1. 「 約伯記」 研讀入門 [II] Barbara Leung Lai SCBC Adult Sunday School June 12, 2011 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job?” (1:8) 「

2. A.An Overview (1) 再 思 「 約 伯 記 」 為 ‘open book’ 之 觀 念 “ Diagram C” (2) A ‘polyphonic text’ 多重声音 ‘Voice and ideology’ (Narrator, Job, Job’s wife, 3-friends, Elihu, God) (3) Currents in Job Studies Old School: Hartley (NICOT)—The asking of standard critical questions New School: Clines (WC); Habel (OTL)—literary, role of readers in meaning-making, authenticate perspectival readings

3. Diagram (A): A Text-anchored and Reader-oriented Model Leung Lai 聖經詮釋相互动力 The text imposes intrinsic textual constraints upon the reader The reader brings extrinsic Contextual constraints to the text ( III ) The Dynamics of the Reading Process (The Merging of the Two Horizons) ( I ) ( II ) Text / Bible Reader/Interpreter Tension (Text-centered and Reader-oriented)

4. READER The Horizon of the Reader BIBLICAL TEXT The Horizon of the Text Starting Point Faith Seeking Understanding 以信寻知 THE HERMENEUTICAL SPIRAL (The Merging of the 2-Horizons)

5. B. Approaching Job: Interpretive Issues (1) The Crux: Job 1:8 & 42:6  Who initiated Job’s ordeal? (1:8)  Did Job commit any sin? (42:6) (2) Literary Features: “Meaning through genre/form”  Formal: Narrative, narrator’s comments (1:22; 2:10)  Plot Features: The cycle of speeches by Job’s 3- friends and Job’s answers (chs. 4-31); the role of Elihu’s speech (chs. 32-36); God-Talk (chs. 38-41); Job’s reply (42:1-6) 声音與代表的理念  Rhetorical Features: Forensic language (38-42:6); disputation speeches; rhetorical questions ( 38-39)

6. Approaching Job: Interpretive Issues (Cont’d) (3) Individual units as literary clues  Prologue (1-2) 前 言 : The Narrator’s comments (1:21; 2:10)  Job’s first (3) & second (29-31) lament 申訴 What is the place of Job`s monologue? 自白  The cycles of Speech & Job’s reply (4-27) 说話與回答  The function of the Elihu Speech (33-37): medicinal (what are the ingredients?) 33:16-22; 36:9-12 以利户言 詞之意義 ?  The Divine Speech/God Talk (38-41): A silent God or a ‘speaking God’? 神的說話  Job’s reply (42:1-6): Was Job guilty?  Epilogue 結 語 : affirms the two-way doctrine or denies it? 42:8-16

7. C. Reading Strategies (Meaning through Genre) Literary form: There is no ‘single’ classification appropriate to the lit. form of the book. (1) Narrative (the presentation of a difficult case) 用敘 事文体帶出一个高难度的真实故事 (2) Job as ‘parody’ 吊軌 / 反含 the deliberate contradictory final form of the Book (3) A paradigm (dramatization) of the answered lament 一個蒙應允的申訴典模 (4) A Self-deconstructing artefact 解構文學 (5) A Judicial Process (Genre: Disputation Speeches: 訴訟过程 )—I.e. 經文意義以文體為主導 (6) A Comedy 喜劇收場

8. Diagram “B” Two-fold Hermeneutical Framework: God reaching-out/speaking to Humanity & Humanity reaching-out/speaking to God A New Dimension of God’s Revelation to Humanity 天路歷程、真实寫照 GOD HUMANITY UNIVERSEBIBLE Human Response Special Revelation God Reveals Himself through the history of humankind Human Experience under the sun Rm 1:20 Natural Revelation (Prov 6:6-8; 10:29; 30:18-32; 4:3-9; 7:6;11:24; 17:27-28; 18:16; Eccles, Job, Ps 73) Job, Eccles, Psalms (Laments, praises, petitions) 2 Tim 3:16 N.B. This diagram illustrates the `essence’ and `combination’ of Theocentric and Anthropocentric Leung Lai Faith Seeking Understanding 以信尋知

9. Reading Strategies (Cont’d) (7) Character Formation (Brown) Trajectory: Formation  de-formation  Re-formation (8) Recommended Approach (Leung Lai)—Job the Steadfast 堅忍 D. Purpose of the Book (1) To show the ‘inadequacy’ of the traditional theory of the 2-way doctrine (controvert the 2-way doctrine) (2) The sages found the optimism of Proverbs (3:33) to be an oversimplification. The doctrine of the 2-way needed to be confronted with a ‘difficult case’ (i.e. Job). (3) Multi-voiced 多重声音, multi-genres 多樣 文体 and therefore plurality and diversity of meaning-significance 多重意義

10. 約伯記詮釋 [I]-- 前言 (1-2) 與結語 (42:7-17) A.Prologue 前言 (1-2) (1) Genre: 敘事 Narrative Narrator’s comments (1:22; 2:10) (2) Dramatic 富戲劇性的旁述 (1:19-19) (3) 受試煉的目的 Job is the only one left in the dark (1:6-12; 2:1-7) 神定界限 (4) 2:9-10 & v. 13 的意義 (esp. 2:13) B.Epilogue 結語 (42:7-17) (1) The Transition between 42:6 & 7 意義何在 ? (2) 42: 7-17 描繪一副怎樣的图劃 ? (esp. 10, 12, 15, 16-17) C.Did Job Commit any sin? Did he suffer as an innocent man? 約伯究竟有沒有犯罪 ?