Week 8: Elihu's Speeches (32:1–37:24)

The Place of the Passage

The speeches of Elihu contained in these seven chapters have been interpreted in two main ways throughout church history. Some have argued that the speeches contain helpful counsel that prepares Job for the even greater revelation of God in chapters 38–41, while others argue that the speeches repeat the condemnations of Job’s friends and thus represent the last frustrating failure of human wisdom to help Job. The study questions for these chapters will help readers consider these alternatives and come to their own conclusions.

Elihu’s Introduction (ch. 32)

We learn of Elihu’s purpose in 32:14: He will provide Job a different answer than what his three friends have offered. According to verses 7­–10, why has Elihu waited so long to give this new answer? Remember that in Scripture, wisdom is passed on from father to son, from the aged to the young (see, e.g., Prov. 23:22). What makes Elihu confident to do something unconventional, such as speaking in such company?

How would you characterize Elihu? He is obviously intelligent and well-spoken, but what is implied about him through his words?

Elihu’s Second Speech: God Is Not Silent (ch. 33)

In 33:8–13, Elihu summarizes his understanding of Job’s complaint and specifies which part he will address first: the claim that God is silent. To what extent is Elihu’s quotation of Job a fair summary of Job’s protest against God? Is there a way in which Elihu has not listened closely to Job?

In verses 14–18, 19–22, and 23–28, Elihu lists three ways in which God speaks to man. What are they, and what (according to Elihu) is God’s purpose in each? (See vv. 17, 19, 27.) Given Job’s character (see 1:1–3), are Elihu’s insights relevant or helpful to Job?

Elihu’s Third Speech: Divine Justice (ch. 34)

Elihu addresses Job’s complaint about divine injustice more directly in this chapter (vv. 5–6). How does Elihu defend God’s justice in verses 10–12? Is this different from what Job’s other friends have said (see especially 8:3)?

In verses 13–17, Elihu defends God’s right to govern the world. What evidence does he enlist to show that no one can or should question God’s justice? Is there anything beyond a “might-makes-right” philosophy here?

Elihu’s Fourth Speech: God Unaffected by Sin (ch. 35)

Although Elihu’s quotation of Job in 34:5–6 was accurate, is his quotation in 35:2–3 fair? How has Elihu apparently misunderstood Job’s protest of God’s treatment of him? Although Job accuses God of unjust treatment, would he ever say that integrity did not matter? (Remember passages like 13:16 and 23:7.)

In verses 5–8, Elihu answers his own question of verse 3. Then, in verses 9­–16, Elihu provides an answer as to why God is sometimes silent and distant. What are these answers? Are they relevant or helpful to Job? How different are they from the ideas of Job’s other friends? (For vv. 6–8, compare passages like 11:7–8; 22:12; 25:2–4.)

Elihu’s Fifth and Sixth Speeches: Suffering an Opportunity to Repent (36:1–21) and God’s Justice in the Storm (36:22–37:24)

Consider Elihu’s account of God’s ordering of the world in 36:5–12. According to Elihu, why does God exalt some (v. 7) and humble others (vv. 8–9)? Does Elihu in this speech help Job to understand his own suffering?

Elihu’s final speech sets the orderly creation as parallel to divine justice—that is, just as God keeps his physical creation in good order, so also does he maintain the moral order of things. In order to make this argument, Elihu moves from rain (36:27–28) to storm and lightning (36:29–33) and thunder (37:1–5) and concludes with God’s power in the storm (37:6–13). How does Elihu apply God’s power in the storm to Job (36:22–24 and 37:14–20)? How does he want Job to think about or speak differently to God as a result of these truths?

Gospel Glimpses

THE HOPED-FOR MEDIATOR. Elihu envisions a rescuer or “mediator” (33:23) who will speak for Job, echoing Job’s desire for such a figure earlier in the book (9:33; 16:18–22; 19:25–27). This mediator knows the way of righteousness (33:23) and defends in the courts of heaven the one destined for death (vv. 24–25), seeking his salvation instead. How is such rescue possible? Only by the payment of “a ransom” (v. 24). In response, the one who has suffered is reconciled to God and he shouts for joy (v. 26), acknowledging the forgiveness of his sins (v. 27). Who is this one who has “redeemed my soul from going down into the pit” (v. 28)? Elihu, surely unknowingly, is here anticipating the Son of God himself, Jesus Christ, who paid the “ransom” for sinners (Mark 10:45) to rescue them from death and hell and to bring them eternal life in the courts of heaven (Rom. 6:23), where he intercedes continually for his people (Heb. 7:25).

Whole-Bible Connections

THE LIMITATIONS OF HUMAN WISDOM. Elihu is a fine poet, who obviously cares greatly for God’s honor. It is understandable that he is troubled by Job’s speeches. The problem is, he cannot seem to get away from the idea that suffering comes only because of sin. As a result, he fails in his goal to answer Job’s problem differently than his other friends did (Job 32:14). The speeches of Elihu seem designed to frustrate, as a new participant promises a fresh angle on the problem but then repeats what has already been said. It is difficult to see much in Elihu’s speeches that would have helped Job with his problem. He outlines a glorious mediator (33:23–33) but then obscures that hope in a torrent of words. We already read in chapter 28 that no one knows where to find wisdom on his own. The book of Proverbs teaches the same truth from a happier perspective. In Proverbs 2:1–6, when the son searches for wisdom, he finds it—but only because God gives it to him (v. 6). In Old Testament wisdom literature and elsewhere in the Bible, insight into how creation operates and how God governs it is available only as a gift from on high (James 1:5–8; compare 1 Cor. 1:20–21). At this point in the book, Job needs to hear from the Lord. No one else can help him.

Theological Soundings

THE DANGER OF HASTY SPEECH. Even though he waits a long time, Elihu becomes so frustrated with his elders that he is unable to contain himself (Job 32:16–20). Might it not have been better for Elihu to master his desire to set everyone straight and instead wait with Job for the Lord? Our social values are, in many ways, opposite those of ancient Israel; whereas ancient Israelites valued the wisdom of old age, we valorize and romanticize youth. Although the Bible does not make all of ancient Israel’s social values normative for God’s people in other cultures, might not we modern North Americans perhaps benefit from learning to be silent before our elders? Is there a time for us to be silent before the wise, even if younger members of the community are convinced they best know what to do or how to speak?