![]() ![]() Better comfort and consolation were offered when Job’s friends silently sat with him in ashes for seven days ( Job 2:12-13). His friends thought they were comforting Job by explaining his loss, but their methods were not effective. In reply to these simplistic and unbiblical explanations to his suffering, Job told them, “I have heard many things like these you are miserable comforters, all of you!” ( Job 16:2). These friends also tried to explain the death of Job’s children by claiming that his children had committed sin, which is why they died ( Job 8:4).Īlthough the phrase is not used, Job’s friends would likely have chosen to tell Job, “Everything happens for a reason.” ![]() They urged Job to leave his sinful ways so that God would relent in punishment ( Job 5:17-18 8:5-7). Job’s friends claimed he had sinned, which is why he had experienced suffering ( Job 4:7-8). When Job experienced grief and suffering due to the death of his children and loss of livestock, his “friends” offered numerous explanations and solutions to what he had experienced. People dying was not part of God’s original intention for humanity but was a result of the fall of man ( Genesis 2:17). Death is unnatural and is the result of sin in the world ( Romans 5:12). The Lord is completely perfect and cannot cause evil ( 1 John 1:5). The Bible does not contain the phrase “everything happens for a reason.” This phrase finds its origin in Aristotle who taught that everything happens due to the cause-and-effect model (Jeremy Sherman, "'Everything happens for a reason’: Simple phrase opens worm-can of wonder,” Psychology Today). When spoken to grieving individuals, the person offering these words is basically telling the individual that their loss of a loved one happened to bring about something good in their life.Īlthough the person offering these words often mean well, the grieving individual may get the impression that God wanted and caused their loved one to die. However, how the phrase is used when given to hurting individuals is not necessarily true or helpful. In basic logic, the phrase “everything happens for a reason” is true since everything has a cause and effect. ![]() Finally, for the believer who is seeking to comfort their hurting friends, there is a better way than telling them that “everything happens for a reason.” What Is the Origin of the Phrase 'Everything Happens for a Reason'? Likewise, when someone speaks such words, they are offering a simplistic answer to a complex question tied in with real grief.īiblical examples of people seeking to explain another person’s suffering proved to be wrong and extremely unhelpful. This phrase is not found in the Bible and is not completely true. However, such a phrase is not helpful to the grieving individual for numerous reasons. The phrase “everything happens for a reason” is commonly spoken to grieving individuals or those who have experienced a tragedy. Due to the painfulness of losing a loved one, people will often either avoid the grieving person or try to explain their loss. Knowing what to say to someone at a funeral who is grieving is difficult. ![]()
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