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Job 32-33
The Message
Job 32-33
The Message
Elihu Speaks
God’s Spirit Makes Wisdom Possible
32 1-5 Job’s three friends now fell silent. They were talked out, stymied because Job wouldn’t budge an inch—wouldn’t admit to an ounce of guilt. Then Elihu lost his temper. (Elihu was the son of Barakel the Buzite from the clan of Ram.) He blazed out in anger against Job for pitting his righteousness against God’s. He was also angry with the three friends because they had neither come up with an answer nor proved Job wrong. Elihu had waited with Job while they spoke because they were all older than he. But when he saw that the three other men had exhausted their arguments, he exploded with pent-up anger.
6-10 This is what Elihu, son of Barakel the Buzite, said:
“I’m a young man,
and you are all old and experienced.
That’s why I kept quiet
and held back from joining the discussion.
I kept thinking, ‘Experience will tell.
The longer you live, the wiser you become.’
But I see I was wrong—it’s God’s Spirit in a person,
the breath of the Almighty One, that makes wise human insight possible.
The experts have no corner on wisdom;
getting old doesn’t guarantee good sense.
So I’ve decided to speak up. Listen well!
I’m going to tell you exactly what I think.
11-14 “I hung on your words while you spoke,
listened carefully to your arguments.
While you searched for the right words,
I was all ears.
And now what have you proved? Nothing.
Nothing you say has even touched Job.
And don’t excuse yourselves by saying, ‘We’ve done our best.
Now it’s up to God to talk sense into him.’
Job has yet to contend with me.
And rest assured, I won’t be using your arguments!
15-22 “Do you three have nothing else to say?
Of course you don’t! You’re total frauds!
Why should I wait any longer,
now that you’re stopped dead in your tracks?
I’m ready to speak my piece. That’s right!
It’s my turn—and it’s about time!
I’ve got a lot to say,
and I’m bursting to say it.
The pressure has built up, like lava beneath the earth.
I’m a volcano ready to blow.
I have to speak—I have no choice.
I have to say what’s on my heart,
And I’m going to say it straight—
the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
I was never any good at bootlicking;
my Maker would make short work of me if I started in now!”
33 1-4 “So please, Job, hear me out,
honor me by listening to me.
What I’m about to say
has been carefully thought out.
I have no ulterior motives in this;
I’m speaking honestly from my heart.
The Spirit of God made me what I am,
the breath of God Almighty gave me life!
God Always Answers, One Way or Another
5-7 “And if you think you can prove me wrong, do it.
Lay out your arguments. Stand up for yourself!
Look, I’m human—no better than you;
we’re both made of the same kind of mud.
So let’s work this through together;
don’t let my aggressiveness overwhelm you.
8-11 “Here’s what you said.
I heard you say it with my own ears.
You said, ‘I’m pure—I’ve done nothing wrong.
Believe me, I’m clean—my conscience is clear.
But God keeps picking on me;
he treats me like I’m his enemy.
He’s thrown me in jail;
he keeps me under constant surveillance.’
12-14 “But let me tell you, Job, you’re wrong, dead wrong!
God is far greater than any human.
So how dare you haul him into court,
and then complain that he won’t answer your charges?
God always answers, one way or another,
even when people don’t recognize his presence.
15-18 “In a dream, for instance, a vision at night,
when men and women are deep in sleep,
fast asleep in their beds—
God opens their ears
and impresses them with warnings
To turn them back from something bad they’re planning,
from some reckless choice,
And keep them from an early grave,
from the river of no return.
19-22 “Or, God might get their attention through pain,
by throwing them on a bed of suffering,
So they can’t stand the sight of food,
have no appetite for their favorite treats.
They lose weight, wasting away to nothing,
reduced to a bag of bones.
They hang on the cliff-edge of death,
knowing the next breath may be their last.
23-25 “But even then an angel could come,
a champion—there are thousands of them!—
to take up your cause,
A messenger who would mercifully intervene,
canceling the death sentence with the words:
‘I’ve come up with the ransom!’
Before you know it, you’re healed,
the very picture of health!
26-28 “Or, you may fall on your knees and pray—to God’s delight!
You’ll see God’s smile and celebrate,
finding yourself set right with God.
You’ll sing God’s praises to everyone you meet,
testifying, ‘I messed up my life—
and let me tell you, it wasn’t worth it.
But God stepped in and saved me from certain death.
I’m alive again! Once more I see the light!’
29-30 “This is the way God works.
Over and over again
He pulls our souls back from certain destruction
so we’ll see the light—and live in the light!
31-33 “Keep listening, Job.
Don’t interrupt—I’m not finished yet.
But if you think of anything I should know, tell me.
There’s nothing I’d like better than to see your name cleared.
Meanwhile, keep listening. Don’t distract me with interruptions.
I’m going to teach you the basics of wisdom.”
Job 32-33
New International Version
Job 32-33
New International Version
Elihu
32 So these three men stopped answering Job,(A) because he was righteous in his own eyes.(B) 2 But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite,(C) of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself(D) rather than God.(E) 3 He was also angry with the three friends,(F) because they had found no way to refute Job,(G) and yet had condemned him.[a](H) 4 Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he.(I) 5 But when he saw that the three men had nothing more to say, his anger was aroused.
6 So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said:
“I am young in years,
and you are old;(J)
that is why I was fearful,
not daring to tell you what I know.
7 I thought, ‘Age should speak;
advanced years should teach wisdom.’(K)
8 But it is the spirit[b](L) in a person,
the breath of the Almighty,(M) that gives them understanding.(N)
9 It is not only the old[c] who are wise,(O)
not only the aged(P) who understand what is right.(Q)
10 “Therefore I say: Listen to me;(R)
I too will tell you what I know.(S)
11 I waited while you spoke,
I listened to your reasoning;
while you were searching for words,
12 I gave you my full attention.
But not one of you has proved Job wrong;
none of you has answered his arguments.(T)
13 Do not say, ‘We have found wisdom;(U)
let God, not a man, refute(V) him.’
14 But Job has not marshaled his words against me,(W)
and I will not answer him with your arguments.
15 “They are dismayed and have no more to say;
words have failed them.(X)
16 Must I wait, now that they are silent,
now that they stand there with no reply?
17 I too will have my say;
I too will tell what I know.(Y)
18 For I am full of words,
and the spirit(Z) within me compels me;(AA)
19 inside I am like bottled-up wine,
like new wineskins ready to burst.(AB)
20 I must speak and find relief;
I must open my lips and reply.(AC)
21 I will show no partiality,(AD)
nor will I flatter anyone;(AE)
22 for if I were skilled in flattery,
my Maker(AF) would soon take me away.(AG)
33 “But now, Job, listen(AH) to my words;
pay attention to everything I say.(AI)
2 I am about to open my mouth;
my words are on the tip of my tongue.
3 My words come from an upright heart;(AJ)
my lips sincerely speak what I know.(AK)
4 The Spirit(AL) of God has made me;(AM)
the breath of the Almighty(AN) gives me life.(AO)
5 Answer me(AP) then, if you can;
stand up(AQ) and argue your case before me.(AR)
6 I am the same as you in God’s sight;(AS)
I too am a piece of clay.(AT)
7 No fear of me should alarm you,
nor should my hand be heavy on you.(AU)
8 “But you have said in my hearing—
I heard the very words—
9 ‘I am pure,(AV) I have done no wrong;(AW)
I am clean and free from sin.(AX)
10 Yet God has found fault with me;
he considers me his enemy.(AY)
11 He fastens my feet in shackles;(AZ)
he keeps close watch on all my paths.’(BA)
12 “But I tell you, in this you are not right,
for God is greater than any mortal.(BB)
13 Why do you complain to him(BC)
that he responds to no one’s words[d]?(BD)
14 For God does speak(BE)—now one way, now another(BF)—
though no one perceives it.(BG)
15 In a dream,(BH) in a vision(BI) of the night,(BJ)
when deep sleep(BK) falls on people
as they slumber in their beds,
16 he may speak(BL) in their ears
and terrify them(BM) with warnings,(BN)
17 to turn them from wrongdoing
and keep them from pride,(BO)
18 to preserve them from the pit,(BP)
their lives from perishing by the sword.[e](BQ)
19 “Or someone may be chastened(BR) on a bed of pain(BS)
with constant distress in their bones,(BT)
20 so that their body finds food(BU) repulsive
and their soul loathes the choicest meal.(BV)
21 Their flesh wastes away to nothing,
and their bones,(BW) once hidden, now stick out.(BX)
22 They draw near to the pit,(BY)
and their life to the messengers of death.[f](BZ)
23 Yet if there is an angel at their side,
a messenger,(CA) one out of a thousand,
sent to tell them how to be upright,(CB)
24 and he is gracious to that person and says to God,
‘Spare them from going down to the pit;(CC)
I have found a ransom for them(CD)—
25 let their flesh be renewed(CE) like a child’s;
let them be restored as in the days of their youth’(CF)—
26 then that person can pray to God and find favor with him,(CG)
they will see God’s face and shout for joy;(CH)
he will restore them to full well-being.(CI)
27 And they will go to others and say,
‘I have sinned,(CJ) I have perverted what is right,(CK)
but I did not get what I deserved.(CL)
28 God has delivered(CM) me from going down to the pit,(CN)
and I shall live to enjoy the light of life.’(CO)
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.