Personal Providence | Part Two

Personal Providence | Part Two

Based on this we can now understand why some people suffer trials and tribulations. A person who’s mostly righteous, or somewhat righteous and somewhat wrongful could be subject to tribulations because he warranted being prodded to examine his ways and to do teshuva.

These particular tribulations wouldn’t come to him to atone for his past sins, like those cited before whose aim is to purify a person of his sins while he’s yet alive. These particular tribulations would be meant to stir him to teshuva.

After all, people only suffer punishments when they sin and don’t do teshuva, as G-d wants us to not sin or to at least do teshuva if we do. But one can still be cleansed if he didn’t do teshuva through tribulations.

So tribulations sometimes come our way to inspire us to do teshuva. If we’re not moved to do that, though, we’re sometimes made to suffer tribulations in order to be cleansed. For as Elihu told Job, “(G-d) opens their ears to discipline and bids them to repent of their sins” (Job 36:10).