Was it Job’s own free will? Check out this interesting analysis and then update your theodicy, if your theodicy depends on “free will.”
UPDATE: The link seems to be broken. This is the chart that I thought was interesting:
Who Caused The Death And Suffering In Job
| Ref. | Who | Inference | Text |
| Job 1:11 | God | Implied | “But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” |
| Job 1:12 | Satan | Implied | And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” |
| Job 1:21 | God | Explicit | The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away |
| Job 2:3 | Satan | Explicit | “You incited me against him to destroy him” |
| Job 2:3 | God | Explicit | “You incited me against him to destroy him” |
| Job 2:5 | God | Implied | “But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.” |
| Job 2:6 | Satan | Implied | And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.” |
| Job 2:7 | Satan | Explicit | So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. |
| Job 2:10 | God | Implied | “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” |
| Job 42:11 | God | Explicit | And they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him. |
So, in summary . . .
| Inference | Satan | God |
| Implied | 2 | 3 |
| Explicit | 2 | 3 |
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