When Did “Job” Live?
Bodie
Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI
Biblical
Authority Ministries, February 15, 2025 (Donate)
I
have engaged in debates off and on over this subject for years. It is nice to
pool some of that information into a single article. It all began when one of
my former colleagues was drawn into a friendly debate over the dating of the
Book of Job. As we discussed the issue, we realized that this debate is much
deeper than we initially thought—and for good reason.
In Abraham’s Time?
For
reference, I had always been in the camp that considered Job to be the most
ancient book, written around the time of Abraham (~2000 BC) or even earlier.
That was what I had been taught, and I had little reason to question it. It
also seemed logical (more on this in a moment).
The
Bible does not provide a clear date for the Book of Job or its events. However,
a quick search reveals that many scholars affirm the antiquity of this book.
Why
place Job in the “days of Abraham”? The primary reason for this dating is Job's
great age (140 years, Job 42:16), which is comparable to that of Abraham or
slightly less. By comparing ages that declined post-Flood, Job's lifespan
appears to align with Abraham's era. See the following chart:
As
a point of note, this genealogy is one lineage that God has revealed to us.
However, we do not know how ages declined in other lineages. Did Japheth's or
Ham's descendants experience a more gradual or rapid decline in lifespan? Did
others in Shem's line age differently? We simply do not know. Since we do not
know Job's lineage, the argument that "Job's age being similar to
Abraham's suggests they lived at the same time" may not be as strong as it
seems.Additionally,
there is no mention of the Israelite Law or the covenant with Moses. But is
this a valid argument for antiquity, considering that Job did not live in
Israel? Other arguments supporting an early date include:
- The
family unit being patriarchal.
- The
Chaldeans being nomadic.
- Job
offering sacrifices in a priestly fashion.
The
problem with these arguments is that the patriarchal family structure is still
considered ideal today, even in our marriage-fractured world. Nomadic Chaldeans
still exist today, and sacrifices have been performed from Genesis 3 through to
the present by certain groups. However, with Jesus Christ as the ultimate
sacrifice, that need has been fulfilled. These factors alone do not prove
antiquity.
Another
argument is that Job lived in the Land of Uz. According to the Table of Nations
in Genesis 10, Uz was an early descendant of Shem. This early nation began long
ago, so it makes sense that Job could have lived in a land named after this
patriarch. Job was described as the greatest of the Peoples of the East,
meaning he lived east of Israel. But was this the Uz from Genesis 10? Let’s
investigate further.
The Land Of Uz
Many
scholars place the Land of Uz in Arabia or east of the Sea of Galilee in
Bashan. Others place it slightly south of Bashan in Edom. Attacks by the
Sabeans and Chaldeans (Job 1:15-17) provide little precise information on its exact
location.
The
Chaldeans (from the southeastern Fertile Crescent, per Genesis 11:28-31) and
Sabeans (descendants of Sheba, presumably a descendant of Raamah in Arabia)
were known for attacking various locations in the Middle East. However,
conflict in this volatile region was and remains common even today.
Nevertheless,
expositor Matthew Henry places the Land of Uz in Arabia:
“The country he lived in was the
land of Uz, in the eastern part of Arabia, which lay towards Chaldea, near
Euphrates, probably not far from Ur of the Chaldees, whence Abraham was called.
When God called one good man out of that country, yet he left not himself
without witness, but raised up another in it to be a preacher of
righteousness.”
The
problem with this is that the Jordan River is mentioned as being where Job was
at (Job 40:15-23). This was nowhere near the Euphrates River or the Arabian Uz.
So, what gives? Did you know there was another Uz in the Bible?
Dr.
John Gill clarifies when he wrote:
“The place where he dwelt had its
name not from Uz, a descendant of Shem, #Ge 10:23 but from Uz, a son of Nahor,
brother to Abraham, #Ge 22:21 unless it can be thought to be so called from Uz,
of the children of Seir, in the land of Edom; since we read of the land of Uz
along with Edom, or rather of Edom as in the land of Uz, or on the borders of
it, #Lam 4:21, the Targum calls it the land of Armenia, but rather it is
Arabia; and very probably it was one of the Arabias Job lived in, either
Petraea or Deserta, probably the latter; of which Uz or Ausitis, as the
Septuagint and Vulgate Latin version read it, was a part; the same with the
Aesitae of Ptolemy {u}; and it is said to be near the land of Canaan {w},
for in Arabia Felix the Sabeans lived; and certain it is that this country was
near to the Sabeans and Chaldeans, and to the land of Edom, from whence Eliphaz
the Temanite came: and as this very probably was a wicked and an idolatrous
place, it was an instance of the distinguishing grace of God, to call Job by
his grace in the land of Uz, as it was to call Abraham in Ur of the Chaldeans;
and though it might be distressing and afflicting to the good man to live in
such a country, as it was to Lot to live in Sodom, yet it was an honour to him,
or rather it was to the glory of the grace of God that he was religious here,
and continued to be so.”
Gill
points out that Uz is not to be
reckoned as the Land from Uz in Genesis 10:23, but a later Uz associated with
Edom and even recognizes the relationship between Teman and Edom. One of Job’s
friends was Eliphaz the Temanite.
If
you remember, Edom is Esau (Abraham’s grandson and twin of Jacob). One
of Esau/Edom’s grandsons was Teman (through Eliphaz; Genesis 36:11, 15, 42);
and the Temanites were Teman’s descendants.
Esau
was born much later than Abraham being his grandson and Teman was his great, great
grandson. Here is a visual to help you understand who Teman and his descendants
(Temanites) are located in relation to Abraham.
With
this in mind, perhaps it is time to take a closer look at the book of Job itself
for clues as to its date.
Job’s Internal Clues
Another
popular place to put Job is in the time of the Judges (approximately 1420-1117 BC) for various internal textual
reasons from the book of Job itself. Any argument from the internal text of
Scripture trumps external evidence as God is His own authority. Some key
internal arguments include:
1.
Romans 2:28-3:2: The Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God.
Since Job is preserved in written form, it is likely written by an Israelite,
which means it must postdate Abraham. It is possible that it is completely
“past prophetic”. Even so, the book of Job doesn’t give clues to such.
2.
Genesis 36:19-28 Another Uz is mentioned, a descendant of Esau,
whose land is referenced in Lamentations 4:21 and is near the Jordan River (Job
40:23).
3.
The land of Teman was also a region within Edom (e.g., Obadiah
1:9, Ezekiel 25:13, Jeremiah 49:20). And one of Job’s three friends was Eliphaz
the Temanite (e.g., Job 2:11). Interestingly, Teman was a descendant of Eliphaz
the son of Esau (Genesis 36:11, 15, 42). It’s reasonable that Eliphaz the
Temanite was named for his ancestor. Temanites would be prominent during the time of the Judges.
4.
Another of Job’s three friends was a descendant of Naaman being
Zophar the Naamathite. The most
likely candidate is Naaman who was a descendant of Benjamin (Genesis 46:21),
who lived just opposite of the Jordan River near Gad and Reuben which was on
the east side of the Jordan River, which is just north of Moab and Edom.
5.
Shuah is the father of the Shuhites. Shuah was one of Abraham’s
sons with Keturah (after Sarah died). His descendants dwelt east of the
Israelites (Genesis 25:6). Bildad the Shuhite, another of Job’s friends, was
likely a descendant of Abraham through Shuah; and the Shuhites would be prominent during the time of the Judges. Expositor Dr. John Gill says in
his commentary notes of Genesis 25:2 in the 1700s: “The name of Shuah or Shuach
may be traced in Socacia, Soaca, and Socheher, cities placed by Ptolemy in
Arabia Felix: though some think the posterity of this man are those whom the
geographers call Sauchites, Sauchaeans, and Saccaeans, who settled in Arabia
Deserta, and from whom Bildad the Shuhite, #Job 2:11, descended; which is not
improbable.”
6.
The Jordan River is mentioned to Job in Job 40:23 when discussing
the behemoth which has no fear in entering the Jordan when it is flooding. Therefore,
Job lived near the Jordan River, since God pointed out to Job that the behemoth
was made along with you and gets its food in the mountains and fields
(which are in that region by the way, verse 20). This is clearly not some
remote desert region in Arabia as some commentators have mentioned but due east
of the Jordan River which essentially runs North-South (for more on this see
the next point).
7.
Job is seen as the greatest of the People of the East in Job 1:3. This was a region eastward of Israel beyond the Jordan
River where Abraham sent his sons with Keturah with gifts (Genesis 25:6). Two of Israel’s tribes were on the east side of the Jordan—Gad and
Reuben. This also means that the focal point of God making this declaration was
amidst the people of the west side of the river. But who were they? There were
Canaanites living there at one point, then Israelites later. Since when were
Canaanites the focal point in the Old Testament, except when the Israelites
with Joshua were to judge them for their sin. It wasn’t until after the
Israelites were in the land that there a focus on a godly group of people on
that side of the river. The time of the Judges makes more sense as there would
be God’s chosen people on the west side of the Jordan. The King James Version
of 1611 even places Job as post-Abraham in the time of Judges. They even go so
far as to place Job in the lineage of Abraham (through Midian who was another son
to Abraham with Keturah). The KJV 1611 editors also mention that since Abraham
sent his sons with Keturah to the east of the promised line of the seed
(Isaac), that being called the “greatest of all the peoples of the East (Job
1:3)” would place Job in the lineage of Abraham with these other sons.[4]
8.
Regarding Job great age, God doubled everything that Job had
(e.g., 14 thousand sheep instead of previously 7,000 per Job 1:3, 42:12, seven
more sons to go with his previous seven sons per Job 1:2, 42:13). And in the
context of this doubling it says that Job lived 140 years and saw his
grandchildren for four generations! If everyone around him was living to this
same great age, where is the blessing and why is it even worth mentioning? It
makes sense that Job’s great age was also due to a generous doubling on the
part of God.
9.
Some have argued that having such quantities of livestock are the
ancient means of wealth and so Job must be living near the time of Abraham
(Abraham, Lot, and Jacob had large flocks). They neglect that throughout the
Bible livestock was still a means of wealth and that even carries over to
today’s farmers. Much livestock is a sign of more wealth that can easily be
liquidated and bankers recognize this.
10.
The family of Ram is mentioned in Job 32:2. Ram is the descendant
of Judah through Hezron (1 Chronicles 2:9, Ruth 4:19). Ram is the direct
ancestor of David back to Judah (1 Chronicles 2:9-15). Ram also had a nephew
named after him in 1 Chronicles 2:25 too. There were at least 4 generations
from Ram to Job (see Job 32:2 of at least four, Elihu at the time of Job,
Barachel, Buza (?) and Ram). There were seven generations between Ram and David
(David, Jesse, Obed, Boaz, Salma, Nahshon, Amminadab, Ram), who was the second
king of Israel following Saul. Wherefore, it would be reasonable to place Job
in the time of the Judges.
11.
Job 1:8 and Job 2:3 also indicate that Job was upright, blameless,
shunned evil, and feared God and with this came the declaration that “there
were none on the earth like him.” If he lived at the time of Abraham, then was
Abraham not these things? Nor the godly priest Melchizedek? However, during the
time of the Judges, there were often times where there were no “stand out”
Israelites. Ussher placed Job between Joseph and Moses and this is likely in part,
for this very reason—which is possible as well, but I do think a stronger case
is to be made in the time of the Judges.
12.
One might have noticed that there is son named Job who is listed
in Genesis 46:13 as being a child of Issachar. Issachar was one of Jacob’s sons
with Leah. However, this Job and the Job in the book of Job are different
Job’s. As a technical point, they are actually spelt different in Hebrew (יוֹב
Yowb vs אִיּוֹב ‘Iyowb).
13.
As for Sheba (and the attacking Sabeans), there is also another
Sheba! Here is where it gets confusing—both Sheba’s in the Bible have a brother
named Dedan! However, one is a descendant of Raamah (Genesis 10:7) and the
other is a descendant of Jokshan—the son of Abraham with Keturah (Genesis 25:3).
And the descendants of Sheba—the grandson of Abraham—would have been counted as
the “Peoples of the East” living in the local area.
The Timing of the Book of Job
Archbishop
James Ussher places Job at the end of Genesis around the time of the death of Joseph
at 1635 BC.
Ussher points out that most of the Talmudists (the traditions of the fathers)
believed that Job lived at this time and quoted ancient scholar Severus
Sulpicius (*Sulpicius Severus, Sacred
History, l. 1. c. 13. 11:76) to back up this date.
This
would have been prior to the Israelites miraculous exit from Egypt with Moses a
matter of years later. By the time the Israelites were to enter into the land,
the Edomites had already been given a certain amount of Canaanite land as their
possession and were already settled in the land.
The
Lord also did this for Moab, the descendants of Lot (Deuteronomy 2:4-12). Edom
was in the land and settled likely around or even well before the death of
Joseph. So, Ussher’s date would be a possibility. Considering that Moses is
actually classed as the first “judge” this would be placing the timing near in
time to the birth of the first judge.
Of
course, for Job to have contact with a Naamathite and if this was really
someone of the tribe of Benjamin as well as contact with the family of Ram,
perhaps Ussher’s date should be brought into the time of the Judges.
Conclusion
Determining
the date of Job is complex. And though the Bible doesn’t give a clear date,
there are some clues. And there may be more. But at this time, it may be safe
to leave open a couple of options.
While
I once favored an earlier date for Job, my analysis now leans toward the time
of the Judges based on internal textual evidence. Ussher’s dating remains
possible, but a closer look suggests a more likely setting within the era of
the Judges.
