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Elihu Asserts God's Justice

 Then Elihu answered and said:

² “Hear my words, you wise men,
and give ear to me, you who know;
³ for the ear tests words
as the palate tastes food.
⁴ Let us choose what is right;
let us know among ourselves what is good.
⁵ For Job has said, ‘I am in the right,
and God has taken away my right;
⁶ in spite of my right I am counted a liar;
my wound is incurable, though I am without transgression.’
⁷ What man is like Job,
who drinks up scoffing like water,
⁸ who travels in company with evildoers
and walks with wicked men?
⁹ For he has said, ‘It profits a man nothing
that he should take delight in God.’

¹⁰ “Therefore, hear me, you men of understanding:
far be it from God that he should do wickedness,
and from the Almighty that he should do wrong.
¹¹ For according to the work of a man he will repay him,
and according to his ways he will make it befall him.
¹² Of a truth, God will not do wickedly,
and the Almighty will not pervert justice.
¹³ Who gave him charge over the earth,
and who laid on him^[a] the whole world?
¹⁴ If he should set his heart to it
and gather to himself his spirit and his breath,
¹⁵ all flesh would perish together,
and man would return to dust.

¹⁶ “If you have understanding, hear this;
listen to what I say.
¹⁷ Shall one who hates justice govern?
Will you condemn him who is righteous and mighty,
¹⁸ who says to a king, ‘Worthless one,’
and to nobles, ‘Wicked man,’
¹⁹ who shows no partiality to princes,
nor regards the rich more than the poor,
for they are all the work of his hands?
²⁰ In a moment they die;
at midnight the people are shaken and pass away,
and the mighty are taken away by no human hand.

²¹ “For his eyes are on the ways of a man,
and he sees all his steps.
²² There is no gloom or deep darkness
where evildoers may hide themselves.
²³ For God^[b] has no need to consider a man further,
that he should go before God in judgment.
²⁴ He shatters the mighty without investigation
and sets others in their place.
²⁵ Thus, knowing their works,
he overturns them in the night, and they are crushed.
²⁶ He strikes them for their wickedness
in a place for all to see,
²⁷ because they turned aside from following him
and had no regard for any of his ways,
²⁸ so that they caused the cry of the poor to come to him,
and he heard the cry of the afflicted—
²⁹ When he is quiet, who can condemn?
When he hides his face, who can behold him,
whether it be a nation or a man?—
³⁰ that a godless man should not reign,
that he should not ensnare the people.

³¹ “For has anyone said to God,
‘I have borne punishment; I will not offend any more;
³² teach me what I do not see;
if I have done iniquity, I will do it no more’?
³³ Will he then make repayment to suit you,
because you reject it?
For you must choose, and not I;
therefore declare what you know.^[c]
34 Men of understanding will say to me,
and the wise man who hears me will say:
³⁵ ‘Job speaks without knowledge;
his words are without insight.’
³⁶ Would that Job were tried to the end,
because he answers like wicked men.
³⁷ For he adds rebellion to his sin;
he claps his hands among us
and multiplies his words against God.”

Footnotes:

1. Job 34:13 Hebrew lacks on him
2. Job 34:23 Hebrew he
3. Job 34:33 The meaning of the Hebrew in verses 29–33 is uncertain

Cross references:

1. Job 34:3 : ch. 12:11
2. Job 34:4 : 1 Thess. 5:21, 22
3. Job 34:5 : See ch. 33:9
4. Job 34:5 : ch. 27:2
5. Job 34:6 : ch. 33:9
6. Job 34:7 : See ch. 15:16
7. Job 34:8 : [Ps. 1:1]
8. Job 34:9 : ch. 9:22, 23, 30, 31; 21:7, 15; 24:1; [ch. 35:3; Mal. 3:14]
9. Job 34:10 : ch. 36:23; Gen. 18:25; Deut. 32:4; 2 Chr. 19:7; Ps. 92:15; Rom. 9:14
10. Job 34:11 : Ps. 62:12; Prov. 24:12; Matt. 16:27; Rom. 2:6; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 Pet. 1:17; Rev. 22:12
11. Job 34:11 : Jer. 17:10; 32:19; Ezek. 33:20
12. Job 34:12 : See ch. 8:3
13. Job 34:13 : See ch. 38:4-7
14. Job 34:14 : [ch. 2:3]
15. Job 34:14 : Ps. 104:29; [Ps. 146:4]
16. Job 34:14 : ch. 32:8
17. Job 34:15 : See ch. 10:9
18. Job 34:17 : [Gen. 18:25]
19. Job 34:18 : Ex. 22:28
20. Job 34:19 : Deut. 10:17; 2 Chr. 19:7; Acts 10:34; Rom. 2:11; Gal. 2:6; Eph. 6:9; Col. 3:25; 1 Pet. 1:17
21. Job 34:19 : [James 2:5]
22. Job 34:19 : See ch. 31:15
23. Job 34:20 : ch. 21:13
24. Job 34:20 : Ex. 11:4; [ch. 27:20; 36:20]
25. Job 34:20 : Dan. 8:25; [Lam. 4:6]
26. Job 34:21 : ch. 14:16; See ch. 31:4
27. Job 34:21 : ch. 14:16; See ch. 31:4
28. Job 34:22 : [Ps. 139:12; Amos 9:2, 3; Heb. 4:13]
29. Job 34:22 : See ch. 3:5
30. Job 34:23 : ch. 14:3
31. Job 34:24 : Ps. 2:9
32. Job 34:24 : See ch. 8:19
33. Job 34:25 : Prov. 12:7
34. Job 34:27 : 1 Sam. 15:11; Ps. 28:5; Isa. 5:12
35. Job 34:28 : ch. 35:9; James 5:4; [Gen. 18:20, 21]
36. Job 34:28 : Ex. 3:7; 22:23; Isa. 32:17
37. Job 34:32 : ch. 35:11; 36:22; Ps. 19:12; 86:11
38. Job 34:33 : ch. 33:32
39. Job 34:35 : See ch. 35:16
40. Job 34:37 : See ch. 27:23