Job

The Book of Job is part of the Wisdom literature of the Hebrew Scriptures or the Old Testament of the Christian Scriptures. Two distinct sections of the Book of Job are easily identified, given their differing literary style and content. The prologue (Job 1–2) and the epilogue (Job 42:7–17) are written in prose narrative, while the main body of the text (Job 3–42:6) comprises the poetic dialogues. The poetic section includes the dialogues between Job and his friends (Job 3–37) and, at the climax of the book, the divine speeches, with God speaking out of the whirlwind (Job 38–41) and Job’s responses (40:3–5; 42:1–6). While the prose and poetic sections are most probably of diverse authorship and historical origin, the book is best read as a coherent story. The Book of Jobis a literary drama built around Job, a mythic figure who serves as an archetype for the human in search for religious and existential meaning in the face of undeserved suffering, an experience replicated endlessly...