Job in the Testament of Abraham

Abstract

Scholarship has not perceived the heavy dependence of the Testament of Abraham upon the Tanakh. Much of the story, especially the first half, borrows phrases from Genesis 12-25, which it replays in creative ways. But the Testament is also greatly indebted to other portions of Scripture. Particularly important is the material borrowed from Job, which in fact creates a Job typology. Taken together, the parallels between Abraham and Job put the Testament in an exegetical tradition, for Jewish sources frequently compare the two figures.