Sister to Sister: You Don’t Have to Know Why.

The study of Job has been, even though I’ve done multiple read-throughs in the past, once again, riveting. I’ve never before studied by marking his questions and I’ve never been so convinced that the most powerful thing with which we walk away is that he never knew the answers to most of them. Job suffered as we likely never will—in intensity and duration; yet he never knew that he was the pawn in an attempt by Satan to trump God. But, in the end, he had to just put his hand over His own mouth and stop talking. He had waded into waters that were too deep for Him. He knew that he had to hush–and let God be God.

Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you?I lay my hand on my mouth….Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge? Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.

Here are the categorizations of verses that we discussed this week on the podcast. I hope they will be one small tool in helping us all realize that we don’t always need to know all the answers. We just need to know the One who does.

1. The Question of great faith: Job 2:10.
2. Questions of hopelessness:  Job 3:11-12,16,20-23 and 10:18.
3. Questions defending his own “right” to complain: Job 6: 5-6,11-13 and 21:4.
4. Questions for relationship clarification (“You are not my spiritual advisors.”): Job 6:22-23,25-26.
5. Questions from intense suffering: Job 7:1,4,12.
6. Questions asserting his own insignificance (Who am I to be the focus of these trials?”):Job 7:17-21 and 10:20.
7. Questions asserting his inability to “win” in any match with God: Job 9:2,12,14,19,24,29.
8. Logical questions; reasoning with God: Job 10: 3-10.
9. Questions rebuking his friends: Job 12:3,9,11; 13:7-11,14,19,23-25; 16:3,6; 19:2,3,22 and 26:1-4.
10. Questions about the brevity of life: Job 14:3,4,10.
11. Questions regarding loneliness: Job 17:3,15,16.
12. Questions about the prosperity of the wicked: Job 21:7,15-18,21-22,28-31,34; 24:1,25; and 27:8-12.
13. Questions about God’s nature: Job 23:6,13 and 26:14.
14. Questions about the source of wisdom: Job 28:12,20.
15. Questions about mockers: Job 30:2,24-25.
16. Questions about his own innocence: Job 31:1-4,14-15.
17. Final questions that settle matters: 40:4 and 42:3.