Everybody knew Job

It was at the same time Shakespeare was writing Macbeth in early 17^th-century England that the King James Bible was published, becoming the most influential rendering of the Bible in English and quickly supplanting the Geneva Bible as the most popular text for private use.

From an old Reader’s Digest reference guide: “The Geneva Bible was the edition in general use in England during Shakespeare’s time, and much of the language of his plays and sonnets echoes its wording and themes. In particular, echoes of the Geneva translation of the Book of Job can be heard in Othello, Richard II, and As You like It and in Hamlet’s most famous soliloquy."

Act III, Scene 1 of Hamlet reads, "To be, or not to be, that is the Question: Whether ’tis Nobler in the minde to suffer The Slings and Arrowes of outragious Fortune, Or to take Armes against a Sea of troubles, And by opposing end them: To dye, to sleepe, No more; and by a Sleepe, to say we end The Heart-ake, and the thousand Naturall shockes That Flesh is heyre to?"

Job 6: 2-4 and Job 7:21 read, “Oh that my grief were wel weighed,. . . For it wolde be now heavyer than the sand of the sea: therefore my wordes are swallowed up. For the arrows of the Almightie are in me . . . & the terrours of God fight against me. . . now shal I slepe in the dust, and if thou sekest me in the morning, I shal not be founde.”

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Job was an extremely prominent, powerful figure in the community in his day. Chapter 1 of the Book of Job talks about the wealth he had, but he wasn't just a rich guy sitting off behind a fence somewhere, explains Richard Jordan.

Job was a highly successful businessman involved in the government and judicial system of his community. Everybody knew who Job was and everybody loved him.

He says, "When I went down to the courthouse to work, the young men saw me and hid themselves. The aged men rose and stood up." They’re honoring him. The young guys quit playing and got out of the way and the elders respected him—he was an honorable, respectable man.

Further in Job 29, it says the "princes refrained talking, and laid their hand on their mouth" and "the nobles held their peace, and their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth." That’s saying, ‘When E.F. Hutton speaks, everybody listens.’

Job says, [11] When the ear heard me, then it blessed me; and when the eye saw me, it gave witness to me:

[12] Because I delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him.
[13] The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me: and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.

You know what he’s doing? He’s doing exactly what that Believing Remnant in Israel is told to do in the Book of James and I John. Exactly what Isaiah 58 told them they had to be doing in the tribulation. What does James 1 say pure religion is? "To visit the fatherless and the widow." Job is an example of that little flock.

Job continues, [14] I put on righteousness, and it clothed me: my judgment was as a robe and a diadem.

[15] I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame.
[16] I was a father to the poor: and the cause which I knew not I searched out.
[17] And I brake the jaws of the wicked, and plucked the spoil out of his teeth.

He says, "When I see a wicked man going over and devouring somebody, I want to sock him right in the chops and bust the teeth out of his mouth." He’s upholding justice.

Job goes on yet, 

[21] Unto me men gave ear, and waited, and kept silence at my counsel.
[22] After my words they spake not again; and my speech dropped upon them.
[23] And they waited for me as for the rain; and they opened their mouth wide as for the latter rain.
[24] If I laughed on them, they believed it not; and the light of my countenance they cast not down.
[25] I chose out their way, and sat chief, and dwelt as a king in the army, as one that comforteth the mourners.

He’s saying, "They just couldn’t get enough me." You ever see somebody out in the rain try to get water like that? You get thirsty. He’s saying, "When I talked, people were so hungry to hear what I had to say it was just like that. If I laughed on them they believed it not. The light of my countenance. I dwelt as a king in the army."

You remember what the army of Israel said to David? They said, "David you can’t go, you’re the king! One of you is worth 10,000 of us! You’re too valuable!" Job says, "That’s the way they looked at me!"

And then, all of a sudden, it’s gone. And then Job’s sick, hit twice. Can you understand why he says over there, "I’m confused?" . . .  This was not some isolated little fellow; a hermit off on a mountain somewhere who just got head lice and developed boils. This was the "big man on campus."

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All those acquaintances of Job—you ought to go back to Job 19 and read what they say. It was, "Job who? Huh, don’t know ya." Even his house servants, his butler and his chauffeur wouldn’t acknowledge knowing him. You know, you could expect that of your lawyer, but your chauffeur?! Your gardener?!

And then there was his wife. It’s a strange verse. He says, "My breath was a stranger to my wife." You got to get close to somebody to know what their breath smells like.

But you know what happened? His wife left him. You remember the old bat back in chapter 2, don’t you? The verse reads, [9] Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.

Well, he’s probably better off that she left him. She sure was no comfort to him. She took up the devil’s line. She literally said to Job what Satan was saying to God that Job would say.

Notice that when Job got back everything double (at the end of the Book), it didn’t include his wife. Now that may have been a blessing in and of itself, considering the kind of wife she turned out to be.

She was a source of the working of the satanic policy of evil in Job’s home. You go over and study I John and he tells the Believing Remnant how to know whether they’re in the true fellowship or not.

He tells them how to spot the real Israel of God and how they could know for themselves whether they really had the Spirit of God working in them or whether they were phonies.