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Years ago, children used to enjoy crazes in the school playground. At various seasons of the year there would be a craze for conkers, a craze for marbles, a craze for skipping, a craze for juggling with a couple of sorbo rubber balls, a craze for yo-yos, a craze for hoola-hoops and so on. I never knew quite how the current craze started, but once it was under way every child in the school seemed to join in. At the time the crazes seemed supremely important, but they faded as quickly as they began and were soon followed by other crazes.

I remember once winning at marbles. It was a pretty rare occasion, but even as I gleefully received the marbles I had won from another child, I noticed that she had very few marbles left. In a gesture of pity I offered her some of my precious marbles. She took them with alacrity and rapidly disappeared and it wasn't until next day that I discovered she had over a hundred marbles at home, an untold wealth of marbles. Fortunately for me, the craze soon changed again.

If we take on board the last seven verses of the book of Job (which most scholars agree were added by a later editor) it seems that something similar happened to Job. All his friends and relatives, who seemed to be absent when Job was really in need, suddenly reappeared when Job's illness cleared up and out of pity gave him cash and gold jewellery. Job was soon twice as rich as he had been before his misfortunes, with thousands of livestock, seven sons to farm the land and three beautiful daughters. But even though the book of Job has been given a fairy tale ending by this later editor, the subversive theme kicking against the conventional wisdom of the time is not quite finished, for we're told that Job gave his daughters an inheritance alongside his sons, something unheard of in that patriarchal society where daughters could only inherit if there were no sons.

In a way, these last few verses spoil the story of Job, for the tale is of a man who remained loyal to God throughout appalling misfortunes, but who dared to question God and to demand an answer to the problem of suffering. It doesn't run quite true to life that his amazing wealth is not only restored, but doubled.

Throughout the book, as misfortune after misfortune piles onto Job, his three friends beg him to repent of his sins, turning back to God. But Job refuses to admit to something he hasn't done. He knows he is not a sinner and instead of repenting, he rails bitterly against God who has allowed all this misery to happen to him. At the same time, he demands to meet with God face to face, so that God can explain himself to Job.

In fact the face to face meeting never happens, but God does accede to Job's wishes by speaking with him. God is not, however, manipulated into responding in the way which Job desires. Instead, over several chapters God relates to Job the wonders of the universe along with a series of rhetorical questions designed to press home the point that Job has no idea of the magnificence or power of God. Again and again God challenges Job with unanswerable questions which eventually cause Job to sink to his knees in humility.

Although God refuses to provide any answers to Job's questions about why good people suffer in this life, Job is more than satisfied with God's response, for Job suddenly sees, he gets it. And now, overwhelmed by his experience of God, Job does actually repent. He says to God: "I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes."

Job knew all about God, for Job was a righteous man. he worshipped God, he prayed, he lived a good and upright life, he took his social responsibilities seriously. He had heard about God and he responded to what he had heard. But at this point Job had no personal experience of God. It wasn't until he was stripped of everything and had nowhere else to turn, that Job begins to discover what life is really about. Because he himself is deeply affected, Job begins to realise the unfairness of life and he rages against what he sees as God's injustice in allowing good people to suffer. Job has the courage and the integrity to search for the truth, no matter where that search may lead him, and far from chastising him because of the anger he has openly displayed towards God, God commends Job for his integrity. And it's through this courage and integrity that Job at last has a personal experience of God. He doesn't see God but he does experience God and the experience leaves him breathless. For the first time, Job knows God for himself.

This experience of suddenly 'seeing', suddenly 'getting it', is common throughout the whole Bible. It's shown through the founding fathers and the prophets, all of whom have profound spiritual experiences, and is shown clearly and often in the New Testament where Jesus frequently enables the blind to see.

It's an experience which continues today. We all hear about God just as Job heard about God, but it may be that we can only experience God if we are prepared to keep on searching for truth with integrity and courage, no matter where that search may lead us. And once we can do that, then we will be able to say with Job, "Now I see."