St Job was born into the family of pious tradesmen in Staritsa near Tver in the 1530s. His [[baptism]]al name was John. As a teenager, John knew most of the [[Bible|biblical]] texts by heart and strove to become a [[monk]]. His father, however, insisted on his [[marriage]]. Once, John asked his father's permission to see his confessor in the Uspensky [[Monastery]] in their native town of Staritsa (Tver Oblast). Upon his arrival, John immediately took [[monasticism|monastic ]] vows and assumed the name of Job. He spent fifteen years in the cloister and finally became its [[abbot]] in 1566 with the help of [[Ivan IV of Russia|Ivan the Terrible]], who had made Staritsa his residence in times of the Oprichnina (secret police).

In 1571, Job was transferred to Moscow and appointed abbot of the [[Simonov Monastery(Moscow)|Simonov Monastery]]. In 1575, he became the abbot of the Novospassky Monastery. In 1581, Job was appointed [[bishop]] of Kolomna.