Satan the main Culprit

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Job 1:12 “And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.”

One reason why Job and his three friends did not think of Satan as the reason of Job;s suffering is because probably, it is quite possible that Job had no idea who Satan was or even that he existed! Remember that Job is likely to have lived around the time of the Patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob). Nothing had been revealed about Satan at that point. The serpent was seen tempting Eve in the Garden of Eden (so they must have been aware that there was a deceiver) but little else is disclosed about the enemy.

The name Satan is only in three Old Testament books – Job, 1 Chronicles and Zechariah. We are given a HUGE insight into Satan’s character, motives and operations through the heavenly scenes given in the book of Job but this was not known to Job when he was going through these trials. So, hence, neither Job nor any of his friends mention Satan or any enemy as being a possible source for the destruction Job has faced. Apart from the book of Job, it is not until the New Testament that clearer light is given into the person of Satan.