Job 1
1599 Geneva Bible
Job
1 1 The holiness, riches, and care of Job for his children. 10 Satan hath permission to tempt him. 13 He tempteth him by taking away his substance, and his children. 20 His faith and patience.
1 There was a man in the land of [a]Uz called Job, and this man [b]was an upright and just man, [c]one that feared God, and eschewed evil.
2 And he had seven sons, and three daughters.
3 His [d]substance also was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she asses, and his family was very great, so that this man was the greatest of all the [e]men of [f]the East.
4 And his sons went and banqueted in their houses, every one his day, and sent, and called their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.
5 And when the days of their banqueting were gone about, Job sent, and [g]sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and [h]offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job thought, It may be that my sons have sinned, and [i]blasphemed God in their hearts, thus did Job [j]every day.
6 ¶ Now on a day when the [k]children of God came and stood [l]before the Lord, Satan [m]came also among them.
7 Then the Lord said unto Satan, Whence [n]comest thou? And Satan answered the Lord, saying, [o]From compassing the earth to and fro, and from walking in it.
8 And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou not considered my servant Job, how none is like him in the earth? an upright and just man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
9 Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for [p]nought?
10 Hast thou not made [q]an hedge about him and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11 But stretch out now thine hand and [r]touch all that he hath, to see if he will not blaspheme thee [s]to thy face.
12 Then the Lord said unto Satan, Lo, all that he hath is in [t]thine hand: only upon himself shalt thou not stretch out thine hand. So Satan departed from the [u]presence of the Lord.
13 ¶ And on a day, when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house,
14 There came a messenger unto Job, and said, The oxen were plowing, and the asses feeding in their places,
15 And the [v]Sabeans came violently, and took them: yea, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword: but I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
16 And while he was yet speaking, another came, and said, The [w]fire of God is fallen from the heaven, and hath burnt up the sheep and the servants, and devoured them: but I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
17 And while he was yet speaking, another came, and said, The Chaldeans set on three bands, and fell upon the camels, and have taken them, and have slain the servants with the edge of the sword: but I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
18 And while he was yet speaking, came another, and said, Thy [x]sons, and thy daughters were eating, and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house,
19 And behold, there came a great wind from beyond the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house, which fell upon the children, and they are dead, and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
20 Then Job arose, and [y]rent his garment, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,
21 And said, (A)Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return [z]thither: the Lord hath given, and the Lord hath taken it: [aa]blessed be the Name of the Lord.
22 In all this did not Job sin, nor charge God [ab]foolishly.
Footnotes
- Job 1:1 That is, of the country of Idumea, as Lam. 4:21, or bordering thereupon: for the land was called by the name of Uz, the son of Dishan the son of Seir, Gen. 36:28.
- Job 1:1 Forasmuch as he was a Gentile, and not a Jew, and yet is pronounced upright, and without hypocrisy, it declareth that among the heathen God hath his.
- Job 1:1 Hereby is declared, what is meant by an upright and just man.
- Job 1:3 His children and riches are declared, to commend his virtue in his prosperity and his patience, and constancy, when God had taken them from him.
- Job 1:3 Hebrew, children.
- Job 1:3 Meaning, the Arabians, Chaldeans, Idumeans, etc.
- Job 1:5 That is, commanded them to be sanctified: meaning, that they should consider the faults that they had committed, and reconcile themselves for the same.
- Job 1:5 That is, he offered for every one of his children an offering of reconciliation, which declared his religion toward God, and the care that he had toward his children.
- Job 1:5 In Hebrew it is, and blessed God, which is sometimes taken for blaspheming and cursing, as here and 1 Kings 21:10, 13, etc.
- Job 1:5 While the feast lasted.
- Job 1:6 Meaning, the Angels, which are called the sons of God, because they are willing to execute his will.
- Job 1:6 Because our infirmity cannot comprehend God in his majesty, he is set forth unto us as a King, that our capacity may be able to understand that which is spoken of him.
- Job 1:6 This declareth, that although Satan be adversary to God, yet he is compelled to obey him, and do him all homage, without whose permission and appointment he can do nothing.
- Job 1:7 This question is asked for our infirmity: for God knew whence he came.
- Job 1:7 Herein is described the nature of Satan, which is ever ranging for his prey, 1 Pet. 5:8.
- Job 1:9 He feareth thee not for thine own sake, but for the commodity that he received by thee.
- Job 1:10 Meaning, the grace of God, which served Job as a rampart against all tentations.
- Job 1:11 This signifieth, that Satan is not able to touch us, but it is God that must do it.
- Job 1:11 Satan noteth the vice whereunto men are commonly subject, that is, to hide their rebellion, and to be content with God in the time of prosperity, which view is disclosed in the time of their adversity.
- Job 1:12 God giveth not Satan power over man to gratify him, but to declare that he hath no power over man, but that which God giveth him.
- Job 1:12 That is, went to execute that which God had permitted him to do: for else he can never go out of God’s presence.
- Job 1:15 That is, the Arabians.
- Job 1:16 Which thing was also done by the craft of Satan, to tempt Job the more grievously, forasmuch as he might see, that not only men were his enemies, but that God made war against him.
- Job 1:18 This last plague declareth, that when one plague is past which seemeth hard to be borne, God can send us another far more grievous, to try his, and teach them obedience.
- Job 1:20 Which came not of impatience, but declareth that the children of God are not insensible like blocks, but that in their patience they feel affliction and grief of mind: yet they keep a mean herein, and rebel not against God, as the wicked do.
- Job 1:21 That is, into the belly of the earth, which is the mother of all.
- Job 1:21 Hereby he confesseth that God is just, and good, although his hand be sore upon him.
- Job 1:22 But declared that God did all things according to justice and equity.
Job 1
The Voice
1 Once there was a man from Uz by the name of Job. He was a very good man—his character spotless, his integrity unquestioned. In fact, he so believed in God that he sought to honor Him in all things. He deliberately avoided evil in all of his affairs. 2 He had 7 sons and 3 daughters; 3 he owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 teams of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and a large number of servants. Among Easterners, he was the most powerful and influential man. 4 His sons, who were all wealthy landowners, too, all used to gather together on each others’ birthdays and special occasions. The brothers would take turns hosting the others in their homes, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 When these days of feasting were through, Job would call all of his family to his own house and purify them, rising up early in the morning to offer burnt sacrifices for each one.
Job: God, forgive my children for any secret sins or grudges they have against You deep in their hearts.
No worshiper of God could ever curse Him, so the Hebrew says “bless God” when the reality is, as Job says, they have “grudges . . . deep in their hearts.”
Job did this again and again.
6 Now one day, it came time for the sons of God, God’s heavenly messengers, to present themselves to the Eternal One to give reports and receive instructions. The Accuser[a] was with them there.
The dialogue between the Accuser and God is similar to what might be heard during a court case. Job is a person of the utmost integrity; he is someone God highly respects as His servant. Attacked by the Accuser in God’s heavenly court, Job’s actions are both supported and evaluated by God, who fills the roles of both Job’s Advocate and the Promoter of Justice.
Eternal One (to the Accuser): 7 Where have you been?
The Accuser: Oh, roaming here and there, running about the earth and observing its inhabitants.
Eternal One: 8 Well, have you looked into the man, Job, My servant? He is unlike any other person on the whole earth—a very good man—his character spotless, his integrity unquestioned. In fact, he so believes in Me that he seeks, in all things, to honor Me and deliberately avoids evil in all of his affairs.
The Accuser: 9 I won’t argue with You that he is pious, but is all of this believing in You and honoring You for no reason? 10 Haven’t You encircled him with Your very own protection, and not only him but his entire household and all that he has? Not only this, but Your blessing accompanies whatever his hand touches, and see how his possessions have grown. It is easy to be so pious in the face of such prosperity. 11 So now extend Your hand! Destroy all of these possessions of his, and he will certainly curse You, right to Your face.
Eternal One: 12 I delegate this task to you. His possessions are now in your hand. One thing, though: you are not to lay a finger on the man himself. Job must not be touched.
With that, the Accuser left the court and the Eternal’s presence.
13 Now one day, all of Job’s children were gathered together under the roof of Job’s firstborn for their usual celebration—feasting and drinking wine— 14 when a messenger came to Job.
Messenger: We were in the field. The oxen were plowing, the donkeys were grazing nearby, 15 and out of nowhere, the Sabeans attacked. They stole your animals, all 1,000 oxen and donkeys, and as for your servants, they put their swords to us, and everyone is dead—every last one, except me. I am the only one who got away from the fields to tell you.
16 And while the words were still leaving the messenger’s mouth, another messenger arrived.
Second Messenger: Lightning has struck! The fire of God fell from the sky and burned the 7,000 sheep alive . . . alive! Shepherds, too—all of them burned; everyone is dead—every last one, except me. I am the only one who got away from the pastures to tell you.
17 And while the words were still leaving that messenger’s mouth, a third messenger arrived.
Third Messenger: Chaldeans! Three groups of them attacked us. They converged on the camels and stole your 3,000 animals, and as for your servants, they put their swords to us, and everyone is dead—every last one, except me. I am the only one who got away to tell you.
18 And while the words were still leaving that messenger’s mouth, yet a fourth messenger arrived.
Fourth Messenger: All of your children were gathered together today under the roof of your firstborn to celebrate—eating a feast and drinking wine— 19 and then a powerful wind rose up from the other side of the desert, and it struck all four corners of the house. It collapsed! Everyone is dead—all of those young people—every last one, except me. I am the only one who got away from your son’s house to tell you.
20 Then Job stood up, tore his robe, shaved his head, and fell to the ground. Face down, Job sprawled in the dirt to worship.
21 Job: I was naked, with nothing, when I came from my mother’s womb;
and naked, with nothing, I will return to the earth.
The Eternal has given, and He has taken away.
May the name of the Eternal One be blessed.
22 In all of this Job neither sinned nor did he make foolish charges against God.
Footnotes
- 1:6 Literally, the Satan
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