Satan touched everything that belonged to Job but left his wife. Do you know why?

[lanceleo]

As above.

 

[RandyPNW]

We are told why. Satan did not believe Job was for real. Job was imperfect, but an authentic lover of God. God proved it to Himself, and used Satan's unbelief as an opportunity to prove His glory in one of many such occasions.

 

[lanceleo]

Since a couple becomes one flesh after marriage (Mark 10:6–8), did Satan spare her because she was part of Job God told him not to touch?

 

[Dan Perez]

As above.

Because of Job 2:9 Then said his wife unto him , Dost thou still retain thine integrity ?

Curse God and die ?

Job never did curse God !!

dan p

 

[o_mlly]

Scholars believe a later editor, or editors, added the prologue and epilogue to fix a happy ending for Job and encourage the afflicted. A happy ending that included blessing Job with new children would be difficult if God allowed Satan to orchestrate the death of Job's wife.

 

[Rose_bud]

Hi there

He might not of left her per se... but I can agree that she being his flesh and bones has merit.

‭Job 2:4
“Skin for skin!” Satan replied. “A man will give all he has for his own life.

[5]But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face.”

[6]The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.”

Skin for Skin
[7]So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.

Jobs response
[8] Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.

Flesh and bones
[9] His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!”

Jobs response
[10] He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”

In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

As the story unfolds we do see Job defending himself based on his performance rather than the Creator God's mercy and grace.

 

[BelieveItOarKnot]

A woman in scripture contains allegory of the "inner man," taken from within Adam. God called them both Adam on the day they were created. A first man, and an inner man, afterwards

 

[CoreyD]

As above.

I had in mind doing a thread with this same question. You beat me to it.
I was seeing a pattern in Genesis 3:1-5, where Satan targeted 'the woman'; Genesis 19:15-26, where 'the woman' looked back longingly at the things behind. This is probably the reason they were not quick about leaving the city, because the woman had so many things she wanted to take... maybe. ; Then during Job's suffering, 'the woman' spoke foolishly. Job 2:9, 10

The Bible says, the husband is head of his household, and for good reason, the husband has the responsibility to nourish his family spiritually. 1 Peter 3:7

Of course, there are some strong women mentioned in the Bible (Acts 16:1, 2; 2 Timothy 3:15), but the fact remains that men and women are made up differently, and women are more emotional. Satan knows this.
Hence if he sees a weakness, which can work to his advantage, he capitalizes on it.

I believe this is why Satan did not kill Job's wife. He saw a weakness, and an opportunity.
Satan plays with "Aces up his sleeve".


Mind you, he can use men who are weak too.
I think of Manoah.
God's angel appeared to the woman, rather than to Manoah and give her all the details, and instructions to go with it, unlike when the angel appeared to Abraham, rather than Sarah. Judges 13:2-5

The woman told her husband. Judges 13:6, 7
Manoah prayed that God would send the angel to instruct them what to do. Judges 13:8
Rather than send the angel to Manoah, God sent the angel to the woman, a second time, and she called her husband. Judges 13:9-11

I find Judges 13:20-23 interesting.
22 And Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God!”
23 But his wife said to him, “If the Lord had desired to kill us, He would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering from our hands, nor would He have shown us all these things, nor would He have told us such things as these at this time.”

Here, Manoah's wife corrected his thinking.
This indicates to me that Manoah was not as strong spiritually, as his wife was.

 

[lanceleo]

I believe this is why Satan did not kill Job's wife. He saw a weakness, and an opportunity.
Satan plays with "Aces up his sleeve".

This is a very logical answer.

 

[timewerx]

The wife is helping Satan tempt Job to curse God. Job's wife is helping Satan so why would Satan remove anyone helping him? I think this is the most logical reason I can find.

More than few times, the Bible have mentioned wife or wives causing the husband to sin against God, against another. Causing the husband to worship foreign gods, to cause harm to another person.

Even Apostle Paul mentioned, it is be better to be single than to be concerned about worldly affairs to please the wife. Those who are married will face troubles (concerning spiritual growth).

And ofc, St. John seals it with the teaching those who love the world have no love of/for the Father. And James - friendship with the world is enmity of God.

I'm not saying all women are going to lead you away from the Lord but more often than not, they will pressure you to compromise your faith in the Lord, even Christian ones. Money is the #1 cause of divorce even in Christian marriages and it is often the woman who initiates the divorce.

So there you have it.

 

[Rose_bud]

Interesting enough the thinking of the woman as the villain is the very symptom of fallen humanity. Instead of each taking accountability for their own failure. We do what Eve and Adam did.

Eve said... it was the serpent (Genesis 3:13).
Adam said ... it was Eve, the woman You gave me.. (inferring that it was God's fault) (Genesis 3:12)

Eve was deceived... choosing the voice of the serpent and failed... Adam chose the voice of Eve and failed..

Maybe just maybe relationships would be better, when we acknowledge that we all have failed/sinned and fallen short of God's glory...(Romans 3:10-12)

 

[CoreyD]

The wife is helping Satan tempt Job to curse God. Job's wife is helping Satan so why would Satan remove anyone helping him? I think this is the most logical reason I can find.

More than few times, the Bible have mentioned wife or wives causing the husband to sin against God, against another. Causing the husband to worship foreign gods, to cause harm to another person.

Oh yeah.
You just reminded me of two other persons I had in mind.
Samson. He allowed Delilah to win over him... even though he knew she was an enemy. Judges 16:6-22
Satan knows that a woman is some men's weakness. Especially if they are beautiful, and the man is lovesick.
Like Solomon... who just did not know when enough was enough. 1 Kings 11:1-6
He had 700 wives, who were princesses, and 300 concubines. And his wives turned away his heart.

Even Apostle Paul mentioned, it is be better to be single than to be concerned about worldly affairs to please the wife. Those who are married will face troubles (concerning spiritual growth).

Being single, is a gift because there is less distraction.
Married men's spiritual growth will only be hindered, if they themselves neglect it, but this could be because of any number of things he allows to take priority in his life.
This would not be his wife... unless he pays more than the usual attention to sexual needs. 1 Corinthians 7:3
...but that would be him. He can't blame his wife for that.

And ofc, St. John seals it with the teaching those who love the world have no love of/for the Father. And James - friendship with the world is enmity of God.

I'm not saying all women are going to lead you away from the Lord but more often than not, they will pressure you to compromise your faith in the Lord, even Christian ones. Money is the #1 cause of divorce even in Christian marriages and it is often the woman who initiates the divorce.

So there you have it.

Is it money... Or the love of money? 1 Timothy 6:10

 

[Bob Crowley]

Assuming the story of Job was a real event (and I don't think it was, otherwise you've got a critically ill man sitting in an ash heap debating poetically with his friends in verse after verse), then I would suggest that as far as God was concerned Job's wife was off limits.

He'd already given Satan plenty of leeway and enough was enough.

In a similar way Christ's mother Mary is off limits. That's why Catholic exorcists often call on Mary during exorcisms, and apparently she is the one person the demons never insult.

Pedro Barrajon, Paul Badde: Hell is a state (28/12/2005) - signandsight

At the end, the priest says to the demon, "Go away! Disappear!" The demon usually answers, "No, I don't want to." It rebels and revolts. Sometimes it says "You have no power over me. You are nothing to me." But after a while, its resistance weakens. This usually happens after the invocation of the Holy Mother, she's very important for that. No demon ever dares to insult her during an exorcism. Never.

Does he have more respect for Mary than for God himself?

Apparently. Otherwise no holds are barred, and everyone is insulted: the priests, everyone present, the bishops, the Pope, even Jesus Christ. But never the Virgin Mary. It's an enigma.

 

[CoreyD]

Assuming the story of Job was a real event (and I don't think it was, otherwise you've got a critically ill man sitting in an ash heap debating poetically with his friends in verse after verse), then I would suggest that as far as God was concerned Job's wife was off limits.

Jesus did not think Job was fiction.
So, unless we are willing to think of Jesus as a myth, we had better accept Job's account as historically factual.
Actually, we would be calling God a liar, if we don't think the account of job was a real event.

 

[Bob Crowley]

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops didn't think it had to be taken literally.

Job, THE BOOK OF JOB

Daily Bible Readings, Podcast Audio and Videos and Prayers brought to you by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

bible.usccb.org

THE BOOK OF JOB​

The Book of Job, named after its protagonist (apparently not an Israelite; cf. Ez 14:14, 20), is an exquisite dramatic treatment of the problem of the suffering of the innocent. The contents of the book, together with its artistic structure and elegant style, place it among the literary masterpieces of all time. This is a literary composition, and not a transcript of historical events and conversations.

If it was a transcript of 40 chapters of conversations, including poetry, someone would have been very busy with their papyrus and stylus. Moreover the scribe would have had to know in advance this was going to be a very long winded conversation that would be worth recording.

The scribe would have had to be able to eavescrop on God and the Devil talking on not one, but two separate occasions. Then God would have to speak out of the storm for an extended period, which is unique in history.

There also appears to be a time gap between the prose and poetry sections, with other chapters possibly added later.

The Book of Job | Biblical Text and Themes | Britannica

The Book of Job is a work of Hebrew scripture that is often counted among the masterpieces of world literature. The book’s theme is the eternal problem of unmerited suffering, and it is named after its central character, Job, who attempts to understand the sufferings that engulf him.

www.britannica.com

The prose narratives date to before the 6th century BCE, and the poetry has been dated between the 6th and the 4th century BCE. Chapters 28 and 32–37 were probably later additions.

I'll take it as a literary device on the topic of suffering, most likely written sometime between 600 and 400 BC.

 

[CoreyD]

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops didn't think it had to be taken literally.

Job, THE BOOK OF JOB

Daily Bible Readings, Podcast Audio and Videos and Prayers brought to you by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

bible.usccb.org

If it was a transcript of 40 chapters of conversations, including poetry, someone would have been very busy with their papyrus and stylus. Moreover the scribe would have had to know in advance this was going to be a very long winded conversation that would be worth recording.

Then God would have to speak out of the storm for an extended period, which is unique in history.

There also appears to be a time gap between the prose and poetry sections, with other chapters possibly added later.

The Book of Job | Biblical Text and Themes | Britannica

The Book of Job is a work of Hebrew scripture that is often counted among the masterpieces of world literature. The book’s theme is the eternal problem of unmerited suffering, and it is named after its central character, Job, who attempts to understand the sufferings that engulf him.

www.britannica.com

I'll take it as a literary device on the topic of suffering, most likely written sometime between 600 and 400 BC.

This isn't a case of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops thinking over God's and Christ's I hope.

Too often there are people who tend to think that their view is somehow more important than God's.
I understand the reason for that is because they see the Bible - not as a living book, but simply a piece of literature, that cannot speak, and so, they take it upon themselves to do the speaking for it.

That's the purpose for my creating the thread "Who decides - God, or Us?"
What it does, is manifests if we really trust the book we hold in our hands, and profess, how much we love Christ, and live by what he said.

What do you think about what James said?
James 5:11
Behold, we count blessed those having persevered. You have heard of the perseverance of Job, and you have seen the outcome from the Lord, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.

Was the apostle relating to a fairy tale, to boost confidence in God's compassion and mercy?
Would reading "Hey Diddle Diddle" give anyone confidence that a cow can jump over the moon, and our dish could run away with the spoon?

Do we trust God's word 2 Timothy 3:16, 17; Hebrews 4:12, or is secular authority where we put our confidence?

 

[ViaCrucis]

Jesus did not think Job was fiction.

Where does the Lord say "Job was a real historical person"? Because that isn't something I recall the Lord ever saying in any of the Gospels.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[ViaCrucis]

What do you think about what James said?
James 5:11
Behold, we count blessed those having persevered. You have heard of the perseverance of Job, and you have seen the outcome from the Lord, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.

Was the apostle relating to a fairy tale, to boost confidence in God's compassion and mercy?

I think it is strange that you make the leap from "not historical" to "fairy tale." Presumably if those are the only two options available, then you are calling the Lord's parables "fairy tales".

Or, perhaps, you'd like to walk back on that bit of hyperbole.

Now about St. James' use of Job. James' readers were familiar with Job's story as contained in the book of Job. That's why James could say "you have heard of the perseverance of Job". James refers to Job for the sake of his readers. The point is the same whether Job was an historical person, or not. It's a non-issue in James 5:11.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[CoreyD]

Where does the Lord say "Job was a real historical person"? Because that isn't something I recall the Lord ever saying in any of the Gospels.

-CryptoLutheran

Did you read the scriptures in the link?

I think it is strange that you make the leap from "not historical" to "fairy tale." Presumably if those are the only two options available, then you are calling the Lord's parables "fairy tales".

Or, perhaps, you'd like to walk back on that bit of hyperbole.

Now about St. James' use of Job. James' readers were familiar with Job's story as contained in the book of Job. That's why James could say "you have heard of the perseverance of Job". James refers to Job for the sake of his readers. The point is the same whether Job was an historical person, or not. It's a non-issue in James 5:11.

-CryptoLutheran

So, I am telling you about God's compassion, and mercy, and i refer to a fictional story.
Woul you rely on Superman, and Batman movies to be sure of superhuman power, or an actual reality?

 

[ViaCrucis]

Did you read the scriptures in the link?


So, I am telling you about God's compassion, and mercy, and i refer to a fictional story.
Woul you rely on Superman, and Batman movies to be sure of superhuman power, or an actual reality?

I've had a lot of pastors use well known references to make points, to fictional characters, movies, television shows.

Of course, the difference between the book of Job and, say, a Batman movie is that Job is Holy Scripture. But in terms of whether or not a story or figure is literally real or not is, in either case, beside the point--if the point is make a reference to speak on a particular issue.

St. Paul quoted a Greek poet, whose poem was a praise of the false god Zeus, to communicate truth about the real God.

Acts 17:28
"For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring."

The poet Paul is talking about is Epimenides of Crete,

"They fashioned a tomb for you, holy and high one,
Cretans, always liars, evil beasts, idle bellies.
But you are not dead: you live and abide forever,
For in you we live and move and have our being."
-Epimenidies of Crete, Cretica

The words are addressed to Zeus by the mythological King Minos.

Should Paul's use of the Cretica mean Paul believed that King Minos was a real historical figure? That Zeus was a real god deserving of worship?

Or is Paul using the Cretica to make a point, a different point, one that doesn't require either Zeus or Minos to be real.

Now, you might want to counter that the Cretica is not inspired, it is not Scripture. That's true--but it also doesn't change anything about my argument.

People make references. It's something human beings have always done--biblical authors do it, the Apostles did it, the Lord Jesus Himself did it. We cannot make conclusions that Jesus or the Apostles believed (e.g.) Job was a real historical person simply because a reference is made. That is not a reasonable conclusion to draw based on that data alone.

-CryptoLutheran