Introduction to Job

First, we will read the Wikipedia article about Job. Notice that Job is a work of poetry. That tells us that the author (unknown) deliberately crafted this story in a particular way. Poetic language is often highly metaphorical. This is not written as an historical account, but as an object lesson in the sovereignty of Yahweh. The date of the original writing is unknown, but believed to be around the 6th century BCE. The setting and time period of the story appear to be uncertain. Authorship has been traditionally ascribed to Moses, which is impossible. Here we will meet Satan for the first time.