Bildad (; ), the Shuhite, was one of Job's three friends who visited the patriarch in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' Book of Job. He was a descendant of

Shuah Shuah is the name of one of four minor Biblical figures. It is sometimes used as the name of a fifth. Their names are different in Hebrew, but they were all transliterated as "Shuah" in the King James Version. Genesis 25 Shuah (, "ditch; swimmi ...

, son of

Abraham Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrews, Hebrew Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the Covenant (biblical), covenanta ...

and Keturah (Genesis 25:1–2), whose family lived in the deserts of

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

, or a resident of the district. In speaking with Job, his intent was

consolation Consolation, consolement, and solace are terms referring to psychological comfort given to someone who has suffered severe, upsetting loss, such as the death of a loved one. It is typically provided by expressing shared regret for that loss and ...

, but he became an accuser, asking Job what he has done to deserve God's wrath.

Speeches

The three speeches of Bildad are contained in Job 8, Job 18 and Job 25. In substance, Bildad largely echos what

Eliphaz file:Facial Chronicle - b.01, p.243 - Jacob kills Esau.jpg, Isaac kills Esau Eliphaz ( "My Elohim is gold", Standard Hebrew Elifaz, Tiberian Hebrew ʾĔlîp̄az / ʾĔlîp̄āz) was the first-born son of Esau and his wife Adah (biblical figure) ...

the Temanite had claimed. Bildad's speech is charged with somewhat increased vehemence, compared to Eliphaz who spoke first, because Bildad found Job's words too angry and impious. He was the first of Job's friends to attribute Job's calamity to actual wickedness; however, he does so indirectly, by accusing Job's children (who were destroyed in the opening scenes, Job 1:19) of sin to warrant their punishment (Job 8:4). Bildad's brief third speech, just five verses in length, marked the silencing of the friends.

In popular culture

* Bildad the Shuhite is depicted in the Prime Video Series

Good Omens ''Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch'' is a 1990 novel written by the English authors Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. The novel is a comedy about the birth of the son of Satan and the coming of the End Times. ...

, where the demon Crowley disguises himself as "one of the friends of Job" in a satirical retelling of the Book of Job. * Bildad is also the name of one of the owners of the

Pequod Pequod or Pequot may refer to: *The Pequod, or Pequot, a Native American people of Connecticut * ''Pequod'' (''Moby-Dick''), a whaleship that appears in Herman Melville's 1851 novel ''Moby-Dick'' * Pequod Glacier * Pequod Mountain, in British Colum ...

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works ar ...

's ''

Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 Epic (genre), epic novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is centered on the sailor Ishmael (Moby-Dick), Ishmael's narrative of the maniacal quest of Captain Ahab, Ahab, captain of the whaler ...

''. * Dr Grantly, archdeacon of Barchester in

Anthony Trollope Anthony Trollope ( ; 24 April 1815 – 6 December 1882) was an English novelist and civil servant of the Victorian era. Among the best-known of his 47 novels are two series of six novels each collectively known as the ''Chronicles of Barsetshire ...

's novel ''

Barchester Towers ''Barchester Towers'' is a novel by English author Anthony Trollope published by Longmans in 1857. It is the second book in the ''Chronicles of Barsetshire'' series, preceded by '' The Warden'' and followed by '' Doctor Thorne''. In his autob ...

'', is on occasion compared to "Bildad the Shuhite" (vol. II, ch. 44).

Notes

References

Book of Job people {{Hebrew-Bible-stub

Speeches

In popular culture

See also

Notes

References