The groans of the dying rise from the city, and the souls of the wounded cry out for help. But God charges no one with wrongdoing. – Job 24:12

Today's Scripture Reading (July 22, 2021): Job 24

During the first Biden-Putin summit in June 2021, both nations met with a list of grievances about the other. And one of the issues, for the Americans, was what the west viewed as the unlawful imprisonment of Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Putin's political nemesis. President Biden admitted that opposing human rights violations, which the west considers Navalny's imprisonment to be, is part of the United States' DNA and not something that it would be possible for the Americans to overlook.

Vladimir Putin's response was predictable. President Putin pointed to the Black Lives Matter protests in the United States and the murder of African Americans and argued that the imprisonment of Alexei Navalny was an effort to make sure that those events never happened in Russia. Putin argued that Navalny was encouraging protests among Russian citizens, encouraging protests that included teens and children, something that no government should tolerate. The Russian President then pointed to the number of potential political prisoners in American jails because of the January 6, 2021, Capital Uprising. According to Putin, these people came to Washington with legitimate political concerns, yet they found themselves in American prisons.

Western political commentators immediately reacted to Putin's accusations, calling it "what-aboutism," pointing to the fact that this was a fairly typical response of the Russian President. Political commentators also pressed that Putin was making a "false equivalency;" neither the Black Lives Matter Protests, nor the January 6, 2021, Capital Uprising, are in any way similar to the imprisonment of a political rival because he was asking inconvenient questions. The cry of the United States is that they have every right to condemn violence at home while also condemning the taking of political prisoners abroad. And they are right. Unfortunately, Vladimir Putin also has every right to ignore the complaints.

Job is making a similar observation. His friends are making accusations against Job, yet compared to the evil committed by the wicked, Job knows that this is just another "false equivalency." And Job wonders why; why is he suffering when the wicked seem to get away with their behavior. It is his form of "what aboutism." What about those who oppress the poor, steal children from the breasts of their mothers, and kill and maim those who get in their way. The evidence is clear; "the groans of the dying rise from the city, and the souls of the wounded cry out for help." And yet "God charges no one with wrongdoing." And all of this is proving frustrating to Job amid his suffering. If God is judging him for his shortcomings, what about them. Why should they get away with bad behavior?

We understand Job's concern because it is one that we struggle with today. It is a concern that we are no closer to answer to than was, except to trust the God who understands even what is beyond our comprehension.   

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Job 25 & 26