Suffering
Who (Where) is God when his people are suffering…according to Job’s four “comforters” (Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihuj?)
According to each of Job’s so called comforters, God is judging Job for some sin that he must have committed against God. They spend quite a bit of time accusing Job giving instruction and advice that is neither accurate nor helpful for Job. Eliphaz in 3:49 says; “Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished? Where were the upright ever destroyed? As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it. At the breath of God they are destroyed, at the blast of His anger they perish…” (NIV) Eliphaz is such a great friend, accusing Job of being evil in some fashion, basically saying that this is the very reason that trouble has come upon Job. Later in 5:8-9 Eliphaz says; “But if it were I, I would appeal to God; I would lay my cause before him. He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.” (NIV) Here I believe Eliphaz is saying that if Job confesses to God his sin and seeks God’s mercy for the sin committed, then God might just as well perform some miracle and right all that has been taken away from Job.
Bildad is no different in his approach to Job, making the statement that God does not pervert justice and that He delivers to those what they deserve. Zophar also makes claims against Job’s comments about being righteous and pure, and his particular discourse in chapter 11 sounds very much like how God chastises Job in chapter 38. So to wrap all that up, Job’s three friends believe that God is in control, in Heaven if you will, and that Job has sinned against an almighty God and needs to repent of that sin.
Who (where) is God when his people are suffering…according to Job?
There are two verses that I am using to gather my answer and they are 2:4 and 31:2. In each of these verses Job references that God is on high or in the heavens. I sincerely believe that Job believed that God was in control, He was in charge of the situation, but that Job just simply wanted answers as to why these things happened to him, one who lived right and followed God.
Who (where) is God when his people are suffering…according to God Himself?
According to God, I find two references that indicate what I suspected. In 38:1 God says; “Then the Lord answered Job out of the storm.” (NIV) To me this only indicates that God is speaking to Job through a cloud much like He did with Moses. God is not on earth per say, but he is among men in that he is physically speaking to Job at this point. Job 41:11 says; “…Everything under Heaven belongs to me (God).” (NIV) (Parenthetical added by me). This verse also indicates to me that God is in Heaven, or in the vast expanse of his creation. God is really giving it to Job in these few chapters. I would think that Job wanted to crawl under a very large rock at this point in the book.
Who (Where) is God when his people are suffering…according to me?
I believe several things that are important in order to form my answer; first of all I believe that God is omnipotent, all-powerful. Revelation 19:6 states that; “And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.” (KJV) The Greek for this word omnipotent is translated, pantokrator, which means Almighty or “…he who holds sway over all things” (Blueletterbible.org. 2011.)
Secondly I believe that God is Omnipresent. Psalm 139:7-10 says; “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.” (NIV) As scripture states, where indeed can we go where God is not there already. He exists in all places and is not bound by location or time zone. When soldiers are fighting and dying in Iran or the Middle East God is there, and at the same time He is listening to my son as I lay him down for bed. He is beyond our imagination and finite understanding. This leads me to my third point. I believe that God is Omniscient.
Hebrews 4:13 says; “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” (NIV) and 1 Corinthians 2:10 says; “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” (NIV) Each of these verses only confirms to me that God is in control of each and everything that happens on this earth. That is not to say that He is responsible for each and everything that happens here. We do have free will and as humans we choose to do some incredibly stupid stuff, but I am saying that God has intimate knowledge of all things, sees all things and knows all things.
When God’s people suffer, I believe that He suffers too. The Bible says in Matthew 18:14; “In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.” (NIV) God does not desire that any of His children perish. Now I believe this is talking about eternal punishment, and so that indicates that God has compassion on his children. However; scripture also tells us in James 1:2-3 that we should, “… Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” (NIV)
Scripture also tells us; “ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28, NIV) I think that the Bible is clear that God is in control, He is aware when his children are suffering and that in all things there is purpose. I may never understand why my brother had to live such a hard life only to die at age 15, but God does, and I trust that His plan is still at work in my life and in the life of those who knew him. Faith in the power, knowledge and presence of God is critical in getting through times when God’s people suffer. It doesn’t surprise God when things like this happen; it only surprises us because we don’t know the bigger plan.
References
Biblegateway, (n.d.). www.biblegateway.com. Retrieved October 3, 2011 from www.biblegateway.org
Blue Letter Bible. (n.d.). www.blueletterbible.org. Retrieved September 24, 2011 from www.blueletterbible.org
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