S) "13 He had seven sons and three daughters. 14 He named the first Jemimah, and the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch. 15 In all the land no women were found so fair as Job’s daughters; and their father gave them inheritance among their brothers."
Job 42:13-15 (NASB)
O) The end of Job's story sees him restored and blessed twice as much as he was in the beginning of his life. He went on to live another 140 years after his testing. In some of the brief descriptions of his restored blessings, we find these three verses, describing his daughters. This is notable for a few reasons. First, I noticed that his daughters are named and his sons are not. That alone is interesting on two sides. It was unusual for daughters' names to be recorded, since women were culturally valued less during this time. Then, the fact that the sons' names were omitted adds to the unusual nature of this passage, given the value and prestige associated with male offspring at that time. Then, this peculiarity is taken a further, because Job gave his daughters an inheritance. While the daughters were still objectified on some level (noting their beauty), this is still progressive equality almost 4000 years ago. Context is important to remember when reading the Old Testament. There is a lot recorded in the histories that is not prescriptive text. However, Job's life as a righteous man can be seen with commendation, since God clearly approved of his character in the opening chapters. So, while the Bible does not often show women to be equals with men, because so much of ancient culture did not see them that way, this is another instance where a righteous man treats women with respect, and clearly reveals the heart of God toward the fairer sex.
A) Direct application of this verse is pretty straight forward. I have two daughters and one son, and I must treat them as equals. I don't have much by way of inheritance, but I do have beneficiaries for my life insurance and retirement funds. So, splitting that equally among my kids is pretty easy. But, financial numbers are the easiest part of equality. The harder part of equality is the daily, emotional, relational interactions with them. Don't get me wrong, it's not like I'm tempted to trade my daughters for goats and treat my son like a royal heir, not at all. But, in seeking to treat them equally, it also goes the other way. I have to be careful to not give preference to one because of intelligence, or another because of age. I have to also be careful not to give preference to any of them based on gender, in either direction. Equality does not mean sameness, but it means they have shared value as people.
P) Father, in Your holiness, You treat all of Your children equally. You are not partial to any person, and as a perfectly righteous Abba, I can look to You for my example of how to treat my own children. I want to be holy as You are holy. I want to glorify You with how I interact with my own kids. Give me wisdom, patience, and understanding to do what is right with them, in every facet of our relationships. Open my eyes and ears, to be led by the Holy Spirit in this. When other people notice, and I pray they do, let me use it as an opportunity to praise Your holy character. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.
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