When hard times come--illness, losing a job, a family member or friend passing away, or any number of difficult, painful experiences--the question of why usually follows close behind. Whether it’s our own difficulty or someone else’s, we want there to be a purpose for it, and we grapple with how to understand why it’s happening. Often, we go for the easiest answer, but the book of Job shows us that the easiest answers aren’t always the truest answers when it comes to suffering.
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| Photo Credit: Flickr User sszdl, Creative Commons |
In the beginning of the book of Job, we learn that Job was “blameless and upright,” and was a wealthy man in his time. Verses 2-3 say:
He had seven sons and three daughters, and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.
Very quickly things go downhill for Job. By the end of the first chapter, all of Job’s children and servants had been killed and all his livestock had either been killed or stolen. When Job’s friends show up, they give Job easy answers for why he is suffering--clearly there was sin in his life and God was disciplining him, or perhaps his children had sinned and brought death upon themselves because of it. Job, however, will have none of it. Repeatedly he tells his friends of his innocence and grapples with why God is allowing terrible things to happen to a good person such as himself.
So why did Job suffer then? Why do we suffer?
It would be simpler if God sat down with Job and listed all the reasons Job had suffered and how God was now using that suffering in a bigger way.
God doesn’t do that though.
Instead, he pretty much tells Job, “I’m God.” Job 38:1-2 reads:
Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said: “Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge?
There are two different ways we can read this and, in turn, respond to suffering. The first is to see God’s reply as callous, and not much of a reply at all. It doesn’t come across as very compassionate or loving, and doesn't seem to acknowledge any of the pain Job has been going through. Does God really not care that Job is hurting? Why is his first reply to point out that Job doesn't know what's really going on, instead of God telling Job about the plan so Job might glean some understanding? This response can lead us to lash out at God in anger, blaming him for our pain, questioning why he isn’t acting the way we expected him to, and ultimately moving away from him. It’s natural to wonder why God, whom we believe to be powerful enough to stop it and good enough to want to stop it, won’t stop it.
The second way to respond is to follow the example of Job. He certainly questioned God and lamented the suffering he was experiencing, but the difference is that it was all directed towards God, not away from him. Job got angry, he questioned God, and he didn’t understand why things were happening, but instead of allowing his questions to move him away from God, he took those questions back to God. When God replied, Job listened. Job's first response, chapter 30 verses 4 and 5, is almost an apology to God:
“I am unworthy—how can I reply to you?
I put my hand over my mouth.
I spoke once, but I have no answer—
twice, but I will say no more.”
As unsatisfying an answer as it may be, Job gets it--God is God, and Job is a man. God is God, and we are humans. Our "whys" may never make sense in this lifetime, which isn't a neat, tidy answer that takes away the pain and heartache of suffering. Ultimately though, God is redeeming the world and all our pain and suffering along with it, even if it doesn't seem that way when we're in the thick of it. If we're willing to lean into God during hard times, we may not find understanding, but we may find more of God.
[Brianna DeWitt believes in Jesus, surrounding yourself with good people, and that desserts are best when they involve chocolate and peanut butter. She writes about faith, growing up, and whatever else pops into her head on her own blog, and tweets (largely about food) at @bwitt722.]
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