Essay on Babylonian Literature: Book of Job

Babylonian literature in this context incorporates The Book of Job similar to Proverbs that depicts wisdom literature. My concentration is in the Book of Job that illustrates wisdom literature and other themes at large. These arguments according to Babylonian ancient literature would include debates, a dialogue of pessimism, praising the Lord of wisdom, and theodicy. Some of these themes are an act of suffering and evil that affect upright and pious people in society. The book of Job also tells us that Job falls under the same category of pain. He was considered as the most significant man in the east has a lot of wealth concerning sheep, camels, oxen, and a great household that could be admired. He feared the Almighty God and served him well as depicted. This novel helps us understand human's suffering to God's relationship creating trust and character unto the Almighty. The primary genre categorically illustrated in the Book of Job is Wisdom as we can see Job's wisdom is tested by God.

The questions people ask till today is how can one trust the Almighty despite all the suffering one undergoes, the book of job simplifies the problem and answers it accordingly. In this context, the theme of wisdom is tested at large. Satan came along to challenge God after God went round to boast of Job's upright and well-behaved character towards him. In the process, catastrophes befell the son of God where, all his livestock, servants and children died. God also forbids Satan not to take his life in the process. The job being a righteous man, he constantly prayed to the almighty seeking guidance and protection from Him. Satan for the second time afflicts sores on Job's skin and Job soldiers on and accepts the struggles. On the contrary, his wife tells him to curse God because He was the cause of all these problems and suffering, claiming that he will soon die.

Bildad, Zaphora, and Eliphaz are Job's friends. They came to visit him not uttering a word for a whole week. The above silence showed lack of respect due to his condition at that particular time. At the last day of the week, Job starts a conversation with his friends in a poetic manner creating an Ionic framework in the Book. Job in his statement illustrates life and death comparing it to day and night. He goes further to curse the day he was conceived and wishes that he should have never been born into the earth of misery. Eliphaz narrates that job's difficulty is due to an evil behavior that he might have committed and he should seek the Almighty's favor to look upon his suffering and pardon him. Bildad and Zaphora, on the other hand, second Eliphaz putting their statement categorically that job had affronted God's justice. Also, Zaphora expresses that whatever sin their friend has done is severe and he deserved more punishment.

Job responds angrily towards his friend's statements calling them "Worthless physicians who whitewash with lies" as depicted in chapter thirteen verse four. In this chapter, God's justice describes clearly as Job worries on the relationship between God and man. He tries to understand why the Creator of heaven and earth judges people based on their character and actions. He also wonders why man can conciliate God's justice because he believes that God is past human indulgent depicting Him as unseen. Job says that man cannot convince God and that he cannot be cheated through human's words. He goes further to tell his friends at that point in his life that he does not understand himself and wishes someone could talk to God on his behalf thus creating an essence of wisdom in this article. He goes further in his statements saying that the mediator could also tell God to send him to the darkest places of the dead known as Sheol.

Job creates a crafty attitude towards his friends getting them offended and angry. Jobs friends perceive that he ridicules their intelligence about his statement on God's relationship to human character and actions. His friends understand that he did not fear the Lord because of his questions as they termed them as wicked. He is criticized by his friends, but he stands bold and firm in confidence responding that the evil committed by him as perceived then is his problem. He goes ahead and says that there is "witness" or a "Redeemer" in heaven who will vouch for his innocence (16:19). The above statement proves that the thematic wisdom stems out undoubtedly. Injustices of God comes out later when Job gets afraid and impatient. He is sarcastic as he feels it under his skin on how God leaves wicked people to thrive in life while good people undergo a lot of suffering. Job feels like confronting the Almighty, but he insists on pursuing wisdom through fearing God as he believes that knowledge sometimes is hidden away from the man.

Moreover, Elihu joins the conversation. Elihu is sure that Job is justifying himself too much in this novel. He later explains to Job that God speaks to humans in two ways, either through pain and suffering or visions. He suggests that the suffering helps one to realize God's love towards one and abscond death. Because Job talked too much, it illustrates Job's rebellion towards God thus facilitating his suffering. God's questions are rhetoric, and He asks Job to answer his questions about God's creation and power that he possesses. The lord describes two creations, Leviathan and Behemoth, two large beasts, asking Job to answer him. The job ultimately acknowledges God's resounding power profoundly admitting the level of human knowledge regarding it as limited. Job's response pleases the Almighty as He gets upset with Job's friends at large. In no uncertain terms, God returns the favor unto Job, providing him with good health, a lot of wealth than before, new children and a longer lifespan.

The Book of Job appears to be the most celebrated book in biblical history due to the life lessons one can learn from the article. It offers life questions, what people think about their lives creating an essence of wisdom to answer these life questions. Poetic dissertations also stem out in the script containing forty chapters at large. However, we find that the above scenario shows the contest between God and Satan and the results could only be seen in Job's actions. The ordinary skill of irony is illustrated in the article when his friends blame him for his misfortunes. God later intervenes when he insists that Job should answer his questions. His friends profoundly criticize him on answering unethical and poor advice not knowing that the Almighty is happy with his answer. God gets angry at his friends as Job intervenes for their forgiveness.

Conclusion

The virtue of the book seeks to clarify real ideas about Babylonian literature at large. God in this context provides a satisfactory answer to Job due to his profound wisdom in his rhetoric questions. God's intervention gives Job a happy ending when he returns his property twice as much as what he had earlier. It is of great concern that Job deserves the happy ending due to his loyalty to God. The job also praises the Lord's wisdom due to his intervention to forgive his friends despite being angry at them. Job's understanding as depicted earlier in this context stems out when he tries to understand God's relationship to human actions and character as a whole. He also claims that he could not understand human nature towards God about character. Consequently, one wonders why people who are righteous tend to suffer while the wicked thrive and prosper. This Book, therefore, serves God, Job, and his friends well because it shows one's character toward the Lord Almighty. Considering the above fact is because it depicts different attitude towards one's calamity, how your friends react to one's misfortunes and the Lord's intervention.