One of the main moral lesson of the Book of Iyov could be that if righteous people are go through suffering they will receive relief eventually. This is the case of Yaakov and Yosef who went through many hardships and it is more explicit in the case of Iyov. But it was emphasized in many places in the book that Iyov was a tzadik, never sinned and always pursued righteousness and performed charity. It is therefore expected that he will receive "atonement", relief finally. But most people has one or more present or past sins therefore cannot fall into the category of a complete tzadik. What hope they can receive from this book where the example is evidently a tzadik not an average person like most people. Is there any mussar teaching or commentary how to apply the example of Iyov for average or sinful people as well? Thank you!
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1One very easy lesson is it helps with the common question - why do the righteous suffer? We can understand why we suffer. We sinned. But the righteous? Why do they suffer? That's a big question too– Rabbi KaiiCommented Aug 23 at 17:42
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2Rashi says that the lesson of Iyov is that we don't hold people accountable for what they say when they are in great pain.– MichoelRCommented Aug 23 at 19:17
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3 Answers
To remind us that we just don't understand why bad things happen to us even though we don't deserve them. Job never understood why:
Rabbi Yannai said: it is not in our hands to understand either of the security of the wicked or the afflictions of the righteous. [Avot 4:15]
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1This to me is perhaps the biggest lesson the book tries to teach. It's so easy to believe that bad things must happen to bad people, and good things to good people. But the book of Job comes to show us that believing those ideas lead you to being Job's friends, who were wrong and insensitive.– AaronCommented Aug 23 at 17:55
I think it provides a comforting message, when suffering, assuming you are a moral and God fearing person, who nevertheless tightens up your behavior and mitzvah observance in light of the suffering, which may be a sign to get in yet better spiritual shape, and it still persists, to be able to view it as God's inscrutable will, and not necessarily as an indictment of yourself, the incomprehensibility of the suffering notwithstanding, as God and his ways are ultimately mysterious, and as He is good, this too is part of His benevolent plan, despite our inability to understand it and the pain it causes.
In addition to the point of Nahum, there are several lessons as described in Arscroll Iyov:
Said Rav: Let a man have friends like those of Iyov - or else let him choose death.(Bava Basra 16b) as they steered themselves from excessive pity so that Iyov could become greater, although they were insensitive. The friends correctly assumed that punishment was not a result of pure G-d's will, although they were mistaken in thinking that punishment was deserved.
Out of sefer Iyov more than we learn what to answer, we learn how to answer - and most importantly how not to answer. This goes both to Iyov and to his friends. When faced with suffering, emotion takes a hold of a person and s/he may fail to find or to accept correct answers and turn to accusations. Specifically, the mistake of Iyov and his three friends was to construct G-d in human image, and due to limitations of language thinking that G-d could be understood.
We learn that Iyov, despite being righteous, served out of fear of punishment, not love of G-d. His punishment was given to futher develop his relationship with G-d. Elihu, the 4th and Jewish friend actually raises these points which are the main lesson of the book.
We learn greatness of Abraham. More qualities are listed for Iyov than for Abraham because Iyov was a composite man. Yet Iyov was a man of Olam haZe and that is why Satan requests a test of Iyov. Abraham was a man of Olam haBa - the future. He served G-d out of love. The attitude and perspective of Abraham is brought in the words of Elihu.
We learn how our sages (Rashi vs. Ramban) explain why even righteous may suffer. According to Rashi: rewarding the righteous may also unfairly reward the bad people who live with them and that is why G-d reserves the reward for Olam haBa. According to Ramban, there could be a problem with past incarnations of the person (I do not know kabbala and would not try to understand the point beyond the fact that we are in this world which has a certain history and we cannot change that).
