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Job 34

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Furthermore Elihu answered and said,

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Hear my words, O ye wise men; and give ear unto me, ye that have knowledge.

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For the ear trieth words, as the mouth tasteth meat.

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Let us choose to us judgment: let us know among ourselves what is good.

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For Job hath said, I am righteous: and God hath taken away my judgment.

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Should I lie against my right? my wound is incurable without transgression.

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What man is like Job, who drinketh up scorning like water?

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Which goeth in company with the workers of iniquity, and walketh with wicked men.

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For he hath said, It profiteth a man nothing that he should delight himself with God.

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Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.

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For the work of a man shall he render unto him, and cause every man to find according to his ways.

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Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment.

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Who hath given him a charge over the earth? or who hath disposed the whole world?

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If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath;

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All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust.

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If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words.

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Shall even he that hateth right govern? and wilt thou condemn him that is most just?

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Is it fit to say to a king, Thou art wicked? and to princes, Ye are ungodly?

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How much less to him that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of his hands.

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In a moment shall they die, and the people shall be troubled at midnight, and pass away: and the mighty shall be taken away without hand.

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For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings.

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There is no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.

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For he will not lay upon man more than right; that he should enter into judgment with God.

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He shall break in pieces mighty men without number, and set others in their stead.

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Therefore he knoweth their works, and he overturneth them in the night, so that they are destroyed.

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He striketh them as wicked men in the open sight of others;

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Because they turned back from him, and would not consider any of his ways:

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So that they cause the cry of the poor to come unto him, and he heareth the cry of the afflicted.

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When he giveth quietness, who then can make trouble? and when he hideth his face, who then can behold him? whether it be done against a nation, or against a man only:

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That the hypocrite reign not, lest the people be ensnared.

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Surely it is meet to be said unto God, I have borne chastisement, I will not offend any more:

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That which I see not teach thou me: if I have done iniquity, I will do no more.

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Should it be according to thy mind? he will recompense it, whether thou refuse, or whether thou choose; and not I: therefore speak what thou knowest.

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Let men of understanding tell me, and let a wise man hearken unto me.

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Job hath spoken without knowledge, and his words were without wisdom.

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My desire is that Job may be tried unto the end because of his answers for wicked men.

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For he addeth rebellion unto his sin, he clappeth his hands among us, and multiplieth his words against God.

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Job 34:16

“If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words.”

Study Summary

Elihu invites Job to listen 'if you have understanding,' renewing his appeal for rational receptivity and suggesting that what follows will require intellectual capacity to grasp. The verse's conditional form ('if you have understanding') carries an implicit challenge: true understanding would lead to agreement with Elihu's position, so disagreement would constitute a lack of understanding. This rhetorical move attempts to preempt objection by redefining disagreement as cognitive failure, a strategy that silences dissent while claiming to appeal to reason. The repeated calls to listen throughout Elihu's discourse betray an anxiety that Job is not hearing correctly, is not reasoning properly, or is willfully resistant—anxieties that may reflect Elihu's own sense that his arguments are not as convincing as he wishes them to be. The verse demonstrates how dispute discourse can become performative rather than genuinely dialogical, with each speaker assuming his own correctness and interpreting opposition as defect in the other's faculties.

Community Reflections

1
Yuki Tanaka (Test User)1d ago
Redemption and restoration — Job 34

Their context of persecution gives these words a weight we often miss.. Reading the Psalms alongside this gives a fuller picture of what the author was experiencing — both the anguish and the hope.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. My grandmother used to quote this verse every morning. When we read this alongside the surrounding chapters, the narrative arc becomes clear: God is always working redemption, even in the darkest moments.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. I think this is a call to trust beyond what we can see. There's something deeply comforting about knowing that the same God who spoke these words is the same yesterday, today, and forever.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The contrast between human weakness and divine strength is so vivid in this passage.…

Read the note →

Job 34:16

“If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words.”

Study Summary

Elihu invites Job to listen 'if you have understanding,' renewing his appeal for rational receptivity and suggesting that what follows will require intellectual capacity to grasp. The verse's conditional form ('if you have understanding') carries an implicit challenge: true understanding would lead to agreement with Elihu's position, so disagreement would constitute a lack of understanding. This rhetorical move attempts to preempt objection by redefining disagreement as cognitive failure, a strategy that silences dissent while claiming to appeal to reason. The repeated calls to listen throughout Elihu's discourse betray an anxiety that Job is not hearing correctly, is not reasoning properly, or is willfully resistant—anxieties that may reflect Elihu's own sense that his arguments are not as convincing as he wishes them to be. The verse demonstrates how dispute discourse can become performative rather than genuinely dialogical, with each speaker assuming his own correctness and interpreting opposition as defect in the other's faculties.

Community Reflections

1
Yuki Tanaka (Test User)1d ago
Redemption and restoration — Job 34

Their context of persecution gives these words a weight we often miss.. Reading the Psalms alongside this gives a fuller picture of what the author was experiencing — both the anguish and the hope.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. My grandmother used to quote this verse every morning. When we read this alongside the surrounding chapters, the narrative arc becomes clear: God is always working redemption, even in the darkest moments.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. I think this is a call to trust beyond what we can see. There's something deeply comforting about knowing that the same God who spoke these words is the same yesterday, today, and forever.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The contrast between human weakness and divine strength is so vivid in this passage.…

Read the note →

Job 34:16

Elihu invites Job to listen 'if you have understanding,' renewing his appeal for rational receptivity and suggesting that what follows will require intellectual capacity to grasp. The verse's conditional form ('if you have understanding') carries an implicit challenge: true understanding would lead to agreement with Elihu's position, so disagreement would constitute a lack of understanding. This rhetorical move attempts to preempt objection by redefining disagreement as cognitive failure, a strategy that silences dissent while claiming to appeal to reason. The repeated calls to listen throughout Elihu's discourse betray an anxiety that Job is not hearing correctly, is not reasoning properly, or is willfully resistant—anxieties that may reflect Elihu's own sense that his arguments are not as convincing as he wishes them to be. The verse demonstrates how dispute discourse can become performative rather than genuinely dialogical, with each speaker assuming his own correctness and interpreting opposition as defect in the other's faculties.