Explain SMBC — the wiki for Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

The Joke

Several academics from different fields each argue that God must share their profession. A mathematician says God must be a mathematician because the universe obeys rules. A physicist says God must be a physicist because the universe is made of point masses. An engineer says God must be an engineer because the universe functions beautifully as long as you don't look too close. A biologist says God must be a biologist because the universe is chaotic enough to permit change and stable enough to permit replication. Then someone says "I've proven God is clearly an economist." When asked how, they say: "Have you heard the story of Job?" Another responds: "God killed five of your kids, here are five brand new kids." The punchline (in the final panel/votey area) notes: "What's the matter?" "Kids are a fungible commodity."

The Humor

The comic satirizes how every academic discipline claims God as one of their own, each cherry-picking evidence from the universe that supports their field. The escalating sequence is funny because each argument is both somewhat plausible and transparently self-serving. The real punchline comes with the economist's argument referencing the Book of Job: in the biblical story, God allows Satan to destroy everything Job has, including killing his children, and after Job passes the test of faith, God gives him new children as a "reward." An economist would see this as perfectly rational -- children are a "fungible commodity" (interchangeable units of equal value), so replacing dead children with new ones makes everything square. This is darkly funny because it highlights the cold, dehumanizing logic of economics when applied to human life and family.

References

• The Book of Job: A book of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament in which God permits Satan to torment the righteous man Job, destroying his property, killing his children, and afflicting him with disease, as a test of faith. After Job remains faithful, God restores his fortunes and gives him new children.
• Fungible: An economic term meaning interchangeable or replaceable with another identical item. Commodities like oil or grain are fungible; the joke's horror is in applying this term to children.