Saadiah Gaon (882-942) was the first major Jewish philosopher in the medieval period. He spent the first half of his life in Egypt and then wandered through Syria and Palestine before settling in Babylonia where he became head of the prestigious Sura rabbinical academy in 928.
In his commentary on Job, Saadiah
Gaon provided
a
series of observations regarding Satan and the beney elohim—the “divine beings,”
or, more literally, “the children of God”—who appear in the first two chapters
of the book. Saadiah offers a novel interpretation of these figures by
suggesting that they are not angels, as is commonly understood, but human
beings who live in the land of Uz along with Job. The beney elohim are
rendered by Saadiah as “God’s beloved” in accordance with the translation of
the term ben as “beloved,” even though it is usually understood as “child,”
and Saadiah finds ample support for his interpretation in the biblical text.
These people are beloved by God because they gather at regular intervals to
worship Him. Hence, the description of their coming “before the Lord” on two
separate occasions in the first two chapters. (L.E.
Goodman, The Book of Theodicy: Translation and Commentary on the Book of Job
by Saadiah ben Joseph al-Fayyūmī [New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988],
153)
Satan
is the leader of this group. He is given his appellation by the biblical text
because he is Job’s enemy. Saadiah adduces a number of biblical instances in
which the term satan can refer to a human adversary and need not have
any reference to an angel. As Saadiah would have it, the group Satan leads
expresses envy of Job on account of his wealth and righteousness. They also slander
him with the claim that he is righteous only because God has provided him with
great blessing, and that if he were to suffer, he would immediately become an
apostate. God therefore addresses Satan and offers to bring afflictions upon
Job in order to prove to the group that he is indeed worthy of the favor that
has been shown to him.[Goodman, The Book of Theodicy, 153-60] (Robert
Eisen, The Book of Job in Medieval Jewish Philosophy [Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2004], 24)
As noted by Robert Eisen:
The very fact that God would
address himself to Job’s rival requires comment on Saadiah’s part, since
Saadiah is of the opinion that God does not normally speak to someone who is of
no special standing. Saadiah’s response is that there are in fact instances in
which an ordinary individual is addressed by God if it provides some benefit
for the righteous. Thus, for instance, God addresses Abilemech in the interest
of Abraham; Laban in the interest of Jacob; and Balaam in the interest of
Israel. Here, too, Satan receives prophecy for Job’s ultimate benefit (Goodman,
The Book of Theodicy, 159). (Ibid., 244 n. 36)
