Give Me Understanding that I May Live: Situating Our Suffering Within God's Redemptive Plan by Mark Talbot

Give Me Understanding That I May Live: Situating Our Suffering Within God's Redemptive Plan (Crossway, 2022). 

This volume is the second in Mark Talbot's series on "Suffering and the Christian Life." In his first book, Talbot worked through the personal stories of Naomi, Job, and the prophet Jeremiah. In this follow-up book, Talbot steps back and considers the "general story" that the Scriptures provide. 

Talbot encourages readers to see their personal stories of pain and anguish not in isolation, but as part of the Bible’s overarching storyline of creation, rebellion, redemption, and consummation. By situating personal suffering within this larger context, he aims to provide Christians with the perspective needed to endure difficult times with courage and hope.

The book explores the origin and spread of suffering, tracing it back to the rebellion against God. Talbot examines what suffering is, how it affects people, and how it should prompt believers to seek redemption and the ultimate consummation of God’s plan. He argues that understanding God’s redemptive purposes in the midst of pain can give Christians the strength to persevere, trusting that God is at work for their good. 

The book is designed to help readers find comfort and meaning in their suffering by seeing it through the lens of God’s ultimate plan to make all things new.

A significant strength of Talbot’s work is its biblical-theological approach. Rather than offering simplistic or purely sentimental answers to the problem of suffering, Talbot grounds his arguments in the rich narrative of Scripture. This does meant that large portions of the book do not address the problem of pain or the meaning of suffering. 

However, if a reader considers the book from beginning to end, he or she will see Talbot's overaraching point clearly: Reflecting on the Bible's story as a whole will help us in ways we might not have expected in our suffering. As with his previous volume, this study is also pastorally sensitive in the way that it addresses the existential weight of suffering with compassion and understanding.  

Some Notes:

• See my review of the previous volume in this series. Cf. my goodreads & reviews of volumes in the ESV Commentary series; Thanks to Crossway for this review copy.