Elihu, the actual decent on of Job’s three friends, wants to take up and argue something Job has been saying.
“For Job has declared, “I am righteous, yet God has deprived me of justice. Would I lie about my case? My wound is incurable, though I am without transgression,”” (Job 34:8).
Job is saying this. ‘I have lived a good life, have taken care of the poor, and done nothing wrong. Yet I am enduring this. “God has deprived me of justice.”‘
Elihu begins his rebuttal.
He starts out with this foundation: “it is impossible for God to do wrong and for the Almighty to act unjustly” (Job 34:10).
Then he asks key questions.
Key Question 1: “Who gave Him authority over the earth?” (Job 34:13)
God is God he is in charge of the whole earth. Not only that but if ever wanted to withdraw his spirit and breath from man and beast, every living thing would turn to dust (Job 34:41-15).
Key Question 2: “Could one who hates justice govern the world?” (Job 34:17).
He asks Job if he would condemn the Righteous One of God. Which who would do that? God is impartial. He judges all peoples righteously regardless if they are rich or poor, prince or pauper. Even the mighty are removed by him without effort. He can shatter the powerful without even an investigation because he is righteous (Job 34:24). He will destroy someone if the act wickedly, and do things like oppress the poor and afflicted.
Key Question 3: When God is silent, who can declare him guilty? (Job 34:29).
This is a huge one. How many of us have at times been frustrated or angered at the silence of God in our suffering? Yet Elihu says God is the one who watches over nations and people so that “godless men should not rule or ensnare the people” (Job 34:30).
Surely that last line will cause people to think. Aren’t so very many rulers across the world godless and ensnaring the people?
Again we are not reading theological treatise here but rather the perspective of Elihu who like his friends have flawed arguments. Arguments that God will later confront. Elihu still has the perspective similar to his friends that good people are blessed and people who have done wrong (like he believes Job has), will be punished. He has a better perspective of God than his friends, but Elihu is still flawed in his understanding. Actually in Ps 2 Scripture warns the godless leaders of the world to fear him.
Key Question 4: Should God repay you on your terms when you have rejected His? (Job 34:33)
He tells Job, that if someone says, “”I have endured my punishment; I will no longer act wickedly. Tech me what I cannot see; if I have done wrong, I won’t do it again.” Should God repay you on your terms when you have rejected His?” (Job 34:31-33).
What Elihu is saying here is if Job has done wrong, God repays how he sees fit, not how man sees fit. God is just and man is not. Man does not get to tell God how he doles out punishment.
Elihu’s Conclusion
Elihu agrees with the wise ones, “Job speaks without knowledge” (Job 34:35). He says Job saying God is unjust for causing his suffering are the answers of wicked man who adds rebellion to his sin, multiplying his words against God (Job 34:36-37).
Elihu says some good things about God–that he is just, he created the earth, and He is righteous. But his arguments are still flawed in places as he also is accusing Job of wrong-doing with no proof of it. The trial has never even been had but Job stands accused by all.
Also he accuses Job of wrong-doing while Job is speaking from his heart out of the raw suffering of life. David did this too in the Psalms. Expressing frustration and pain is not meant to be theologically precise, but rather the outpouring of the heart. It is the question of whether this is the overflow of the agony or is this a hardened heart towards God? In this case we will see later that this clearly is Job’s overflow of questioning, wondering and confusion of why he is suffering so much when he has done all that he can to live righteously.
Job has some things to learn as well. But there’s a grace to pour out the heart with questions before God as long as the heart does not go hard. It’s a tension and Job is living in it, and his friends are not seeing it.
