III. JOB Vol. II, (pp. 223-242) * DR 2. 4; comp. note 4. ? ARN 43.121. Eighteen characters designated by God as ‘‘His servants’’ are enumerated: Abraham, Jacob, Israel, the Messiah, Moses, Joshua, Caleb, David, Isaiah, Eliakim (Is. 22.2), Job, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah, Nebuchadnezzar, Zerubbabel, and the angels. The expression ‘‘servant of God”, employed in addressing a person, which is found in medieval rabbinic literature, is due to Arabic influence. Accordingly the occurrence of this phrase in Zawwaat Naphtali is additional proof that this book is of recent date. 3 Baba Batra 15a-15b, where the following views concerning Job’s time are given: 1)He was a contemporary of Moses, and lived in Palestine when the spies visited that country; 2) he was born when the Israelites entered Egypt, and died when the Exodus took place; 3) he lived during the period of the Judges; 4)he was a contemporary of Solomon; 5) of Nebuchadnezzar; 6) of Ahasuerus; 7) he was among those who returned from Babylon to Palestine and founded a college at Tiberias. Baba Batra, loc. cit., further states that according to the view of most scholars, Job was a Jew, since he was endowed with the gift of prophecy, which during the period that followed the death of Moses was exclusively in the possession of Israel (comp. vol. III, p. 355). The rationalistic view that Job is not a historical but a fictitious character is likewise recorded in the Talmud, loc.
cit.; comp. however, the responsum of R, Hai Gaon, cited by Shu‘aib, Debarim, 100b, which reads: bond xde snared ad are “the purpose of Job’s life was to serve as an example”. Comp. further Masnut, 3. For other references to Job in older rabbinic sources, see Seder ‘Olam 3; Mekilta RS, 27; Yerushalmi Sotah 5, 20c; BR 57. 4, and the parallel passages cited by Theodor. In connection with the view given in BR, loc. cit., according to which Job was a contemporary of Abraham, Vital, Likkute Torah (at the beginning of Job) and Shalshelet ha-Kabbalah 13a, state that Uz, Abraham’s nephew, died without issue, whereupon Buz married Uz’s wife, and Job was 381 4] The Legends of the Jews the offspring of this union. Comp. Yelammedenu in Yalkut I, 766. On the view that Job was identical with Jobab, comp. notes 13-14, and note 325 on vol. I, p. 424. On Dinah see note 35. Comp. further on Job. vol. II, pp. 250, 254, 296, 308, 319, 344, 356, as well as vol. III, pp. 17, 267, and notes 51,52. The monument of the Arabic general Ayyub in Constantinople was later considered as that of Job; see Straschun, Ha-Maggid, IX, 13 and ‘Inyane Shabbetat Zebi 17 (ed. Freimann). With regard to the divergent and contradictory views concerning Job’s time and nationality, it may be safely stated that the old legend considered him a contemporary of the patriarchs and placed him in friendly relations towards them (comp.
vol. I, p. 326). The late Haggadah, on the other hand, could not allow that a man of the kindness and piety of Job should bea non-Jew, and therefore made him a Jew; comp. Baba Batra 15a—15b, and the following note. Origen, Contra Celsum 6. 43, basing his assumption on the addition of the Septuagint to Job, maintains that Job lived long before Moses (comp. vol. I, p. 326), whereas Methodius (quoted by Photius, Bibliotheca VII) and Ephraim (beginning of Job) assert that Moses was the author of the book of Job, which view is found in Babli and Yerushalmi, loc. cit.; Comp. note 14, end. It should be noted that also Targum on Job (comp. 3. 18; 4. 7; 5. 17; 14. 18; 15. 10, 20, 29), like the old Haggadah, found in this book a great many things which point to the lives of the patriarchs. Comp. Schwartz, Tikwat Enosh; Wiernikowski, Das Buch Hiob nach der.. .rabbinischen Aggada (Frankfurt, 1893). 4 PR 47, 190b-191a. The text is not quite correct; read in 191a, 1. 20: DTN; 21 OFTAN yo AMX Sima Nd; 1. 24 Tan Np Ndi MED. On God as the God of the fathers, see vol. I, p. 414; vol. II, pp. 305 and 320. On the words carelessly uttered by Abraham, comp. note 110 on vol. I, p. 325. On Adam as the creation of God’s own hand, see vol. I, p.50. On the angels remaining outside the holy of holies, see vol. III, pp. 210 and 216, The contrast between the patriarchs and Job is also shown by the fact that the latter only served God out of fear (Sotah 5.
5 cites this view as that of Rabban Johanan b. Zaccai, whereas a later authority considers Job to have loved God;_see further Sotah 31a; Yerushalmi 5. 20c; ARN 45, 124; Zohar II, 33b), while Abraham served Him out of love. On the inferiority of Job to the patriarchs, see also DR 2. 4; Tehillim 26. 16; Aggadat Bereshit 9, 26. See also Semahot 8, where emphasis is laid on Job’s lack of patience and on his audacity to argue with God. Comp. the following note. 382 Job? [5-12 5 BR 49. 9; Tan. B. I, 99; Tan. Wa-Yera 5. Job was better than the generation of the Tower of Babel, but not as good as Abraham. The latter stood firm in ten temptations, the former not even in one. See Rashi’s midrashic quotation (probably a later addition) and Masnut on Job. 1. 3. 6 Baba Batra 16a-16b. A view is also recorded here which defends Job against disbelief—On the hair-sac comp. Tan. B. III, 35; WR 15. 3; Haserot, No. 30; 2 Alphabet of Ben Sira 24 (here likewise is found the observation on rain-drops; comp. 2 Enoch 40. 8). BR 4. 4 reads: Sometimes God reveals Himself to man in his hair, as in the case of Job. Comp. ShR 3. 6; PR 47, 190a; Niddah 52a; Matt. 10. 30, which reads: The very hairs of your head are all numbered. On the gazelle comp. Shemuel 9, 73. 7 Ben ha-Melek we-ha- Nazir, 12. 8 ShR 31. 12; this shows, however, how weak Job was; for although he himself asked that bodily suffering be inflicted on him, he murmured against God when he was tested.
9 Baba Batra 15b-16a. PK 7, 65b-66a; PR 17, 88b; WR 17. 4; Ruth R 1. 5; Koheleth 9. 11. See also the midrashic citations in Makiri, Amos 9. 13, and by R. Isaac ha-Kohen on Job 1. 14; comp. Leket Midrashim 4b. At harvest time the clouds used to hang over Job’s fields, so that the grain suffered neither from moisture nor from extreme heat; Tan. B. I, 133. Whenever anyone received even a small coin from Job, it became a blessing unto him; Baba Batra, loc. cit.; Pesahim 112a; BR 39. 11. 10 Testament of Job 3. The following parallels from rabbinic literature are to be recorded: Tan. B. I, 161-162 (concerning Jacob’s herds and dogs); the description of Job’s hospitality and benevolence is only a duplicate of the Abraham legend; comp. vol. I, pp. 270-271. ARN 7, 33-34 (second version 14, 33), points out Abraham’s superiority to Job: the latter befriended only those needy who came to him for help, whereas the former took great pains to seek out those who were in need of help; moreover, Abraham gave delicacies and luxuries to the poor who had never been used to such things. Comp. further ARN 163-164. Tan. B. V, 25, emphasizes the fact that Job had strictly observed the agricultural laws, and was therefore astonished when he was reduced to poverty. ™I Midrash quoted by Masnut, Job 29. 13, whence it was incorporated in Leket Midrashim, 6b-7a. 12 PR 33, 149b-150a; comp. further the midrashic quotation 383 13-15] The Legends of the Jews in Leket Midrashim, 7b-8a.
Job’s prayer was pure because his estate was free from ill-gotten gain; ShR 22 (at the end). 13 Testament of Job 1. Abraham, Job, Hezekiah (all of whom lived in a wicked environment), recognized God of their own accord; and in the days to come the Messiah will do the same; BaR 14. 2. On the identity of Job with Jobab, comp. the following note. 14 Aristeas (in Eusebius, Praep. Evang., 9. 25, 430d-431) is very likely the oldest source which identifies Job with Jobab (son of Zerah, son of Reuel, son of Esau), although it is quite probable that the Septuagint knew of this identification. The corresponding observation found in some manuscripts of the Septuagint as a postscript of the book of Job goes back to Aristeas; comp. the thorough investigation of this subject by Freudenthal, Hellenistische Studien, 136-141. This scholar, however, has overlooked the fact that in the older rabbinic literature Eliphaz, Job’s friend, is identified with the son of Esau, bearing the same name; comp. vol. I,*pp. 421-422. The Targum fragment published by Luzzatto (>’1w mvx, 741), where this identification occurs, is, in its present form, most likely of a late date. Hence Ginzberg’s remarks in Haggada bei den Kirchenv., 123, are to be corrected accordingly. In Targum 7on= xadib and hence $7 xn NID=Zerah, the second son of Tamar. Testament of Job 1 is corrupt. For in this verse Job says: ‘‘I am of the sons (descendants?) of Esau; my brother is Nahor”, and this isimpossible.
Either “‘my father’’ is to be read instead of ‘‘my brother” (on the view that Job is the same as Uz, the son of Nahor, see note 3), and the words ‘tof the sons of Esau’”’ are a gloss from the postscript of Septuagint, or ““Zerah” should be read in the place of Nahor. On the view that Job is the same as Uz (Gen. 22, 21) comp. Tan. B. IV, 73 (which is the source of Rashi on Job 1. 1; on Rashi’s remark that piy =nxy, see BR 57, 4), and the quotation from a Midrash in Leket Midrashim, 4a, where Uz=Edom in alluding to Lam. 4. 21. On the assertions of the Church Fathers Origen, Hom. in Ezech. 1V (Job, qui temporibus patriarcharum et Moses vixisse...), Jerome, Gen. /. c. (Hus, de cuius stirpe Job descendit), and Aphraates, 215 (Job lived two hundred and ten years); comp. Ginzberg, Haggada bei den Kirchenv., 123-124, and note 3. ™S Testament of Job 1-2. The fame promised to Job is perhaps related to the legend cited in vol. II, p. 225, that God wishes to connect His name with that of Job. {Satan as a beggar occurs frequently in Jewish legends, comp. note 226 on vol. I, p. 272. The Kabbalists observe that Satan would have had no power over Job, had the latter 384 Job + {16-21 brought, instead of burnt-offerings, sacrifices in which “the other side” (Satan=the material world) also had a share; comp. Yalkut Reubeni, Lev. 1. 3. WR 7. 3 reads: Burnt-offerings atone for sinful thoughts, and Job was not sure whether his sons, who as princes frequently made feasts (according to others the feasts mentioned in Scripture refer to their weddings), did not sin in their hearts.—On Job’s love of God, comp.
note 4. On the expressions mw $u1) and mwn jm with respect to the power which Satan asked and received from God, comp. Baba Batra 16a; ARN, 164 (in the Job story); midrashic quotation in Leket Midrashim, 46. Comp. also Targum on Job 1. 12. 16 Baba Batra 16a; comp. note 260 on vol. I, p. 288, and note 39. ™7 ARN, 164 (q7>0= 5 mm); but it is decidedly a recent addition. 18 Targum on Job 1. 6, which is very likely the source of this assertion met with in medieval authors, Rashi, Ibn Ezra, R. Joseph Karo, Masnut, ad loc., R. Nissim Gaon in Hasidim, 31; Sekel 26; Zohar II, 32b; III, 231; Leket Midrashim, 4b. Comp. Ginzberg’s note on this point in Ha-Zofeh, III, p. 187. ™9 Testament of Job 4. The Merciful One seizes not first upon the souls; first He destroyed Job’s wealth, before He put his children to death; WR 17. 4, and the other sources cited in note 9. 2° Targum on Job 1. 15 (on the text comp. Masnut, ad lJoc.). The kingdom of Lilith is called tinpr (‘‘Zmargad”’) in our text; comp. Krauss, Lehnwértwer, s. v., where the literature appertaining to it is recorded. The queen of Sheba is also known as a female demon among the Arabs, and in a very old source she is considered as a great witch; comp. note 55 on vol. IV, p. 152. 21 The midrashic source made use of by R. Isaac ha-Kohen reads: “Behold, how long God withheld the punishment decreed over Job. For three years Job lived undisturbed in the village Karnaim but when his sons sinned the queen of Sheba raided them and took their possessions away’.
The distance from Sheba to Palestine is a very great one, according to some it would take no less than seven years to traverse it (comp. vol. IV, pp. 144-145) and hence the statement that at least three years must have passed between the issuing of the heavenly decree and its execution. The queen of Sheba started on her march against Job inrmediately on the passing of the decree and arrived three years later to execute it. The Church Fathers as well as Mohammedan writers speak likewise of Karnaim as the abode of Job; comp. Schlatter, 385 22-28] The Legends of the Jews Verkanntes Griechisch 55: Klein, Barajta 34 Priesterabtelungen 81 seq. and Apt, Die Hioberzihlung in der arab, Literatur 2b. (Arabic text). Another local legend seems to have claimed ‘‘Magdala of the Dyers’’as the abode of Job and accordingly we have the harmonizing statement in the Midrashim cited at the beginning of this note that the sons of Job marched from Karnaim through the entire valley of the Jordan (a#Aév = 31238 comp. Schlatter, loc. cit.) to ‘“Magdala of the Dyers” where death overtook them. 22 Testament of Job 4; Persia stands for Chaldea; comp. Job bene ?3 Baba Batra 16a. 24 Testament of Job 4. On three occasions God sent forth a hurricane: When the house of Job collapsed over his children; when Jonah was found in the ship; when God revealed Himself to Elijah on mount Horeb; Yerushalmi Berakot 9, 13c; BR 24.
4; WR 15. 1; Koheleth 6. 1. 25 Midrashic quotation by R. Isaac ha-Kohen 2.8; Leket Midrashim, 5a; Testament of Job 5. Comp. further R. Isaac, 19. 21a, which reads: There are not such sufferings as those of Job;'God afflicted him with not lest than fifty plagues (ShR 23. 9, and Baba Batra 116b), among which were seven different kinds of boils; Tan. B. III, 80; Tan. Kedoshim 15. 26 Testament of Job 5; ARN, 164. Visio Pauli 49 states that Job’s wounds were at first of the size of a grain of wheat, but on the third day they grew to the size of an ass’s hoof. This statement is followed by the obscure sentence: ‘“‘worms moreover which fell four digits in length.” This amounts to the same as the statement in Testament of Job and ARN. 27 Midrash quoted by R. Isaac ha-Kohen on Job 2. 9; Leket Midrashim 5a (the text is not quite correct; read: 70): --"DN) 4D °D ba hom i al bapd- “*P'IX) °P)"-*]2 7798). Job, who, despite his sufferings wished to continue his former benevolent deeds, proposed to his friends to care for the poor; but they did not believe that he would remain steadfast in his piety; Leket, Joc. cit. Other interpretations of the words of Job’s wife (Job 2. 9) are: She advised him to blaspheme God, so that the heavenly punishment of death should immediately come down upon him, and he would be rid of his sufferings. Confess thy sins to God, and do not entertain any hope that He will relieve thee of thy suffering.
Comp. Masnut, ad loc. and the follewing two notes. 28 Midrash quoted by Masnut on Job 2. 10; comp. Mekilta 386 Jods» [29-33 Bahodesh 10, 72b; Sifre D., 32; Midrash Tannaim 26; BR 19. 12, where it is assumed that Job’s wife also led a pious life, so that her husband asked her to continue to live in the same manner. 29 Testament of Job 5-6. The greatest sacrifice a wife could make to support her husband was to sell her hair; comp. Yerushalmi Shabbat 6, 7a. 3° Baba Batra 16a, where another view is cited to the effect (comp. Rashi) that pictures had been engraved on trees. See, however, Targum on Job 2. 11, which reads: When Job’s friends saw that the trees in the garden had withered, that the meat which they ate was transformed into raw meat, and that the wine which they drank was turned into blood, they realized that a misfortune had befallen Job. In accordance with this remark we may well assume (against Rashi) that the Talmud, Joc. cit., refers to the withering of the wreaths and trees and not to the pictures on the trees. 3™ Tan. B. I, 166 (comp. vol. I, pp. 421-422); Targum Yerushalmi Gen. 36. 12. This identification, however, was most likely known to the Septuagint, according to which Job’s friends were kings, 7. e., princes of Edom; comp. notes 3 and 14. 3? Yelammedenu in Yalkut I, 766; Yashar Wa-Yera, 42b; Sekel 70; Targum on Job 32. 32; comp. notes 3 and 14, and vol.
III, p. 356. In old sources Elihu is identified with Isaac (vol. I, p. 326) or Balaam (comp. note 33), and in Zohar II, 166a, he is described as a descendant (son? comp. Ezek. 1. 1) of Ezekiel, although the different view of Targum was known to this source. 33 Testament of Job 7-9. Although his friends came from different places, they all met at the same time, at the gate of the town in which Job resided; Baba Batra 16b. Those who visit a house of mourning should not speak until the mourners have spoken first. Job's friends acted according to this rule, and kept silence until he had spoken; Mo‘ed Katan 28b. Comp. further Yerushalmi 3, 82d, and ARN 37, 111-112. As long as the friendship between Job and his companions was unimpaired, Satan had no power over the former; but when jealousy and strife set in among them, he accomplished his task. As soon as the old friendship was re-established, God restored Job to his pristine greatness; PR 38, 167a; Aggadat Bereshit 28, 57; midrashic quotation by Masnut on Job 30. 1, which throws some light on the story told in the Testament of Job.—The idea that man, since he does not know himself, cannot fathom God’s acts occurs frequently in Jewish literature; comp. Wisdom 9. 15-16; Philo, De Mi387 34-37] The Legends of the Jews gratione Abrahami, 24; De Somnits, 1. 10 and 36; Judith 8. 14; 4 Ezra 4. 10 (this, as is shown by the parallels, has nothing to do with the view of manas a microcosm as maintained by Gunkel; the original Hebrew text of 4 Ezra very likely read Joy ody p37 =quae tua sunt tecum coadulescentia); Sanhedrin 39a; Ibn Ezra, Yesod Mora 1, 16b.—In contrast to the description of Job’s poverty as given in Testament of Job, some rabbinic sources assert that he had to endure indescribable bodily pain, but no poverty (comp.
notes 24-26); see Baba Batra 117a and ShR 31. 21. Quite different, however, is the view of Tan. B. III, 8, and Tan. Kedoshim 15.—The idea that El!ihu is the instrument of Satan is to be compared with the view of R. Akiba, according to which Balaam is identical with Elihu; comp. Yerushalmi Sotah 5, 20d. See further note 38, where mention is made of the reward of only three friends of Job. 34 Testament of Job 7; Visio Pauli, 49. These sources have thirty years, but according to the rabbinic view only one year; Eduyyot 2. 10. Comp. note 27 on vol. III, p. 17. 35-Testament of Job 1, 10-11. An additional gift bestowed by God is more than the original possession; Job was seventy years old, and God granted him an additional term of life with double that number of years, so that he lived two hundred and ten years. BR 41. 4; DR 1. 31; comp. note 3 and the sources cited there (see also Ephraim on Job 42. 16) concerning Job’s age and fortune; see further Testament of Job 12. At the appointed time, when his afflictions came to an end, Job arose from his seat and shook off the dust, as a cock rises from the dunghill; Tehillim 103, 344; Midrash in Makiri, Ps. 146, 281. On the expression wtnn) (‘‘and he became a new man”’) employed in Tehillim, comp. Tan. Noah 5 on the three men (Noah, Daniel, and Job) who lived to see a new world; comp. also BR 30. 8 (see also the parallel passages cited by Theodor) and Tan.
B. I, 180. On Dinah comp. vol. I, p. 396, and the sources from Babli, Yerushalmi, and BR cited in note 3; see further Targum on Job 2. 10. 36 2 ARN 2, 9; comp. Ginzberg, Unbekannte Sekte, 184. Although Job’s contemporaries led a licentious life, he was so chaste that he never looked at an unmarried woman; Baba Batra i5a and 16a (but Abraham was still more chaste than he, for he never even took notice of the charms of his own wife; comp. vol. I, p. 222); Tan. B. I, 170; ARN, Joc. cit., and the first version 2, 13. 37 Testament of Job 11-12. It is further remarked that these magic girdles insured Job’s immediate recovery (comp. note 35). The 388 Job + [38-39 names of the three daughters are explained in Baba Batra 16b and Targum on Job 42. 14. Jemimah means “beautiful as the day”; Keziah means .“‘exquisite as the aromatic cassia”; Keren ha-Puch means ‘‘splendid as Saffron”, or (so Targum) ‘as the diamond” (5 =750). The Septuagint renders Keren ha-Puch by ‘Horn of Amalthea”’ (the goat, of Greek mythology, which nursed young Zeus); this is based on the identification of ‘‘Puch’”’ in the Talmud with a (fabulous?) species of the antelope. It is quite uncertain whether this Amalthea is in any way connected with Amthelai, Abraham’s mother (comp. note 6 on vol. I, p. 186). 38 Koheleth 7. 2; comp. note 33 (end). Heaven has compassion on him who is merciful to his neighbor; when Job prayed to God in behalf of his friends, God had mercy on him; PR 38, 165a; Tan.
B. I, 104; comp. note 33. According to a remark by R. Akiba, when Job repented, he was rewarded by God because of the pious deeds he had done in former years, prior to his affliction; Koheleth 7. 8; Ruth R 3. 13; Yerushalmi Hagigah 2, 77a (here it is M¥D instead of maiwn). The views of the Rabbis concerning Job’s piety prior to his affliction differ greatly from one another (comp. note 3). R. Johanan, who takes Job to have been a Jewish sage, entertains the most favorable opinion of him, observing that Scripture spoke more highly of Job than of Abraham; Baba Batra 15b; comp., BR 30. 8. But all agree that Job was found wanting when tested by suffering. It is even said by R. Johanan that some of Job’s words are so blasphemous that, if they were not written in the Bible, one would not be permitted to utter them; Baba Batra 16a; comp. further Leket Midrashim, 5a; Baba Batra, Joc. cit., where Job is severely criticised by Raba who remarks: ‘‘Job’s mouth ought to have been filled with dust on account of the offensive words he uttered against God’’.— The revelations which God granted to Job showed that he was unreasonable in finding fault with God’s administration of justice; they proved how little he understood the mysteries of nature or the meaning of the ruling of God’s wisdom in the history of mankind; Midrash in Makiri on Ps. 146, 281, and the midrashic source quoted by R. Isaac ha-Kohen on Job 11.
7; comp. Leket Midrashim 6b. In the Testament of Job, on the other hand, Job is presented in a different light; he is glorified for his steadfastness and piety during the time of his suffering. This conception is quite unknown in the older rabbinic literature; Comp. the following note. 39 ARN, 164. The Job legend given in this passage is directly 389 39] The Legends of the Jews or indirectly influenced by the Testament of Job (use was made of Arabic sources which tell many things about Job and which are familiar with the contents of the Testament of Job; comp. Griinbaum, Neue Beitrdge, 262-271; Apt, Die Hioberzdhlung in der arab. Lat. passim.); hence it forms a contrast to the Rabbis (comp. the preceding note) in maintaining that Job was steadfast. The vermin which infested Job’s body are mentioned only here and in the Testament. In contrast to ARN, the Talmud speaks of Satan in complimentary terms, and maintains that his desire to test Job was prompted by good motives, for he feared lest God should prefer Job to Abraham, and he therefore endeavored to test Job’s moral strength; Baba Batra 16a.—The cantillation of the books of Job, Proverbs, and Psalms is the same because their authors experienced a similar fate. Job was humiliated, but was afterwards restored to glory; even so were David (see note 96 on vol. IV, p. 104) and Solomon who was dethroned for a time (vol.
IV, pp. 169, s€g.), but later became king again; Shir (Griinhut’s edition, 9a) which was made use of by Masnut on Job 3. 1. Job resembles David also in other respects, for both of them, as well as Jeremiah at a later period, cursed the day of their birth, although their motives were different: Job on account of his sufferings (Job 3. 3); Jeremiah on account of the misfortunes brought upon Israel in his days (Ter. 20. 14); David on account of the sinfulness of man (Ps. 51.7); Makiri, Ps. 51. 281.—ARN likewise mentions that the angels set forth a prayer to God (this is the signification of mbpn wp; comp. THDT AwpP in Yerushalmi Yoma i, 38b; the translation ‘‘tied a magic knot of the Tephillin before God’’, Kohler, Testament of Job, 290, cannot be taken seriously) in behalf of Job; whereupon God took mercy on him. The magic girdle mentioned in the Testament of Job is the special application of the motive ‘heavenly gifts’ frequently employed in legends (comp. Giinter, Legende des Abendlandes, s. v. ‘‘Himmelgabe”’), which appears here as a girdle in allusion to Job 40. 7. 390
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