Job, the «vir simplex» (Job 1:1.8;2:3) – Ambiguities in the Hebrew Book of Job and the Vulgate

Beside the semantic and syntactic difficulties, one of the characteristics of the Hebrew text of the Book of Job are its ambiguities, as e.g. the opening narrative artfully plays with the double (resp. triple) meaning of the verb ברך (Job 1:5, 10, 11, 21; 2:5, 9), to cite a well-known example. In the book as a whole, this stylistic feature contributes to the ambiguity of the main characters, namely Job and God (Yhwh). The ancient versions reveal different strategies how to deal with the ambiguities of the Hebrew Vorlage by maintaining or – more often – reducing them, what mirrors distinguished theological purposes. In my paper, I will show how the Vulgate in some cases preserves the ambiguity that is found in the Hebrew text, whereas in other cases it is eliminated. By some examples from both the narrative frame and the poetic dialogue, I will highlight the theological impact of the translation strategy of the Vulgate regarding ambiguities. As we will see, the Vulgate by reducing ambiguities accentuates Job’s exemplary status as innocent sufferer, but upholds the theological bearing of his accusations of God. In this sense, Job in the Vulgate is not a simple (simplex), but a highly complex character. As a final step, I will evidence how the translation strategy of the Vulgate is reflected also in the early reception history of the Book of Job in the Latin west.

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