35
Elihu continued his challenge
1 Then Elihu also said this:
2 “Job, do you think that what you said is right/correct?
You say, ‘God knows that I am innocent,’
3 and you say to God, ‘What good have I received for not sinning?
What benefit have I received from that?’ [DOU, RHQ]
4 Well, I will answer you,
and I will answer your three friends, too.
5 “Job, look up at the sky;
look at the clouds that are high above you
and realize that God is far above everything.
6 If you have sinned, that does not [RHQ] harm God at all.
If many times you do things that are wrong, that certainly does not [RHQ] affect him [DOU].
7 And if you are righteous, does that help God?
No, he is not benefited by anything that you do [DOU].
8 It is other people who suffer because of the wicked things that you do,
but by doing good things for people, you help them.
9 “People cry out because of the many things that people do to others to ◄oppress them/treat them cruelly►;
they call for help because of the things that powerful people do [MTY] to them.
10 But ◄no one/none of them► calls out to God,
saying ‘Why does God, my creator, not help me?
He should enable me to sing joyful songs, instead of very sad songs, during the night.
11 He should be able to teach us more than all the wild animals do;
he should enable us to become wiser than all the birds are!’
12 People cry out for help,
but God does not answer them,
because those who cry out are proud and evil people.
13 It is useless for them to cry out,
because God, the Almighty One, does not pay any attention to what they say.
14 So, when you complain that you cannot see God,
and you tell him that you are waiting for him to decide whether or not you should be punished for what you have done,
God will not listen to you, either!
15 Furthermore, you say that because he does not pay attention when people commit sins,
he does not become angry and punish them.
16 You say things that are useless;
you say a lot of things without knowing what you are talking about.”