Creation, Evil, and a Man Named Job

The Book of Job remains an enigma for many Christians. Beyond this, it has been misused as a text for protest atheism and as a pretext for much theological mischief. Robert S. Fyall offers a virtually unprecedented approach to Job in Now My Eyes Have Seen You: Images of Creation and Evil in the Book of Job [Apollos/InterVarsity Press].

Fyall does what so many other commentators and students of Job fail to do — he combines careful exegesis with faithful theology. Fyall is a professor of Old Testament at the University of Durham and a Church of Scotland minister. He looks closely at the literary imagery within the text of Job and offers keen insights.

Now My Eyes Have Seen You is released in the “New Studies in Biblical Theology” series edited by D. A. Carson. The entire series is worthy of careful attention. I have found very few satisfactory books on Job. This one moves quickly into the top ranks.

Fyall writes:

Reading and studying Job can be an alarming and unpredictable experience. Many apparent certainties disappear and familiar landmarks seem few and far between. Yet to glimpse even a little of this book’s awesome picture of God’s providence, expressed in glorious and richly resonant language, is to undergo both a chastening and healing experience. To listen to this book is to listen to the Master’s voice.