Fr. Guido Schembri OFM, a renowned Maltese biblical scholar, has published a new translation of the Book of Job from the original Hebrew text.

The Book of Job deals with the problem of the suffering of the just man. On the back cover the author quotes the scholar Gianfranco Ravasi, who writes: “Why does suffering exist? Why do the innocent suffer? Job asks these questions which every man of every age asks. The Lord answers Job, but without giving him a final solution, except for the fact that during suffering, man comes face to face with God and encounters him. Job says: ‘Before, I knew you only by hearsay but now I have seen you with my own eyes’ (Job 42:5).”

The publication has a forward by Dr. Oliver Friggieri, who writes: “The Book of Job is one of the many books which Fr. Schembri has offered to the Maltese public during a long carreer. This contribution in the Christian Library of Malta is certainly a dignified one and merits all our appreciation. With an effort to arrive to the roots of the words, and with a choice of Maltese idioms full of wisdom, he offers a translation which respects the classic aspect of the original words, which we believe are the Words of God.

At the same time the author keeps in mind the modern spoken language of our people. The Book of Job is one of the most necessary books for our age. We need to reflect, more than before, about the value of suffering and the divine protection. This publication, therefore, is not only another manifestation of the expertise of Father Schembri in the biblical field here in Malta, but it is also an invitation to rediscover the greatness and universality of the physical and spiritual journey of man, which is timeless and which always grows in reverence.”