The Devil’s Dictionary

Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold firm your integrity? Curse God and die!”  Job 2:9  NASB

Curse – As we discovered in verse 5, the accuser twists the meaning of the Hebrew bārak to imply that Job will blaspheme God once his flesh is attached.  Translators typically render this verse as “he will curse” because of the context.  Exactly the same twisted definition happens here.  In Hebrew, Job’s wife says:

בָּרֵ֥ךְ אֱלֹהִ֖ים

Chabad translates this as “blaspheme God.”  But this translation is contextual.  The literal meaning is “bless God.”  It’s the Devil’s dictionary that reverses the literal meaning.  That introduces an interesting implication.  What matters here is not the actual meaning of the word but rather the intended meaning.  We must ask if the same isn’t true of our own religious dictionaries.  How often do we use spiritual vocabulary in ways that actually distort their real meanings because we have another agenda in mind?  I would also point out that these reversals are sometimes unconscious.  For example, we often speak of “worship” when, in fact, we don’t mean anything like the commanded rituals of the Bible.  We mean something entirely contextual, that is, “worship” according to our way of thinking.  We might draw similar conclusions about crucial words like “forgiveness,” or “sin,” or “commandment.”  It seems that most of the time we ignore that literal (and textual) meaning of these terms and opt for contemporary twists claiming, of course, that we are practicing biblical faith.  In fact, we are often practicing a faith that has been disconnected from its biblical foundation centuries ago.

Consider who makes this remark to Job.  Isn’t his wife echoing haśśāṭān?  Perhaps she was frustrated by Job’s insistent righteousness.  Certainly she is traumatized.  She has also lost all her possessions, all her children!  And her husband insists that he has done nothing wrong.  Any wife would find this the epitome of hubris.  But she isn’t just any wife.  She is married to the perfect man.  What has happened to her role as ‘ezer kenegdo?  Where is her undying support for her husband?  Where is her trust in God?  Her remark seems to be the final blow to Job.  His “soul-mate” has also abandoned him, questioning his integrity, pressuring him to deny his faith.  There could hardly be a more personal attack.  haśśāṭān has accomplished this blow without lifting another finger.  All that was necessary was to strip her of what mattered most and her spiritual foundation crumbled, for we discover in her remark that what mattered most is not her husband but her circumstances.  Perhaps the Devil’s dictionary has also twisted the meaning of Genesis 2:18.  The twisted plot has enveloped Job’s supposedly closest ally.  Even she pleads for Job to accept the definition of the devil’s dictionary.

What do we learn?  On the surface we discover how easily trauma destroys faith.  We can understand why Job’s wife expresses her sarcasm.  We might do the same.  But below the surface we find a calamity of role disintegration.  The ‘ezer kenegdo is the one who is designed to have a built-in radar for the divine.  She is to guide, encourage, and nourish her husband’s spiritual awareness.  By abdicating that responsibility, she voices the devil’s deception.  She destroys the intended relationship management task she was given in creation.  It is but a very short step to blasphemy.  Perhaps we empathize with her situation, but if we fall prey to the ploy of doubting the sovereignty of God, we damage more than ourselves.  Sarcasm is a devilish tool.

Topical Index: ezer kenegdo, bārak, bless, curse, Job 2:9