What If the Bible Is Supposed to Make You Uncomfortable?

By Pastor John Erickson

I think most of us like to read things that make us feel good.

We enjoy an encouraging story. A quote that confirms something we already believe. An article that helps us feel a little more confident about the way we're living.

And there's nothing wrong with encouragement. We need it.

But what if you opened your Bible and, instead of making you feel better, it made you uncomfortable?

Would you keep reading?

In my insurance work, I deal with legal rulings that can run for pages. I often go to the conclusion first to find out what the judge decided, then go back through the reasoning.

The ending of Ecclesiastes has something of that feel. After all the searching, questioning, and uncomfortable observations, an epilogue draws the discussion together. It speaks about the Teacher's work and then tells us where wisdom is meant to lead.

Ecclesiastes ends with a fascinating picture of what wisdom is supposed to do to us. And it's probably not the picture we would have chosen.

The Trouble with Chasing the Rabbit

Have you ever watched a greyhound race?

The dogs chase a mechanical rabbit around the track. They run as hard as they can, entirely focused on catching this thing that is always just out of reach.

I watched a video once where the mechanical rabbit malfunctioned and a dog actually caught it. Suddenly the race wasn't a race anymore. All the dogs were interested in was getting at the rabbit.

It made me think about Ecclesiastes.

How much of our lives do we spend chasing a mechanical rabbit?

More money. Another promotion. The next experience. A little more recognition. We are convinced that if we can just catch the thing ahead of us, we'll finally be satisfied.

But even when we catch it, the satisfaction rarely lasts.

Throughout Ecclesiastes, the Teacher calls those pursuits hevel-smoke or vapor. They're difficult to hold onto, and they cannot provide ultimate meaning.

Then, at the end of the book, he tells us where wisdom is meant to lead.

Wisdom Is Like an Ox Goad

Ecclesiastes 12:11 says the words of the wise are like goads and firmly embedded nails.

A goad is a tool used to move an animal, such as an ox, in the right direction. It's not a decorative object. It is designed to get the animal's attention and encourage it to move.

That's quite a picture for Scripture, isn't it?

I would have expected something more comfortable. The words of the wise are like a warm blanket. Or a comfortable chair. Or maybe a really good cup of coffee.

Sometimes Scripture comforts us, and I'm grateful for that.

But sometimes it prods us.

It challenges something we're doing. It exposes an attitude we've gotten comfortable with. It tells us that an idea we consider perfectly reasonable is not the way Jesus is calling us to live.

And we'd rather not hear it.

We can find an enormous amount of content to affirm whatever we already want to believe. If we want someone to justify our preferences, there's usually a voice willing to do it.

But we shouldn't approach God's Word merely looking for permission to stay exactly as we are.

Its purpose includes transformation.

Do We Want Information or Transformation?

Ecclesiastes 12 also warns us that the making of books has no end, and much study can weary the body.

I find that line funny. It was written long before anybody had an endless stream of articles, videos, podcasts, and books available in their pocket.

There's always more information.

We can spend our whole lives collecting it. We can quote experts, study opinions, and become very skilled at talking about the things we believe.

But knowledge alone doesn't mean we've changed.

You can know an enormous amount about healthy living and never actually change how you live. You can read every book on relationships and still refuse to apologize when you hurt somebody.

And you can study Scripture for years without allowing it to challenge your pride, your anger, or the way you treat people.

The goal is not merely to know more. It's to become the kind of people God's Word is forming us to be.

Fear God and Keep His Commandments

The book ends with a conclusion: fear God and keep his commandments.

That word fear can be difficult for us. It doesn't simply mean being terrified of God. It includes reverence-recognizing who he is and placing him at the center of our lives.

An illustration from Tony Evans has helped me think about this. People once understood the sun as revolving around the earth. Now we know the earth moves around the sun.

Spiritually, we can live as if God is supposed to revolve around us.

My plans. My schedule. My preferences. God, please make yourself useful and fit around everything I've already decided to do.

But reverence means acknowledging that God is not another item in our orbit.

Our lives are meant to be oriented around him.

The next verse, Ecclesiastes 12:14, says God will bring every deed into judgment, including hidden things. That presses on me. I see injustice and want God to fix it now. Trusting him as judge means acknowledging that his timing is not mine.

That is not permission to ignore suffering. It is a call to do what is right without pretending I can take God's place. Sometimes the most uncomfortable part of wisdom is the part that challenges my demand to control the outcome.

And that changes the way we read his Word. Instead of asking only, "How does this verse support what I already think?" we begin asking, "What is God calling me to change?"

Let the Word Do Its Work

If the Bible has recently made you uncomfortable, that might not be a bad thing.

Of course, read passages carefully. Pay attention to context. Ask questions and seek wisdom from other believers. Not every difficult interpretation is the right one.

But don't assume discomfort means something has gone wrong.

Sometimes the Holy Spirit is using Scripture to move us away from a habit, a prejudice, or a way of life that is hurting us and other people.

God's Word can comfort us when we are wounded and prod us when we are refusing to move.

Both can be expressions of his care.

So the next time you read something in Scripture that makes you squirm, instead of immediately explaining it away, ask one more question:

"Lord, what are you trying to change in me?"

Wisdom isn't only meant to sound good.

It's meant to lead us somewhere.