Elihu asks 'Who has prescribed to him his way?' and 'Who has said you have done wrong?' suggesting that no one stands in a position to judge or direct God. This verse establishes the principle that God is subject to no external authority and that no creature can legitimately evaluate or criticize divine action. The rhetorical questions assume that the answers are obviously no one—no one prescribes to God, no one says God has done wrong because no one has the standing to make such claims. Elihu uses this principle to suggest that Job's implicit judgment of God (that God has treated him unjustly) is categorically improper. Yet the verse also raises questions: does the absence of external authority or judgment mean that God cannot be evaluated by any standard, including the standard of justice itself? Can God be beyond evaluation and yet still be just? The verse reveals tensions in Elihu's theodicy: he wants to assert both that God is just and that God is beyond judgment, yet these positions may be in tension with each other.

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