Still I Will Trust

Still I Will Trust

By: Vashti Graham

Artist Description:

The Bible never says that good people will have an easy life. In fact, it teaches the opposite: faithful people can suffer deeply, but their suffering is never pointless. Bad things happen to good people because the world is broken; not because God is absent. The story of Job explains this. Good people still face hard things, but God never leaves them and He can bring something good out of their worst moments. 

Job (pronounced “Jobe”) was a really good man. Like, genuinely good. He loved God, helped others, and didn’t do anything wrong. He had a big family, lots of animals (which meant he was rich for that time), good health, and a strong relationship with God. Then the story shifts to a scene in heaven where Satan basically says to God: “Job only loves You because his life is perfect.” God allows Job to be tested  (not to hurt him, but to show that Job’s faith is real, even when life is hard). Then everything falls apart. His animals and wealth were stolen, his children died, he got painful sores all over his body, his friends blamed him, and his wife told him to give up. He felt alone and confused, but Job never turned away from God. He questioned. He cried. He hurt. But he didn’t curse God or abandon his faith. After the test, God spoke to Job, reminded him of His power and wisdom, and Job realized God was still in control even when he didn’t understand. In the end, God restored Job’s life and blessed him with more children, double the wealth he had before, a long life, and peace after the suffering. In the end, God reminded Job that He is always in control, even when life feels unfair. Job’s story shows us that bad things can happen to good people, but God never leaves us and can bring good out of any situation.

Scripture References AND WHY BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE :

Romans 8:22 “All creation has been groaning…” (We live in a broken, fallen world. Because of sin entering the world in Genesis 3, everything changed. Sickness, pain, death, and suffering exist because the world isn’t perfect anymore.)

John 16:33 “In this world you will have trouble.” (God never said good people would avoid hard times, just that He would walk with them through it.)

1 Peter 1:6–7 “Your trials prove your faith is real.” (Sometimes suffering tests and strengthens our faith. Not because God is cruel, but because pressure can grow character, wisdom, and spiritual strength.) This was literally the story of Job. He wasn’t being punished; he was being proven.

Romans 8:28 “God works all things together for good for those who love Him.” God brings good out of bad situations. Even when something is painful or unfair, God can use it to grow you, protect you, or prepare you for something better. The situation might not be good, but God can bring good out of it.

1 Peter 5:8 “Your enemy the devil… seeks to devour.” We have an enemy who wants to destroy what God loves. Job’s suffering wasn’t from God; it was from Satan. The Bible says we have a spiritual enemy who attacks. But God sets limits, and He still stays in control.

2 Corinthians 4:17 "For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." Our story isn’t finished yet. What we see right now is not the full picture. Pain is temporary, but God’s plan is eternal.

2 Corinthians 4:17 “Our present troubles are small and won’t last long…”Job’s restoration at the end of the book shows that God can rewrite any story

Job 1-2 Job is described righteous and faithful. He then loses his wealth, children, and health. Job 1:21 "The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord."

Job 3 Job grieves deeply. He starts to question his suffering. He does not curse God, but he does wrestle.

Job 4-31 His friends assume his suffering=punishment. Job defended his integrity and cried out for understanding.

Job 38-41 God speaks. He doesn't explain why, but He reveals who He is.

Job 42:7-17 God then restores Job's life. Job prays for his friends. His latter days are blessed more than his former.

Additional Facts You May Find Interesting:

What Job Does NOT Teach: 1. Faith does not guarantee protection from pain. 2. Suffering is not always punishment. 3. God is not transactional (“be good=get blessed”) 4. Restoration is not a formula or promise that everything will be fixed on earth. Will you trust God when obedience doesn’t protect you? What does it mean to stay faithful when the story doesn’t make sense yet?

Some suffering has no explanation that makes it easier. Not every loss comes with clarity, and not every prayer ends with the answer we hoped for. The book of Job reminds us that God does not always explain our pain, but He does stay present in it. Job never learns the reason for his suffering. What he learns instead is that God sees him, hears him, and holds his story even when life feels unfair and unfinished.

This book is a conversation, not a conclusion. It doesn’t give easy answers, it asks hard questions. Silence is part of the test. This is huge and missed often. Job doesn't just suffer; God is silent for 37 chapters. One of the hardest parts of Job’s suffering wasn’t the pain, it was the silence. God doesn’t minimize Job’s pain, but He expands Job’s perspective. He reminds him that the universe is held together by wisdom far beyond human sight. The message isn’t “You don’t matter”, it’s “You are not alone in a chaotic world.” God doesn’t speak right away. And that silence forces Job to decide whether faith depends on understanding. This connects deeply to readers who say: 1. “God feels quiet right now” and 2: “I prayed and nothing happened”.

Job isn't an Israelite. He actually lived in the land of Uz (Job 1:1). Likely, it was in Edom (modern Jordan) or Northern Arabia. This itself is important to note because it suggests God's relationship with humanity was not limited to Israel. In Job 29 Job appears to act like a tribal judge because he settles disputes, helps orphans and widows, and enforces justice. (This appears to match Near Eastern legal customs.) Job is extremely wealthy by ancient standards (which was measured in livestock, not money) and the size of his household. His wealth markers match Bronze Age economics, not later kingdoms.

There are moments in life where faith doesn’t look like understanding, it looks like surviving. When looking at this from a psychological standpoint, Job actually shows clinical signs of trauma. He struggled with depression, PTSD, Chronic pain, and social isolation. (Look at Job 7:5) Job never pretends everything is fine. His faith includes anger, grief, confusion, and protest. The Bible records his raw emotions, not to shame him, but to show us that honest faith is still faith. It leads the readers to the question, WILL YOU TRUST WITHOUT ANSWERS? The story of Job doesn’t tell us why life breaks the way it does, but it reminds us that God remains when everything else falls apart.

The Friends represent a common human mistake. Job’s friends aren’t villains, they’re wrong theologians. Job’s friends believed suffering always has a clear explanation. When they couldn’t find one, they blamed Job. This reflects a human instinct: we’d rather blame someone than admit life can be unfair. This helps us 1. Recognize spiritual gaslighting 2. Name harmful “comfort” they may have received 3. Release guilt they never deserved.

Job contains advanced astronomy way ahead of its time. It actually mentions Pleiades, Orion, and Arcturus. These are still constellations used today. Did you know some scholars believe Job contains some of the earliest recorded references to star clusters?

"He made the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the chambers of the south.” (Job 9:7–9)

Orion= same constellation we recognize today

Pleiades = a star cluster still studied by astronomers

Bear = usually understood as Ursa Major

“Chambers of the south” = (likely southern constellations not visible in Israel)

Job 26:7 says "He hangs the earth on nothing". This actually predates Greek cosmology, pillars/turtles myths, and midevil science. The universal assumption was that: mass requires support. No ancient culture had this concept. The Hebrew phrase behind "nothing" is belimah, which literally means: 1. without support 2. without substance 3. nothing/ emptiness (This isn't poetic writing, it is a literal claim. Job is not describing gravity and giving a cosmology lesson, but he is refusing to invent a wrong explanation.)

The book of Job even described the hydrological cycle.“He speaks to the sun and it does not shine; He seals off the light of the stars. He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.

Job 36:27-28 states "He draws up water... the clouds pour down rain." This is impressive because it was written THOUSANDS of years before meteorology.

Job’s restoration doesn’t erase his grief. His first children are not “replaced.” The story doesn’t say suffering didn’t matter, it says it wasn’t the end. Job teaches us that faith isn’t proven by comfort, answers, or outcomes, but by choosing trust in the middle of unanswered pain. Some losses change us forever, but they do not remove us from God’s care.