Job 36

1 Elihu continued:

2 "Bear with me a little longer and I will show you
that there is more to be said in God's behalf.

3 I get my knowledge from afar;
I will ascribe justice to my Maker.

4 Be assured that my words are not false;
one perfect in knowledge is with you.

5 "God is mighty, but does not despise men;
he is mighty, and firm in his purpose.

6 He does not keep the wicked alive
but gives the afflicted their rights.

7 He does not take his eyes off the righteous;
he enthrones them with kings
and exalts them forever.

8 But if men are bound in chains,
held fast by cords of affliction,

9 he tells them what they have done—
that they have sinned arrogantly.

10 He makes them listen to correction
and commands them to repent of their evil.

11 If they obey and serve him,
they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity
and their years in contentment.

12 But if they do not listen,
they will perish by the sword
and die without knowledge.

13 "The godless in heart harbor resentment;
even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help.

14 They die in their youth,
among male prostitutes of the shrines.

15 But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering;
he speaks to them in their affliction.

16 "He is wooing you from the jaws of distress
to a spacious place free from restriction,
to the comfort of your table laden with choice food.

17 But now you are laden with the judgment due the wicked;
judgment and justice have taken hold of you.

18 Be careful that no one entices you by riches;
do not let a large bribe turn you aside.

19 Would your wealth
or even all your mighty efforts
sustain you so you would not be in distress?

20 Do not long for the night,
to drag people away from their homes.

21 Beware of turning to evil,
which you seem to prefer to affliction.

22 "God is exalted in his power.
Who is a teacher like him?

23 Who has prescribed his ways for him,
or said to him, 'You have done wrong'?

24 Remember to extol his work,
which men have praised in song.

25 All mankind has seen it;
men gaze on it from afar.

26 How great is God—beyond our understanding!
The number of his years is past finding out.

27 "He draws up the drops of water,
which distill as rain to the streams;

28 the clouds pour down their moisture
and abundant showers fall on mankind.

29 Who can understand how he spreads out the clouds,
how he thunders from his pavilion?

30 See how he scatters his lightning about him,
bathing the depths of the sea.

31 This is the way he governs the nations
and provides food in abundance.

32 He fills his hands with lightning
and commands it to strike its mark.

33 His thunder announces the coming storm;
even the cattle make known its approach.

Side Notes:

vs. 26 One theme in the poetic literature of the Bible is that God is incomprehensible; we cannot know him completely. We can have some knowledge about him, for the Bible is full of details about who God is, how we can know him, and how we can have an eternal relationship with him. But we can never know enough to answer all of life's questions (Ecclesiastes 3:11), to predict our own future, or to manipulate God for our own ends. Life always creates more questions than we have answers, and we must constantly go to God for fresh insights into life's dilemmas. (see 37:19-24)