JOB’S UNDERSTANDING of the afterlife was a reflection of the culture around him, which was dominated by the Amorites who controlled the ancient Near East from about 2000 BC to 1400 BC. They believed that the dead depended on the living to feed them to sustain them after death.

But even with that, Job knew that his Redeemer lived, “and at the last he will stand upon the earth”—and that Job would see that day with his own eyes, a clear prophecy of the resurrection of the dead described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:35-55.

We discuss the ancient Near Eastern view of life after death, the significance of sacred mountains and tells, dolmens, and the Rephaim in the context of Job’s complaint.