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NOTES for Job 34:1-37

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1 Furthermore Elihu answered and said,
2 Hear my words, O ye wise men; and give ear unto me, ye that have knowledge.
3 For the ear trieth words, as the mouth tasteth meat.
4 Let us choose to us judgment: let us know among ourselves what is good.
5 For Job hath said, I am righteous: and God hath taken away my judgment.
6 Should I lie against my right? my wound is incurable without transgression.
7 What man is like Job, who drinketh up scorning like water?
8 Which goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men.
9 For he hath said, It profiteth a man nothing that he should delight himself with God.
10 Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.
11 For the work of a man shall he render unto him, and cause every man to find according to his ways.
12 Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment.
13 Who hath given him a charge over the earth? or who hath disposed the whole world?
14 If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath;
15 All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust.
16 If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words.
17 Shall even he that hateth right govern? and wilt thou condemn him that is most just?
18 Is it fit to say to a king, Thou art wicked? and to princes, Ye are ungodly?
19 How much less to him that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of his hands.
20 In a moment shall they die, and the people shall be troubled at midnight, and pass away: and the mighty shall be taken away without hand.
21 For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings.
22 There is no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.
23 For he will not lay upon man more than right; that he should enter into judgment with God.
24 He shall break in pieces mighty men without number, and set others in their stead.
25 Therefore he knoweth their works, and he overturneth them in the night, so that they are destroyed.
26 He striketh them as wicked men in the open sight of others;
27 Because they turned back from him, and would not consider any of his ways:
28 So that they cause the cry of the poor to come unto him, and he heareth the cry of the afflicted.
29 When he giveth quietness, who then can make trouble? and when he hideth his face, who then can behold him? whether it be done against a nation, or against a man only:
30 That the hypocrite reign not, lest the people be ensnared.
31 Surely it is meet to be said unto God, I have borne chastisement, I will not offend any more:
32 That which I see not teach thou me: if I have done iniquity, I will do no more.
33 Should it be according to thy mind? he will recompense it, whether thou refuse, or whether thou choose; and not I: therefore speak what thou knowest.
34 Let men of understanding tell me, and let a wise man hearken unto me.
35 Job hath spoken without knowledge, and his words were without wisdom.
36 My desire is that Job may be tried unto the end because of his answers for wicked men.
37 For he addeth rebellion unto his sin, he clappeth his hands among us, and multiplieth his words against God.
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Elihu continues, and many of his judgments are impossible to dispute, although not all of them are beyond question. (Why, for instance, should it be impossible, when necessary, to accuse a king and princes of wickedness and lawlessness? Elihu himself even allows that the Lord may call them strictly to account for their wickedness. But if Elihu considers it permissible to speak on God's behalf, why may other people not speak in their own name?) Yet it is difficult to escape the impression that in some respects Elihu twists the meaning of Job's speeches.

Job's words must not be considered apart from the situation and the state of mind in which they were spoken. Elihu repeats what seem to be the very same words that Job uttered only recently, but it is unlikely that both men spoke the same words with the same feelings. The same words too often conceal different meanings.

Other notes

 
For Job 34:1-37
1 Furthermore Elihu answered and said,
2 Hear my words, O ye wise men; and give ear unto me, ye that have knowledge.
3 For the ear trieth words, as the mouth tasteth meat.
4 Let us choose to us judgment: let us know among ourselves what is good.
5 For Job hath said, I am righteous: and God hath taken away my judgment.
6 Should I lie against my right? my wound is incurable without transgression.
7 What man is like Job, who drinketh up scorning like water?
8 Which goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men.
9 For he hath said, It profiteth a man nothing that he should delight himself with God.
10 Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.
11 For the work of a man shall he render unto him, and cause every man to find according to his ways.
12 Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment.
13 Who hath given him a charge over the earth? or who hath disposed the whole world?
14 If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath;
15 All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust.
16 If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words.
17 Shall even he that hateth right govern? and wilt thou condemn him that is most just?
18 Is it fit to say to a king, Thou art wicked? and to princes, Ye are ungodly?
19 How much less to him that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of his hands.
20 In a moment shall they die, and the people shall be troubled at midnight, and pass away: and the mighty shall be taken away without hand.
21 For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings.
22 There is no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.
23 For he will not lay upon man more than right; that he should enter into judgment with God.
24 He shall break in pieces mighty men without number, and set others in their stead.
25 Therefore he knoweth their works, and he overturneth them in the night, so that they are destroyed.
26 He striketh them as wicked men in the open sight of others;
27 Because they turned back from him, and would not consider any of his ways:
28 So that they cause the cry of the poor to come unto him, and he heareth the cry of the afflicted.
29 When he giveth quietness, who then can make trouble? and when he hideth his face, who then can behold him? whether it be done against a nation, or against a man only:
30 That the hypocrite reign not, lest the people be ensnared.
31 Surely it is meet to be said unto God, I have borne chastisement, I will not offend any more:
32 That which I see not teach thou me: if I have done iniquity, I will do no more.
33 Should it be according to thy mind? he will recompense it, whether thou refuse, or whether thou choose; and not I: therefore speak what thou knowest.
34 Let men of understanding tell me, and let a wise man hearken unto me.
35 Job hath spoken without knowledge, and his words were without wisdom.
36 My desire is that Job may be tried unto the end because of his answers for wicked men.
37 For he addeth rebellion unto his sin, he clappeth his hands among us, and multiplieth his words against God.
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Continuing his speech, Elihu, like Job's friends, denounces the sufferer for wickedness...  Read more

Continuing his speech, Elihu, like Job's friends, denounces the sufferer for wickedness (vv. 2-9). He condemns Job because, in Elihu's opinion, by speaking against God Job makes himself an apostate (vv. 34-37). Job has not yet had to hear accusations like these. Why, then, does Elihu assess Job's behavior so harshly? Like all the others taking part in the conversation, he proceeds from the fact that God possesses full and absolute power over the world He has created (vv. 13-15). From this unconditionally true premise Elihu draws the conclusion that God cannot be wrong or judge perversely (vv. 10-12), and again one cannot disagree with this. Moreover, Job himself and his friends would certainly agree with Elihu on this. But in God's omnipotence Elihu sees something close to arbitrariness. It is not accidental that he compares God's power over the human person with the power of earthly rulers, whom it is impossible to stop even when their actions appear unjust or actually are unjust (vv. 17-18). Elihu's God makes no distinction between great and small, between rich and poor, not because a person's spiritual condition is more important to Him than his social position, but because people are indifferent to Him, and He shuffles earthly rulers like a deck of cards, easily replacing some with others, so that there can be no question of judgment over anyone (vv. 19-25).

Of course, Elihu himself asserts that God acts this way with lawless people (vv. 26-30), but in this case that assertion remains unproved. If God does not examine a person's actions like a thoughtful judge, if to Him everyone is all alike, how can one be sure that His determinations correspond at all to any human ideas of righteousness and sinfulness? It is not surprising that a person cannot count on a just assessment of his actions from such a God. All that remains for him is to acknowledge his wrongness from the very beginning and beg his merciless Judge for leniency (vv. 31-33). As one can see, Elihu truly experienced the greatness and power of God deeply. But this experience evidently completely obscured God's justice from him. The God of the prophets and sages is not only the God of power, but also the God of righteousness; He is the source of goodness and justice. Elihu's God is only the God of power. He is not the source of goodness and justice; He is above them and, in essence, indifferent to them. The God of the prophets is the source of the moral norm, and in this sense He is above morality. Elihu's God is altogether outside morality. This is precisely the God Job was most afraid to encounter; this is precisely the God to whom Elihu bears witness before him.

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