“Will he esteem thy riches? no, not gold, nor all the forces of strength.”
Elihu asserts that even 'all your wealth would not avail you' to escape distress, suggesting that material resources cannot deliver from affliction sent by God. This verse emphasizes divine power over material circumstances, suggesting that no amount of wealth can purchase exemption from divine judgment or affliction. The verse seems to be cautioning Job against relying on material resources, yet the connection to Job's actual situation is unclear: Job has lost his wealth, so this warning about wealth not availing seems oddly timed. The verse suggests that Elihu is offering generic wisdom about the limitations of material resources rather than addressing Job's particular case.
Church Fathers on Job 36:19
Lay down thy greatness without tribulation, and all the mighty in strength. For the motions of the heart are mighty, when they feel only those things which are virtuous. But we lay down our greatness and our mighty motions, when we are compelled, by the assaults of sin, to consider what we are. We lay aside our mighty motions, when we are no longer raised up by our virtue, but when, by consenting to sin, we are fearful of being overwhelmed by that infirmity, with which we…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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