the weather. Memories of happy moments and hopes for toe future vie wito forebod-
ings of bad things to come. Coping mechanisms often include internalizing or venting anxiety.

Bottled up anger tends to fester, increasing stress and generating physical and mental illness.
Yented anger can hurt others, even as it brings relief to toe sufferer. For this reason, honest speech
directed to God is preferable to silence. Words matter, for they reveal whether or not suffering has
put toe sufferer out oftouch wito reality. Extreme misery often evokes toe unthinkable‫ ؛‬sometimes
toe evocation verges on toe impossible. As Job learned, we cannot reverse time, however much we
wish to do so. Creation has imposed a certain order on things, whether we like it or not. The chal-
lenge is to find a place in that divinely ordained calendar of events that can somehow make sense
ofthe ugly realities unfolding around us. Ferhaps Job’s honest feelings are the right place to begin.
They are not toe end‫ ؛‬our path can be determined only in ongoing dialogue wito our Maker.
 ‫آلﻣﺂورلم؛‬

Copyright and Use:

As an ATLAS user, you may priut, dow nload, or send artieles for individual use
according to fair use as defined by U.S. and international eopyright law and as
otherwise authorized under your respective ATT,AS subscriber agreement.

No eontent may be copied or emailed to multiple sites or publicly posted without the
copyright holder(s)’ express written permission. Any use, decompiling,
reproduction, or distribution of this journal in excess of fair use provisions may be a
violation of copyright law.

This journal is made available to you through the ATLAS eollection with permission
from the eopyright holder(s). The eopyright holder for an entire issue ٥ ۴ ajourna!
typieally is the journal owner, who also may own the copyright in each article. However,
for certain articles, tbe author o fth e article may maintain the copyright in the article.
Please contact the copyright holder(s) to request permission to use an article or specific
work for any use ‫ آس‬covered by the fair use provisions o f tbe copyright laws or covered
by your respective ATLAS subscriber agreement. For information regarding the
copyright hoider(s), please refer to the copyright iaformatioa in the journal, if available,
or contact ATLA to request contact information for the copyright holder(s).

About ATLAS:

The ATLA Serials (ATLAS®) collection contains electronic versions of previously

published religion and theology journals reproduced with permission. The ATLAS
collection is owned and managed by the American Theological Library Association
(ATLA) and received initia‫ ؛‬funding from Liiiy Endowment !)٦٥.

The design and final form ofthis electronic document is the property o fthe American
Theological Library Association.