Biblical

Iyov

איוב

The wholehearted man of the land of Utz who lost everything, cried out to Hashem from his pain, and was answered out of the storm.

YahrzeitNot recorded

Lifetime210 years (traditional chronology: 2238–2448 from Creation)

Biography

A Man in the Land of Utz

Iyov zy"a, the tzaddik whose trial and whose faith fill a whole book of Tanach, lived in the land of Utz, in the East. The verse opens his story in a few plain words: there was a man in the land of Utz, and Iyov was his name. Rashi explains that Utz is the land of Aram, and recalls Utz, the firstborn of Nachor, the brother of Avraham. The verse does not name his father or his mother, and the Seder Olam teaches that he was born in the very year that Yaakov and his sons went down to Egypt.

The verse gives him four praises: he was wholehearted and upright, he feared God, and he turned away from evil. Rebbi Yochanan noted that this says more than the Torah says even of Avraham Avinu, of whom Hashem said only, now I know that you fear God.

Hashem blessed him with seven sons and three daughters, seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred she-donkeys, and he was the greatest of all the people of the East. When each round of his children's feasts was over, Iyov would rise early and bring an olah for every one of his children, for perhaps, he thought, they had sinned in their hearts. That was always his way.

Chazal describe how his blessing flowed out to others. When a customer owed him half a peruta, he let it go; whoever took even a peruta from Iyov was blessed; and his flocks were so blessed that his goats overcame the wolves. Rava taught that he would take an orphan's field, work it, improve it and give it back, so that the orphans blessed him for what they had thought was lost. His house, it is told, had a door on every side, so that the poor would always find the way in.

In the Days of Egypt

According to the Seder Olam, Iyov's years were the years of the exile in Egypt. The Gemara teaches that when Pharaoh took counsel about the people of Israel, three men sat in that counsel: Bilam, Iyov and Yisro. Bilam advised Pharaoh to kill the Jewish boys, and in the end he was killed. Yisro fled in protest, and his descendants merited to sit in the Lishkas HaGazis. Iyov kept silent, neither advising nor protesting, and for that silence, the Gemara says, he was judged with suffering.

The Midrash binds his suffering to Israel's redemption. When the accuser rose to speak against Israel in Egypt, Hashem turned him toward Iyov, like a shepherd who saw a wolf coming at his flock and said: throw him one goat, and let him busy himself with it. The Midrash hears this in Iyov's own words: God has handed me over to the wicked.

The Seder Olam counts Iyov among the prophets who spoke to the nations of the world in the years before the Torah was given, together with his friends Eliphaz, Bildad and Tzofar. And the Gemara teaches that Moshe Rabbeinu himself wrote down his story, the book that bears Iyov's name.

The Trial and the Answer from the Storm

The book of Iyov opens in heaven. Hashem said to the Satan: have you seen My servant Iyov? There is none like him on earth. Does Iyov fear God for nothing, the Satan answered; take away what he has, and see. In one day four messengers came, each arriving while the last was still speaking. Raiders from Sheva had taken the oxen and the donkeys; fire from heaven had burned the sheep; the Kasdim had carried off the camels; and a great wind had brought down the house of his eldest son on all ten of his children. Iyov tore his garment, cut his hair and bowed to the ground. Naked I came from my mother's womb, he said, and naked I will return. Hashem gave and Hashem took; blessed be the name of Hashem.

In a second trial he was struck with burning sores from the sole of his foot to the top of his head, and he sat in the ashes, scraping himself with a shard. His wife said: you still hold on to your wholeness? Curse God and die. He answered: shall we accept the good from God and not accept the bad? The verse says that in all this Iyov did not sin with his lips.

His three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Tzofar, came to comfort him. They sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one said a word, for they saw how great his pain was. Then Iyov cried out that he was suffering without cause and asked to stand in judgment with his Maker; his friends insisted that he must have sinned. Rabbah taught that in his pain he even said that Hashem had confused Iyov with oyev, an enemy.

Then Hashem answered Iyov out of the storm: where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Chazal explain the answer. I gave every hair its own root, and every raindrop its own channel; if I do not confuse one hair with another, would I confuse Iyov with oyev? Iyov answered that he had spoken of things beyond him: I had heard of You by the ear, but now my eye has seen You. Hashem told his friends that they had not spoken rightly of Him as His servant Iyov had, and sent them to Iyov to bring offerings, so that he would daven for them. When Iyov prayed for his friends, Hashem restored his fortunes and gave him double all he had had.

His Enduring Legacy

Seven sons and three daughters were born to him again. He named his daughters Yemimah, Ketziah and Keren Hapuch; in all the land no women were as beautiful, and he gave them an inheritance among their brothers. Iyov lived a hundred and forty years after his trial and saw four generations of children and grandchildren, and he passed away old and full of days. The Seder Olam counts the years of his life as two hundred and ten, the years of Israel in Egypt, so that he passed away as Israel went out, in 2448 from Creation (c. 1313 BCE). No yahrzeit or kever is recorded.

Yechezkel HaNavi named him with Noach and Daniel as the three tzaddikim whose righteousness could save their own souls even in a land that had sinned. His book stands among the Kesuvim; the Gemara explains that they do not open with it because we do not begin with suffering.

From his story Chazal drew lessons for every generation. Rava learned that a person is not held to account for what he says in his anguish. The Gemara learned from his prayer that one who prays for a friend, while needing the same thing himself, is answered first.

The Noam Elimelech drew from Hashem's answer about the hairs a lesson on the separation that baseless hatred brings, and the Yismach Yisroel heard in Iyov's words, from my flesh I see God, how pain can bring a person to humility and teshuvah. Whenever Jews suffer and do not understand, they open the book of Iyov, and learn that Hashem watches over every hair.

Stories

Hashem Gave, Hashem Took

In a single day Iyov lost everything he had, and still he bowed to the ground and blessed the name of Hashem.

It is told in the book of Iyov that the angels came to stand before Hashem, and the Satan came among them. Hashem asked him: have you seen My servant Iyov? There is none like him on earth. The Gemara relates that the Satan had just spoken of Avraham Avinu: I have gone through the whole world and found no one as faithful as Avraham, who was promised the whole land and still had to buy a grave for Sarah, and did not complain. Rav Levi taught that the Satan meant it for the sake of Heaven. When he saw Hashem praising Iyov, he feared that Hashem might forget His love for Avraham.

The Satan was given leave. One messenger came: raiders took the oxen. While he was still speaking, another came: fire fell from heaven on the sheep. Then a third: the camels are gone. Then a fourth: a wind struck the four corners of your eldest son's house, and your children are dead.

Iyov rose and tore his garment, and fell to the ground and bowed. Naked I came out of my mother's womb, he said, and naked I will return there. Hashem gave and Hashem took; may the name of Hashem be blessed. In all this, the verse says, Iyov did not sin. The Gemara adds that when Hashem limited the Satan, spare his life, the Satan's own trial was harder than Iyov's, like a servant told to break the barrel but save the wine.

Source: Iyov 1:6–22 and 2:1–6; Gemara, Bava Basra 15b–16a (Talmud Bavli). English: The JPS Tanakh (Gender-Sensitive Edition); The William Davidson Talmud (Koren–Steinsaltz).

Practical lessonBless the giver for the gift

Iyov could say that Hashem had taken because he had always known that Hashem had given. This week, before something is taken from you, practice the first half. Each night, name three things you have today that you did not earn: a child's voice, a working hand, a friend's message. Say quietly after each, Hashem gave. When a loss does come, large or small, you will already know whose gift it was, and the words of blessing will be closer to your lips.

Four Doors

Iyov opened his house to the poor on every side, and was told that true kindness goes out to find them.

It is told that Iyov built his house with four doors, one facing each direction, so that a poor man coming from any side would find a door in front of him and would not have to go around. In those days, when the poor met on the road, one would ask, where are you coming from? From the house of Iyov. And where are you going? To the house of Iyov. Chazal add that he forgave his customers the half-peruta they owed him, and that he would take the fields of orphans, work them and return them improved.

When his great trouble came upon him, Iyov said before Hashem: Master of the world, did I not feed the hungry and give the thirsty to drink? Did I ever eat my bread alone, while the orphan had none? Did I not clothe the naked, and warm them with the fleece of my sheep?

Avos deRabbi Nasan relates the answer he received. Iyov, you have not reached half of the measure of Avraham. You sat in your house and waited for guests to come to you, and you gave each one what he was used to: bread to the one used to bread, meat to the one used to meat. Avraham went out to the roads to find wayfarers and bring them home. To those who had never eaten fine bread or meat or wine, he gave fine bread and meat and wine, and he built large houses along the roads so that whoever came in could eat, drink and bless Hashem.

Source: Avos deRabbi Nasan, ch. 7 (on Avos 1:5); Gemara, Bava Basra 15b–16a (Talmud Bavli); Iyov 31:16–20. English: The Minor Tractates of the Talmud, trans. A. Cohen (Soncino, 1965); The William Davidson Talmud (Koren–Steinsaltz).

Practical lessonGo out to find the guest

Iyov's doors were open, and still he was taught that the higher kindness goes out looking. This week, do not wait to be asked. Think of someone who would never call to ask for help: a new neighbor, a student far from home, an older person who eats alone. Invite them for a Shabbos meal or bring them something, and give a little more than they are used to. Let them feel that they were sought out, not only let in.

Seven Days of Silence

Iyov's friends came from far away to sit with him in silence, and in the end it was Iyov's prayer for them that brought his healing.

It is told that when Iyov's three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Tzofar, heard of all that had come upon him, each left his own place to comfort him. The Gemara relates that they lived three hundred parsaos apart, and yet they came in through one gate at the same moment. How did they know? Chazal relate that each of them had a sign that changed the moment trouble came to one of the others. From them people learned to say: either friends like the friends of Iyov, or death.

When they saw him from afar they did not recognize him, and they wept and tore their garments. Then they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word, for they saw that his pain was very great.

Later they spoke, and spoke hard words, insisting that he must have sinned. Hashem answered Iyov out of the storm, and then turned to Eliphaz: you and your two friends did not speak of Me rightly, as My servant Iyov did. Take offerings, go to My servant Iyov, and let him daven for you. Iyov, sitting in his own pain, prayed for the friends who had wounded him. Only then, the verse says, when he prayed for his friends, did Hashem restore him and give him double. From this the Gemara learned that one who prays for another, while needing the same thing himself, is answered first.

Source: Iyov 2:11–13, 38:1 and 42:7–10; Gemara, Bava Basra 16b and Bava Kamma 92a (Talmud Bavli). English: The JPS Tanakh (Gender-Sensitive Edition); The William Davidson Talmud (Koren–Steinsaltz).

Practical lessonPray first for someone else

Iyov was still in pain when he davened for his friends, and that was the moment his healing began. This week, when you ask Hashem for something you need, a refuah, parnassah, a shidduch, first name one other person who needs the same thing, and ask for them by name in Shemoneh Esrei. And if a friend is suffering, think of the seven silent days: sometimes the kindest thing is to come and sit, and say nothing at all.

Teachings

Every Hair in Its Own Root

Iyov said to Hashem, perhaps You have confused Iyov with oyev, an enemy. Hashem answered him out of the storm, and Chazal explain: I gave every hair its own root, for if two hairs drew from one root they would dim a person's sight; if I do not confuse one hair with another, would I confuse Iyov with oyev? The Noam Elimelech reads this answer as a key to Esav, who is called a hairy man. Each hair stands apart in its own root, and so hair hints at separateness, the baseless hatred of the time of the Second Beis HaMikdash, through which Esav gained his hold over the holy place. So when Yaakov sent his messengers, his holy words, to the land of Se'ir, whose letters spell sa'ir, hairy, he was working through speech to turn harsh judgments into compassion, in the very place whose name hints at the separation that gave Esav his hold.

Noam Elimelech, Bereishis, Vayishlach (on Bereishis 27:11, 32:4 and Iyov 38:1, 38:25; Bava Basra 16a)

Practical lessonClose one gap between people

Hashem keeps every hair in its own place, and still we are not meant to live as separate hairs. Think of one person in your family, shul or workplace with whom things have grown cold, for no reason you could clearly name. This week, take one small step across the gap: greet them first, ask after their family, or send a short message wishing them well. You do not need to settle everything. One warm word begins to undo baseless hatred.

From My Flesh I See God

Iyov said, from my flesh I see God. The Midrash hears these words in the mouth of Avraham Avinu after his bris milah: had I not done this, how would Hashem have revealed Himself to me? The Yismach Yisroel explains that through suffering a person can come to a settled mind. He looks honestly at his own state and his own lowliness, and that is how he comes to see the greatness of the Creator; and the more he sees Hashem's greatness, the more he feels how far he has drifted, and he returns to Hashem with his whole heart. If Iyov could see God through the pains of the body, he adds, how much more can a person see God when he takes to heart the pains and sicknesses of his soul.

Yismach Yisroel, Bereishis, Vayeira (on Iyov 19:26 and Bereishis Rabbah 48:2)

Practical lessonLet the pain point upward

When something hurts this week, a headache, a disappointment, a hard day, give it one minute before you push it away. Ask yourself quietly how small you really are, and how great is the One who holds the whole world. Then say one sentence of teshuvah for something specific you would like to change. Pain does not have to be wasted. Even a small hurt can become the moment you see Hashem a little more clearly.

Not Held to Account in Anguish

Elihu said of Iyov that he spoke without knowledge and his words were without wisdom. Yet at the end of the book, Hashem says to Iyov's friends: you did not speak rightly of Me, as My servant Iyov did. How can both be true? Rava answers with a principle the Gemara records: a person is not held to account at the time of his anguish. Iyov said hard things, things the Gemara does not hide, but he said them from the depths of his suffering, and Hashem did not count them against him. His friends, who spoke calmly and judged him, were the ones sent to ask for his prayer.

Gemara, Bava Basra 16b (on Iyov 34:35 and 42:8)

Practical lessonLet the hard words pass

When someone in pain lashes out at you this week, a sick parent, a worried spouse, a friend after bad news, remember Rava's words: a person is not held to account in his anguish. Do not answer the words; answer the pain. Say something like, this must be so hard for you, and let the rest go. And be careful not to become the friend who judges from comfort. Sit with them first, and speak later.

Seforim

Sefer Iyov: The book of Iyov, one of the Kesuvim, written by Moshe Rabbeinu according to the Gemara (Bava Basra 14b).

Family & talmidim

Children: Seven sons and three daughters, who died in his trial, Seven sons and three daughters born afterward: Yemimah, Ketziah and Keren Hapuch

Historical sources