Enemy Mine
There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job; and that man was blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil. Job 1:1 NASB
Job – Do you know anyone named Job? Ah, I didn’t think so (if you do, you might ask him how he feels about his name). This is a name we tend to stay away from, not because Job is one of the Bible’s righteous exemplars (he even beats out David in that category) but because of all he has to endure simply because he is righteous. Or so it seems.
But the story starts off in the wrong direction, as we have discovered. The verb is wrong, the place name is wrong, the sentence is backward and then we come to this man’s name, a derivative (we think) of a very uncomforting verb, ʾāyab. You see, this verb actually means “to be an enemy.”
The basic meaning of the verb is “to be hostile to,” “to be or treat as an enemy.” This meaning is evident in the only non-participial occurrence of the word, Ex 23:22, where God becomes an enemy to Israel’s enemies. In every other instance the word is used in the participial form ʾōyēb meaning “enemy.”[1]
Job’s name, ʾîyôb, appears to be from this verb, but that seems utterly incomprehensible. How can this man be named an enemy of God when his whole life is devoted to worshipping YHVH? Mccomiskey suggests a rescue:
The etymology of the name Job is uncertain. Some have understood the name to be a derivative of ʾāyab “to be hostile,” the participial form of which is the common word for “enemy.” This supposed derivation would have the literary significance of depicting Job’s adamant attitude in the face of his trials as he refused to accept the suffering imposed on him. If seen as a passive form of ʾāyab the name would connote the concept of “the object of hostility” (BDB) depicting Job as one who suffered at the hand of God. There is little linguistic evidence for these views however.
Another suggestion is that the name derives from the Arabic ʾwb “turn” and connotes the concept of repentance (BDB).
The name has been attested in various forms in several West Semitic texts as a common proper name (KB in loc.) which may mean either “no father” or “where is (my) father?” It is quite possible that the name bears no literary significance and is rather to be seen as the name of an ancient personage whose conduct in trial made him a worthy example of the godly man’s attitude toward suffering.[2]
Do these suggestions help? I’m not sure. I don’t want to go in the direction of “Job’s adamant attitude,” but neither do I want to bleach Job’s refusal to repent. It seems to me that this entire book is about tension, and the tension begins immediately, in the opening verb, the place name and the man’s name. This is an ancient tale of conflict where the reader is never quite sure who really is the enemy. Maybe that’s the point of such a name. Is God a friend or an enemy? How do friends act toward friends (a great part of this story)? Does anyone owe anyone an apology? Are we satisfied with the non-answer God gives? What does it mean “to struggle with God and Man and persevere” (Israel)? We hope ʾîyôb isn’t the answer to that last question, but perhaps it’s a hint. It’s not too far from ʾîyôb to yaʿăqōb. The first principle of the Buddha is “Life is suffering.” Perhaps Job is a Buddhist in disguise.
Topical Index: ʾîyôb, Job, conflict, enemy, Job 1:1
[1] Mccomiskey, T. E. (1999). 78 אָיַב. R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 36). Chicago: Moody Press.
