Job (Arabic: أيوب, romanized: Ayūb) is known as a prophet in Islam and is mentioned in the Quran.[1] Job's story in Islam is parallel to the Hebrew Bible's story, although the main emphasis is on Job remaining steadfast to God; there is no mention of Job's discussions with friends in the Qur'anic text, but later Muslim literature states that Job had brothers, who argued with the man about the cause of his affliction. Some Muslim commentators also spoke of Job as being the ancestor of the Romans.[2] Islamic literature also comments on Job's time and place of prophetic ministry, saying that he came after Joseph in the prophetic series and that he preached to his own people rather than being sent to a specified community. Tradition further recounts that Job will be the leader in Heaven of the group of "those who patiently endured".[3]
Ayūb (Job) is first mentioned in the Quran in the following verse:
Indeed, We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], as We revealed to Noah and the prophets after him. And we revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, the Descendants, Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David We gave the book [of Zabur].
The Quran describes Job as a righteous servant of God, who was afflicted by suffering for a lengthy period of time. However, it clearly states that Job never lost faith in God and forever called to God in prayer, asking Him to remove his affliction:
And [mention] Job, when he called to his Lord, "Indeed, adversity has touched me, and you are the Most Merciful of the merciful."
The narrative goes on to state that after many years of suffering, God ordered Job to "Strike with thy foot!".[6] At once, Job struck the ground with his foot and God caused a cool spring of water to gush forth from the Earth, from which Job could replenish himself. The Quran states that it was then that God removed his pain and suffering and He returned Job's family to him, blessed him with many generations of children and granted him great wealth. In addition to the brief descriptions of Job's narrative, the Quran further mentions Job twice in the lists of those whom God had given special guidance, wisdom and inspiration (4:163) and as one of the men who received authority, the gift of prophethood (6:84).
After Satan had given up trying to turn Job away from the Lord, God removed Job's affliction and returned his family to him, doubling them in number. He returned Job's wealth and showered Job with gold. Once Job's wife had seen her husband restored to prosperity and health, she prayed thanks to God but then worried over the oath her husband had taken earlier, in which he had promised to beat her with a hundred strokes. Job was also deeply grieved over the oath he had taken, amidst his suffering. God, however, sent a revelation to Job, which told him to not beat his wife but to gently hit her with a bundle of soft grass.[7]
Qur'anic commentary and Muslim tradition
Ibn Kathir narrates the story in the following manner. Job was a very rich person with much land, and many animals and children — all of which were lost and soon he was struck with skin disease as a test from God. He was afflicted with sores that crawled with worms.[8] He remained steadfast and patient, so God eventually relieved him of the disease.[9]
Job's lineage was an important field of study for many of the early Islamic scholars. A prevalent belief among early commentators was that Job descended from the line of Esau, the son of Ishaq. Although various commentators gave different genealogies relating to Job, all of them traced his ancestry to Abraham through Isaac's son Esau.[10] Those scholars who traced Job's lineage back to Abraham did so by using the following Qur'anic verse as the basis for their view:
"That was the reasoning about Us which We gave to Abraham (to use) against his people. We raise whom We will in degree, for thy Lord is full of wisdom and knowledge. We bestowed upon him [Abraham] Isaac and Jacob, all (three) We guided; and before him We guided Noah and among his progeny David, Solomon, Job, Joseph, Moses, and Aaron. Thus do We reward those who do good."[11]
Muslim historical literature fleshes out Job's story and describes him as being a late descendant of the patriarch Noah. Similar to the Hebrew Bible's narrative, Ibn Kathir mentions that Satan heard the angels of God speak of Job as being the most faithful man of his generation. Job, being a chosen prophet of God, would remain committed in daily prayer and would frequently call to God, thanking God for blessing him with abundant wealth and a large family. But Satan planned to turn the God-fearing Job away from God and wanted Job to fall into disbelief and corruption. Therefore, God allowed Satan to afflict Job with distress and intense illness and suffering, as God knew that Job would never turn away from his Lord. Although Job's possessions were destroyed and he suffered many calamities, he remained steadfast in his worship of God and remained committed to his religion. Satan then appeared to Job in the guise of an old man and suggested that God was not rewarding Job for his prayer. Job, however, rebuked Satan and told him that God is all-knowing and does what He thinks is best. It is said that then Satan, having failed at tempting Job, turned to Job's wife, who was also a faithful woman. Satan reminded Job's wife of her life before Job's affliction and how they were abundant in family and fortune. Job's wife, although she did not lose faith, burst into tears and asked Job to tell God to remove this suffering from the household. Job, in his misery, rebuked his wife and told her that this suffering had been for a relatively short period of time and, without thinking, told her that he would beat her with 100 strokes for complaining. After Job was cured, God ordered him to take some grass and to hit her 100 times. By doing this, Job fulfilled his promise to God but didn't hurt her. This Islamic narrative has now become symbolic and is often used by Islamic preachers as a reminder to be kind with wives.[12]
Philip K. Hitti asserted that the subject was an Arab and the setting was Northern Arabia.[13]
The entrance to the cave where Ayyub reportedly went through his ordeal with illness, at Urfa in southeast Turkey
A panoramic view of the Prophet Eyyub Complex
References
^Abdullah Yusuf Ali, The Holy Qur'an: Text, Translation and Commentary, note 2739: "Job (Ayūb) was a prosperous man, with faith in Allah, living somewhere in the north-east corner of Arabia. He suffers from a number of calamities: his cattle are destroyed, his servants slain by the sword, and his family crushed under his roof. But he holds fast to his faith in Allah. As a further calamity he is covered with loathsome sores from head to foot. He loses his peace of mind, and he curses the day he was born. His false friends come and attribute his afflictions to sin. These "Job's comforters" are no comforters at all, and he further loses his balance of mind, but Allah recalls to him all His mercies, and he resumes his humility and gives up self-justification. He is restored to prosperity, with twice as much as he had before; his brethren and friends come back to him; he had a new family of seven sons and three fair daughters. He lived to a good old age, and saw four generations of descendants. All this is recorded in the Book of Job in the Old Testament. Of all the Hebrew writings, the Hebrew of this Book comes nearest to Arabic."
^Brandon M. Wheeler, Historical Dictionary of Prophets in Islam and Judaism, Job, p. 171.
^Ibn Kathir states in Stories of the Prophets: "Ibn Ishaaq stated that he was a man of Rum. His name was Job, son of Mose, son of Razeh, son of Esau, son of Isaac, son of Abraham."
^Ibn Kathir, Stories of the Prophets, The Story of the Prophet Job
^Hitti, Philip K. (1970). History of the Arabs: From the earliest time to the present. London: Macmillan Education LTD, 10th edition. pp. 42-43. ISBN 0-333-06152-7 Internet Archives website
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This article uncritically uses texts from within a religion or faith system without referring to secondary sources that critically analyze them Please help improve this article by adding references to reliable secondary sources with multiple points of view December 2012 Learn how and when to remove this template message Job Arabic أيوب romanized Ayub is known as a prophet in Islam and is mentioned in the Quran 1 Job s story in Islam is parallel to the Hebrew Bible s story although the main emphasis is on Job remaining steadfast to God there is no mention of Job s discussions with friends in the Qur anic text but later Muslim literature states that Job had brothers who argued with the man about the cause of his affliction Some Muslim commentators also spoke of Job as being the ancestor of the Romans 2 Islamic literature also comments on Job s time and place of prophetic ministry saying that he came after Joseph in the prophetic series and that he preached to his own people rather than being sent to a specified community Tradition further recounts that Job will be the leader in Heaven of the group of those who patiently endured 3 ProphetAyubأيوب JobAyub s name in Islamic calligraphyResting place See Associated places Other namesא י ו ב ʾIyyoḇKnown forEnduring severe trials while remaining faithful to AllahPredecessorYusufSuccessorShu ayb Contents 1 In the Quran 2 Qur anic commentary and Muslim tradition 3 Associated places 4 References 5 Bibliography 5 1 Qur an references 5 2 Further readingIn the Quran EditAyub Job is first mentioned in the Quran in the following verse Indeed We have revealed to you O Muhammad as We revealed to Noah and the prophets after him And we revealed to Abraham Ishmael Isaac Jacob the Descendants Jesus Job Jonah Aaron and Solomon and to David We gave the book of Zabur Quran surah 4 An Nisa ayah 163 4 The Quran describes Job as a righteous servant of God who was afflicted by suffering for a lengthy period of time However it clearly states that Job never lost faith in God and forever called to God in prayer asking Him to remove his affliction And mention Job when he called to his Lord Indeed adversity has touched me and you are the Most Merciful of the merciful Quran surah 21 The Prophets ayah 83 5 The narrative goes on to state that after many years of suffering God ordered Job to Strike with thy foot 6 At once Job struck the ground with his foot and God caused a cool spring of water to gush forth from the Earth from which Job could replenish himself The Quran states that it was then that God removed his pain and suffering and He returned Job s family to him blessed him with many generations of children and granted him great wealth In addition to the brief descriptions of Job s narrative the Quran further mentions Job twice in the lists of those whom God had given special guidance wisdom and inspiration 4 163 and as one of the men who received authority the gift of prophethood 6 84 After Satan had given up trying to turn Job away from the Lord God removed Job s affliction and returned his family to him doubling them in number He returned Job s wealth and showered Job with gold Once Job s wife had seen her husband restored to prosperity and health she prayed thanks to God but then worried over the oath her husband had taken earlier in which he had promised to beat her with a hundred strokes Job was also deeply grieved over the oath he had taken amidst his suffering God however sent a revelation to Job which told him to not beat his wife but to gently hit her with a bundle of soft grass 7 Qur anic commentary and Muslim tradition EditIbn Kathir narrates the story in the following manner Job was a very rich person with much land and many animals and children all of which were lost and soon he was struck with skin disease as a test from God He was afflicted with sores that crawled with worms 8 He remained steadfast and patient so God eventually relieved him of the disease 9 Job s lineage was an important field of study for many of the early Islamic scholars A prevalent belief among early commentators was that Job descended from the line of Esau the son of Ishaq Although various commentators gave different genealogies relating to Job all of them traced his ancestry to Abraham through Isaac s son Esau 10 Those scholars who traced Job s lineage back to Abraham did so by using the following Qur anic verse as the basis for their view That was the reasoning about Us which We gave to Abraham to use against his people We raise whom We will in degree for thy Lord is full of wisdom and knowledge We bestowed upon him Abraham Isaac and Jacob all three We guided and before him We guided Noah and among his progeny David Solomon Job Joseph Moses and Aaron Thus do We reward those who do good 11 Muslim historical literature fleshes out Job s story and describes him as being a late descendant of the patriarch Noah Similar to the Hebrew Bible s narrative Ibn Kathir mentions that Satan heard the angels of God speak of Job as being the most faithful man of his generation Job being a chosen prophet of God would remain committed in daily prayer and would frequently call to God thanking God for blessing him with abundant wealth and a large family But Satan planned to turn the God fearing Job away from God and wanted Job to fall into disbelief and corruption Therefore God allowed Satan to afflict Job with distress and intense illness and suffering as God knew that Job would never turn away from his Lord Although Job s possessions were destroyed and he suffered many calamities he remained steadfast in his worship of God and remained committed to his religion Satan then appeared to Job in the guise of an old man and suggested that God was not rewarding Job for his prayer Job however rebuked Satan and told him that God is all knowing and does what He thinks is best It is said that then Satan having failed at tempting Job turned to Job s wife who was also a faithful woman Satan reminded Job s wife of her life before Job s affliction and how they were abundant in family and fortune Job s wife although she did not lose faith burst into tears and asked Job to tell God to remove this suffering from the household Job in his misery rebuked his wife and told her that this suffering had been for a relatively short period of time and without thinking told her that he would beat her with 100 strokes for complaining After Job was cured God ordered him to take some grass and to hit her 100 times By doing this Job fulfilled his promise to God but didn t hurt her This Islamic narrative has now become symbolic and is often used by Islamic preachers as a reminder to be kind with wives 12 Philip K Hitti asserted that the subject was an Arab and the setting was Northern Arabia 13 Associated places Edit Ayyub s claimed shrine in Al Qarah Mountains southern Oman The entrance to the cave where Ayyub reportedly went through his ordeal with illness at Urfa in southeast Turkey A panoramic view of the Prophet Eyyub ComplexReferences Edit Abdullah Yusuf Ali The Holy Qur an Text Translation and Commentary note 2739 Job Ayub was a prosperous man with faith in Allah living somewhere in the north east corner of Arabia He suffers from a number of calamities his cattle are destroyed his servants slain by the sword and his family crushed under his roof But he holds fast to his faith in Allah As a further calamity he is covered with loathsome sores from head to foot He loses his peace of mind and he curses the day he was born His false friends come and attribute his afflictions to sin These Job s comforters are no comforters at all and he further loses his balance of mind but Allah recalls to him all His mercies and he resumes his humility and gives up self justification He is restored to prosperity with twice as much as he had before his brethren and friends come back to him he had a new family of seven sons and three fair daughters He lived to a good old age and saw four generations of descendants All this is recorded in the Book of Job in the Old Testament Of all the Hebrew writings the Hebrew of this Book comes nearest to Arabic Brandon M Wheeler Historical Dictionary of Prophets in Islam and Judaism Job p 171 Encyclopedia of Islam A Jefferey Ayyub Quran 4 163 Quran 21 83 Quran 38 41 Qur an 38 44 Illustrated dictionary of the Muslim world Marshall Cavendish Reference Firm Tarrytown N Y Marshall Cavendish Reference 2011 ISBN 978 0 7614 7929 1 OCLC 535491547 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint others link Ibn Kathir Stories of the Prophet Mansura Dar Al Manarah pp 157 9 ISBN 977 6005 17 9 Ibn Kathir states in Stories of the Prophets Ibn Ishaaq stated that he was a man of Rum His name was Job son of Mose son of Razeh son of Esau son of Isaac son of Abraham Quran 6 83 84 Ibn Kathir Stories of the Prophets The Story of the Prophet Job Hitti Philip K 1970 History of the Arabs From the earliest time to the present London Macmillan Education LTD 10th edition pp 42 43 ISBN 0 333 06152 7 Internet Archives websiteBibliography EditQur an references Edit Job s prophecy 4 163 6 84 Trial and patience 21 83 21 84 38 41 38 42 38 43 38 44Further reading Edit Ibn Kathir Bidaya wa l Nihaya i 220 225 Tafsir on XXI and XXXVII Tabari i 361 364 Thalabi Tales of the Prophets Cairo 1339 106 114 Kisa i Stories of the Prophets 179 190 Ibn Asakir Tarikh al Kabir iii 190 200 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Job in Islam amp oldid 1130227345, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
