Why are the names of Job’s daughters mentioned in the Bible and not his sons’?

In order to be able to respond to this question asked by one of the visitors of our site, we first need to take a look at the Biblical text where we find Job’s daughters’ names mentioned.

Bible Text

12 The LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning ; and he had 14,000 sheep and 6,000 camels and 1,000 yoke of oxen and 1,000 female donkeys. 13 He had seven sons and three daughters. 14 He named the first Jemimah, and the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch. 15 In all the land no women were found so fair as Job’s daughters ; and their father gave them inheritance among their brothers. 16 After this, Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons and his grandsons, four generations. 17 And Job died, an old man and full of days. (Job 42)

According to the above text, the answer to our question is found in verse 15 where it is written:

In all the land no women were found so fair as Job’s daughters ; and their father gave them inheritance among their brothers.

The author wants to draw our attention to two important truths in this text that deal with Job’s daughters:

  • First of all, there were no other women in the land as beautiful as Job’s daughters.
  • Secondly, Job gave the girls an inheritance, as well as to their brothers. According to the Old Testament, the inheritance was only given to the males of the family and not the females. The sons were given an inheritance. The only reason girls were given an inheritance was if their father were to die without having a male heir (see Numbers 27:8). If a girl were given an inheritance then she was not allowed to marry anyone other than a man from her father’s tribe. God did not allow the inheritance of one tribe to pass along to another tribe (see Numbers 36). The purpose of this text is to show how Job dealt with his girls, so that is why their names are mentioned and not the boys.

Bible Dictionary

I searched the meaning of the names of Job’s three girls. Each name has a very important meaning. Keep in mind that these girls were born after Job experienced all of his sufferings.

Jemimah = “day by day”

After all of Job’s sufferings, he may have wanted a reminder to himself that he must live one day at a time and walk with the Lord because you never know what tomorrow may bring.

The second daughter’s name is:

Keziah = “cassia”- a spice; a powdered bark like cinnamon

This spice is also mentioned in Psalm 45 where we find the following:

 8 All Your garments are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia ; Out of ivory palaces stringed instruments have made You glad.

His third daughter was named:

Keren-happuch = “horn of antimony” used by ladies of that time to apply eye cosmetics

So, according to the passages and all that we have seen, the purpose of this text, and specifically the fact that Job’s daughters are mentioned by name, is to either explain how beautiful the girls were or more like to demonstrate the terrible suffering in Job’s life had come to an end.

This is all that the Bible mentions of them. The boys are not mentioned probably because there was nothing really significant about them.

Translation by: Erik Brewer