Job 36
1 Elihu also proceeded, and said:
Elihu [finished by] saying this:
2 Bear with me a little while, that I may show thee! For I have yet words in behalf of God.
“[Job, ] be patient with me a little longer, because I have something else to teach you. I have something else to say that God [wants you to know].
3 I will bring my knowledge from afar, And assert the justice of my Maker.
I will tell you what I have learned from many sources, in order to show that God, my creator, is just/fair.
4 Truly my words shall not be false: A man of sound knowledge is before thee.
I am not saying anything to you that is false; I, who am standing in front of you, am someone who understands things (very well/perfectly) [HYP].
5 Behold, God is great, but despiseth not any; Great is he in strength of understanding.
“Hey, God is [very] powerful, and he does not despise anyone, and he understands everything.
6 He suffereth not the wicked to prosper, But rendereth justice to the oppressed.
He does not allow wicked people to remain alive, and he always acts justly toward those who are poor.
7 He withdraweth not his eyes from the righteous; But establisheth them for ever with kings on the throne, That they may be exalted.
He always watches over [MTY] those who are righteous; he allows them to sit on thrones [and rule] with kings, and they are honored forever.
8 And if they be bound in fetters, And holden in the cords of affliction,
But if people [who commit crimes] are caught, they [are thrown into prison and] are caused to suffer by being fastened with chains.
9 Then showeth he them their deeds, And how they have set him at defiance by their transgressions;
When that happens, God shows them what they have done; he shows them the sins that they have committed, and he shows them that they have been proud/arrogant.
10 He also openeth their ears to admonition, And commandeth them to return from iniquity.
He causes them to listen [MTY] to what he is warning them, and he commands them to turn away from [doing what is] evil.
11 If they obey and serve him, They spend their days in prosperity, And their years in pleasures.
If they (listen to/heed) him and serve him, [after they get out of prison] they will prosper for all the years that they are alive and be peaceful/happy.
12 But if they obey not, they perish by the sword; They die in their own folly.
But if they do not (listen/pay attention) to him, they will die violently, not knowing [why God is causing them to die].
13 The corrupt in heart treasure up wrath; They cry not to God, when he bindeth them.
“Godless/Wicked people continue being angry, and they do not cry out for help, [even] when God is punishing them.
14 They die in their youth; They close their lives with the unclean.
They die while they are still young, disgraced because of their very immoral behavior [EUP].
15 But he delivereth the poor in their distress; He openeth their ears in affliction.
But God teaches people by causing them to suffer; by afflicting them, he causes them to listen to [MTY] what he is telling them.
16 He will bring thee also from the jaws of distress To a broad place, where is no straitness; And the provision of thy table shall be full of fatness.
“And Job, [I think that] God [wants to] bring you out of your troubles and allow you to live without distress; he wants your table to be full of very nice food.
17 But if thou art full of the judgment of the wicked, Judgment and justice shall take hold of thee.
But now, you are being punished [MTY] as wicked people are punished; [God] [PRS] has been punishing you (justly/as you deserve).
18 For if wrath be with him, beware lest he take thee away by his stroke, So that a great ransom shall not save thee!
So be careful that you are not deceived by [desiring to acquire] money or that you are not ruined by [accepting] large bribes.
19 Will he esteem thy riches? No! neither thy gold, nor all the abundance of thy wealth.
[If you are deceived by those things, ] it certainly will not [RHQ] help you to cry out when you are distressed; all of your strength will not help you.
20 Long not thou for that night To which nations are taken away from their place.
Do not wish that it would be nighttime [in order that God will not see you and punish you], because night is the time when [even] people-groups are destroyed!
21 Take heed, turn not thine eyes to iniquity! For this hast thou chosen rather than affliction.
Be careful not to [begin doing] evil things, because [God] has caused you to suffer to prevent you from doing evil.
22 Behold, God is exalted in his power: Who is a teacher like him?
“Hey, God is extremely powerful; there is certainly [RHQ] no teacher who teaches like he does.
23 Who hath prescribed to him his way? Or who can say to him, “Thou hast done wrong”?
No one has [RHQ] told him what he should do, and no one has [RHQ] said to him, ‘You have done what is wrong!’
24 Forget not to magnify his work, Which men celebrate with songs.
People have [always] sung to praise him, so you also should never forget to praise him for what he has done.
25 All mankind gaze upon it; Mortals behold it from afar.
Everyone has seen [what he has done], but [sometimes] we can see it only from far away.
26 Behold, God is great; we cannot know him, Nor search out the number of his years.
“Hey, God is very great, and we are not able to know how great he is, and we do not know how old he is.
27 Lo! he draweth up the drops of water, Which distil rain from his vapor;
He draws water up [from the earth and puts it in clouds] and causes it to become rain.
28 The clouds pour it down, And drop it upon man in abundance.
The rain pours down from the sky/clouds; God causes abundant showers to fall on everyone.
29 Who can understand the spreading of his clouds, And the rattling of his pavilion?
No one can [RHQ] understand how the clouds move [across the sky] or how it thunders in the sky where God lives.
30 Behold, he spreadeth around himself his light, And he clotheth himself with the depths of the sea.
He causes lightning to flash all around him, but he causes the bottom of the oceans to remain dark.
31 By these he punisheth nations, And by these he giveth food in abundance.
By providing plenty of rain for us, he enables us to have abundant food.
32 His hands he covereth with lightning; He giveth it commandment against an enemy.
[It is as though] he holds the lightning in his hands, and [then] he commands it to strike where he wants it to.
33 His thunder maketh him known; Yea, to the herds, as he ascendeth on high.
When we hear his thunder, we know that there will be a storm, and the cattle know it, too.”
