5. Elihu's fourth speech chs. 36-37

Of all Elihu's discourses this one is the most impressive because of his lofty descriptions of God.

"This concluding statement contains Elihu's best and most distinctive ideas. Up until now he has been treading on familiar and conventional ground, repeating largely the ideas which Job and his friends have already expressed. The harsh tone that Elihu had adopted in his second and third speeches is here softened. Job 36:1-21 is a more mature and engaging statement of orthodox theology than anything found elsewhere in the book."¹⁴⁷

 God's dealings with man 36:1-26

The first four verses of chapter 36 introduce this speech. In them Elihu again urged Job to pay attention to what he would say. He claimed that his words were true and that he himself was "perfect in knowledge"(v. 4).

"In his defence [sic] of the righteousness of God, Elihu now develops his thought on the disciplinary meaning of suffering. God is great, but he does not despise men. The incorrigibly wicked he does not preserve, but in mercy he afflicts the righteous that they may be cleansed of all sin and pride."¹⁴⁸

Four times in this chapter and twice in this section (vv. 1-25) Elihu said, "Behold"(vv. 5, 22, 26, 30). In each case he then proceeded to say something important about God. After this, he applied that truth.

Elihu's first affirmation was that God is mighty and merciful (vv. 5-10), and He uses suffering to instruct people. There are two possible responses to God's teaching: hearing (v. 11) and not hearing (v. 12), and each has consequences. Elihu developed these responses and consequences further, first the response of the godless (vv. 13-14) and then that of the godly (vv. 15-16). Essentially the godless become angry and refuse to turn to God for help, and this often leads to a life of shame and an untimely death (vv. 13-14). The righteous who suffer, on the other hand, turn to God, submit to His instruction, learn from it, and live (v. 15). Finally Elihu applied these points to Job and warned him against responding to his sufferings like the ungodly (vv. 16-21). Specifically Job should avoid anger and scoffing and not let the large price he was paying for his God-sent education (the "ransom,"v. 18) divert him from godly living.

Elihu's next major declaration about God, introduced by the second "Behold"(v. 22), was that He is a sovereign and supremely wise teacher (vv. 22-23). Elihu's application to Job was that he should worship God rather than murmuring, complaining, and pitying himself (vv. 24-25). Worship would enable him to learn the lessons that God was teaching him.

Note the introverted (chiastic) structure of verses 22-26 that emphasizes the fact that God is worthy of praise.

"Elihu has, in fact, steered the argument away from the justice of God to His wisdom, using His power as the bridge."¹⁴⁹

 God's dealings with nature 36:27-37:24

Elihu focused next on God's activities in nature. There may be reference to autumn conditions in 36:27-33, winter in 37:1-13, and summer in 37:17-18.¹⁵⁰

Elihu's third "Behold"(36:26) draws attention to the infinite wisdom of God. No one can understand how or why He deals with nature as He does (36:29).

The fourth "Behold"(36:30) affirms a similar point. God uses rain to bring both blessings and curses on people. Lightning and thunder declare God's presence even if people cannot fully understand when or why they come as they do.

Having introduced the idea of God's sovereign control over all things as reflected in His control of nature (36:26-33), Elihu elaborated on these thoughts in chapter 37. In verses 1-13 he cited more examples of God's working in nature that we cannot comprehend fully (37:5). We can learn that these things are His work (37:7) for several different purposes. Sometimes God does them for people's benefit or harm, but sometimes He does them simply for the sake of His world (37:13).

At this point Elihu turned again to apply these truths to Job's situation (37:14-24). He urged Job to be humble before such a great God (37:14-20). No one can find Him, but we can count on Him to be just (37:21-23). Job also needed to fear God (37:24). Verse 21 may mean that a person cannot look directly at the sun when the sky is clear of clouds. The implication is that neither can we see God in all His glory; He is partially unknowable.

Verse 22 seems to be another allusion to Ugaritic mythology. The Canaanites thought their gods lived in the North, but Elihu said the true God comes out of the North in golden majesty (lit. gold), perhaps like the sun. Since the sun does not rise in the North this cannot be a description of sunrise as symbolic of God's appearing. Rather it may contrast the appearing of the true God with Baal's supposed appearing.¹⁵¹

In his four speeches Elihu introduced a different reason for suffering: God has things to teach people that they can only learn through pain. He also described God in terms that suggest he may have had a more realistic, fuller concept of God than Job's three friends did. Notwithstanding neither Elihu nor the other three men had adequate insight into Job's situation. They could not have had unless God revealed to them what had transpired in His heavenly courts (chs. 1-2). Elihu's words are closer to the truth and prepare for God's fuller special revelation of Himself that follows in chapters 38-42. Generally Elihu emphasized the positive aspects of God's character whereas the three comforters emphasized the negative aspects. Elihu saw God more as a teacher. The other men spoke of Him as a judge.

"Worshipers of the ancient Near Eastern gods, Satan, Job, and his three antagonists--all these believed that suffering originated from a tit for tat,' measure for measure,' compensation theology, which governs the correspondence between righteous behavior and prosperity, and sinful behavior and misery. However, Elihu showed that neither he nor God supported this theory. Under God's justice, suffering comes to people for several reasons, many of which are unrelated to compensation theology."¹⁵²