The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. – Job 42:14

Today’s Scripture Reading (July 1, 2018): Job 42

Oscar Wilde commented that “Women have a much better time than men in this world; there are far more things forbidden to them.” Before we lynch the man in our “Me-Too era,” the nineteenth-century writer made the comment with his tongue firmly implanted in his cheek. The comment is based on the idea that we have the most fun when we do something that is forbidden. And so if we extend that thought to absurdity, women must have much more fun than men, at least in the nineteenth century, because so much more was forbidden to them. But when we read the comment, we need to hear the sarcasm of Wilde. But Wilde was also a product of his century and what they believed to be true about women’s rights, which is far from the ideal that we are hopefully working toward today. Wilde probably would not have understood our modern day gender equality movement. But that nineteenth-century understanding may make Wilde’s sarcastic comment even more notable.

Job was restored. After all of his struggle and loss, life would continue. It would not be the same. The replacement of what the patriarch had lost did not make his loss any less painful. He would mourn the children he had lost for the rest of his life. But he would also experience joy in the family that God had given to him.

As far as the family was concerned, Job had ten children following the disaster: seven sons and three daughters. And all of his children filled Job with parental pride. But we need to remember that both the society in which Job lived, as well as the society for which the story was primarily written, were male-dominated societies. The seven sons were a major blessing. Under an ancient understanding, more daughters than sons might have been considered to be a cultural tragedy that extended the time of tragedy under which Job had already suffered. But that is not the case. Job had seven sons and three daughters; it was a respectable family.

Which maybe makes the next words of the story even more significant. The story does not tell us the names of Job’s sons but does tell us the names of Job’s daughters. Admittedly, all of the names of his daughters reflect the idea of beauty, something that may not be as readily accepted in our contemporary society. Jemimah means “Turtledove” or “Day-bright,” Keziah means “Cinnamon” indicating a fragrant scent that was natural to the girl without the use of perfumes, and Keren-Happuch means “A Jar of Eye Paint” likely indicating that the girl was so beautiful that she did not need any added cosmetics.

But what we should not miss is that we do not know the names of the sons. Here the story of Job elevates his daughters, giving them a priority – and maybe reminding us of the value of both sexes in the eyes of fathers everywhere, and in the eyes of God.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Genesis 11

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