Daily reading assignment: Job 35-36

Job’s “fourth friend”, the younger “Elihu”, continues his assertions against poor Job in chapter 35 and continues it to chapter 37, having begun his monologue in chapter 32.

Evidencing the pride of youth that knows little about suffering, but boasts of knowledge, Elihu continues his corrections of what he perceives to be Job’s faults that precipitated his troubles and trials [I confess, I too have grown weary of Elihu’s tone].

We find Elihu portending to quote Job (35:1-3), but his words are hardly those of Job when he suggests he has said, “My righteousness is more than God’s” (35:2).   Job had declared he was just, innocent and righteous (10:7; 12:4; 27:6); however, nowhere did he claim to be more righteous than God!   Such is the character of prideful youth who have, in my experience over the years, “selective hearing” and whose thoughts are often racing to make their own defense before considering the words of their elder.

Elihu continues in chapter 36, begging his small audience that consists of Job and his “three elderly friends”, to be patient a little longer with his speech, perhaps sensing his friends felt they had heard enough (36:2).  Lacking any evidence of humility and implying he was “perfect in knowledge” (36:3-4), Elihu continued to challenge Job (36:5-15) asserting his sorrows and sufferings were a testament to the manner God deals with the wicked (36:15-17).

I close with quote attributed to the late president Theodore Roosevelt and is fitting counsel for prideful youth who feel they have insight and knowledge superior to their elders:

“No one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care!”

Copyright 2017 – Travis D. Smith