How can God be good and allow suffering?

Hey everyone, wrestling with something heavy lately and hoping for some community wisdom grounded in Scripture.

We affirm God’s absolute sovereignty – that He works all things according to the counsel of His will (Ephesians 1:11 ) and works all things together for good for those who love Him (Romans 8:28 ). We also affirm His perfect goodness (Psalm 34:8 , James 1:17 ).

But how do we truly reconcile this with the profound, sometimes seemingly pointless and crushing suffering believers experience? I’m thinking beyond general hardship – things like the inexplicable suffering of Job, or modern believers facing devastating terminal illness, horrific accidents, or the loss of a child despite fervent prayer and faithful living.

It feels contradictory. If God is both totally in control and perfectly good, why doesn’t His goodness seem to prevent or immediately alleviate such extreme agony for His own children? How does His sovereignty operate in these moments without compromising His character as purely good and loving? I’m struggling to see how all things truly work for good in those darkest valleys.

Looking for biblical insight beyond simple platitudes. How do we hold these truths together faithfully?

Grace and peace to you, Support! Your thoughtful inquiry touches on one of the most profound and heart-wrenching questions in Scripture—how a good and sovereign God permits suffering. The Bible doesn’t shy away from this mystery, and in Job 42:5, we read, “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you.” This verse captures the tension between human understanding and divine revelation. Job’s story isn’t just about suffering; it’s about the limits of our knowledge and the sufficiency of God’s character. He doesn’t explain why Job endured his trials, but he reveals Himself as the ultimate source of comfort and justice. Your question echoes this same tension, grappling with the apparent disconnect between God’s goodness and the reality of pain in His creation.

The Fall introduced a fractured world where suffering exists, yet Scripture consistently affirms God’s control over it. How might the cross of Christ, where God Himself entered suffering, reshape our understanding of His sovereignty and goodness? How can we trust His wisdom when the “why” of suffering remains elusive, especially in moments of profound loss? What does Revelation 21:4—“He will wipe every tear from their eyes”—reveal about God’s ultimate plan for suffering, and how does this inform our hope in the midst of darkness?

Looking forward to the community’s insights on these questions! Remember, feel free to tag @InsightAI if you’d like a detailed biblical exposition on any specific aspect or related passage. :open_book: Selah.

@InsightAI Thank you for framing the discussion. You mentioned trusting God’s wisdom even when the ‘why’ of suffering remains elusive, referencing Job’s experience where God revealed Himself rather than explaining the reasons.

Could you please provide a detailed biblical exposition on this specific point? How does Scripture instruct believers to actively trust God’s sovereign wisdom and goodness during intense suffering, especially when there is no apparent explanation or discernible ‘good’ outcome in the immediate circumstances? Please draw from Job as you mentioned, but also incorporate and fully expound other relevant passages (like specific Psalms, Habakkuk, or New Testament texts) that speak directly to this active trust in the face of incomprehensible pain.

Principle: Believers are called to actively trust God’s sovereign wisdom and goodness in suffering, even when the “why” remains hidden, by anchoring their faith in His character, redemptive purposes, and the ultimate revelation of His glory.

Significance: This trust is not passive resignation but a dynamic reliance on God’s promises, grounded in His self-revelation as the Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer. The Bible repeatedly confronts the tension between suffering and God’s goodness, not by erasing the mystery but by directing believers to His unshakable character and the future fulfillment of His plans.


1. Job’s Journey: Trusting God’s Wisdom Beyond Understanding

Scripture: “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you” (Job 42:5).
Exposition: Job’s story culminates in a divine revelation where God does not explain the cause of his suffering but instead unveils His sovereign majesty. Job’s response—“I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:6)—reflects a shift from questioning God’s justice to submitting to His wisdom. This illustrates that trust in God’s sovereignty often involves embracing mystery, recognizing that His ways transcend human comprehension.

Key Insight: Suffering can be a means of deepening our relationship with God, not merely a problem to be solved. As Job’s friends failed to offer true comfort, God’s answer to Job was His own presence—a reminder that the ultimate assurance of His goodness lies in knowing Him, not in understanding every circumstance.


2. Psalm 34:8 – “Taste and See That the Lord Is Good”

Scripture: “O taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him” (Psalm 34:8).
Exposition: This verse calls believers to experiential knowledge of God’s goodness, even amid trial. David, who faced persecution and suffering, affirms that God’s character is the ultimate foundation for trust. The command to “taste” implies a personal, relational encounter with God’s grace, one that transcends intellectual assent.

Key Insight: Trust in God’s goodness is not a denial of pain but a declaration that His character is more reliable than any temporary hardship. This psalm anticipates the New Covenant promise that those who seek God will find Him, even in the shadow of death (Psalm 23:4).


3. Psalm 73:1-17 – Wrestling with the Paradox of the Wicked

Scripture: “Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart” (Psalm 73:1).
Exposition: Asaph, a psalmist, grapples with the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous. His struggle peaks when he feels deceived by God’s “providence” (Psalm 73:3), but his perspective shifts when he enters God’s temple: “I saw that the wicked are not in trouble… their eyes swell out with fat… They are not in trouble as other men… They are not afflicted like other men” (Psalm 73:3-5). This revelation humbles him, leading to a renewed trust in God’s justice.

Key Insight: The psalm reveals that suffering and prosperity are not always aligned with moral merit. Yet, God’s ultimate justice is not confined to this life. Asaph’s “encounter with God” (v. 17) reminds believers that trust in His sovereignty involves patience, as He works all things for His glory and the redemption of His people.


4. Habakkuk 3:17-19 – Joy in the Midst of Desolation

Scripture: “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the pasture, and there be no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exult in the God of my salvation” (Habakkuk 3:17-19).
Exposition: Habakkuk’s lament over God’s use of the Babylonians to judge Israel (ch. 1-2) reaches a climax in this declaration of faith. Despite systemic collapse, he resolves to “rejoice” and “exult” in God. This is not blind optimism but a trust in God’s unchanging character, even when circumstances defy understanding.

Key Insight: Habakkuk’s psalm models how to hold God’s sovereignty and goodness as non-negotiable truths, even when the world seems to contradict them. His faith is rooted in the conviction that God is “the God of my salvation” (v. 19), a promise that transcends temporal loss.


5. Romans 8:28-30 – All Things Work for Good

Scripture: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
Exposition: Paul’s theology of suffering is anchored in God’s eternal purposes. The phrase “all things” includes suffering, which is not an exception but a component of the “good” that God orchestrates for His elect. This is not a vague platitude but a promise grounded in the foreknowledge and predestination of God (vv. 29-30).

Key Insight: The “good” referred to here is not a subjective feeling but the sanctification and glorification of believers. Suffering is a means by which God conforms us to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29), a process that culminates in eternal glory. This is a sovereign, redemptive “goodness” that transcends present pain.


6. 1 Peter 1:6-7 – Trials as Refining Fire

Scripture: “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7).
Exposition: Peter equates suffering with a refining fire that purifies faith. The “tested genuineness” of believers is not about avoiding pain but enduring it with the assurance that God is at work. This aligns with the Old Testament motif of God’s refining of His people (Malachi 3:2-3).

Key Insight: Suffering is not a sign of God’s absence but of His active involvement in shaping godly character. The “praise and glory” of the final revelation (v. 7) is the ultimate vindication of God’s goodness.


7. 2 Corinthians 4:7-12 – The Earthen Vessel and Christ’s Resurrection Power

Scripture: “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed… For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh” (2 Corinthians 4:7-12).
Exposition: Paul describes the Christian experience as one of “affliction” and “persecution” that paradoxically demonstrates Christ’s power. The “treasure” of the gospel is entrusted to fragile human bodies, yet God’s power is revealed through our suffering.

Key Insight: Suffering is not a defeat but a testament to the resurrection life of Christ. The more we are “down, but not destroyed” (v. 9), the more Christ’s power is glorified. This echoes Job’s conclusion: the truest comfort in suffering is the revelation of God’s glory.


Gospel Application Directive

What this means for you: The Bible calls us to trust God’s sovereign wisdom and goodness in suffering, not by erasing the pain but by revealing His character. As the cross of Christ demonstrates, God does not remain distant from suffering but enters it, bearing the full weight of human pain to redeem it (Isaiah 53:4-5). This is the ultimate “good” that Romans 8:28 points to: the transformation of suffering into a testament of God’s love and power.

When trials come, remember that God’s “goodness” is not a promise of comfort but a promise of conformity to Christ (Romans 8:29). Trust Him not because suffering is explained, but because He is worthy of our faith. As Habakkuk declares, even in the “fig tree” of life’s ruin, we can “rejoice in the Lord” (Habakkuk 3:18-19). The cross reminds us that God’s goodness is not compromised by suffering—it is revealed through it.

:open_book: Selah.