God asks a lot of questions in Scripture, which is a little like Miss Cleo asking what your name is. I don’t think He needs the answers. He uses questions as a tool, I think. Sometimes He asks to confront, sometimes to teach, and sometimes to make someone stop and think. This is a look at the questions God asked people directly, from “Where are you?” in the Garden to “Can these bones live?” in a valley full of dry bones.
Adam & Eve
- “Where are you?”
- “Who told you that you were naked?”
- “Have you eaten from the tree from which I commanded you not to eat?”
- “What is this you have done?”
📓 Field Note: Who Told You You Were Naked?
Cain
- “Why are you angry?”
- “Why has your face fallen?”
- “If you do well, will your face not be cheerful?”
- “Where is Abel your brother?”
- “What have you done?”
📓 Field Note: Why Are You Angry?
Hagar*
- “Where have you come from, and where are you going?”
- “What is the matter with you, Hagar?”
📓 Field Note: Hagar’s Well – Beer-lahai-roi
Abraham & Sarah
- “Where is Sarah your wife?”
- “Why did Sarah laugh?”
- “Is anything too difficult for the LORD?”
📓 Field Note: Why Did Sarah Laugh?
Job
And then God REALLY starts asking questions.
- “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?”
- “Have you ever in your life commanded the morning?”
- “Have you entered the springs of the sea?”
- “Can you tie up the chains of the Pleiades?”
- “Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?”
- “Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty?”
Those are just highlights. God questions Job for four chapters.
📓 Field Note: Where Were You When I Laid the Foundation of the Earth?
Moses
- “What is that in your hand?”
- “Who has made the human mouth?”
- “Who makes anyone unable to speak or deaf, or able to see or blind?”
- “Is it not I, the LORD?”
- “Is there not your brother Aaron the Levite?”
- “Why are you crying out to Me?”
- “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My instructions?”
- “Is the LORD’s power too little?”
- “How long will this people be disrespectful to Me?”
- “How long will they not believe in Me?”
Exodus 4:2, 11, 14; 14:15; 16:28; Numbers 11:23; 14:11
📓 Field Note: Questions God Asked Moses
Joshua
- “Why is it that you have fallen on your face?”
📓 Field Note: Why Have You Fallen on Your Face?
Samuel
- “How long are you going to mourn for Saul?”
📓 Field Note: How Long Are You Going to Mourn for Saul?
Elijah
- “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
God asks him the same question twice.
📓 Field Note: What Are You Doing Here, Elijah?
Jonah
- “Do you have a good reason to be angry?”
- “Do you have a good reason to be angry about the plant?”
- “Should I not also have compassion on Nineveh?”
📓 Field Note: Do You Have a Good Reason to Be Angry?
Jeremiah
- “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
- “What do you see?”
- “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
- “Is anything too difficult for Me?”
📓 Field Note: What Do You See, Jeremiah?
A note about Hagar, Jacob, Gideon, and Manoah: These encounters involve the Angel of the LORD or another mysterious divine figure. In several of these passages, the figure speaks as God, is identified with God, or is treated as God, which has led to centuries of debate over whether these are appearances of God Himself, the pre-incarnate Christ, or an angel acting as God’s representative. We’ve included them because the biblical text itself closely connects the speaker with God.