If you sin, how does that affect him? If your sins are many, what does that do to him? If you are righteous, what do you give to him, or what does he receive from your hand? Your wickedness only affects humans like yourself, and your righteousness only other people.
Job 35:6‭-‬8 NIV

I can see this as being a grave misunderstanding. It shows the lack of understanding the love of God. I know that the people of the Old Testament viewed the importance of obedience to laws and experienced the wrath of God. Their disobedience often ended in suffering. Elihu did not understand that God’s “wrath” was really a consequence of bad choices. His love for us means that He is affected by our wickedness as well as our righteousness. As a parent I am better able to understand this. My children may have felt that I was just angry and that I didn’t care but in truth my response to their wrongdoing was very much because of how it affected me because of my love for them. As well when they did right it also affected me just as much. I am not comparing myself to God I know that He is greater than I and I cannot really understand the depth of all He feels for us. I know that He loves us eternally more than I can love my children, but that fact alone helps me to understand that even though my salvation is not by works and that I cannot lose my salvation because of my sin, what I do and don’t do, right and wrong, matters to Him. And my love for Him and knowing His love for me makes me want to do what is right.

Read James chapter 2 starting at 14. He talks about faith with and without works. He talks about people from the Old Testament who were considered righteous because of their work. Faith should result in works. We should want to please the one we love. He says even the demons know and believe who Jesus is. They however do not love Him and do not live to please him. Knowing and believing does not make us righteous. Living for Jesus does.

Elihu rambles so much in this chapter I had difficulty staying attentive so when I was done I went to the commentary I have been using. Since the chapter is so wordy there is a lot in the commentary so feel free to pursue it as you like.

Enduring Word Bible Commentary Job Chapter 34

 

I am the same as you in God’s sight; I too am a piece of clay. No fear of me should alarm you, nor should my hand be heavy on you.
Job 33:6‭-‬7 NIV

If you have anything to say, answer me; speak up, for I want to vindicate you. But if not, then listen to me; be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”
Job 33:32‭-‬33 NIV

Elihu thinks he is being kind and trying to help Job but he is really just as bad as the others. He is conceited in his beliefs that he could be an effective spokesman for God. He has decided that he knows the truth about Job’s situation but he has it wrong. And wow is he wordy. He goes on and on for a few chapters.

My words come from an upright heart; my lips sincerely speak what I know. The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life. Answer me then, if you can; stand up and argue your case before me.
Job 33:3‭-‬5 NIV

“But you have said in my hearing— I heard the very words— ‘I am pure, I have done no wrong; I am clean and free from sin. Yet God has found fault with me; he considers me his enemy. He fastens my feet in shackles; he keeps close watch on all my paths.’ “But I tell you, in this you are not right, for God is greater than any mortal. Why do you complain to him that he responds to no one’s words?
Job 33:8‭-‬13 NIV

What can we learn from this young one who gets a too excited and confident in his understanding?

So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself rather than God. He was also angry with the three friends, because they had found no way to refute Job, and yet had condemned him. Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he. But when he saw that the three men had nothing more to say, his anger was aroused.
Job 32:1‭-‬5 NIV

Elihu is the young one. He has held his tongue and now he cannot help but speak. He is angry at the other 3 as well as at Job. Now his response to Job is different than the others. Different commentaries talk about how God used Elihu to rebuke the others. His response to Job is not about the wrong that Job may have done to cause his suffering but that Job is justifying himself. But the commentary that I included in the link below says this about Elihu’s anger. Check out the commentary.

c. Then the wrath of Elihu… was aroused against Job: Apparently, Elihu was a silent listener at the whole dialogue up to this point. He was angry against Job because he felt that Job justified himself rather than God. Elihu felt that Job was more concerned about being right himself than God being right.

i. We can easily understand how Elihu felt this. Yet what he did not understand was that both Job and God were right. The friends had forced themselves and Job into a false dilemma: either Job is right or God is right. They could not see or understand how both were right.

 

Job Chapter 32

Reading done with not much to say. Just why does Job have to be so long?

The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
Proverbs 4:18 NIV

This makes me think of Sanctification. Ones we put our trust in Jesus and accept His gift of salvation his righteousness is credited to us. So, because of Him we are on the path of the righteous. If we walk with him and stay in His light. The SON shine we will become more and more like Jesus and shine ever brighter until we reach the goal of Glorification which comes when we are finally in His presence for eternity.

They detest me and keep their distance; they do not hesitate to spit in my face. Now that God has unstrung my bow and afflicted me, they throw off restraint in my presence.
Job 30:10‭-‬11 NIV

Have I not wept for those in trouble? Has not my soul grieved for the poor?
Job 30:25 NIV

As I read this I wondered how many times I have done to others what the people did to Job. How easy it is to look at someone else and see their current circumstances from our limited worldly perspective and react to our thoughts and opinions of why they are where they are without knowing anything about them. It’s even worse when like Job we know the person and still look down on them based on what we see in the current situation instead of remembering the person that we know them to be.

Lord, help me to not do this any more. Help me to look at others through Jesus eyes. To see their struggles and sufferings and respond to them with love and concern instead of judgement and detachment. Help me to see the good.

 

 

Oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God’s intimate friendship blessed my house, when the Almighty was still with me and my children were around me, when my path was drenched with cream and the rock poured out for me streams of olive oil.
Job 29:4‭-‬6 NIV

Job knows all that the favor that he had from God. He saw his relationship with God as intimate. That intimacy was both directions. We know that it was intimacy from Job to God because God knew him and knew that he would not faulter. And intimacy from God to Job because Job recognized God at work in his life and around him. This entire chapter talks of all that Job had that he accredited to God. He knew that all his blessings came from God. He also knows that even as those blessings are taken away. Think of the chapters before this where he says repeatedly that who is he to question God or blame God. God made all things and gives all things so God has the right to take it away.

What a great example of relationship with God.

Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely they know what I said.”
John 18:21 NIV

Here is Jesus in front of Annas. Instead of answering Annas’ questions He says ask those who heard me. Jesus already knows what the “witnesses” will say.

John’s Gospel only says that Jesus was then sent to Caiaphas. Then goes to Jesus before Pilate. But as we see in Matthew when He is sent to Caiaphas they looked for and found “false evidence against Jesus”.

The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. Finally two came forward and declared, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’ ”
Matthew 26:59‭-‬61 NIV

Their first liars did not give them an accusation that they would be able to put Him to death but when the two who said that Jesus said He would “destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days” they had what they needed.

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,
John 17:20 NIV

Again, a reason to share the Gospel with confidence. Jesus prays for those whom He gives you the opportunity to share the Gospel with. So, we should be able to share with confidence!

I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and your saving help. I do not conceal your love and your faithfulness from the great assembly.
Psalms 40:10 NIV

To be like the man after God’s own heart we must not hide His righteousness. We should speak of His faithfulness and saving help. We should make the Gospel known everywhere to everyone.

Lord give me the word to speak at every opportunity that youngive me to share.

Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell? It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing, concealed even from the birds in the sky. God understands the way to it and he alone knows where it dwells,
Job 28:20‭-‬21‭, ‬23 NIV

Again we see Job speaking the truths that we read in Psalms and Proverbs. Good is the source of all wisdom.  And any wisdom we recieve does not compare with God’s wisdom.  We cannot comprehend His wisdom therefore why doubt Him.