You asked

how do other new testament figures, like paul, articulate their struggles with suffering or apparent divine silence?

Adds the setting and its conversation across both testaments.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

“By the exceeding greatness of the revelations, that I should not be exalted, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, that I should not be exalted. Concerning this thing, I entreated the Lord three times that it might depart from me. He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Most gladly therefore I will rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest on me. Therefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

The apostle Paul wrote this letter to the church in Corinth, a bustling Roman city. He is defending his apostleship against critics who challenged his authority and questioned his suffering. In this particular section, he is sharing a deeply personal experience to illustrate how God's power is shown not through human strength or perfection, but often through vulnerability and perceived weakness.

What does it mean for 'God's power' to be made 'perfect in weakness' in your own life or community?

Then — the setting

Paul wrote this letter around 55-56 CE from Macedonia, addressing the complex and often contentious Christian community in Corinth. His authority had been questioned by 'super-apostles' who boasted of their own credentials and spiritual experiences. Paul, in turn, shares his own 'boasting' — not in strength, but in weakness and suffering, including a profound, unnamed affliction. This approach was counter-cultural, as the Greco-Roman world valued strength, eloquence, and visible signs of divine favor. For Paul, his suffering and God's grace in the midst of it validated his apostolic call.

Across the Testaments

This passage is in the New Testament. While the Old Testament often presents suffering as a consequence of sin or a test of faith (e.g., Job), and depicts God's intervention through deliverance (e.g., the Exodus, David's psalms), Paul introduces a dimension where suffering itself, when endured with Christ, becomes a place where God's power is uniquely revealed. Rather than immediate removal of the affliction, the divine response in this New Testament passage is a promise of sufficient grace within the suffering, echoing the theme of divine presence in hardship found in passages like Isaiah 43:2, but with a specific focus on Christ's power in human weakness.

Keep thinking

Read alongside it

Romans 8:28
Paul assures believers that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him, even amidst suffering.
Philippians 4:11-13
Paul speaks of learning contentment in all circumstances, drawing strength from Christ to endure.
Psalm 22:1-2
A lament that vividly expresses the feeling of divine silence and abandonment in suffering, offering a contrast to Paul's experience of a direct, if challenging, answer.

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