Source questions

Life is marked by events of suffering, both great and small. At present there is great suffering in Turkiye (earthquake) and the Ukraine (war). Some are the products of a natural disaster impacting entire communities with grief and loss. Others are the fruit of human evil that has a profound effect on the world. Still others are private, affecting a person of a family. In all these cases people struggle to understand why it happens. And they question God’s goodness or His justice.

Job 1-37 describes the intense suffering of Job, which causes him to question God. Then God asks lots of questions to show the huge gap in understanding between God and humanity. What do you know (v.4, 21)? The answer is “Very little”. Job was ignorant of God’s knowledge and God’s works. He didn’t know any of the answers. He didn’t understand the divine plan that lies beyond the universe (v.2). He didn’t exist when the earth was created.

Cosomology

⁴ “Where were you [Job] when I [God] laid the foundations of the earth?
Tell me, if you know so much.
⁵ Who determined its dimensions
and stretched out the surveying line?
⁶ What supports its foundations,
and who laid its cornerstone
⁷ as the morning stars sang together
and all the angels shouted for joy?”
(Job 38:4-7NLT)

Oceanography

⁸ “Who kept the sea inside its boundaries
as it burst from the womb,
⁹ and as I clothed it with clouds
and wrapped it in thick darkness?
¹⁰ For I locked it behind barred gates,
limiting its shores.
¹¹ I said, ‘This far and no farther will you come.
Here your proud waves must stop!’

¹⁶ “Have you explored the springs from which the seas come?
Have you explored their depths?”
(Job 38:8-11, 16)

The sun

¹² “Have you ever commanded the morning to appear
and caused the dawn to rise in the east?
¹³ Have you made daylight spread to the ends of the earth,
to bring an end to the night’s wickedness?
¹⁴ As the light approaches,
the earth takes shape like clay pressed beneath a seal;
it is robed in brilliant colors.
¹⁵ The light disturbs the wicked
and stops the arm that is raised in violence.”
(Job 38:12-15)

Death

“Do you know where the gates of death are located?
Have you seen the gates of utter gloom?”
(Job 38:17)

Geography

“Do you realize the extent of the earth?
Tell me about it if you know!”
(Job 39:18)

Light and darkness

¹⁹ “Where does light come from,
and where does darkness go?
²⁰ Can you take each to its home?
Do you know how to get there?”
(Job 39:19-20)

Discussion

Cosmology, oceanography, the sun, geography and light were all established before Adam was created. And the death of human beings began soon afterwards. Job couldn’t understand the origin and extent of these things because he didn’t exist when God created the world. Job assumed greater knowledge than he possessed.

Who did all these things? The answer is “Not us”, only God can do these things.

God is the primary source of everything. This is a topic that science cannot address.

After God’s questions to Job in chapters 38-39, Job replies:
⁴ “I am nothing—how could I ever find the answers?
I will cover my mouth with my hand.
⁵ I have said too much already.
I have nothing more to say.”
(Job 40:4-5).

Job is humbled and has stopped complaining. He is overwhelmed by the Lord’s vast power and knowledge. He has limited understanding compared to God. But he has not repented yet.

Lessons for us

The lesson for Job and for us is that if God can establish the cosmos, the oceans, the sun, death, geography and light, we can trust Him for the future.

We can’t do what God has done. We can’t understand what God understands. Suffering exists, but God is still at work. Reminders of God’s power are evident everywhere in creation (Rom. 1:19-20).

A humble realization of how little we know is the first step towards reconciliation with God.

So, when you are suffering or questioning God’s goodness or His justice, read Job 38:1 – 42:6.

Acknowledgement:

This post is an extension of “The mystery of suffering”, Our Daily Bread, January 2023 topic.

Posted, February 2023