Tiffany Chen, Period 7, 12/3/21

Literacy & Learning

Write about your thoughts regarding any of the fiction or nonfiction covered in class.

Throughout all the readings we have had so far, the Book of Job was definitely one of the more intense and hard readings. The Book of Job questions suffering and God’s justice. Although Job was a righteous and faithful man to God, he still suffered, due to Satan’s challenges. This leads us, as the readers, to question why God would listen to Satan and allow Job to suffer. Truthfully, the Book of Job is not about good versus evil, rather it is showing us that pain is universal. Human pain and suffering do not always happen as a clear consequence of anyone’s sin. This leads to Job challenging God’s justice, asking God why bad things happen to righteous and good people. However, God quickly shuts down Job by telling him that he does not understand how the world works, that Job is only a speck in the bigger picture. Job apologizes to God, understanding that he overstepped his boundary. In the end, God restores double everything Job had lost, not as a reward for good behavior, but simply as a generous gift. Overall, the lesson of this story is to have faith and trust in God, even when it may seem like God is against us. We should look to God first when we face adversity or pain and believe that he has everything in order.


Reflect on any new information you have learned in English class by considering how that learning influences your critical perception.

One interesting thing I learned from the book of Job is the purpose of Job’s friends. Before we discussed this in class, I did not understand why they played such a big factor in the book. However, I realized that Job’s friends represented the questions that come up in the face of suffering. We don’t realize it, but whenever we experience any torment or affliction, we naturally want to find out why we are suffering. We look back at our past actions and question what it is that has led up to this moment of agony. Job’s friends thought that Job was suffering because he sinned, and thus wanted him to admit his wrong and repent to God. However, they were wrong, which led to God condemning them because of their inaccuracies. In the end, we find out that Job had done nothing to deserve his suffering; the trials Job endured had nothing to do with his behavior. Instead, God used the sufferings as a test and as part of his sovereign plan in Job’s life. We learn that suffering needs no reason and that it can happen to anyone, anywhere.


How is what you’re learning applied to any other classes/the world around you?

From the Book of Job, I learned that it is in human nature to question, especially in times of suffering. However, questioning is not always a good thing. While we ask questions to learn more about the world around us, it is best sometimes to leave it up to God and trust him and his judgment. Some things are unexplainable, and although they might not be fair, it is the way the world works. In addition, the Book of Job teaches us to have faith in what we believe in, whether it is religious or not. We should not give up and keep pushing because there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Although one bad day may overshadow all the good days, we should look back at our past and remember how far we have come, and think about our future and what we hope to accomplish. Everything happens for a reason and all of our lives have a purpose.