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Job Chapter 35 Elihu speaks to Job. “If you are righteous, what do you give to God?” “If you sin, what harm do you do to Him?” Elihu speaks of the perfection of God. God is not enriched by human goodness. God is not diminished by human sin. God is not a being whose worth rises or falls because of human actions. At times, people wonder: What is the meaning of my righteousness? Why pray if nothing seems to change? Does my response mean anything to God? But the real question her

Elihu speaks. God never does evil. The Almighty does not act unjustly. He repays each person according to what they have done. Elihu strongly defends the righteousness of God. God is never wrong. This is an important truth throughout the Bible. The issue is this: Speaking the truth and standing before the truth are not the same thing. People may speak about God's righteousness, while still remaining within the limits of their own understanding. When you say, “God is righteous

Job Chapter 33 Elihu speaks to Job. “God speaks once, and twice, though no one notices it.” Here, the perspective of the entire book of Job shifts. Job had continued to ask: Why am I suffering? Why does God not answer? Why does He remain silent? His friends continued to explain: Suffering has a cause. The righteous are rewarded. The wicked are judged. Both were speaking from the human side. Elihu says: “God is speaking.” The problem is not that God is silent, but that people

Job Chapter 32 Elihu appears. He is angry because Job justified himself. He is also angry because Job’s friends could not answer him. He has listened in silence for a long time. But at last, he begins to speak. “My words are ready to burst forth.” “I cannot keep silent.” When people feel they must speak, they can no longer remain quiet. But the real question is not what is being said, but where it is coming from. Is it coming from personal zeal? Or from God? When you cannot k

Job Chapter 31 Job offers a long defense of himself. If I have acted unjustly. If I have deceived others. If I have neglected the poor. Then let me bear the consequences. Here Job speaks at length about how he has lived rightly. In the midst of suffering, he is trying to prove his own innocence. When people are misunderstood, they want others to understand them. They want their righteousness to be recognized. But who is that proof really directed toward? When you try to prove

Job Chapter 30 After recalling the glory of the past in Job 29, Job now speaks of his present reality. He is mocked by younger men. He has lost his dignity. He suffers in pain. God feels distant. The contrast between past and present becomes clear. Those were better days. He was honored. He was protected. Now he is despised, suffering, and God does not answer. Job does not hide his reality. The more people remember the past, the more sharply they may feel the pain of the pres

Job Chapter 29 Job recalls the days that have passed. God’s lamp shone over his head. He was respected. He helped the poor. He practiced justice. Job looks back on who he once was. He was protected by God. He was honored by others. He was doing what was right. Those memories stand in contrast to the present, where everything has been lost. When people look back, they often think, “Those were the good days.” Yet within those memories there remains the memory of one’s own right

Job Chapter 28 “Where can wisdom be found?” “God alone knows the way to it.” People dig deep into the earth and discover treasure. But wisdom is not found that way. People dig. They search. They find. They know where silver is found and how gold is refined. But the place of wisdom is unknown to them. Wisdom cannot be gained through effort or skill. At the end, it is said: “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom.” When you search for wisdom, where are you? Are you trying to find

Job Chapter 27 Job continues to speak. “I will not let go of my righteousness.” “My conscience does not condemn me.” Job still holds on to his own righteousness. Job speaks clearly. I am not wrong. I will not let go of my righteousness. My conscience does not condemn me. Even in suffering, his sense of righteousness remains. A person may lose everything, yet still hold on to one final thing. The conviction: “I am right.” When you still hold on to your own righteousness, where

Job Chapter 26 Job responds. “How you have helped the powerless!” “What wonderful advice you have given!” Job speaks with irony. His friends have been speaking with the intention of helping. Right words. Theologically well-ordered explanations. But those words alone cannot sustain Job. Job says, “How much you have helped.” There is deep irony in these words. People often pour out right words with the intention of helping. But in the midst of suffering, those words may only ad