< Job 34 >
1 Then Elihu continued:
2 “You [three] men who [think that you] [SAR] are very wise, hear me; listen to what I am saying, you men who [say that you] know so much.
3 When we [SYN] hear what other people [like you] say, we [RHQ] think carefully about what they say [to determine what is good and what is bad], like we [SYN] taste food [to determine what is good].
4 We need to decide [who is saying] what is right and to determine among ourselves what is good/best.
5 Job has said, ‘I am innocent, but God has refused to judge me fairly/justly.
6 Even though I have always done what is right, he is lying about me. Even though I have not done what is wrong, he has caused me to suffer, and I will certainly die.’
7 (Is there any person like Job, who insults others as easily as people accept a drink of water?/There is no person like Job, who insults others as easily as people accept a drink of water.) [RHQ]
8 He habitually associates with people who do what is evil and spends time with wicked people.
9 He has said, ‘It is useless for people to try to please God.’
10 “So, you men who [claim that you] understand everything, listen to me! Almighty God would never consider doing anything that is wicked or wrong [DOU]!
11 He (pays back/punishes) people for what they have done; he gives them what they deserve for the way that they have conducted their lives.
12 Truly, Almighty God never does what is wicked; he always [LIT] does what is fair/just.
13 The authority that he has to rule everything on the earth, no one [RHQ] gave it to him; no one [RHQ] put him in control of the whole world. [He has always had that authority].
14 If he would take his spirit back to himself,
15 everyone would die [immediately], and their corpses would soon become dirt again.
16 “So, [Job], if [you say that you] understand everything, listen to what I am saying.
17 God could certainly not [RHQ] govern the world if he hated doing what is fair/just. So, will you condemn God, who is righteous and powerful, [saying that what he has done is wrong]?
18 He tells [some] kings that they are worthless, and he says to [some] officials that they are wicked.
19 He does not favor rulers [more than he favors others]; he does not favor rich people more than poor people, because he created all of them.
20 People [often] die suddenly; he strikes them at midnight and they die; he even gets rid of mighty people without the help of any humans [SYN].
21 “He sees [MTY] everything that people do; [when we walk, ] he watches every step that we take.
22 There is no gloom or darkness [DOU] that is so dark that sinners can hide [from him] in that darkness.
23 God does not [need to] set a time when we will stand in front of him in order that he may judge us. [He can judge us whenever he wants to].
24 He destroys mighty people without [needing to] investigate [what they have done], and he appoints others to take their places.
25 Because he [already] knows what they have done, he removes them at night and gets rid of them.
26 Where [many] people can see it, he strikes/punishes them because of the wicked things that they have done;
27 he strikes them because they turned away from doing what he wanted them to do and did not pay attention to any of his commands.
28 They [mistreated] the poor people, with the result that those poor people cried out to God [for help], and he heard those afflicted people when they cried out [to him].
29 But if God decides to do nothing [to punish wicked people], no one can criticize/condemn him. If a godless/wicked man rules a nation, a man who tricks/deceives the people,
30 and if [God] hides his face [with the result that he does not see that ruler or punish him], no one will be able to prevent that ruler [from doing those things].
31 “Job, have you or anyone else ever said to God, ‘I have been punished [for my sins], and I will not sin any more;
32 so teach/show me what [sins I have committed]; if I have done anything that is evil, I will not do it any more’?
33 [Job, ] you object to what God has done to you, but do you think that he will do what you want him to do? It is you who must choose [what you say to God], not I; so tell me what you are thinking about this.
34 “People who have good sense, those who are wise and who listen to what I say, will say to me,
35 ‘Job is speaking ignorantly; what he says is nonsense.’
36 I think that Job should be taken to a court and (put on trial/judged), because he answers [us his friends] like wicked men would answer.
37 To add to the [other] sins that he has committed, he is rebelling [against God]; he shows us that he does not respect God [IDM], making long speeches [saying that God has punished him unjustly].”
