An Answer With a Question

Then Job answered the LORD and said: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. ‘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. ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you make it known to me.’ I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” And the LORD restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and ate bread with him in his house. And they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him. And each of them gave him a piece of money and a ring of gold. And the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. He had also seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first daughter Jemimah, and the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-happuch. And in all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job's daughters. And their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers. And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, four generations. And Job died, an old man, and full of days. (Job 42:1-6; 10-17 ESV).

This passage of Scripture comes from the last chapter of the Book of Job. It is the culmination of Job’s struggles. This book, like no other, begs the question of why? I know I have been faced with experiences in life that I couldn’t help but ask that question. Job did too. In fact, there are 288 question marks in the book. Many of them were from Job; others were spoken by his counselors who turned out to be more of a hindrance than help. God said of these men, “Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?” They were not helpful at all. However, the most puzzling of all of these question marks comes from many statements God made. As I read through this little book, I counted seventy eight times that God answered Job’s questions with a question!

Sometimes God does answer us with a question. They are often questions that leave us humbled, awed, speechless, weak, and believing. We are left believing not because we have found the answer, but because we’ve seen God. I am thoroughly convinced that it doesn’t matter that we may have more questions now than when we started asking in the first place. That which truly matters is that we see God. In the seeing of Him we discover the truest answer to all of our questions. We are called on only to know Him and in knowing Him, trust Him completely.

Years ago, Monroe Parker was traveling through South Alabama on one of those hot, sultry Alabama days. He stopped at a watermelon stand, picked out a watermelon, and asked the proprietor how much it cost. “It’s $1.10,” he replied. Parker dug into his pocket, found only a bill and said, “All I have is a dollar.” “That’s OK,” the proprietor said, “I’ll trust you for it.” “Well, that’s mighty nice of you,” Parker responded, and picking up the watermelon, started to leave. “Hey, where are you going?” the man behind the counter demanded. “I’m going outside to eat my watermelon.” “But you forgot to give me the dollar!” “You said you would trust me for it,” Parker called back. “Yeah, but I meant I would trust you for the dime!” “Mack,” Parker replied, “You weren’t going to trust me at all. You were just going to take a ten-cent gamble on my integrity!” Too many times we, too, are only willing to take a ten-cent gamble on God’s integrity! How about you? Are you willing to completely trust Him, even when He only answers your questions with a question? That’s how you may live a long, good life just like Job.