The Protagonist
There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job; and that man was blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil. Job 1:1 NASB
Upright – Now that we have discovered several oddities about the narrator’s introduction of Job, we should be much more sensitive when we read the words describing Job’s character. We found that tām (“blameless”) is not about innocence, but rather about integrity. This word applied to Job seems to stand in contradiction to the same word applied to God. Doesn’t Job’s integrity challenge God’s integrity? Doesn’t Job’s story raise questions about God’s trustworthiness?
Then there’s yāšar. What does it mean to be upright (Hebrew yāšar)? And if yāšar is simply a synonym for tām (they both can mean “blameless”), why repeat it? To answer these questions, we need some etymological background.
The root y-š-r can be translated “be level, straight, (up) right, just, lawful.”[1] Wiseman notes: “Literally. ‘To go straight or direct in the way’ (I Sam 6:12), but more frequently in the intensive (Piel) ‘to make (a way) straight,’ i.e. direct and level and free from obstacles, as when preparing to receive a royal visitor.”[2] When it is used for ethical descriptions, “Uprightness as the manner of life is a characteristic of the blameless (Prov 11:5) and of the man of discernment (Ps 119:128, ‘I have lived uprightly’). Thus the fact that God has made man upright (Eccl 7:29) is probably to be interpreted as granting him the ability to recognize the divine law, rather than some inborn character as honest or straightforward (so neb). It is said of the reckless that his soul is not upright within him (Hab 2:4) and this leads to pride and failure.”[3] These comments help us see why we need both tām and yāšar. The first describes Job’s inner world, his personal integrity. The second describes Job’s outer world, the fact that he does nothing to put obstacles in the way of worship, that he carefully follows all the requirements of his God.
As soon as we recognize the need for both descriptions, we realize that they challenge the divine character of God, for, in fact, it is God who puts countless obstacles in front of Job. Rather than clearing the path for Job’s devotion, God complicates it. In fact, the story implies that God’s permissive will nearly destroys Job. While the narrator claims that Job has personal integrity and outward devotion, the story portrays God as lacking both. The Levitical passage proclaims that God desires His children to be as devoted to Him as He is to them (Leviticus 19:2). Job’s story disputes this devotion. Job’s God is as fickle as any other ancient deity, and just as dangerous. While Job occupies the central place of dialogue in this plot, God is the real protagonist—on trial.
Topical Index: yāšar, upright, Job 1:1
[1] Wiseman, D. J. (1999). 930 יָשַׁר. R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 417). Chicago: Moody Press.
