The suffering of Job is unrelated to anything he has done or failed to do. Nowhere in the story does God indicate that Job acted unrighteously prior to the suffering that was inflicted upon him, but on the contrary God boasts of Job's character. The suffering of Job is the suffering of an innocent man, just as the suffering of so many men, women, and children in the world is the suffering of the innocent.
In judging the attempts by Job's friends to explain that all suffering is just, God seems to indicate that suffering cannot be so easily explained. However, in answering Job's challenge God does not offer an explanation of suffering or justice. Thus, God's answer to Job is no answer at all, because God does not explain why life is as it is, but only asserts that no earthly creature has any business challenging the Creator of the universe.
Perhaps the key to understanding God's answer to Job is in his accusation that Job seeks to condemn God in order to justify himself. It is this accusation and not God's assertion of power over all creation that seems to lead Job to abandon his rebellion. Job appears to admit that, even if he was innocent prior to his suffering, he has now committed a sin by condemning God in order to maintain his own innocence.
The implication is that is had Job only maintained his innocence, and not accused God, then Job would not have committed any wrong. Given this reading of the story, and God's rejection of the explanations of suffering offered by the friends of Job, we are led to conclude that suffering may not be just, but that it is to be accepted nonetheless, as the will of God.
Both as individuals and as a people we want to explain suffering and injustice, as a means of bolstering our faith in God. The most direct explanation is that all suffering is God's response to sin. This was God's explanation in the story of Cain and Abel, and this theme is reiterated in the punishment of the Israelites during their wanderings in the wilderness.
Suffering may also be explained as a form of discipline designed to prepare individuals and peoples for the struggles of life. Such a discipline was asked of Abraham, when he was told to sacrifice his only son, and this explanation is also articulated in the wilderness experience of Israel.
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