Jeremiah wrote the following magnificent faith-filled words while sitting in the burned out ruins of Jerusalem: "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 'The Lord is my portion,' says my soul, 'therefore I will hope in him' … Though he brings grief, he will show compassion, so great is his unfailing love; for he does not willingly bring affliction or grief to anyone" (Lam. 3:22-24, 32-33). God's judgement on the city was deserved. It followed many years of the prophet's warnings. But is still pained his heart.

Job's sufferings, on the other hand, were undeserved yet he could still write: "Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him" (Job 13:15).

I have just finished reading Job and was forcefully struck by The Lord's way of "answering" his many complaints. God asks Job a series of questions and left Job's questions unanswered. (Jesus did this on many occasions. He answered questions put to him with questions of his own.)

"Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind: 'Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words?'" (Job 38:1-2 NLT) Francis Andersen comments: "The Lord's questions are not meant to humiliate Job, but to enlighten him by enrolling him into 'God's School of Wisdom'. And the schoolroom is the world".

The words that stood out to me were "Who is this that questions my wisdom?" I hadn't realised that this was what Job had been doing. And isn't this what we are prone to do when we suffer or see someone else suffer in what seems to us to be a wholly unfair and undeserved manner? My next thought was the words: "God does not willingly bring affliction or grief to anyone".

When I arrived at Job 40:8 I found something that chimed with Job 38:1-2. God was asking Job: "Will you discredit my justice and condemn me just to prove you are right?"

Job questioned God's wisdom and God's justice because he believed, together with his friends, that bad things wouldn't happen to good people. He knew he had lived a godly life so felt God owed him an explanation as to his sufferings. However, he never lost his trust and hope in God that He was for him, not against him. He was never told that his sufferings actually came about because God was really pleased with him and wanted him to deepen his personal relationship with his Creator.  

Children of God who were abused by their biological parents or other adult carers will be tempted by the evil one to question God's wisdom or justice or love for them, but they can be sure He never abandoned them. Their sufferings equip them to empathize with and to help fellow suffers. They also become recipients of an abundant measure of God's grace and loving kindness which they long to pass on to others. They will be able to say with Job: "I once lived by rumours of you; now I have it all first hand – from my own eyes and ears" (Job 42:5 Message).