Ralph L Stephenson

Job - The 21st Century Version Ralph L Stephenson

The book of Job is perhaps the most enigmatic book in the whole of the Bible. Commentaries on this book give a very wide range of opinions as to its purpose. Presented herewith is a new look at this very old book, which is an attempt to put the plot into a modern setting. In 1958 a popular play by Archibald MacLeish titled "J. B." was released which I saw when I was a graduate student at the university. The play attempted to put the story in a modern setting for its time, namely the 50's at the height of the cold war. At the end of the play, the actors playing God and Satan were walking off the stage when God says, "See, he was righteous," to which Satan replies, "But he did get his reward," implying that Job was righteous because he was rewarded and thereby Satan was rebutting God.