#also im an atheist who likes literary analysis so this is my interpretation of job

[vyeoh]

Losing my mind about the book of job in retrospect basically told how the season was gonna end in the 2nd episode.

As shown in the show, Job is the result of God and Lucifer making a bet regarding the nature of faith- Satan argues that humans are fair weather friends, and their worship is transactional for bring treated well. God argues that worship is regardless of how God treated humans.

This specific part of the Bible is so well known even to people not involved with an Abrahamic religion partly because the train of logic is so?? Odd?? Like yeah the old testament God is kinda super fucked up but in this one God's reasoning (as seen in the show) is basically, "I know more than you and I can do more, so you could never understand the reason for tragedy" which is. Just a WILD answer to "why do bad things happen to good people", especially if you're trying to argue that people should make an effort to be good because they have free will.

Notably, the show didn't focus on the "bad things to good people" paradox that's usually the focus of debate, but rather on the fact that like??? Giving someone more children after killing their old ones is actually really awful?? Basically, giving them a shiny new thing doesn't actually make up for the fact that you broke the old thing, which is something that the Book of Job and the Bible at large seems to misunderstand about humans.

Anyways, Aziraphale is Job. He's been fucked over by heaven so many times, and yet his faith is unshaken. One of his catchphrases is literally saying that God 's plans are ineffible and no one can understand them.

At the end of Job, Job's given a gift (note: a GIFT, not a reward) of prosperity, children, and health by God. Similarly, Aziraphale is given the "gift" of the Archangel Supreme position, to be the head of an organization that's caused him so much suffering. There's no actual acknowledgment and reconciliation of the suffering, because like in Job, that would mean God did something bad that needed to be remedied.

In this context, his relationship with Crowley is like his old wealth and prosperity; its not a perfect comparison but its something that is taken away by God (allegedly) in favor of a shiny new job and a shiny new HR approved relationship with Angel Crowley. And since Aziaphale is still drinking the heaven kool-aid, he does as Job does, and accepts his suffering and receives his reward.