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Job Chapter One

1. This book is about a man (Job 1:1).  אִישׁ הָיָה ’iysh hāyāh.
   1. In the land of Uz.  עוּץ ‘uwts ^#5780: wooded. 
      Uz refers to 3 people (A son of Aram, & grandson of Seth, Gen. 10:23; A son of Nahor, & nephew of Abraham, Gen. 22:21; & an Edomite, Gen. 36:28), and 1 land (Job 1:1), probably named after the first Uz.
      
      Note: See the comments at Gen. 36 [Day 014] for the similarity in names between the Edomites, and characters in the Book of Job.  The time-frame for this book is Abraham’s generation, or earlier, and does not fit within an Edomite era.
      
   2. Job was his name.  אִיּׄוב ’iyyowb ^#347: enemy, persecuted one.  אָיַב ’āyab ^#340: to be hostile to, be an enemy to.
2. That man was blameless, upright, fearing God, and turning away from evil (Job 1:1b).
   1. Job is the most spiritually mature believer on planet earth at this time (Job 1:8).
   2. Job is one of the top three spiritually mature believers with a Gentile ministry in the entire Old Testament (Ezek. 14:14,20; cp. Jer. 15:1).
3. Job had tremendous temporal-life wealth (Job 1:2-4), and extraordinary spiritual-life wealth (Job 1:5).
4. This man is not only an object lesson for us today (Rom. 15:4; 1st Cor. 10:11; Jas. 5:11), but he is an object lesson in the angelic realm (Job 1:6-8; 2:1-3; Eph. 3:10; 1st Pet. 1:12).
5. The sons of God are angelic beings, who are required to report to the Lord on their observations in the human realm.
6. Though Satan no longer belongs with the faithful angels, he inserts himself among them, and comes before the Lord’s seat of instruction.
   1. Satan roams the earth (scouting) and walks around (influencing human affairs) (Job 1:7).
   2. Satan considers the effectiveness of God-fearing believers (Job 1:8).
7. Believers have a Divine hedge of protection placed around them (Job 1:10), and can only be Satanically afflicted within strict limitations (Job 1:12).
8. God permits Satan to afflict believers, but only for God’s purposes (Eph. 1:11), and only with the Lord Jesus Christ’s prayer ministry (Lk. 22:31,32) as our Advocate (1st Jn. 2:1; Zech. 3:1).
9. The proper response to adversity is the same as the proper response to prosperity—worshiping the Sovereign God Who provides us with all good things (Job 1:20-22; 2:10; Jas. 1:17; Ps. 84:11).

Job Chapter Two

1. Victorious believers may find that the Satanic affliction is permitted to increase (Job 2:6).
2. Your help-mate (Gen. 2:18), fellow-heir (1st Pet. 3:7) may become a Satanic tool in the most extreme testing (Job 1:9; Gen. 3:1-6).
3. In times of testing, believers need encouragement from their fellow believers (Job 2:11,12; 30:25; Rom. 12:15).
4. Job has three friends, who come to offer him sympathy and comfort (Job 2:11).
   1. Eliphaz the Temanite.  אֱלִיפַז ’eliyphaz ^#464: my God is fine gold. תֵּימָנִי tēymāniy ^#8489: Temanite, southward.
   2. Bildad the Shuhite. בִּלְדַּד bildad ^#1085: confusing love? (meaning uncertain). שׁוּחִי shuwchiy ^#7747: wealthy.
   3. Zophar the Naamathite. צֹופַר tsowphar ^#6691: sparrow. נַעֲמָתִי na‘amāthiy ^#5284: pleasant.
   4. Job’s friends seem to come from the extremities of the Arabian peninsula: Eliphaz the Temanite from NW Arabia, Bildad the Shuhite from NE Arabia, and Zophar the Naamathite from S Arabia.*

* Anchor Bible Dictionary, David Noel Freedman, editor-in-chief

Job Chapter Three

1. After a week of silence, Job uttered a lament (Job 2:13; 3:1-26).
2. Job curses his day (life).  Divine statements of Job’s sinlessness are made in chapter one (v.22), and chapter two (v.10), but are not made in chapters three and following.  The undeniable facts that God rebukes Job (Job 38-41), and that Job repents (Job 42:6), indicates that there is sin on Job’s part sometime during chapters three through thirty-one.
3. Job did not curse God, as Satan had predicted (Job 1:11; 2:5).  In this “death wish,” Job regretted his birth (Job 3:1-10), wished he had been born dead (vv. 11‑19), and longed to die (vv. 20‑26).*
4. Job’s wish to be dead places him in other good company: Moses (Num. 11:15), Elijah (1st Kgs. 19:4), Jeremiah (Jer. 20:14-18), & Jonah (Jon. 4:3,8).
5. Job expresses an awareness of Satanic sorcery (3:8,9). 
   1. Leviathan is the twisting, fleeing serpent, dragon of the sea, that the Lord will ultimately slay (Job 26:12-14; Isa. 27:1). A full description of this dragon comes in chapter forty-one (Job 41:1ff.).
   2. Job has, perhaps, lived his life in opposition to these unreasoning animals (Jude 8-10,14; Job 29:17).
6. Job views himself as “hedged in” rather than “hedged about” (3:23 cp. 1:10).

*The Bible Knowledge Commentary : an exposition of the scriptures / by Dallas Seminary faculty ; editors, John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck.

Job Chapter Four

1. Eliphaz reminds Job of Job’s past achievements, and urges him to return to that life of integrity (Job 4:3-6).
2. Eliphaz judges Job based upon his personal observations (Job 4:8).  The righteous are blessed in life, and the wicked are judged in life (Job 4:7-11).
3. Eliphaz tells Job that he has received a night vision communicating Job’s rebuke: you cannot justify yourself before God (Job 4:12-21).