Job  

Chapter  34  

"Elihu's words to Job's friends."  

This chapter is almost straight reading, however it shows us what kind of a man that Job has been listening to.

Job  34:1   "Furthermore Elihu answered and said,"

Job  34:2   "Hear my words, O ye wise men; and give unto me, ye that have knowledge."

Elihu feels free to let everyone know that what he has to say must be knowledge, for he claims that even the wise men can gain from his instruction. 

Job  34:3   "For the ear trieth words, as the mouth tasteth meat."

Job  34:4   "Let us choose to us judgment: let us know among ourselves what is good."

Lets take a closer look only at Elihu's fact and decide "what is good".  Remember from the prior chapters we have said all along that we should look only to the facts.  However lets pay close attention to what Elihu calls the facts.  Don't let him fool you. 

Job  34:5   "For Job hath said, "I am righteous: and God hath taken away my judgment."

This is a true statement, Job sure did say that he was a righteous man, and he also put the blame of all his troubles on God.  That is a true statement.    

Job  34:6   "Should I lie against my right? my wound is incurable without transgression."

This is also a true statement.  Job said he was wounded to death and innocent. 

Job  34:7   "What man is like Job, who drinketh up scorning like water?"

Elihu now turns to Job and asks, who is this man with his reckless talk, that keep on hammering at God.   This young man is right to a degree, you should not blame every thing that goes wrong on God, that is the whole point here. 

Job  34:8   "Which goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men."

Elihu's assumption is that Job chose bad company, and after we heard three of Job's friends turn on him, this is also true.  Elihu is saying that Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar were bad company to be with.  Elihu sat and heard how they took Job apart and accused Job of everything that they could think of.   

Job  34:9   "For he hath said, `It profiteth a man nothing that he should delight himself with God.' "

We will now see Elihu's interpretation of Job's words.  Elihu let this hidden thoughts be know here.  What Elihu is saying was nothing but a continuation of the other three men.  Elihu is giving out nothing but words, words, words.  So the facts are taking us in a circle and we ended up right where we started from.  The problem stems from the fact that Elihu is setting his whole discussion on the wrong facts. 

Job  34:10   "Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that He should do wickedness; and from The Almighty, that He should commit iniquity."

This is a true statement!  God will not do something wrong, or against His eternal plan.  God will not sin; never.  It is a statement of fact.

Job  34:11   "For the work of a man shall He render unto him, and cause every man to find according to his ways."

This also is a true statement, if you sin you will pay the price in due time. 

Job  34:12   "Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will The Almighty pervert judgment."

Elihu turns to Job and tells him to his face; God is not going to do this to you unless you are a sinner and do wickedly.  Keep in mind through this entire chapter, Satan is completely left out of this line of thought, and everything that Satan is doing is being attributed to God.  This again is a type of what the elect will face in our generation.  Job is a type of the elect, and the thoughts and mind of these men will be as it will be in the time of the end. 

Job  34:13   "Who hath given Him charge over the earth? or who hath disposed the whole world?"

Elihu is saying another correct statement, "who can tell God what to do?"  He is God and all power comes from Him.  God doesn't need permission to do what He does. 

Job  34:14   "If He set His heart upon man, if He gather unto Himself his spirit and his breath;"

If God took back the breath of life from your flesh body at one time;... What would happen to your flesh body?

Job  34:15   "All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust."

All flesh would parish instantly.  This is a true statement, for a time is coming when all flesh will be done away with instantly, and that instant is not far away.  Paul talked about this time in I Corinthians  15:50-52.  That time is at the sounding of the seventh and last trumpet, all flesh good and bad will be changed from their corruptible flesh bodies into their (our) incorruptible spiritual bodies, as the angels have. 

However what Elihu is trying to say is that if God didn't allow breath to remain within a person, that person would die instantly.  We can see that Elihu is full of all sorts of knowledge and facts.  Many of these facts are true statements.      

Job  34:16   "If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words."

Here again Elihu is telling Job to pay special attention to what he is about to say.

Job  34:17   "Shall even he that hateth right govern? and wilt thou condemn Him that is most just?"

Are you going to take that upon yourself Job, to determine what should be condemned and what is just? are you going to take the part of God? 

Job  34:18   "Is it fit to say to a king, `Thou art wicked?' and to princes, `Ye are ungodly?' "

Of course a normal man that is a subject to a king would not go to the king and tell him what He should or should not do.  However Job, do you know how much control God has over the king and the princes?

Job  34:19   "How much less to Him That accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of His hands."

Elihu is saying, God doesn't care what the king, or prince; the rich or the poor think, for they are all the same and equal in His sight.  God doesn't have to play favorites, or look down on anyone. 

Job  34:20   "In a moment shall they die, and the people shall be troubled at midnight, and pass away: and the mighty shall be taken away without hand."

The king and rich man will die just like everybody else when their time comes. 

Job  34:21   "For His eyes are upon the ways of man, and He seeth all his goings."

Elihu is telling Job that God knows everything.  Job doesn't need this young man to tell him that.  However Elihu is telling Job, Don't think that you have let anything slip by the Almighty God.  In Job's day there wasn't another way, but for us living in this time of grace, there is another way to the Father, and that way is through Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God.  The things that we have done in secret that were against God, God has provided a way back to Himself through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.  That only way is by our acceptance of that way through repentance in Jesus name.  When we say, "In Jesus name" in our prayers, we are acknowledging not only that Jesus is the Son of the living God, but that the shed blood on the cross was sufficient to cover all of our sins.  Job did not have that then, for Jesus would not be born for about 1650 years after this conversation was held.  Jesus Christ is the way, and don't ever forget it.  

Job  34:22   "There is no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves."

There won't be one thing that can hide a sinner from God, nor cover the sins that are unforgiven.  There is absolutely no place to hide.  This is an absolute correct statement.

Job  34:23   "For He will not lay upon man more than right; that he should enter into judgment."

Elihu is now changing the thought a little bit here.  He is telling Job that God doesn't have a set time for you yet, when he shall judge you.  So don't try to rush your judgment that God has for you, it shall all come at the right time, God's time. 

Job  34:24   "He shall break in pieces mighty men without number, and set others in their stead."

God will do as he pleases without an inquiry, and no matter what the forces are against Him, they cannot stand before God.  Friend, when God and you are together, it doesn't matter what the number or forces are against you, you and God make a majority, and shall have the victory.  Elihu hit the nail right on the head here with truth.

Job  34:25   "Therefore He knoweth their works, and He overturneth them in the night, so that they are destroyed."

God can take your enemies down when ever He desires to.

Job  34:26   "He striketh them as wicked men in the open sight of others;"

This statement states that God is always fair, for their crying He will strike them down. 

Job  34:27   "Because they turned back from Him, and would not consider any of His ways:"

Job  34:28   "So that they cause the cry of the poor to come unto Him, and He heareth the cry of the afflicted."

In other words, they cannot harm one of God's own without God hearing their cry and coming to defend them.  God hears all the prayers of the righteous.  This was a very good set of facts that Elihu is delivering to Job to help him during his time of need.  In Elihu's mind he is trying to help Job, however everything that is said misses the mark. 

Job  34:29   "When He giveth quietness, who then can make trouble? and when He hideth His face, who then can behold Him? whether it be done against a nation, or against a man only:"

When God hides his face and withdraws Himself from you, or your nation, you can not reach him.  He will not listen to you.  Elihu states; God is all powerful and just because he keeps quiet and won't answer your prayer immediately, that is His right to do as He pleases.  Many times we pray and we want to see the results immediately, but what Elihu is telling Job is to have patience.  God will give him his answer when it pleases God at his time.  This is good advice to us today, we should have patience in our lives and allow God to work according to His will. 

Again Elihu is just full of facts, and individually they are all mostly true and accurate, however they have left out the most important subject matter for the time.  They have left Satan and his work and methods out of the formula and lesson.  They are attributing things of God to Satan and the things of Satan to God.  They are taking the righteousness of Job and turning it against him.  This isn't helping Job one bit.   

Job  34:30   "That the hypocrite reign not, lest the people be ensnared."

"Lest" should read "nor". 

Job  34:31   "Surely it is meet to be said unto God, `I have done iniquity, I will do no more:' "

Elihu is telling Job that he needs to be chastised, and God is chastising you for the iniquity that you have done. 

Job  34:32   "That which I see not teach Thou me: if I have done iniquity, I will do no more,"

You better confess the things that you have done in private, out of the sight of people. 

Job  34:33   "Should it be according to thy mind?  He will recompense it, whether thou refuse, or whether thou choose; and not I: therefore speak what thou knowest."

This is a true statement, for Elihu is saying that only Job can choose his own way.  God can't do that for you Job, and surely I can't do it for you either.  How many times have you sat in a church and heard the pastor telling the congregation to get right with the Lord, come forth and confess those things hidden in your life, when all the saints in the congregation have been a Christian for the past many years [and not one new soul has entered the church for a long time.]  That old boy wants to be your judge.

Job  34:34   "Let men of understanding tell me, and let a wise man hearken unto me."

What this is saying in the Hebrew text is that wise men are going to talk about you Job, and your confession will give them the ammunition that they will use.  So true, your confession is the root of their gossip.

Job  34:35   "Job hath spoken without knowledge, and his words were without wisdom."

Elihu is accusing Job of babbling on and not knowing what he is saying.

Job  34:36   "My desire is that Job may be tried unto the end because of his answers for wicked men."

Elihu is trying to set Job up before he drops the hammer right down on Job's head.

Job  34:37   "For he addeth rebellion unto his sin, he clappeth his hands among us, and multiplieth his words against God."

Elihu now is saying that Job is not only a sinner, but because he takes joy in what he has done, he is also a rebel.  Job is nothing but a sinner, and in rebellion is sits before us clapping his hands in rebellion against God.  We see just how far this young man  is taking of facts and twisting them to conform to the message that he wanted to say.  We now see the spirit in Elihu is attacking a man of God, and accused him of many things wrongly.  He used the right facts, and many truthful sayings, but he used them for the sake of bring out lies and false accusations. 

Was the spirit of Elihu from God?  Of course not, they were from Satan himself.  That is how Satan works, he takes the facts and twists them a bit.  In the end the entire thing is nothing but a lie.  A spirit of falsehood is not of God.  If God had sent a Spirit to help Job, the Spirit would have identified just where all Job's troubles came from, and Job and the rest would have turned on Satan, as well as those doing the work of Satan. 

God didn't put the boils on Job, nor did God take the life of Job's wife and family.  God didn't cheat Job out of his wealth, but the Kenites, the ones that are the sons of Satan took Job's property.  The Spirit of God would have opened Job's spiritual eyes to Satan and the methods that he uses to bring down men.  Preachers preach from this book of Job and paint the image of God with a pitchfork, and Satan is aloud to get off free.  They paint God as the one that is ready to push man's souls into the fire, and Satan and his work go unmentioned.  It is true that God corrects His own, and uses dreams to direct our actions, however that goes into another set of facts that are required.

We read certain facts in the beginning of this book of Job, for God held Job in high esteem.  All those things that Job claimed were true.  Job was a righteous man, and what we have been reading by Job's accusers have complete overlooked the one fact that Satan is the one that caused all of Job's problems, all of them.  Satan enjoys it when men are blinded to him, and attribute all of his wickedness to God.  Satan likes nothing better than for you to start accusing your neighbors, friends, God, and letting Satan off the hook.  Don't make that mistake. 

Elihu was filled with a spirit, and it was not the spirit of God.  He used the exact method that Satan uses, He gave nothing but the facts, and he twisted them and placed them in order to make them nothing but lies.  This is what is going on in the press today, it is going on in our daily conversation, and it is also going on behind many of the pulpits of our land.  God is allowing this to happen for the purpose of alerting us to what we will face in the close of this age of the flesh.  God loves you and He wants you to see the facts as they are, and be wise enough to know that when they go against His Word, they are not of God's Spirit.  We are entering a time when the entire world will be deceived and only those with the true set of facts sealed in their minds will not be deceived. 

Communism works the exact way that this chapter is laid out, with ninety five percent pure truth.  The five percent lies make the entire system a lie.  Most of the people get buried with the 95% truth to where they simply don't care of the 5% lies, and they follow like a bunch of sheep into the coral of the false shepherd.  In time the 5% lies become the issue of their traditions, and are accepted as the most important part of the subject, and are even accepted as fact.  This is how traditions are established, not only in politics, but in your church house.  Not only from the lips of politicians, but from your pastor that stands up week after week and spouts out the traditions that have become accepted because they were told so many time. 

We are living in a time to be very careful as to what we accept as truth, for the final hours are upon us.  We must know and understand that Satan wants nothing more than to have your mind side tracked, so that he can move in and take control without interference.