LIVE DISCUSSION: "The Lord Answers Job" (Job 38), Part 1/5

God finally breaks the silence in Job 38 and what He says is not what most of us expect. After chapter after chapter of people trying to explain Job’s suffering, we arrive at the moment when the Lord speaks out of the whirlwind and He never tells Job why it happened. No autopsy of pain. No simple moral equation. Just God, present and unmistakably powerful.

We slow down and trace the core pattern in God’s response: He teaches through questions. The questions are not trivia or word games, they are a mirror that shows Job his limits and shows God’s wisdom through creation, providence, and order. We talk about how rhetorical questions can be a form of mercy because they don’t merely inform the mind, they re-center the heart. Along the way, our group reflects on how this matches the way Jesus often dealt with people, drawing them to truth through questions that expose what we assume we deserve.

The biggest takeaway is the shift from “why is this happening to me” to “who is God.” If you’re searching for a Christian perspective on suffering, the Book of Job, Job 38, and the God who speaks from the whirlwind offers something deeper than an explanation: a revelation that produces humility, reverence, and trust. If that tension feels personal right now, you’re not alone.

Subscribe for more Bible study through Job, share this with a friend who’s hurting, and leave a review with your biggest question: when you suffer, do you most want the why or the who?

Transcript

SPEAKER_08 0:00

Christians.

Welcome And Job 38 Setup

SPEAKER_08 0:03

How are you doing this Monday evening? Hope all does well. And um I trust that excuse me. I trust that you had a great Monday, a great start to your week. And uh now I'm thinking that we are in a good point in the book of Job where we are beginning tonight, as we are getting near the end of the book of Job. And we are in Job chapter 38. Job chapter 38. And this is when God begins to speak. This is when God begins to speak. So now things are coming to a close. God intervenes after hearing Job's friends speak and try to assess why it is that Job was in the throes of suffering to the degree that he was. And so what we have to do is now see what God's responses is. We know that there were elements, there were times when Job had spoken out of turn, as it were, with respect to the way God is dealing with Job's suffering. And we're gonna find out some very interesting things about um God's responses and how telling they're going to be regarding Job. Good evening, sisters, Vanessa, Lisa, hope you guys are doing well. Uh Laura, I see you there in the uh in the chat. Good evening to you and Isaiah, good evening, uh Barbara, Joseph, uh so everybody that's in here so far, appreciate you being here. I hope I can um shed some light on God as he now responds to Job. Um, after 37 chapters, we finally get to hear from the Lord in this matter. Brother Rodney, good evening. So now, in Job chapter 38, Job 38, I'll begin by stating a few things before I get into the text itself, but we're gonna be in Job 38.

God Never Explains Job’s Suffering

SPEAKER_08 2:33

But first, I want to point out the main purpose of this chapter specifically is not to explain Job's suffering. In fact, in everything that God will speak from now to the end of the book, God never addresses with Job the very thing that Job's friends attempted to address with Job. You will find that in these closing chapters, God, excuse me, I keep wanting to sneeze, God never addresses Job's suffering. He never does. And for all this time of hearing all of Job's friends, all four of them, none of them, they were each trying to explain why he was suffering. We know why he was suffering. Job never got to understand why he was suffering. God never said why, why Job suffers. God never tells Job. He never tells him. This is interesting, and this is a really good point. And we'll talk more about this as we go on. But what was God's intent in addressing Job? His intent was to was to humble Job by showing Job his greatness. He wants to show God, good show, God wants to show Job his own greatness. God wants to show Job his wisdom. And God wants to show Job his power as it is seen and portrayed in creation and in providence. Brother Joseph is right, God is very unapologetic. He never says one word about why Job was suffering. He never does. And so the lesson in this is that the one who cannot explain the workings of nature itself, which is God, what God is going to do with Job, should not consider themselves to be in a position to judge the works of God. And see, Job is being rebuked by God because he had sometimes questioned God's judgment in his works, especially as pertaining to Job, while he was being suffering, suffering, and because of his suffering. So the only response, the only response that Job can have here, which is a proper and a right response, is humility, reverence, and to trust in the wisdom of God. This is what happens in this book. But I want to point out that I think it's a striking, it's a striking uh of striking interest to me in that we spend 37 chapters trying to understand from the standpoint of Job's friends as they try to explain why Job was suffering his afflictions, and yet God never explains it. He never addresses that. He never addresses that.

Questions That Expose Human Limits

SPEAKER_08 6:05

So what does God do? He starts coming to Job with a fleet of questions. A lot of questions, and not a whole lot of declarations, but questions. He questions Job. And he says things like, I am wise, and you are not. God asks a lot of questions, and he uses a rhetorical method of doing so. And so, what do I mean by this? He questions his questions, they force Job to experience his limitations rather than merely to hear about them. He wants Job to experience his limitations rather than to simply just hear about them. And so the big takeaway here is that God teaches not just through statements, he doesn't just make these grand statements and these grand uh these big giant speeches, but through confrontation, that leads Job to a place where he becomes more uh where he can be more uh self-realized, self-realization, I should say. And so, and I love this because our Lord and Savior uses the same type of dealing. If you go back, if you look into the New Testament when Christ was on earth, it is supposed that he asked somewhere around 300 questions. He asked around 300 questions, and it's fewer if you eliminate the re the questions that may have been repeated because of the synoptic gospels. But generally speaking, Christ often addressed the issues of men when he was here on earth by asking questions, and God's response to Job is no different, and it shows some consistency in the way God works, because our Lord and Savior uses the same tactic, and that's because he is God, he was asking questions, and so everything that God says to Job is almost everything he says to Job is framed in the form of questions, not answers. And I think this is beautiful and I think it's striking. And the reason why, because Job throughout the throughout the uh the chapters that we have read so far, Job has been demanding explanations. He's been demanding God's attention to get explanations, explanations that his friends were not giving him. But God responds to Job by questioning Job. That's how he begins it. By questioning Job. And so this is an important thing that I think we need to understand. And I think that as we go through this chapter and the upcoming chapters, we're gonna see um how this is important because it shows a lot of things. But here's what I want to say in a nutshell about the questions that God does ask Job. And that is that he, his questions to Job are the actual answers to Job's issues. And only God can do this. We often complain about people offering questions as answers to questions. But when God asks questions to men, his questions are actually the answers upon which man needs to hear and to understand God with a greater degree of understanding and seeing this. So, and many of the questions that Job is going to be asked by God are gonna have to do with things like weather and animals and the cosmic arrangement and order of the world. And all of this does, what all of this does is reinforces another key point that God answers Job's why. Job is asking the questions to God. Excuse me. He asks the questions, why? But God's answers come with the who. And this is what I think is a great way to sort of summarize what's what's happening in the upcoming chapters. Job has been asking why, but God answers Job with a revelation of the who or himself. And this is really important. And so once again, I want to point out that God, after all of this time, God never mentions Job's suffering. And this is one of the most unexpected things about Job 38. And that's what's missing, which is that God does not address Job's pain at all. He never addresses Job's pain. He never addresses any of Job's losses. He doesn't talk about the loss of his children or the loss of his his uh his businesses. He doesn't address any of these things. Instead, he speaks entirely about creation, the earth, the sea, light, stars, and the weather. This is what God talks about. And he doesn't address why Job suffered. And I want, as we go through this book or this chapter, and the rest of the remaining of the book, I want all of you to think about these things because when you do, it it really shows you that God operates on a whole different, for lack of a better expression, a whole different frequency than man does. I hate to use these earthly uh mystical terms that people use, but this is a good way of me saying it in a way that I think most of you will understand.

Creation As Proof Of Wisdom

SPEAKER_08 12:52

So what does all this mean? This suggests that the ultimate answer, the ultimate answer to one's suffering is not always an explanation regarding the suffering itself, but rather a revelation of God. And which would you rather have when you think about it? Which would you rather have if you're going through suffering and God is going to come for a visit? What would you rather have? What would you rather be, what would you be more in need of? What would you rather desire more? An explanation as to why you are suffering? Or would you take comfort in the re in the refuge of God speaking to you more boldly and more clearly and more articulately about himself? See, this is what Job got. See, Job asked to speak with God. He asked to order his cause before God. Remember, I would order my cause before you. He doesn't even address Job's pain, his sufferings, or his loss. He doesn't even address it. He goes straight to his own glory. He goes straight to revealing more of himself to Job. And Job is going to come out of this understanding and knowing his God in a way that is more illustrious than he did before his affliction. And this is important. So the shift is from why is this happening? Job's question as to why this is happening, what's happening to him, and it shifts to who is God? That's what we're about to embark upon.

Panel Reflections On Knowing God

SPEAKER_08 14:53

So before I start with the first verse, I want to give everybody a chance to give an opening assessment uh so far on whatever you'd like, or what I have just said, or what you may expect, uh, or maybe what you have, some highlights of what you may have uncovered in your reading ahead uh before we get to this point. So I'll start with you, Sitchashan. Where what are you what are your opening thoughts and good evening?

SPEAKER_02 15:18

Uh good evening. Uh you just reminded me of this the uh scripture with Paul, and he had the thorn in his side, and he was asking God to take that thorn, that that suffering, and and he didn't. He just said, My grace is sufficient. Sometimes uh it's not the suffering, but it's about knowing who God is, and I think that's what this is all about. It's about knowing him, and this is what he's giving Job the opportunity to do, is to truly know him.

SPEAKER_07 15:49

Right. Amen, sisters. Sister Mariah, your thoughts. And good evening.

SPEAKER_00 15:56

Good evening, everyone. Um yeah, so you said something like, What would you rather? Would you rather an answer, or would you rather to have the more understanding about God or revelation? And I think that Job gets his answer by the deep, deeper revelation or understanding of who God is. Right. Because now you can understand, like Sister Sean said, that his grace is sufficient for you in your time of suffering or in your time of need. And that's all you need to know, you know, um, is that he has your back, he has your your your front, your sides, and everything else. So um I think that it is actually an answer in in the totality of God talking and speaking with him.

SPEAKER_08 16:48

Amen, sister. Good good response there. Brother Rodney, your opening remarks, brethren. Good evening.

SPEAKER_03 16:54

Good evening, everybody. Um so uh I'm gonna come from the relationship uh perspective in a sense, because that's what's like to me. Good observation. Um, it it this is why I just constantly keep saying, glory be to God, thank you for another chance, you know, at this whole thing, because I know there's nothing else in the world that I desire. And funny fact, I met a I met a new friend this weekend at the wedding I was with filming. Uh she just I don't know, it was something, and uh, we got hooked up on talking about God and Christianity was so beautiful that we almost missed the speeches, but that's another strip another day. But I'm just like, even that right there, you know, his his he's just always there. And this was it was something she felt in my spirit. But that relationship between me and her, and then also the research that I'm kind of comparing to the Lord. You know, sometimes you worry about if you can trust your friends and stuff like that, but this is just the point, you know, he's just here to just do everything that we doubt, right? And that's the ultimate intimate relationship, not just a relationship, because that intimate relationship, you can ask some questions. And sometimes the question that God gave back to Job with the answers that Job was seeking sometimes can be the healer. I know where I'm coming from with it, you know, because it seems as though questions like you just said, kind of kind of say what I was saying, you know, the questions also heal you more that you're looking for, because it kind of makes you recenter yourself in a sense, if you will, right? And come off of your hot horse in a sense and look at it from where he's coming from. So that's where I'm and intimate relationship, that's kind of the difference between just a regular relationship.

SPEAKER_08 18:33

So that's what I like, that's what I like about uh you know, God breaking in here on in the case of it of Job, because even from God's perspective, you can see that the his the way God comes at Job is more of a is more as a paternal confrontation, the way a father would come and straighten out his son. This and that's what that's what's happening here. But you know, but when you when you when you look at all the things that we talked about, because it's been a ride since we started this whole this whole book, and when now God starts to speak, and he never addresses God's Job's suffering. He never addresses that at all. He never does. He only speaks, he, he, he, he f adds to Job's understanding about God. He increases and steps up Job's understanding about God. It's almost as if Job, you know, God comes on the scene and Job had these questions about why is this happening? Why is this happening? And God is like, all that really matters is that I'm here, son. I'm here now. I'm here now. And Job is quieted. You know, but God is good because, like I said earlier, Job was asking the why about this and that that was happening to him. God breaks in and gives him the who. He doesn't address the why. He addresses the who. And Job understands that that is to be chosen far above understanding the why. Because once God steps on the scene, whatever was happening suddenly does not matter. Suddenly doesn't matter. Sister Vanessa, opening remarks.

SPEAKER_11 20:21

Good evening, everyone.

SPEAKER_08 20:23

Good evening.

SPEAKER_11 20:24

It's been a long day for me. I was working in my yard today. Um you know what? This reminds me, I love when God talks, and I would rather you ask that question. You know, what would we rather have? I would rather have God talking to me, asking me all kinds of questions. I don't care. As long as I can have a relationship with him, that's all that matters to me.

SPEAKER_06 20:50

Right.

SPEAKER_11 20:50

I really do think in this, you know, God's asking Job, he says, How can you question me?

SPEAKER_06 20:56

Right.

SPEAKER_11 20:57

You know, he says, How can you question me? You don't have my knowledge, right? You know, and and so it's like you you are my child. That's why I think that he doesn't he doesn't um address his suffering. I'm your child, or excuse me. He you are my child, and you don't have any understanding about what I really know.

SPEAKER_10 21:25

Right.

SPEAKER_11 21:26

So that's what I you know, that's how I think that's what I think is happening in this chapter. It's that he's telling him, yeah, he's just telling them, you know, this is what I do, and you but God blesses him when he's doing that. That's what I feel.

SPEAKER_06 21:41

So he does. He really is. He really is.

SPEAKER_11 21:43

I really think that, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 21:45

Yeah, he really is. So Telesa, your thoughts. And good evening.

SPEAKER_05 21:49

Good evening. Um, I am super excited about this chapter. Um, I've said it all along. I think God's rebuke. Of Job. The first two lines are basically just telling him, hey, um, you know, I don't owe you an explanation. But it's in such a way that I think Job, I think uh Vanessa, I can't even remember who who said it. Job must be just so relieved to hear from his God again. You know, this relationship um was never at in jeopardy. But I think that a few times during Job's um, you know, his suffering, I think he had questions. And he I think, you know, at one point he was desperate to hear from God whether that meant being rebuked or not. I mean, Job knows his deep down, Job knows his standing with God just as we do. We belong to God and we are his children. And I think I think Job was just so desperate to hear from him and hearing from him now, no matter what God says at this point, I'm sure Job is just on his on his knees and just with such gratitude. And I it just reminds us how beautiful God is, even in his rebuke. And if we think about our own experience, he's so he's so merciful and gracious and gentle with us all. You know, it's beautiful. I love the Lord. This is so exciting.

SPEAKER_08 23:29

Yeah, this is good. And I do think you're right. I I think that you get to a point where I think Job was at that point, and I think God broke in at the point where Job needed was needed, needed him the most. You know, I think that all the things that led up, all the things that he heard from Elihu and Zophar and Bildad and all those guys, it's like God, you know, God decided that this was the time for him to break in and to and to bring comfort to Job. The comfort that Job has been looking for. And the thing, and here's the thing the comfort that God actually did bring to Job, none of the other men could have brought. Because what God starts telling Job about, what God starts telling Job about, none of them knew. Just like they didn't know, just like, just like Job and none of the other guys knew why he was suffering the affliction, none of those guys knew, just like Job, they didn't know God in this way that he now brings in on Job. You know, and I think that there's a lot to what you know God is saying here about Job, and he's he's reminding Job that you need to get your perspective right when you are when you are addressing me, especially when you start to question how I judge things, including how you suffer, Job. But it's I think it's beautiful that because that because one of the things, one of the great lessons here that we learn from God is uh is based on the things that he doesn't say. And like and that's what I mean by he didn't even address why Job was suffering. Job never found out why he suffered. And nobody else did either. So we know now that that was impossible for anybody to ever know. And then when God finally does come in to comfort Job, he comes in by asking him a series of questions which really serve as answers to what Job's to the questions that Job really needs to be asking, which has to do with his God. He should have been asking all along, what about God? What about God? Not why me, not why me. And this is what we often do. And I'm sure that we will glean many things out of this as we continue to to probe the verses. Um, Brother Jeffrey, your opening remarks.

SPEAKER_09 25:47

Well, good evening, Jonathan, and good evening, panel. Uh I joined you all a little late this evening. I'm sorry about that. Glad to be here, though. Uh it's rather interesting in the fact, Jonathan, there is certainly a lot of lessons here for us in the fact that one of the things that are many above many things I have gleaned from this is the fact that God never owes us an explanation, Jonathan, as to why he does anything. There may be certain parts of what he does he will tell us because he's faithful and good. But Jonathan, when did we get granted the mind of God that thinks, reasons, and operates on a level that he does? If we did that, we would be equal to him, and we are not. Right. We are not. I mean, we've studied that scripture, and you've mentioned it several times where his it says in in Proverbs that his ways are not, sorry, Isaiah, that his ways are not our ways, his thoughts are not our thoughts. So he had no obligation whatsoever that I can see. If you all think I'm wrong, please tell me, to tell Job exactly why he did what he did, why he allowed Job to suffer. Neil, one of the things that I've come across is this after this was all over, Jonathan, Job was not the same man that he was. He was a righteous man before all of this started. Yes. The word declares that clearly. But he was a stronger, wiser, more uh better educated, more uh uh experienced, walking closer with God, man, after it was all said and done.

SPEAKER_06 27:36

Right.

SPEAKER_09 27:37

Because he got double what he had for but what he had before. Right. But nevertheless, he, as you just said, he never said, Job, here's why. Essentially, God is saying, Who are you to question me, Job? I mean, that's that's again, that's what he's going to tell him. That's all the questions. He doesn't answer any of his questions, but he answers them with other questions. Where were you and I laid the cornerstone to the universe? Right. Think about that question, Jonathan. What if God asked that question to you and me directly? We were in Job's place, and he says to you, Jonathan, where were you uh when I laid the cornerstone to the universe? And I said, Let there be light, and there was light. Where were you? What would your answer be?

SPEAKER_06 28:23

Right, right.

SPEAKER_09 28:25

Yeah, so anyway, that that's what I've gotten so far. May turn out differently, but that's what I've seen so far. So let me speak.

SPEAKER_08 28:33

No, I think that what you said is is a significant part of the truth here. I think it's absolutely true. And we're gonna see many things in this in these responses, but it's it's it's really amazing. Sister Meg, what are your thoughts? I know you didn't hear everything that we said at the beginning, but I'm sure you have perspectives nonetheless.

SPEAKER_04 28:50

Yeah, I think what's good evening, everybody. Um I I think what's really beautiful here is I think so many places in this whole book we have put ourselves in the positions of other people and how we would react. But when God breaks in, that's one position that we can't put ourselves in. And so the only thing that we can do, you know, as I'm as we're starting this, I'm not focused on Bill Dad. I'm not focused on Job. I'm not focused on anybody but what God is about to say here. And I think that Job is the exact same way because we're kind of living this out, but it seems like everything fades away now that God has stepped on the scene. Even everything that we thought, everything that we cared about, now God speaks and we're all focused on what God is about to say. What else I think is really interesting is that where Job was questioning God and many of his responses in his lament asking questions, now God's reversing the role. He's like, You wanted to question me. Now I'm gonna question you. And I'm gonna ask you these things that you have no idea about.

SPEAKER_06 30:04

Right.

SPEAKER_04 30:04

And and I think it's I think it's gonna be really good. I'm so excited to be be right here. Um, I think we all have studied explicitly in this book, and uh I'm really excited just because I think we're all at this space that like everything else fades away. And God, just like Job wants to hear from you, we want to hear from you too.

SPEAKER_08 30:25

Right, absolutely. Absolutely. Sister Candy, opening remarks and good evening.

SPEAKER_01 30:32

Good afternoon, good afternoon. First and foremost, I just want to say I am so thankful for God's word. So blessed to understand it. But I spoke a little bit on um last night about something that I think goes great with tonight, and it was in Isaiah where um he says he declares the ending from the beginning, but all things are from ancient times but not yet done. And then he says, My counsels shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure. And then, you know, if he speaks it, he brings it to play. It happens, he purposes it, so he will do it, he will cause it. And in Isaiah 45, uh 7, he says, I formed the light and create darkness, I make peace and create evil. Right. I Lord, do all these things. Like I said, if he thinks it, he will bring it to pass. He has a purpose, so it shall stand.

SPEAKER_08 31:35

All right, well, let's get into

The Whirlwind Rebuke Begins

SPEAKER_08 31:37

it. So we're in um Job 38, beginning at verse 1. The Lord finally breaks in for the first time, and he says, Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and he said, Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up now thy loins like a man, for I will demand of thee an answer, and I want you to answer me. The Lord now finally breaks in and gives Job the attention that he so craved. And the Lord now, excuse me, answers him directly, and he answers him out of a whirlwind. And what does this show but his majesty and his power? I'm sure that when Job saw this, whatever this display was, it was definitely more than enough to understand that this is God and just not some natural occurrence. So God has revealed himself in a very powerful way, and there's no doubt that he arrested Job and got his attention at the first. There wasn't no kind of speculation as to what was happening. Is this a a natural occurrence? No, this was something that was very different. There is no doubt Job knew what was happening here. And so God addresses him as speaking and saying things or or darkening his counsel with words that are spewed out of ignorance. Words without knowledge is what he's talking about. And like I said, Job he definitely desired to have God speak. And now he finally gets exactly what it is he wanted. And um and but now not by giving but he what he what God is not doing, as I said a few times, and I'll and I keep saying it for a reason because I want you to think about this as we go. God does not address Job's suffering. He never does. And I think this is an astounding uh uh uh situation to be in after all that we have read and all that we have come to understand about what was said to Job as a result of um his friends giving, trying to give him a a a reason for what he was suffering. But we're gonna we find out here, starting here, that nothing that they had said, that they had said, any of those four guys, none of those things that they said was an answer to what Job, to what Job was needing. And if it was and it was and if it was strictly Job wanting to know about why he was suffering, that answer was not given to him by anyone. Not even by God himself. No one gave him. So that that sheds a lot of color onto what it is we thought Job was getting out of all of his friends, including Elihu. Because God is giving Job what he absolutely needs to hear right now, and this and these things are what what God ordained to be or determined should be the exact things that Job needed to hear to get the comfort that he finally um that he finally gets. So um so here God he he he he rebukes Job by talking about him darkening counsels with words without knowledge. And we know that there were several times, like Meg brought up, that that Job did speak as if he would put himself in a place to examine and to judge God's judgment. And so he became dangerously close, if not somewhat crossing that line in judging the way God is judging things. And I think it's interesting because we're gonna see a lot about God making references to nature. And so, and what he is doing, what God is doing is telling Job, you are a part of that nature. Men have a tendency to believe that they are above everything. And in a and in many ways, we were. We were made to be above the earth until we fell. But God is a