Job 36

Context is everything. To our Western eyes trained to read literally, this chapter could seem no different from what the trio said. However, Elihu has established already that he is not on their path. Thus, the same words in the mouths of the trio do not carry the same meaning as they do in Elihu’s mouth. The emphasis here is not on what God does among men so much as it indicates something of God’s character.

In the first few verses, Elihu asserts with confidence that he speaks for God. Not so much in the vein of a prophet bearing specific authority, but one whose words should be convincing simply because they reflect the ultimate truth. God plows His own path in the human heart, so Elihu need not worry about establishing his credentials; the truth should be self-evident. He does not claim perfection in himself, but a perfection in the truth he speaks.

Unlike the trio and their literalism, Elihu offers a symbolic frame of reference. Insofar as the trio used words to ascribe to God various attributes, such speech was accurate. Yes, we know that God is self-consistent and certainly powerful enough to do His own will. He does not sponsor wickedness and His revelation is meant to bring justice to those robbed of His promises. In His own realm He regards the righteous as the true royalty of humanity. It is the righteous who receive His attention, so that they live with boundaries that the wicked may never notice. The child who is undisciplined is unloved. So it is the righteous who seem to receive more discipline from God than do sinners. He doesn’t waste that much time on people who would never listen in the first place.

Thus, it is also the righteous who may well be the first to die for failure to repent. The wicked don’t get the message, so they would hardly cry out to God if He disciplined them. They are already dead in that sense, before adulthood. They are irresponsible in the most perverse ways. Elihu uses the image of cult prostitution where the more degrading the acts, the more sacred to the filthy heathen gods — this is the logical conclusion to their thinking. The wicked are inherently perverse regardless of how they actually behave in society.

Then Elihu says quite bluntly that the righteous are delivered by suffering. Suffering serves a divine purpose, driving us into the arms of God. The path to God is paved with suffering. We cultivate a conscious awareness that life isn’t supposed to be like this, but the only escape is to suffer through this life for the sake of something better. We get the logic backwards and blame God for not giving us relief, but we seek the wrong kind of relief. It’s not as if we can’t have a good life here, but it requires we first obey Him from the heart, not merely in rote conduct. A preoccupation with dodging suffering guarantees we will suffer. It is demons that try to bribe us into wickedness by offering worldly ease and comfort. What they offer cannot follow us into eternity.

So Elihu warns Job that it is improper to long for death, using the image of the night of soul. Don’t get lost on the path to recovery. Who is there with sufficient standing to tell God He can’t afflict the righteous more than the wicked? Suffering calls forth praise for His name. Then Elihu provides an example by praising God for His ineffable wisdom and power over His own creation. The lyrical expression is richer than any translation can show. As the thunder shakes the earth, so His greatness makes sensible men quiver because they understand His wrath, and recognize that it is also His blessing.