UZ, THE LAND OF ; Matra; ; Hus ; Ausith), is the name given in Scripture to the country of Job (Job i. who is said to have been the greatest of all the men of the east,' or as it is in the Hebrew of all the Bene-Kedem' (vet% 3). The Bene-Kedem were the people who dwelt in Arabia, and more especially those parts of it which lay immediately to the east and south-east of Palestine (cf. Gen. xxix. ; Judg. vi. 3 ; vii. 12 ; viii. to). Hence it may be concluded that the land of Uz lay in that section of Arabia to which the name Petraa is usually given. It is mentioned only in two other passages of Scripture. Jeremiah in one passage (xxv. zo) groups it with Egypt, Philistia, Edom, and Moab ; and in another he appears either to identify it with a portion of Edom, or to affirm that some of the Edornites in his days inhabited Uz. His words are, Rejoice and be glad, 0 daughter of Edom, that a'wellest in the land of Uz' (Lam. iv. 21). These various statements show that Uz was closely connected with Edam, and most probably included a large section of the level-pasture lands which lie along the eastern side of the mountain-range, and extend northwards to Basilan. Other incidental notices of the sacred writers corroborate this view.
The name Uz was doubtless derived from the oldest son of Aram, who was founder of one of the primeval tibes, which took his name, and settled in 'the Land of Uz' (Gen. x. 23, 31). Josephus says that Uz founded Trachonitts and Damascus (Antig. i. 6. 4). The former province lies in Ba shan, and extends as far south as Bostm. It may have formed part of the Land of Uz. It is a sin gular fact that NI hen the writer of this article was travelling through Trachonitis he heard at various places, from the lips of intelligent natives, the tra dition that Jebel Hauran, which adjoins Trachoni tis on the east, was the country of the patriarch Tob.* It is further worthy of note, as showing the connection between Uz and Edom, that Uz was the name of one of the descendants of Seir the Horite, whose tribe originally possessed Edom (Gen. xxxvi. 28 ; Chron. 42). One of the three friends also who visited Job in his trials was Eliphaz the Temanite ; and Teman, as has been seen, included a portion of southern Edom [TENIAN].
Jerome appears to identify Uz with Damascus and Trachonitis, following Josephus (Quart. ha Gen. x. 25, cf. Onomast. s.v Uz'). Bochart makes no less than three places of this name-1. The Ghattah of Damascus, confounding the Arabic Ghutah, with the Heb. words whichare altogether dissimilar ; 2. The region of Ausitis, named from Uz the son of Nahor (Gen. xxii. 21). The tribe of Aesike is mentioned by Ptolemy as residing in Arabia Deserta near Babylon (Geogr. v. 19). 3. Uz of Edom, the land of the patriarch Job (Opera, i. 8o). There seems to be no suffi cient authority for this threefold division. The country of Job was evidently a wide pastoral re gion ; and the tribe of Uz, or Aesike, as Ptolemy calls them, though they had their chief seat in it, may have wandered with their flocks, as the modern Bedawin do, away eastward to the banks of the Euphrates. Michaelis contends with great
zeal and learning for the identity of Uz with the Ghiltah of Damascus. His argttments are not con vincing (Spicileg. ii. pp. 126-135). The present writer knows the Ghatah well, and he has no hesi tation in stating that its rich alluvial soil, and the abundance of its waters, admirably adapted it for cultivation and settled life, and made it at the same thne unsuitable for the vast herds of camels and immense flocks which Job possessed ; while its peculiar position, almost encircled with mountains, lakes, and rivers, rendered it secure against any sud den raids of the wild tribes of the desert. The open plains of Haurfin, or of the Belka, or of the region east of Edom, would be far more suitable theatres for the whole scenes and circumstances of the sacred narrative than any spot near Damascus. The exact position of Uz had become uncertain even in the days of Eusebius, for he states (Ono mast. s.v . Idummal, that according to some Ge balene, the district of Mumma around the city of Petm, is Ausitis, the country of Job ; according to another Arabia was the country of Job ; while others affirm that the region of Seon xthpa ro0 Zniev) is the country of Job.' On the whole, therefore, it would appear from the statements and allusions of the sacred writers, combined with the remarks of Eusebius and Jerome, and the results of modern research, that the land of Uz was in Arabia, bordering on Edom westward, on Trachonitis northward, and extending perhaps indefinitely across the pasture-lands of Arabia to wards the Euphrates. Like some of the modem Arab chiefs, Job possessed an agricultural settle ment, while his flocks and herds, and droves of camels, roamed at large over the immense pasture lands. His friends and associates, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, Zophar the Naama thile, and Elihu the Buzite, were all Arabians ; while every event, scene, and circumstance exhibits the characteristics of Arab life. Forster has argued with considemble ingenuity and learning that the land of Uz lay on the banks of the Euphrates ad joining Chaldma. His fundamental theory, how ever, which extends the territory of Edom so far eastward, will not stand the test of critical investi gation ; and his arguments derived from the raids of the Chaldmans and Sabxans have no weight, for those intimately acquainted with the history and habits of nomad tribes know well that it is no uncommon thing for a plundering expedition from Mesopotamia or Babylonia to ravage the whole borders of Syria (see, however, Forster, Geogr. of Arabth, ii. 58.69 ; also De Terra Jobi' in Thes. Vet. Test. i. 54o ; Winer, Bibl. R. W. s. v. Uz ; Spanheim, Hist. Yobi ; Gesenius, The:. s. v.) —J. L. P.