Understanding God's Hard Questions: A Review of Wright's Book

Preface and Introduction

The preface explains why Wright chose to write this book. He felt it could offer a more personal and humble approach to God than that achieved in his other books, which were concerned with "knowing God." In this book, Wright wants to address some of the more confusing aspects of God. He justifies this approach by pointing to Scripture, where God Himself makes clear that His ways are not our ways. This is a valid observation. What Wright is doing is drawing attention to the fact that we are not God's equals, and therefore we should not try to humanize Him. Rather, we should try to understand that He knows and sees all things, and therefore has good reason for commands and actions that might seem disturbing or odd to us.

In the introduction, Wright explains his own struggles with the things God allows to happen — among them, why God allows some people to suffer more than others. He notes that as he grows older, he seems to understand God less and less, though his love and trust remain unwavering. There appears to be a disconnect here, and it is precisely this disconnect that the author is attempting to resolve. As Wright notes, the best we can do is at least try to eliminate the incorrect answers to our questions — those that lead us away from truth or from a better understanding of God — even if we cannot arrive at a complete comprehension of Him. After all, we do not enjoy the beatific vision; we do not see Him face-to-face here on earth.

Wright follows in the footsteps of Abraham, who is the first biblical figure to question God directly about His fair dealings with humanity. Starting with Abraham, Wright surveys the Old Testament characters who speak to God intimately, often questioning Him, and who help us today to put our own frustrations into perspective. From Abraham to Hagar, Moses, Naomi, David, Elijah, Job, and right down to Christ Himself on the cross — "My God, why have you forsaken me?" — all of this points to the enduring mystery: why does God do what He does? It is a good question, and not one we should shy away from, for it shows the depth of our concern, grief, and feeling. Yet it should not shake our faith, if we have learned our lessons from Job, David, and Christ. Faith is our anchor, as Wright concludes in his introduction.

The Problem of Evil and Suffering

While the mystery of iniquity is one that will not go away, Wright asserts in Chapter 1 that there is no genuine ambiguity about the nature of moral evil — it is simply something one must accept. Moral evil is explained clearly as the result of Satan's fall through pride and Adam's fall through temptation. This was the foundation of sin in the world and of suffering. From moral evil, natural evil followed. Suffering does not always proceed directly from sin; sometimes it is an indirect effect. But it does have its root in sin — ultimately in the original sin of Adam and Eve. This is the logical answer. Yet there remains another question: the human, emotional question that logic alone cannot satisfy — how can God allow such evil and suffering to continue?

Wright explores this question by analyzing the Book of Job and Psalm 130, as well as other Old Testament texts, to develop a better understanding of evil and why God permits it. This helps the intellect gain better control over the emotional perplexity that frustration can produce. Nonetheless, we are still perplexed that evil should exist at all — in the light of reason, it makes no sense. Wright states that this realization is actually a good thing. Evil should not make sense to us. We should be perplexed and frightened by it. It is horrific, wrong, unjust, and unwanted, and the more firmly we hold that in mind, the less likely we are to enter into sin or to offend God. The more we grow in His light, the more we turn away from the confusion, darkness, and error of evil — and that is the main point of this chapter.

We should not be overwhelmed by our confusion about evil's existence. Evil is meant to be confusing — that is what Satan desires. Rather, we should recognize that doubt comes from the devil and that God calls us to firmness in faith. As for suffering, we can follow Christ's example and embrace it, uniting our suffering to His. We can also try to relieve the suffering of others, as Christ Himself does — for instance, when He raises Lazarus from the dead to erase the grief of his sisters.

Lamenting Evil and the Offense It Causes

In Chapter 2, Wright discusses what he calls the "offence of evil." By this he means that evil is to the soul what an infection is to the body. Just as the body fights against infection, the soul fights against evil through various means — and in this sense, it is entirely right for us to object to and protest evil, because some of the most respected figures in the Bible do precisely that. Wright asserts that it is good for us to fight against evil, to voice our frustrations with it, to lament and grieve it, and he suggests that the Bible actually teaches us how to do this. We can grieve, so long as we are not merely griping. We can lament, so long as we do so in a manner directed toward God, with the expectation and trust that He will hear. Although the "why?" question arises all over again, it is now approached from a different angle. Wright asserts that not every terrible suffering is a judgment for sin or a curse, and so we are not wrong to question or grieve — but the proper way to do so is with faith in God.

Wright focuses on and emphasizes how we are made in the likeness of God, and therefore we are compelled to feel mercy and charity for those who suffer. After all, Christ felt exactly this when He walked among us and shed tears for His people. This is, in fact, exactly what God wants us to do. He wants to see that we care deeply for others and that we will bring our troubles to Him. That is why He allows us to feel so deeply the griefs that others suffer. He knows that in our limited ways we can do little to actually help or heal — but He, on the other hand, can do anything. In a way, we are being tested like Job, to see whether we will turn to God for answers, for relief, for consolation.

If we feel sorrow, it is a good thing, for we have somewhere to go and God wants to help us with our sorrows. Even when we lament and protest that so many people do not deserve their misfortune, we can importune and plead — but in the end we are not God, and we are in no position to judge Him or His works. Nonetheless, we can ask about them, and the Bible shows us how to do that, especially in the Psalms. When David cries, "How long, O Lord, how long?" it is a lament, a cry for pity — but within it is also an act of faith, and that trust implicit in the cry is the most important thing.