“What, then, is the God I worship? … You are the most hidden from us and yet the most present among us, the most beautiful and yet the most strong, ever enduring; and yet we cannot comprehend you.” —S. A
Theology (“the science of God”) used to be called “the queen of sciences” because it deals with the most important knowledge we can have, the knowledge of God. Theology is a necessary science, but it is also a difficult science; for it is our attempt to know the Unknowable (Rom. 11:33–36). God has revealed Himself in creation, in providence, in His Word, and supremely in His Son; but our understanding of what God has revealed may not always be clear.
“The essence of idolatry,” wrote A. W. Tozer, “is the entertainment of thoughts about God that are unworthy of Him” (The Knowledge of the Holy, Harper & Row, 11). So, whoever attempts to explain and defend the Almighty must have the humble heart of a worshipper; for “knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” (1 Cor. 8: niv).
As you read Elihu’s speeches, you get the impression that he was not growing; he was swelling. You also get the impression that his listeners’ minds were wandering, because he kept exhorting them to listen carefully (Job 33:1, 31, 33; 34:2, 10, 16). In the last two-thirds of his speech, Elihu explained and defended the justice of God (Job 34—35) and the greatness of God (Job 36—37).
God is Just (Job 34—35) Elihu had promised not to use flattery (Job 32:21), but he came close to it in 34: when he addressed his audience as “wise men” and “men of learning” (niv). Actually, he was flattering himself; because if these “learned wise men” were willing to listen to him, they must have thought that he was more learned and wise than they! Quoting Job’s words (v. 3; 12:11), Elihu urged them to use discernment as they “tasted” his words, so that he and they might “learn together what is good” (34: niv). Elihu compared his speaking to the enjoyment of a tasteful and nourishing meal.
Elihu listed two of Job’s complaints to be discussed: “God is unjust” (vv. 5–6) and “There is no profit in serving God” (vv. 7–9). He answered the first complaint in verses 10–37 and the second in Job 35.
“God is unjust” (Job 34:5–6, 10–37). The injustice of God was one of the major themes in Job’s speeches. He felt that he was being treated like a sinner, and yet God would not “come to court” and tell Job what he had done wrong. (See 9:2, 17–20; 19:6–7; 27:2.) Elihu recalled Job saying that he was innocent and had been denied justice (34:5; 10:7; 6:29), and that God was shooting arrows at him (34:6; 6:4).
Elihu presented three arguments to prove that there is no injustice with God. To begin with, if God is unjust, then He is not God (34:10–15). “Far be it from God, that he should do wickedness, and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity” (v. 10). “It is unthinkable that God would do wrong, that the Almighty would pervert justice” (v. 12 niv). Abraham asked, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Gen. 18:25), and the obvious answer is yes!
If God is truly God, then He is perfect; and if He is perfect, then He cannot do wrong. An unjust God would be as unthinkable as a square circle or a round triangle. According to Elihu, what seems injustice to us is really justice: God is paying sinners back for what they do (Job 34:11). In fact, God is so just that He has ordained that sin itself will punish the evildoer. (See Ps. 7:15; 9:15–16; 35:8.) There is no way to escape the justice of God.
Elihu emphasized that God is sovereign, and a sovereign God can be indicted by no law or judged by no court. The king can do no wrong. God was not appointed to His throne, so He can’t be taken from it (Job 34:13). To say that God is unjust is to say that He is not God and therefore has no right to be on the throne. But God controls our very breath and can take our lives away in an instant (vv. 14–15; Acts 17:25, 28). “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not” (Lam. 3:22).
The book of Job magnifies the sovereignty of God. From the very first chapter, it is obvious that God is in control; for even Satan is told what he can and cannot do. During the debate, it appears that God is absent; but He is aware of how Job feels and what Job and his friends say. Thirty-one times in the book of Job, God is called “the Almighty.” Elihu was right on target: God is sovereign and cannot do wrong.
His second argument is that if God were unjust, there could be no just government on earth (Job 34:16–20). As a respected elder, Job had participated in local government and had helped to bring justice to the afflicted (29:7–17). But all human government was established by God (Gen. 9:1–7; Rom. 13:1–7); so if mortal man can execute justice on earth, why can’t a holy and sovereign God execute justice from heaven? He can dethrone kings and remove nobles, and He shows no partiality (Dan. 4:25, 32, 35). If the God who rules the world were unjust, there could be no order or harmony; and everything would fall apart.
However, Elihu made a big mistake in singling out and emphasizing only one divine attribute, the justice of God; for God is also loving and gracious. (Bildad had made the same mistake in his speeches.) In His wisdom, God devised a plan of redemption that satisfies both His justice and His love (Rom. 3:21–31). Because of the cross, God can redeem sinners and still magnify His righteousness and uphold His holy law.
Elihu’s third argument is that if God were unjust, then He must not see what is going on in the world (Job 34:21–30). But God is omniscient and sees all things! A human judge, with his limitations, hears a case and makes the best decision he can, and sometimes he’s wrong. But God sees every step we take, and there is no place where we can hide from Him (Ps. 139:7–12). Job wanted God to meet him in court so he could present his case, but what could Job tell God that God didn’t already know? “God has no need to examine men further, that they should come before him for judgment” (Job 34: niv). Unlike human officials, God is not obligated to conduct an inquiry and gather evidence; He knows everything and can judge with perfect wisdom.
One of Job’s complaints was that God was silent and had hidden His face from him (9:11; 23:1–9), but Elihu had an answer for that: “But if He remains silent, who can condemn him? If he hides his face, who can see him?” (34: niv). In Job 24, Job had accused God of ignoring men’s sins; but what right had he to judge the Judge? God waited four centuries before judging the wicked nations in Canaan (Gen. 15:13–16) and 120 years before sending the flood (6:3). Sinners should be grateful that God gives them time to repent (2 Peter 3:9).
God rules over nations and individuals (Job 34:29), but He is not responsible for their sins; for He gives them freedom to make decisions. They also have the freedom to turn from their sins and trust God. Because of this, Elihu closes this part of his speech with an appeal to Job that he confess his sins and repent (vv. 31–33). “Ask God to teach you what you don’t know,” he counsels, “and promise not to sin like this again” (see v. 32). God rewards us on His terms, not our terms; and one of His requirements is that we repent and turn from our sins.
Elihu paused and gave Job opportunity to speak (v. 33), but Job said nothing. This may have angered Elihu even more because he ended this part of the address with a terrible accusation against Job. He said that Job lacked knowledge and insight, that he was rebellious and spoke proudly against God. Clapping the hands is today a sign of approval, but in that day it was a gesture of mockery and contempt (27:23; Lam. 2:15). Elihu concluded that Job needed even more testing (Job 34:36)! Perhaps that would bring him to his senses.
Having disposed of Job’s first complaint, Elihu turns to the second one.
“There is no profit in obeying God” (Job 34:7–9; 35:1–16). Again, Elihu tries to throw Job’s own words back in his face: “I am innocent” (10:7; 12:4; 27:6), and “What have I gained by obeying God?” (9:29–31; 21:15). Job did make the first statement, but the second is not an accurate quotation of his words. Job never did bargain with God as Satan said he would (1:9, 21; 2:9–10). Eliphaz had discussed this topic (Job 22) and had come to the conclusion that neither man’s piety nor his iniquity could make any difference to the character of God. But Elihu felt it was important to deal with the theme again.
Elihu asked his listeners to look up to the heavens and see how far away the clouds were, and then imagine how far God’s throne was from the earth (35:5–7). Can a man’s sins or good deeds on earth exert such power that they will travel all that distance and change the Almighty in heaven?
Then Elihu asked them to consider human society (vv. 8–16). Our sins or good works may affect people around us (v. 8), but God is not affected by them. Certainly God grieves over man’s sins (Gen. 6:6) and delights in the obedience of the faithful (Ps. 37:23); but our good deeds can’t bribe Him, and our misdeeds can’t threaten Him. God’s character is the same whether men obey Him or disobey Him. God can’t change for the better because He is perfect, and He can’t change for the worse because He is holy.
God cares for the birds and beasts, and they trust Him (Job 35:11; Matt. 6:25–34); but men made in the image of God don’t cry out to God until they are under a terrible burden of oppression (Job 35:9). They forget God until trouble comes. But God knows that their prayers are insincere, so He doesn’t answer them (vv. 12–13). This explains why Job’s prayers haven’t been answered: his heart was not right with God (v. 14).
But even if God doesn’t relieve the burden, He can give the trusting sufferer “songs in the night” (v. 10; Ps. 42:8; 77:6). “Any man can sing in the day,” said Charles Spurgeon. “It is easy to sing when we can read the notes by daylight; but he is the skillful singer who can sing when there is not a ray of light by which to read.” The Lord gave “songs in the night” to Jesus before He went to the cross (Matt. 26:30) and to Paul and Silas in the prison in Philippi (Acts 16:25). If God doesn’t see fit to remove our burdens, He always gives strength to bear them—and a song to sing while doing it!
Elihu dismisses Job’s complaint that he can’t see God. The important thing is that God sees Job and knows his case completely (Job 35:14). Job’s situation won’t be changed by his empty talk and many words (v. 16), so the only thing for Job to do is wait and trust (v. 14).
God is gracious (Job 33), and God is just (Job 34— 35); but God is also great and mighty (Job 36—37), and Elihu thought that Job needed to recognize how great God is.