NOTES for Job 37:1-24

¹At this also my heart trembleth, and is moved out of his place.

²Hear attentively the noise of his voice, and the sound that goeth out of his mouth.

³He directeth it under the whole heaven, and his lightning unto the ends of the earth.

⁴After it a voice roareth: he thundereth with the voice of his excellency; and he will not stay them when his voice is heard.

⁵God thundereth marvellously with his voice; great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend.

⁶For he saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth; likewise to the small rain, and to the great rain of his strength.

⁷He sealeth up the hand of every man; that all men may know his work.

⁸Then the beasts go into dens, and remain in their places.

⁹Out of the south cometh the whirlwind: and cold out of the north.

¹⁰By the breath of God frost is given: and the breadth of the waters is straitened.

¹¹Also by watering he wearieth the thick cloud: he scattereth his bright cloud:

¹²And it is turned round about by his counsels: that they may do whatsoever he commandeth them upon the face of the world in the earth.

¹³He causeth it to come, whether for correction, or for his land, or for mercy.

¹⁴Hearken unto this, O Job: stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.

¹⁵Dost thou know when God disposed them, and caused the light of his cloud to shine?

¹⁶Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?

¹⁷How thy garments are warm, when he quieteth the earth by the south wind?

¹⁸Hast thou with him spread out the sky, which is strong, and as a molten looking glass?

¹⁹Teach us what we shall say unto him; for we cannot order our speech by reason of darkness.

²⁰Shall it be told him that I speak? if a man speak, surely he shall be swallowed up.

²¹And now men see not the bright light which is in the clouds: but the wind passeth, and cleanseth them.

²²Fair weather cometh out of the north: with God is terrible majesty.

²³Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent in power, and in judgment, and in plenty of justice: he will not afflict.

²⁴Men do therefore fear him: he respecteth not any that are wise of heart.

As he finishes his speech, Elihu continues the hymn he began to the greatness and wisdom of the Creator (vv. 1-24). At first glance it may seem that it is no different from similar doxologies already pronounced by Job himself and by his friends. But Elihu ends his speech by mentioning God's righteousness, His just judgment, and the fact that God oppresses no one (v. 23). The wise in heart, Elihu says, experience "fear" before God, that sacred awe of which the ancient sages said that it is the source of true wisdom (v. 24). It would seem that there is nothing special in these words of Elihu; he is merely repeating what by his time had long since become commonplace in discussions of wisdom. But in essence, when Elihu recalls the fear of God as the foundation of true wisdom, he has in mind something quite different from what the ancients spoke about. Speaking of the fear of God, or sacred awe, they meant above all the state that overtakes a person who has met God face to face. It was caused precisely by the awareness that something incredible was happening, that a person had found himself in immediate nearness to the One who is, in essence, infinitely far from human beings.

Such an experience is supernatural at its root; it is connected with the awareness of the incredibility of what is happening, with the reality of the miracle that every step God takes toward a person is. It is no wonder that the reality of the impossible, which becomes possible because of God's direct intervention in a person's life, gives that person reverence before God and sacred awe before Him. Elihu, however, is speaking of something else. He means the entirely natural feeling of admiration that seizes a person at the sight of the greatness and beauty of God's world. Of course, the wisdom and power of the Creator truly are manifested in this beauty. But there is nothing supernatural in the experience that overtakes a person at the sight of the beauty of creation. Naturally, a believer understands perfectly well to whom the world owes its beauty, greatness, and harmony. But he also understands that the world is no more than a mirror reflecting its Creator. One can admire the reflection of the Creator, which is beautiful insofar as the One reflected is beautiful. But it would hardly occur to anyone to experience sacred awe before the reflection of the One who inspires that awe. Elihu, however, calls Job to be content with the reflection and not to lay claim to anything more.

Other notes

For Job 37:1-24