on his body, looking dignified despite his suffering, and usually clad as a Greek philosopher (see Fig. 2). Indeed, 1:21 was one of the Joban texts most commonly cited in early Christian preaching on steadfastness. The reference to Job’s acceptance of his nakedness also came to be associated with asceticism (Clement of Alexandria, Basil of Caesarea). At the same time, interpreters linked Job’s nakedness to the new birth symbolized in Christian baptism (Clement of Alexandria, Ephrem the Syrian). In
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