Job 36:1-33

Elihu continues his speech and points out the glory of God and how His ways are much higher and greater than the ways of man.  In many ways he seems to contradict himself in this chapter because he begins by making blanket statements about how God is and what God does in a variety of situations.  Then he closes the chapter by stating that God’s greatness is beyond man’s ability to comprehend and His ways are beyond man’s understanding.  It is refreshing to hear Elihu state that God is above his ability to understand but in is disturbing to see that this knowledge on his part does not translate into humility when applying these truths to Job’s situation.  We must learn to apply our theology in such a way that it does not contradict what is true of God.

GOD IS HOLY IN HIS JUDGMENTS OF MAN: Certainly God is always holy in all that He does.  His judgments are always perfect, true and right.  However, Elihu makes assumptions about God’s judgments that are not true.  He claims that “He does not keep the wicked alive.” He also states that those who listen to the instruction of the Lord will “complete their days in prosperity.”  These statements may be true much of the time, but they are certainly not true all the time.  There are many wicked people who live very long lives and there are many obedient people who do not experience prosperity.  Certainly in eternity the wicked will not live in God’s presence while the obedient will prosper in the presence of God.  However, those statements are not always true on this earth.  God is very patient in His judgments but that does not make Him unholy.  It is simply a demonstration of His love and mercy.

GOD IS HIGH ABOVE THE UNDERSTANDINGS OF MAN: There is much about God that we can understand, but none of us are able to gain a full comprehension of His greatness.  He is far above us and His ways are often beyond our knowledge.  It is not our job to explain God completely, but it is our job to exalt Him constantly.  His greatness is far above what we might be able to imagine so our position is to be that of worship and not striving to try to make Him fit into our theological boxes.  Elihu would do well to apply his statements about God’s greatness to the situation of Job.  None of the people in this book is able to understand the scope of what is going on in Job’s life.  We have the benefit of the scene in heaven at the beginning of the book but we still are not capable of understanding God’s ways in Job’s life.  The sooner we recognize and apply the greatness of God to our lives, the more humble we will be in our understanding of His dealings with man.