Storm and the Message of Job

Abstract

The significance of God's responses ‘from the storm’ for the meaning of the book of Job has well been recognized—a fact that is reflected in the use of ‘whirlwind’ and ‘tempest’ in the titles of many studies dealing with Job. But the recurring storm motif itself as a primary subject of study has received scant attention. In examining the relation of the storm to Job (chs. 9; 13; 30), to wisdom (ch. 28), and to God (chs. 38; 40), this study shows how the storm motif, serving as a negative image for Job's experience but a positive portrayal of God's design and control, provides one of the important ways to the understanding of the message of Job.