King James Bible
"And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven."
Job's three friends approach from a distance and fail to recognize him due to his drastically altered appearance from suffering. The physical transformation caused by his afflictions—boils, grief, and deprivation—renders him unidentifiable to those who knew him well. The friends' immediate response is visceral grief expressed through loud weeping. Their vocal lamentation reflects the ancient Near Eastern practice of communal mourning, demonstrating genuine empathy before they later turn to misguided theological explanations. These traditional mourning rituals—tearing garments and casting dust skyward to fall on their heads—publicly display solidarity with Job's suffering. The gestures acknowledge both human mortality and appeal to heaven, ironically foreshadowing the theological debates about divine justice that will follow.