Elihu Part 6 Job 37

Job 37:16 "Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?"

We come to the last of Elihu's chapters. He here speaks of the way God balances the weather. We have a weather observation system in place now but back in those days when there was no global travel, this would have been great information but that was not the purpose for giving it here.

Elihu is magnifying the Lord. It is he who set these things in motion and it is he who keeps the delicate balance necessary to keep the earth fertile and yet not destroy it with too much of any one thing.

v5 "God thundereth marvelously with his voice; great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend."

He brings the snow. v6 The beasts go in their dens. v8 Whirlwinds come from the south, cold from the north. v9

v10 "By the breath of God frost is given: and the breadth of the waters is straitened."

I cannot see the relationship of two things but our text verse does say they are wondrous works.

Then of the turning of the clouds at his bidding upon the earth, the world.

v13 "He causeth it to come, whether for correction, or for his land, or for mercy."

Then Job is asked the question: v15 "Dost thou know when God disposed them, and caused the light of his cloud to shine?"

Which is followed by a series of questions to which Job had no answer. Remember there has been much speech about just about everything in previous chapters. Now, all the talk is quiet while these questions are asked. Truth is, these smart men just do not know the answers.

v19 "Teach us what we shall say unto him; for we cannot order our speech by reason of darkness."

Job had said he would reason with God if he could just come face to face with him. As Job was, I too would be overwhelmed. Perhaps when there is nothing to say, it is best to say nothing.

v23 "Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent in power, and in judgment, and in plenty of justice: he will not afflict."

Exodus 33:20 "And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live."

John 1:18 "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him."

Like with Adam in the garden, God often shows us our way by asking a question. A person who does not know they are lost will do little if anything to be found. Jesus also asked questions of learned men to show them they were in the presence of one who had more wisdom than they.

Psalm 33:11 "The counsel of the LORD standeth forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations."

Elihu's last words to Job.

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Job on plight of Wicked Job 21

Job 21:13-14 "They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave. Therefore they say unto God, Depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways."

The 'friends' of Job paint a picture of the wicked which is quite different from what Job says here. The friends have been telling Job that hard times on earth are a result of wickedness. Job tells them that that is not necessarily true as from his observations, the wicked are not disturbed on earth but live a life of luxury until they face their judgment day.

v7 "Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea are mighty in power?"

Then in verse 9 Job talks about the rod of God not being on the wicked. We all know that it is our own children that we correct, sometimes with a spanking. But we do not correct children that we do not know. So God does not exact punishment on those he does not know, not until their judgment.

v9 "Their houses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of God upon them."

That is not to say that a wicked man will not reap some rewards here on earth. It is not, though, the gentle correcting of a father to a son. I always told my sons take correction from someone who loves you, don't wait to get it from people who do not know or love you. It will be worse.

Some will remember the story in the New Testament of the rich man and Lazarus the beggar at the gate. The rich man seemed untouched by the cares of the world but his end result was terrible, while the beggar had only what people left him, yet his end was glorious.

Remember Abraham's answer to the rich man in Luke 16:25" But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented."

Job continues: v29-30 "Have ye not asked them that go by the way? and do ye not know their tokens, That the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? the shall be brought forth to the day of wrath."

The friends or comforters may have told Job some truth in their speeches but as Job pointed out in the next verse, their truth is mixed with falsehood making their whole argument null.

v34 "How then comfort ye me in vain, seeing in your answers there remaineth falsehood?"

Remember how Satan twisted the truth when he was talking to Eve. He put just enough truth in his words to make them sound legitimate. So did he try to do it with Jesus when he had been fasting. It is a trick that has been passed down through the ages. It pays to listen well.

Genesis 3:4 "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:"

A bold lie for it went directly against what God had said. This lie is more subtle: Genesis 3:3 "But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." It wasn't highlighted for Eve. Read what God really said: Genesis 2:17 "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." Notice the highlighted part is missing in the original statement made by God.

Why would Satan change a few seemingly meaningless words? I believe it was to set Eve up for the bigger lies that followed. Eve was told the rules by Adam because she was not there for the original statement, so not only did Satan cast doubt on what God said but her husband as well.

So back to Job, next time Eliphaz has a few things to say it seems to me that he is running out of steam.

Psalm 146:17 "The LORD is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works. v18 The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth."

Job talks about the wicked.

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2008 Ending

We are fast approaching the end of 2008. It has been a year like no other. Things have changed so fast in so many areas that it has been hard to keep up. Some of us have lost family members. Some have lost jobs. Some have lost homes. The very face of the world seems to have changed. We have gone from financial stability to the edge of ruin. The weather even seems to be attacking us. Needless to say, these are tough times. We have been shaken from our comfort zones. It is not a time to despair. That is easier to say than to do. Despair is an enemy that we must all fight against. Little ones are looking to us older folks for hope. We may have been battered by life and be looking for a place to 'park it' but these little ones have their life ahead of them. It is our responsibility to seek strength from the LORD so that we can guide them. That strength lies in his word where we find his promises. One I like is where he said 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'

The journey of this Bible Study started back in 2006. It has been hard at times to turn to the next chapter and search for a truth that might help someone. Consistent throughout the scripture is the fact that when God says something will happen, it will happen. We started in Genesis where Adam and Eve sinned against the LORD and he had to shed innocent blood to provide a covering for them. A promise of redemption was made, a nation was born. A great king named David became ruler of that kingdom and through him the promise for redemption continues. I have said that this nation is like a pregnant lady carrying the promise down through the ages. Efforts continue in our studies to destroy that nation but the LORD is faithful. We know from further reading that a remnant did survive and was there when Christ was born of the tribe of David and the promise of redemption was fulfilled. God's promises are reliable.

So another year comes. We must lift up our heads and find strength to point our children to the LORD. His word is stable in times of turmoil. He is faithful.