Elihu continues his diatribe, as he condemns Job further for presuming to be right before God. But Elihu is himself way off track in this chapter. Consider verses 6-8:

If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against him?
And if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?
If you are righteous, what do you give to him?
Or what does he receive from your hand?

According to Elihu, man is so insignificant to God that it is of no consequence to Him either way whether we do good or evil. It is only to our own detriment if we do the latter. This goes against everything that God’s word teaches, and indeed, sin hurts God so very much that He gave His only son to save man from his own iniquity.

Elihu further shows his ignorance of the Lord in verses 12-13 by saying that God does not answer the prayers of men because of their pride, and suggests that He does not even regard the prayers of some as more than empty pleas. He forgets that sometimes “no” is an answer, as well as “I have something else planned.” James 4:3 gives one reason for not receiving the answer one wants to a prayer at times – selfish motives.

As Elihu accuses Job in verse 16, his own are the “words without knowledge.”

Read or listen to audio of ESV version of this selection from this link.

/Bob’s boy

___________________

some images © V. Gilbert & Arlisle F. Beers

Please note: I did not design the reading plan that I am following in my blog.  All of my comments in this blog, however, are solely my responsibility.  When reading ANY commentary, you should ALWAYS refer first to the scripture, which is God’s unchanging and unfailing word. Reading schedules, as well as a link to the site where you can get the reading plan that I’m currently following for yourself can be found on the “Bible Reading Schedules” page of my website at http://graceofourlord.com.  For questions and help, please see the “FAQ” and “Summaries” pages there.