Still, there is a difference between a genuine question out of ignorance designed to aid comprehension and a demanding, arrogant, borderline disrespectful question. For example, in Luke 1, we’re told both Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Zechariah, the mother of John, had questions about the miracle births that would arise. Mary, a virgin, was told she would give birth and asked how this would be, meaning how it would come about (Luke 1:34). Her question was one rooted in awe and curiosity. How would everything happen, she wanted to know.
Zechariah, an elderly priest married to Elizabeth, who was past the age of childbearing, also asked, “How?” Only, his “how” was a bit different. He asked the angel who delivered the news, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years” (Luke 1:18). He asked for confirmation and a sign, as if seeking proof, something far less respectful and far more offensive than Mary’s question because it was rooted in disbelief. As a result, the angel took away Zechariah’s ability to speak until the child was born because the angel said, “You did not believe my words” (v. 20).
Job also had many questions for God and did not hesitate to ask them. A good, righteous man who suddenly lost all of his children, wealth, and physical health, Job was distraught and lamented the misfortune that had befallen him.
“Why did I not perish at birth and die as I came from the womb?” he asked in Job 3:11.
Later, he asked, “How many wrongs and sins have I committed? Show me my offense and my sin. Why do you hide your face from me and consider me your enemy?” (Job 13:23-24).
Still, these questions acknowledged that God was God, and Job, as a human, truly did not understand. His questions came from a place of humility.
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