God 'knows their works' and therefore 'overturns them in the night,' suggesting that divine knowledge of human deeds leads to divine judgment that operates swiftly and suddenly. This verse combines the themes of omniscience and sudden judgment, implying that God's knowledge of wrongdoing is immediately followed by punishment. The image of overturning in the night echoes verse 20 and reinforces the sense of inevitable and inescapable judgment that Elihu seeks to establish. Yet the verse also raises a practical question: if God punishes wrongdoing suddenly and in the night, why are Job's sufferings prolonged and extended? Why does not swift judgment operate in Job's case, either validating that he is righteous through swift removal of punishment or establishing that he is guilty through some clear connection between deed and suffering? The verse's insistence on swift judgment makes Job's prolonged suffering even more anomalous, suggesting that either Elihu's framework does not apply to Job's situation or that something more complex than Elihu understands is occurring.

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