The Fairness of God

FIRES, Floods. Earthquakes. Famine. So many people seem to suffer from “acts of God” that strike without warning. Like Job, they appear to be relatively innocent of wrongdoing that might explain their pain. People wonder, “Is God fair to let these things happen?”

This was one of the questions with which Job and his friends wrestled. Calamity struck Job and his family for no apparent reason. Why? His friends took the view that God was punishing him, that he must have done something wrong to deserve such evil. Job disagreed, not only because he felt certain of his own integrity, but because the wicked actually seemed to prosper, not suffer (Job 12:6).

Yet that only brought Job back to the original question: Is God fair? If the wicked prosper, where is justice in the world? Job concluded that the seemingly easy life of the wicked is very temporary; sooner or later it will all fall apart (Job 27:13–23). In the end, Job maintained, God will humble the proud, those with integrity will inherit their possessions, and justice will be served.

Ultimately God is indeed fair (Job 36:6; 37:23-24)—a fact for which we can be thankful, because life is not fair. In this life, people do not always get what they deserve. But this life is not the end of the story. God Himself will write the final chapters.

Courtesy of Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.