Those who 'cherish anger against him' and 'do not cry for help when he catches them' will 'die in youth, and their life ends among the temple prostitutes,' suggesting that the wicked die without having been rescued or having received the warning affliction could have provided. This verse envisions a tragic death of the godless: dying young, dying in degradation (among those involved in temple prostitution), dying without having sought or received rescue. The specific image of dying among temple prostitutes introduces a dimension of shame and degradation to the death of the wicked. Elihu uses this image to suggest that refusing to respond properly to affliction leads to destruction of the worst kind. Yet the verse also raises a problem: is Elihu describing an observable pattern in the world, or an ideal principle that does not consistently manifest in reality? Job's case again presents a problem: Job has not responded to affliction with refusal to cry to God; Job has cried out earnestly. Yet Job has not been rescued, complicating the pattern Elihu describes.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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