Job 32–37

Elihu Rebukes Job’s Three Friends

32So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was ^vrighteous in his own eyes. ²Then Elihu the son of Barachel ^wthe Buzite, of the family of Ram, burned with anger. He burned with anger at Job because he justified himself ^xrather than God. ³He burned with anger also at Job’s three friends because they had found no answer, although they had ^ydeclared Job to be in the wrong. ⁴Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job because they were older than he. ⁵And when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouth of these three men, he burned with anger.

⁶And Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite answered and said:

“I am young in years,

and you are ^zaged;

therefore I was timid and afraid

to declare my opinion to you.

⁷I said, ‘Let days speak,

and many years teach wisdom.’

⁸But it is ^athe spirit in man,

^bthe breath of the Almighty, that makes him ^cunderstand.

^9dIt is not the old¹ who are wise,

nor the aged who understand what is right.

¹⁰Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me;

let me also declare my opinion.’

¹¹“Behold, I waited for your words,

I listened for your wise sayings,

while you searched out what to say.

¹²I gave you my attention,

and, behold, there was none among you who refuted Job

or who answered his words.

¹³Beware ^elest you say, ‘We have found wisdom;

God may vanquish him, not a man.’

¹⁴He has not directed his words against me,

and I will not answer him with your speeches.

¹⁵“They are dismayed; they answer no more;

they have not a word to say.

¹⁶And shall I wait, because they do not speak,

because they stand there, and answer no more?

¹⁷I also will answer with my share;

I also will declare my opinion.

¹⁸For I am full of words;

the spirit within me constrains me.

¹⁹Behold, my belly is like wine that has no vent;

like new ^fwineskins ready to burst.

^20gI must speak, that I may find ^hrelief;

I must open my lips and answer.

²¹I will not ⁱshow partiality to any man

or use flattery toward any person.

²²For I do not know how to flatter,

else my Maker would soon take me away.

Elihu Rebukes Job

33“But now, hear my speech, O Job,

and listen to all my words.

²Behold, I ^jopen my mouth;

the tongue in my mouth speaks.

³My words declare the uprightness of my heart,

and what my lips know they speak sincerely.

^4kThe Spirit of God has made me,

and ^lthe breath of the Almighty gives me life.

^5mAnswer me, if you can;

ⁿset your words in order before me; take your stand.

⁶Behold, I am toward God as you are;

I too was pinched off from a piece of ^oclay.

⁷Behold, no ^pfear of me need terrify you;

my ^qpressure will not be heavy upon you.

⁸“Surely you have spoken in my ears,

and I have heard the sound of your words.

⁹You say, ‘I am ^rpure, without ^stransgression;

I am clean, and there is no iniquity in me.

¹⁰Behold, he finds occasions against me,

he ^tcounts me as his enemy,

¹¹he ^uputs my feet in the stocks

and ^vwatches all my paths.’

¹²“Behold, in this you are not right. I will answer you,

for God is greater than man.

¹³Why do you ^wcontend against him,

saying, ‘He ^xwill answer none of man’s¹ words’?²

¹⁴For God ^yspeaks in one way,

^zand in two, though man ^adoes not perceive it.

¹⁵In ^ba dream, in ^ca vision of ^dthe night,

when ^cdeep sleep falls on men,

while they slumber on their beds,

¹⁶then he ^eopens the ears of men

and terrifies³ them with warnings,

¹⁷that he may turn man aside from his ^fdeed

and conceal pride from a man;

¹⁸he keeps back his soul from the pit,

his life from ^gperishing by the sword.

¹⁹“Man is also rebuked with pain on his bed

and with continual strife in his ^hbones,

²⁰so that his ⁱlife loathes bread,

and his appetite ^jthe choicest food.

²¹His flesh is so wasted away that it cannot be seen,

and his bones that were not seen ^kstick out.

²²His soul draws near ^lthe pit,

and his life to ^mthose who bring death.

²³If there be for him ⁿan angel,

^oa mediator, ^pone of the thousand,

to declare to man what is ^qright for him,

²⁴and he is merciful to him, and says,

‘Deliver him from going down into the pit;

I have found ^ra ransom;

²⁵let his flesh ^sbecome fresh with youth;

let him return to the days of his youthful vigor’;

²⁶then man^{4 t}prays to God, and he accepts him;

he ^usees his face with a shout of joy,

and he ^vrestores to man his righteousness.

²⁷He sings before men and says:

‘I ^wsinned and perverted what was right,

and it was not repaid to me.

²⁸He has redeemed my ^xsoul from going down ^yinto the pit,

and my life shall ^zlook upon the light.’

²⁹“Behold, God does all these things,

twice, ^athree times, with a man,

³⁰to bring back his soul from the pit,

that he may be lighted with ^bthe light of life.

³¹Pay attention, O Job, listen to me;

be silent, and I will speak.

³²If you have any words, ^canswer me;

^dspeak, for I desire to justify you.

³³If not, ^elisten to me;

be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”

Elihu Asserts God’s Justice

34Then Elihu answered and said:

²“Hear my words, you wise men,

and give ear to me, you who know;

³for ^gthe ear tests words

as the palate tastes food.

⁴Let us choose ^hwhat is right;

let us know among ourselves what is good.

⁵For Job has said, ‘I am ⁱin the right,

and ^jGod has taken away my right;

⁶in spite of my right I am counted a liar;

my wound is incurable, though I am ^kwithout transgression.’

⁷What man is like Job,

who ^ldrinks up scoffing like water,

⁸who travels in company with evildoers

and walks ^mwith wicked men?

⁹For ⁿhe has said, ‘It profits a man nothing

that he should take delight in God.’

¹⁰“Therefore, hear me, you men of understanding:

far be it from God that he should ^odo wickedness,

and from the Almighty that he should do wrong.

¹¹For according to ^pthe work of a man he will repay him,

and ^qaccording to his ways he will make it befall him.

¹²Of a truth, God will not do wickedly,

and ^rthe Almighty will not pervert justice.

¹³Who gave him charge over the earth,

and who ^slaid on him¹ the whole world?

¹⁴If he should ^tset his heart to it

and ^ugather to himself his ^vspirit and his breath,

¹⁵all flesh would perish together,

and man would ^wreturn to dust.

¹⁶“If you have understanding, hear this;

listen to what I say.

^17xShall one who hates justice govern?

Will you condemn him who is righteous and mighty,

¹⁸who ^ysays to a king, ‘Worthless one,’

and to nobles, ‘Wicked man,’

¹⁹who ^zshows no partiality to princes,

nor regards the rich ^amore than the poor,

for ^bthey are all the work of his hands?

²⁰In a moment ^cthey die;

at ^dmidnight the people are shaken and pass away,

and the mighty are taken away by ^eno human hand.

²¹“For his eyes are on ^fthe ways of a man,

and he sees all his ^fsteps.

²²There is no ^ggloom or ^hdeep darkness

where evildoers may hide themselves.

²³For God² has no need to consider a man further,

that he should go before God in ⁱjudgment.

²⁴He ^jshatters the mighty without investigation

and sets ^lothers in their place.

²⁵Thus, knowing their works,

he ^moverturns them in the night, and they are crushed.

²⁶He strikes them for their wickedness

in a place for all to see,

²⁷because they turned aside from ⁿfollowing him

and had no regard for any of his ways,

²⁸so that they ^ocaused the cry of the poor to come to him,

and he ^pheard the cry of the afflicted—

²⁹When he is quiet, who can condemn?

When he hides his face, who can behold him,

whether it be a nation or a man?—

³⁰that a godless man should not reign,

that he should not ensnare the people.

³¹“For has anyone said to God,

‘I have borne punishment; I will not offend any more;

^32rteach me what I do not see;

if I have done iniquity, I will do it no more’?

³³Will he then make repayment to suit you,

because you reject it?

For you must choose, and not I;

therefore ^sdeclare what you know.³

³⁴Men of understanding will say to me,

and the wise man who hears me will say:

³⁵‘Job ^tspeaks without knowledge;

his words are without insight.’

³⁶Would that Job were tried to the end,

because he answers like wicked men.

³⁷For he adds rebellion to his sin;

he ^uclaps his hands among us

and multiplies his words against God.”

Elihu Condemns Job

35And Elihu answered and said:

²“Do you think this to be just?

Do you say, ^v‘It is my right before God,’

³that you ask, ^w‘What advantage have I?

How am I better off than if I had sinned?’

⁴I will answer you

and ^xyour friends with you.

^5yLook at the heavens, and see;

and behold the clouds, which are higher than you.

⁶If you have sinned, ^zwhat do you accomplish against him?

And if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?

^7aIf you are righteous, what do you give to him?

Or what does he receive from your hand?

⁸Your wickedness concerns a man like yourself,

and your righteousness ^ba son of man.

⁹“Because of the multitude of ^coppressions people ^dcry out;

they call for help because of the arm of ^ethe mighty.¹

¹⁰But none says, ‘Where is God my ^fMaker,

who gives ^gsongs in the night,

¹¹who teaches us ^hmore than the beasts of the earth

and makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?’

¹²There they ⁱcry out, but he does not answer,

because of the pride of evil men.

¹³Surely God does not hear an empty cry,

nor does the Almighty regard it.

¹⁴How much less when you say that you ^jdo not see him,

that the case is before him, and you are ^kwaiting for him!

¹⁵And now, because ^lhis anger does not punish,

and he does not take much note of transgression,²

¹⁶Job opens his mouth in empty talk;

he ^mmultiplies words ⁿwithout knowledge.”

Elihu Extols God’s Greatness

36And Elihu continued, and said:

²“Bear with me a little, and I will show you,

for I have yet something to say on God’s behalf.

³I will get my knowledge from ^oafar

and ascribe ^prighteousness to my ^qMaker.

⁴For truly my words are not false;

one who is ^rperfect in knowledge is with you.

⁵“Behold, God is mighty, and ^sdoes not despise any;

he is ^tmighty in strength of understanding.

⁶He does not keep the wicked alive,

but gives ^uthe afflicted their right.

⁷He does not withdraw his ^veyes from the righteous,

but with ^wkings on the throne

he sets them…