Job is one of the Old Testament's most mysterious personalities.
The Old Testament states that Job lived in "the land of Uz." The location of this land is not known for certainty, although some scholars say it could have been the home of some of the descendants of Shem (Gen. 10:22-23; 1 Chr. 1:17), as "men of the east," along the borders of the eastern Arabian desert. (Job 1:3, 13-19.) (Ellis T. Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament.)Questions are raised as to when Job lived. Some scholars say he lived during the time of the patriarchs - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Others think he might have lived as late as the time of Malachi.
While there is no information about when or where Job lived, there is no doubt as to how he lived - in righteousness. In the first verse of the book that bears his name, Job is described as a man who was "perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil."
Although he sometimes is referred to as a prophet, the scriptures do not state that he was such, or even that he had any priestly calling. Some scholars boldly contend that Job is a fictitious character who had a leading role in a purely literary story in the Bible. Such contention has no credibility among LDS doctrine, however.
In A Companion to Your Study of the Old Testament, Daniel H. Ludlow wrote: "Interpretations to the book of Job have been so varied and extreme that it has been claimed that Job has suffered more from the hands of the critics than he ever did from the hands of Satan.
"Many critics of the Bible have suggested that Job is a mythological character. In modern times, however, the Lord has verified that Job existed as a real person. To an inquiring Joseph Smith, the Lord replied: `Thou art not yet as Job; thy friends do not contend against thee, neither charge thee with transgression, as they did Job.' (D&C 121:10.)
"Giving further evidence that Job was indeed a real person are two other scriptures that mention him by name, Ezekiel 14:14 and James 5:11."
