Aesop’s well-known fable The Tortoise and the Hare is reflected in Job 39:
Both were written in the 6th century BC.
Tag: Job
Today’s reading attests to God’s control of the forces of nature.
For some that is all there is: Spiritual but Not Religious? Please Stop Boring Me.
Zeus in the Bible
When Elihu concludes his speech by describing the creative power of God he borrows extensively from Hellenistic imagery. That is pretty common throughout the Bible. World Literature has always been interconnected across religious and cultural lines.
Judge ye not
Elihu advises Job: “But you are obsessed with the case of the wicked; judgment and justice seize you. 18Beware that wrath does not entice you into scoffing, and do not let the greatness of the ransom turn you aside.”
That advice is also passed on through Jesus: “Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.”
Surely God does not hear an empty cry
Elihu knows: “Surely God does not hear an empty cry, nor does the Almighty regard it.”
He had a good student in rabbi Jesus: “When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. ” (Matthew 6:7-8)