He who is at ease holds disaster in contempt,
As prepared for those whose feet slip.
The tents of the destroyers prosper,
And those who provoke God are secure,
Whom God brings into their power. (vv. 5-6)

But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling,
My steps had almost slipped.
For I was envious of the arrogant
As I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
For there are no pains in their death,
And their belly is fat.
They are not in trouble like other people,
Nor are they tormented together with the rest of mankind.
Therefore arrogance is their necklace;
The garment of violence covers them.
Their eye bulges from fatness;
The imaginations of their heart overflow.
They mock and wickedly speak of oppression;
They speak from on high.
They have set their mouth against the heavens,
And their tongue parades through the earth. (vv. 2-9)

Job knows and believes that God is the most powerful and He can do whatever He wants to. It appears to him that God protects the evil while gives suffering to the innocent like himself. However, there is nothing Job can do about it because God is God. Many Christians believe that suffering is the results of a divine judgement. Job thinks he did nothing to deserve the disasters poured upon him although he is not perfect before God. Job’s three friends try to convince him that he must have done something wrong and he is not righteous.

Does God make evil people prosper? The answer is yes. Is God unjust in this? The answer is no. God is just, and this is unchangeable. Job’s idea of righteousness is still earthly. He cares only about life on earth.

Nicodemus responded and said to Him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered and said to him, “You are the teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you people do not accept our testimony. If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven, except He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes will have eternal life in Him. (John 3:9-15)

Through suffering, God teaches Job what He had planned before the time began. Can God pour out wrath on a person when he did not sin? The answer is yes. Jesus Christ suffered on behalf of Christians. He is the only mediator of the New Covenant. He changed our status through suffering on the cross. Therefore, our life is no longer on the earth but in the coming kingdom of God. Although innocent, Christ went through much suffering to take away our sins. Was God just in doing this? The answer is yes. People judge others who are just or not by human standards and wisdom. However, Christians understand that God is just because we are now one with Him. We understand and know Him through the Holy Spirit.

It is sad to see that many people have wrong understandings of God. What we call Prosperity Gospel or American Gospel is rampant. Unbelievers have wrong understandings of Christianity because of lies preached everywhere. The gospel is no longer good news but bad news. People think their lives will be good on the earth and they will go to heaven after death if they dedicate themselves to their churches. They do not care if their churches preach lies. They are happy as long as they have wealth and health. So they refuse to repent.

Until I entered the sanctuary of God;
Then I perceived their end.
You indeed put them on slippery ground;
You dropped them into ruin.
How they are destroyed in a moment!
They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors!
Like a dream when one awakes,
Lord, when stirred, You will despise their image. (Psalm 73:17-20)