Job 36
1 And Elihu addeth and saith: —
Elihu [finished by] saying this:
2 Honour me a little, and I shew thee, That yet for God [are] words.
“[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 lift up my knowledge from afar, And to my Maker I ascribe righteousness.
I will tell you what I have learned from many sources, in order to show that God, my creator, is just/fair.
4 For, truly, my words [are] not false, The perfect in knowledge [is] with 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 Lo, God [is] mighty, and despiseth not, Mighty [in] power [and] heart.
“Hey, God is [very] powerful, and he does not despise anyone, and he understands everything.
6 He reviveth not the wicked, And the judgment of the poor appointeth;
He does not allow wicked people to remain alive, and he always acts justly toward those who are poor.
7 He withdraweth not from the righteous His eyes, And [from] kings on the throne, And causeth them to sit for ever, and they are high,
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 prisoners in fetters They are captured with 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 He declareth to them their work, And their transgressions, Because they have become mighty,
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 And He uncovereth their ear for instruction, And saith that they turn back 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 do hear and serve, They complete their days in good, And their years in pleasantness.
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 And if they do not hearken, By the dart they pass away, And expire without knowledge.
But if they do not (listen/pay attention) to him, they will die violently, not knowing [why God is causing them to die].
13 And the profane in heart set the face, They cry not when He hath bound them.
“Godless/Wicked people continue being angry, and they do not cry out for help, [even] when God is punishing them.
14 Their soul dieth in youth, And their life among the defiled.
They die while they are still young, disgraced because of their very immoral behavior [EUP].
15 He draweth out the afflicted in his affliction, And uncovereth in oppression their ear.
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 And also He moved thee from a strait place, [To] a broad place — no straitness under it, And the sitting beyond of thy table Hath been 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 And the judgment of the wicked thou hast fulfilled, Judgment and justice are upheld — because of fury,
But now, you are being punished [MTY] as wicked people are punished; [God] [PRS] has been punishing you (justly/as you deserve).
18 Lest He move thee with a stroke, And the abundance of an atonement turn thee not aside.
So be careful that you are not deceived by [desiring to acquire] money or that you are not ruined by [accepting] large bribes.
19 Doth He value thy riches? He hath gold, and all the forces of power.
[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 Desire not the night, For the going up of peoples in their stead.
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 — do not turn unto iniquity, For on this thou hast fixed Rather than [on] affliction.
Be careful not to [begin doing] evil things, because [God] has caused you to suffer to prevent you from doing evil.
22 Lo, God doth sit on high by His power, Who [is] like Him — a teacher?
“Hey, God is extremely powerful; there is certainly [RHQ] no teacher who teaches like he does.
23 Who hath appointed unto Him his way? And who said, 'Thou hast done iniquity?'
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 Remember that thou magnify His work That men have beheld.
People have [always] sung to praise him, so you also should never forget to praise him for what he has done.
25 All men have looked on it, Man looketh attentively from afar.
Everyone has seen [what he has done], but [sometimes] we can see it only from far away.
26 Lo, God [is] high, And we know not the number of His years, Yea, there [is] no searching.
“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 When He doth diminish droppings of the waters, They refine rain according to its vapour,
He draws water up [from the earth and puts it in clouds] and causes it to become rain.
28 Which clouds do drop, They distil on man abundantly.
The rain pours down from the sky/clouds; God causes abundant showers to fall on everyone.
29 Yea, doth [any] understand The spreadings out of a cloud? The noises of His tabernacle?
No one can [RHQ] understand how the clouds move [across the sky] or how it thunders in the sky where God lives.
30 Lo, He hath spread over it His light, And the roots of the sea He hath covered,
He causes lightning to flash all around him, but he causes the bottom of the oceans to remain dark.
31 For by them He doth judge peoples, He giveth food in abundance.
By providing plenty of rain for us, he enables us to have abundant food.
32 By two palms He hath covered the light, And layeth a charge over it in meeting,
[It is as though] he holds the lightning in his hands, and [then] he commands it to strike where he wants it to.
33 He sheweth by it [to] his friend substance, Anger against perversity.
When we hear his thunder, we know that there will be a storm, and the cattle know it, too.”
