Job 35
1 Elihu spoke moreover, and said,
Then Elihu also said this:
2 Think you this to be right, that you said, My righteousness is more than God's?
“[Job, ] do you think that what you said is right/correct? You say, ‘God knows that I am innocent,’
3 For you said, What advantage will it be unto you? and, What profit shall I have, if I be cleansed from my sin?
and you say [to God], ‘What good have I received for not sinning? What benefit have I received from that?’ [DOU, RHQ]
4 I will answer you, and your companions with you.
[Well, ] I will answer you, and I will answer your three friends, too.
5 Look unto the heavens, and see; and behold the clouds which are higher than you.
“[Job], look up at the sky; look at the clouds that are high above you and realize [that God is far above everything].
6 If you sin, what do you against him? or if your transgressions be multiplied, what do you unto him?
If you have sinned, that does not [RHQ] harm God at all. If many times you do things that are wrong, that certainly does not [RHQ] affect him [DOU].
7 If you be righteous, what give you him? or what receives he of your hand?
And if you are righteous, does that help God? No, he is not benefited by anything that you do [DOU].
8 Your wickedness may hurt a man as you are; and your righteousness may profit the son of man.
It is other people who suffer because of the wicked things that you do, but by doing good things for people, you help them.
9 By reason of the multitude of oppressions they make the oppressed to cry: they cry out by reason of the arm of the mighty.
“People cry out because of the many things that people do to others to (oppress them/treat them cruelly); they call for help because of the things that powerful people do [MTY] to them.
10 But none says, Where is God my maker, who gives songs in the night;
But (no one/none of them) calls out [to God], saying ‘Why does God, my creator, [not help me]? He [should] enable me to sing [joyful] songs, [instead of very sad songs, ] during the night.
11 Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth, and makes us wiser than the fowls of heaven?
He [should be able to] teach us more than all the wild animals do; he [should] enable us to become wiser than [all] the birds are!’
12 There they cry, but none gives answer, because of the pride of evil men.
People cry out [for help], but God does not answer them, because those who cry out are proud and evil people.
13 Surely God will not hear vanity, neither will the Almighty regard it.
It is useless for them to cry out, because God, the Almighty One, does not pay any attention to what they say.
14 Although you say you shall not see him, yet judgment is before him; therefore trust you in him.
So, when you complain that you cannot see God, and you tell him that you are waiting for him [to decide whether or not you should be punished for what you have done], God will not listen to you, either!
15 But now, because it is not so, he has visited in his anger; yet he knows it not in great extremity:
Furthermore, [you say that] because he does not pay attention when people commit sins, he does not become angry and punish them.
16 Therefore does Job open his mouth in vain; he multiplies words without knowledge.
You say things that are useless; you say a lot of things without knowing [what you are talking about].”
