Elihu Describes God’s Power 1 UDB Elihu finished speaking by saying this: BSB BSB: And Elihu continued:
2 UDB "Job, be patient with me a little longer because I have something else to teach you. I have something else to say in order to prove that God does no wrong. BSB BSB: “Bear with me a little longer, and I will show you that there is more to be said on God’s behalf.
3 UDB I will tell you what I have learned from many sources, in order to show that God, my creator, is just. BSB BSB: I get my knowledge from afar, and I will ascribe justice to my Maker.
4 UDB I will not say anything to you that is false; I, who am standing in front of you, am someone who understands things very well. BSB BSB: For truly my words are free of falsehood; one perfect in knowledge is with you.
5 UDB Really, God is very powerful, and he does not despise anyone, and he understands everything. BSB BSB: Indeed, God is mighty, but He despises no one; He is mighty in strength of understanding.
6 UDB He does not allow wicked people to remain alive—contrary to what you have claimed, and he always acts justly toward those who are suffering. BSB BSB: He does not keep the wicked alive, but He grants justice to the afflicted.
7 UDB He always watches over those who are righteous; he makes them prosper, as if they were kings, and he causes others to honor them forever. BSB BSB: He does not take His eyes off the righteous, but He enthrones them with kings and exalts them forever.
8 UDB However, if people who commit crimes are caught, or if they suffer in prison for having done wrong, BSB BSB: And if men are bound with chains, caught in cords of affliction,
9 UDB then God shows them what they have done; he shows them the sins that they have committed, and he shows them that they have been arrogant. BSB BSB: then He tells them their deeds and how arrogantly they have transgressed.
10 UDB He causes them to listen to what he is warning them, and he commands them to turn away from doing what is evil. BSB BSB: He opens their ears to correction and commands that they turn from iniquity.
11 UDB If they listen to him and serve him, they will prosper and be happy for all the years that they continue to live. BSB BSB: If they obey and serve Him, then they end their days in prosperity and their years in happiness.
12 UDB But if they do not listen to him, they will die violently because they understand nothing about God and what he wants them to do. BSB BSB: But if they do not obey, then they perish by the sword and die without knowledge.
13 UDB People who fail to honor God continue being angry, and they do not cry out for help even when God is punishing them. BSB BSB: The godless in heart harbor resentment; even when He binds them, they do not cry for help.
14 UDB They die while they are still young, disgraced because of their immoral behavior. BSB BSB: They die in their youth, among the male shrine prostitutes.
15 UDB God actually rescues people by causing them to suffer; by afflicting them, he causes them to listen to what he is telling them. BSB BSB: God rescues the afflicted by their affliction and opens their ears in oppression.
16 UDB Job, I think that God wants to bring you out of your troubles and allow you to live without distress; he wants your table to be full of very nice food. BSB BSB: Indeed, He drew you from the jaws of distress to a spacious and broad place, to a table full of richness.
17 UDB However, now he is punishing you as he would punish the wicked; God has judged you very rightly. BSB BSB: But now you are laden with the judgment due the wicked; judgment and justice have seized you.
18 UDB Do not let your anger give you an excuse to mock other people, and do not let a large amount of money paid as a bribe compel you to ruin your life. BSB BSB: Be careful that no one lures you with riches; do not let a large bribe lead you astray.
19 UDB If that happens, it certainly will not help you to cry out when you are distressed; none of your strength will help you in that case. BSB BSB: Can your wealth or all your mighty effort keep you from distress?
20 UDB Do not wish that it would be nighttime in order that you might mistreat others without anyone knowing it; night is the time when even entire peoples are destroyed! BSB BSB: Do not long for the night, when people vanish from their homes.
21 UDB Be careful not to begin doing evil deeds, because God has caused you to suffer to prevent you from doing evil. BSB BSB: Be careful not to turn to iniquity, for this you have preferred to affliction.
22 UDB Truly, people praise God because he is so powerful; there is certainly no teacher who teaches what he teaches. BSB BSB: Behold, God is exalted in His power. Who is a teacher like Him?
23 UDB No one has told him what he should do, and no one has said to him, 'You have done what is wrong!' BSB BSB: Who has appointed His way for Him, or told Him, ‘You have done wrong’?
24 UDB People have always sung songs to praise him, so you also should never forget to praise him for what he has done. BSB BSB: Remember to magnify His work, which men have praised in song.
25 UDB All people have seen what he has done, but we understand those things only a little. BSB BSB: All mankind has seen it; men behold it from afar.
26 UDB How great God is! We are not able to know how great he is, and we do not understand how old he is. BSB BSB: Indeed, God is great—beyond our knowledge; the number of His years is unsearchable.
27 UDB He draws water up from the earth and puts it in clouds and causes it to become rain; BSB BSB: For He draws up drops of water which distill the rain from the mist,
28 UDB the rain pours down from the sky and causes abundant showers to fall on everyone. BSB BSB: which the clouds pour out and shower abundantly on mankind.
29 UDB No one can understand how the clouds move across the sky or how it thunders in the sky where God lives. BSB BSB: Furthermore, who can understand how the clouds spread out, how the thunder roars from His pavilion?
30 UDB He causes lightning to flash all around him, but he causes the oceans to remain dark. BSB BSB: See how He scatters His lightning around Him and covers the depths of the sea.
31 UDB By providing plenty of rain for everyone, he gives them abundant food. BSB BSB: For by these He judges the nations and provides food in abundance.
32 UDB It is as though he were holding the lightning in his hands, and then he commands it to strike where he wants it to. BSB BSB: He fills His hands with lightning and commands it to strike its mark.
33 UDB When we hear his thunder, we know that there will be a storm, and the cattle know it, too. BSB BSB: The thunder declares His presence; even the cattle regard the rising storm.
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