Job 27 and book of job

The literary conundrum described in the last mini-essay resists easy solution. My approach is to retain the order and attribution to speakers as in the Masoretic text, the "official" text which has come down to us. This approach, then, has Job interrupt Bildad after 25:6 and then speak all of chapters 26 and 27. What meaning may we extract from this textual or literary decisions? Three things come to mind.

Job's Tone in 26-27

How does Job speak the his words in these chapters? Few ask the question. I think he finally utilizes the tone of mockery which he accuses his friends of using toward him (Earlier Job says, "Bear with me, and I will speak; then after I have spoken, mock on"--21:3). Job characterizes (or caricatures) the growing monotony and predictability of his friends' comments as mockery. What is to prevent him from doing the same? Thus, I see him speaking words that would normally might be spoken by Bildad in 26:5-14 and by Zophar in 27:13-23 in a mocking tone, something like, 'Here is just what you guys would say.' In this way we have preserved the literary integrity of the Masoretic text while explaining why Job says things not compatible with his developing theology.

Job's Retreat into the Self

A second thing this indicates is that Job's interruption of Bildad in 26:1 is meant not simply as an interruption but as a silencing of the friends. He has heard enough. The only words he needs to speak or hear now are his own words. The friends have so thoroughly debased human communication and so infuriated Job that he knows they have nothing more to say. The next few chapters (29-31), Job's last words, are words of most fierce personal scrutiny and self-justification. He needs to hear from no one else as he prepares for his peroration.

Seeking Wisdom

By the time we arrive at the the end of Job 27, the reader is left with a conundrum. How can this problem ever be resolved? Is there any resolution or is there just silencing, mockery and self-justification? The text itself cries out for help. And, in Job 28, wisdom will make a grand entrance and deliver its advice. At the end of Job 27 we face a crisis of meaning and wisdom. Will Job 28 rescue us? After one more essay on Job 25-27, we will consider wisdom.

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