Job previewed Israel's affliction and slavery

Details about Job’s ancestry, Job’s life span, the individuals that sat in front of Job, how old those men were, the connection of Job to that pharaoh, the comparisons of wealth, the notable beauty of his daughters compared, and who wrote the book of Job were presented in the book, Rethinking Chronology From Abraham To Solomon By Applying Unused Texts. This material and the web page "Who are Job's ancestors?" presented Scriptural material that supported the time period of the book Job was about 170 years after Abraham's death and that it occurred before the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt.

At the end of Job when God spoke to him before four other witnesses it was an unusual event. Most of God's communications are through prophets (see: All the “Prophets”). Yet in noting God's direct voice here to Job, audible to four other men, it was a preview of His voice speaking at Mount Sinai to all Israel. In Job God's voice did not terrify him (or the others) for he trusted God implicitly, yet when Israel heard God's voice after the exodus by Mount Sinai they were in terror. God spoke to Job without explanation for his sufferings. Neither did God explain to Moses or Israel why they were afflicted in Egypt by eighty years of slavery.

God used the experience of Job which he shared later with his brethren, which they apparently recorded since this was an unusal event before witnesses, and in turn passed this account to other Israelites (Job 19:23-24; 31:35; 42:11). This ultimately preserved the portion that Job was aware of but it did not explain the converstaions between God and Satan that occurred outside of human experience. The evidence suggests that God used Job to preview the unmerited affliction the Israelites would receive while they remained in Egypt (Gen 15:13-16; Exo 1:8-22). Of course, Job's experience was also a veiled preview of the unmerited sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A little background will help here. Genesis 47:4 had stated the sons of Israel asked Pharaoh to "sojourn" in Egypt. They received his permission and approval.

"The period of the twelve tribes of Israel’s sojourn in Egypt started with pharaoh making an agreement or covenant with Joseph regarding allowing Israel and his descendants to seek protection from the famine and dwell in Egypt (Genesis 45:17-21). The covenant entailed pharaoh providing Goshen as a place to dwell and by extension the provisions and protection of Egypt to maintain their well-being in exchange for Jacob’s sons providing care for pharaoh’s livestock (Genesis 46:33-34; 47:1-11).

"Then Israel’s family began carefully and effectively herding the livestock which provided a necessary service to pharaoh. And the reasoning probably went this way. If Joseph’s service so richly benefitted Potiphar’s household (Genesis 39:5-6), and his greater service blessed Egypt (Genesis 41:41–42:1; 45:4-8), then Jacob’s family in willing service to pharaoh would benefit his household and Egypt, too. This two-way covenant, when broken by a later pharaoh, was part of the basis for the punishments upon Egypt and for Israel receiving the riches of Egypt as unpaid remuneration at their exodus from Egypt (Exodus 11:2-3)."^A

The oppressing pharaoh arose "who knew not Joseph," broke the long-standing covenant with Israel, made his new edict of slavery, and within that year added another edict to kill or cast out the Israelite baby sons into the river (Exo 1:8-22). None of this behavior was justified but the Egyptians were afraid that the free people of Israel might turn against them and enslave Egypt. Remember here that Joseph had provided for the Egyptians who sold themselves as slaves to pharaoh (Gen 47:18-26). But Pharaoh had made an agreement or covenant with Joseph regarding allowing Israel and his descendants to seek protection from the famine and dwell in Egypt. The Israelites were a free people under Joseph's special protection and agreement with pharaoh (Gen 47:1-6, 27).

There the Israelites prospered physically and steadily reproduced. Note Stephen's words in Acts 7:17, "But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt." This population increase was so drastic that Exodus 1:7 said, "And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them. (Exo 1:7-10; Psalm 105:23-25)

This significant population increase of Israelites was quite bothersome to the Egyptians. It was not the Israelite service to pharaoh by tending his livestock (Genesis 46:34), nor their willingness to work (Genesis 47:6), but it was their very real superiority in numbers that was threatening. That new pharaoh summed up the general Egyptian sentiment by saying those Israelites "are more and mightier than we" are (Exodus 1:9). The Israelites had not made any kind of attempt to get control over or assert authority in Egypt. The Israelite family of Jacob had only come there to "sojourn" (Genesis 47:4) to survive the remaining famine during Joseph’s leadership in Egypt (Genesis 47:1-13) but they lingered there. [See: The 450 year period given in Acts 13:17-20]

The statement of the new pharaoh, who was unacquainted with Joseph, the circumstances for entry into Egypt, the earlier covenant of pharaoh, and the manner of life of the Israelite people, was to deal shrewdly against this people.

"Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph. And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we: Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land." (Exo 1:8-10)

Thus the unmerited oppression and affliction of the Israelites began in two stages: one upon them physically, another upon their male offspring. Job already had that same two-step experience in a smaller manner. His livestock, his servants, and his children with their home were taken first. Then his health was stripped away and Job pined in great affliction. (Job 6:2; 10:18; 29:2; 30:16, 27). The Israelites also verbalized their distress.

"And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage. And God heard their groaning ..." (Exo 2:23-24a)

"And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows." (Exo 3:7)

Job as an individual did not have any warning shortly before those two sequential afflictions came upon him. But God did give an early warning of affliction to come against His people by what he had said to Abraham in Genesis 15:13-16, "And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. There were more places where God had spoken about revealing the future to His people.

"Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them." (Isa 42:9)

"I foretold the former things long ago, my mouth announced them and I made them known; then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass. For I knew how stubborn you were; the sinews of your neck were iron, your forehead was bronze. Therefore I told you these things long ago; before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say, 'My idols did them; my wooden image and metal god ordained them.'" (Isa 48:3-5)

"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the “Prophets”." (Amos 3:7)

The book of Job occurred while the Israelites were gaining in population. His two-step experience pointed toward the impending future experience of the Israelites in Egypt. Job had lived seventy more years after his experience in 1604 BC and died at age 140 years, just slightly longer than his uncle Levi (age 137, Ex 6:16) and cousin Amram (age 137, Ex 6:20). He would have died in 1534 BC just seven short years before that oppressing pharaoh arose in 1527 BC. Beginning later in that year the Israelites were decreed as slaves and began the journey of less than eighty-one years of slavery, oppression, and abuse before the Israelite exodus from Egypt in Abib of 1446 BC.^B

Thus the book of Job did not quote or allude to other Scriptures as some theologians and commentators have suggested. But in fact the later Biblical text drew from and expanded upon the prior material carefully recorded in Job. Some of these places are Psa 8:4 cf. Job 7:17-18 and Psa 107:40; Isa 41:20 cf. Job 12:21, 24. And shortly before the Israelite dispersion to Babylon Job's name was used in God's message in Ezekiel 14:14, 20. The same mercy God extended to Job (Jas 5:11) was later extended to the Israelites during the last four plagues upon Egypt and in their deliverance (Exo 8:21-22; 9:3-4; 10:22-23; 11:2-3; 12:35-35; 12:21-23, 26-27; 13:21-22, etc.).