Classical literature is filled with stories of capricious deities playing with human lives as if they were only pawns and
the Greek tradition of
tragedy is based upon celebrating this very aspect of the nature of the pantheon of Greek gods. This paper examines how Sophocles finds a perfect example of this celebration of fate, in the tragedy "Oedipus Rex". In comparison, it looks at how the story of Job uses the dramatic tension of a "wager" between God and Satan on the sincerity of Job's devotion to God. It shows that where Oedipus' life is bound up by fated situations and their fated outcomes, Job's story is one of choice in the midst of supernaturally imposed difficulties. While both strive to teach
resignation to the will of God, they each espouse quite different attitudes in resignation.