'''Tobit''' is a book of the [[Septuagint]] ([[Old Testament]]) for both Orthodoxy and [[Roman Catholic Church |Catholicism]] containing 14 chapters. It was probably originally written in [[Aramaic]], as four fragmentary copies of the Aramaic text were found at Qumran. The author of the book is unknown. This book tells the story of a righteous Israelite of the [[Tribe of Naphtali]] named Tobit (whose name means, "(YHWH is) my good", Heb. טובי or טוביהו, Gr. Τωβίτ) living in [[Nineveh]] after the deportation of the northern tribes of Israel to Assyria in 721 BC under Sargon II. (The first two and a half chapters are written in the first person while the rest are in third person.) He was particularly noted for [[media:Archangel Raphael.jpg|Archangel Raphael]]his diligence in attempting to provide proper burials for fallen Israelites who had been slain by [[Sennacherib]], for which the king seized all his property and exiled him. After Sennacherib's death, he was allowed to return to Nineveh, but again buried a dead man who had been murdered on the street. That night, he slept in the open and was blinded by bird droppings that fell in his eyes. This put a strain on his marriage, and ultimately, he prayed for death.

The main narrative is dedicated to Tobit's son, Tobiah or Tobiyah (Greek: Τωβίας/ Tobias), who is sent by his father to collect a sum of money that the latter had deposited some time previously in the far off land of Media. Raphael represents himself as Tobit's kinsman [[Azariah]], and offers to aid and protect Tobias on his journey. Under the guidance of Raphael, Tobias makes the journey to Media, accompanied by his dog. Along the way, he is attacked by a giant fish, whose heart, liver and gall bladder are removed to make medicines.