Job 33:14–33

He had completely failed in the reverence due to God. He had entirely forgotten the infinite distance between God and man, and the majesty of God. So instead of finding fault with himself for falling so far short, he found fault with God. He did not understand His ways fully. Now he ought to have trusted them, though he did not understand them.

God does not speak only once to a man. He speaks "twice, in fact three times," because we are poor listeners. God cares deeply that souls should be brought back from the Pit. That means rescue from the negative horror of being without God, and instead the positive blessing of being enlightened with the light of life.

It seems to be part of God's ways to warn twice. Then, if no one listens, He strikes the third time without any warning. Later on we do get the word, "God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it" (Job 33:14). Elihu's words proved true here.

He has learned the lesson well, that "power belongs to God." God had spoken it once, but Jesus had heard it twice. He heard it with a full witness of its truth; so wide did He open His ear to divine instruction morning by morning (Isa. 50:4). Man is a duller scholar. (See Job 33:14)

His object is to correct wrong thoughts and actions. It is to withdraw man from "mischief," or his own purpose, and to hide pride from man (geber, the hero or mighty man). This goes deeper than action, for pride lurks in the heart, and God would hide it from man — hinder its control over him. "Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins" (Ps. 19:13).

The same truth holds with even fuller force now. We do not need a revelation by dreams and visions; we have it in the written word of God. He who spoke in many ways — dreams among the rest — has now given us the full revelation of Himself in His Son. That revelation, the entire word of God, we have in the Scriptures.

"He keeps back his soul from the pit" — such is the merciful object of God's intervention — "and his life from perishing by the sword." Here is more than a dream of the night or a passing vision. Here are corrective ways, as well as glimpses of God's light — or of His judgment, which the man was despising.

You have heard the voice of God. He has spoken and you have not paid attention. Perhaps twice this very day you have heard the voice of God through His Word... You have heard the Word of God but you have not perceived it. You have let it go by you unheeded. Some of us who know the Lord can look back and remember how many times He spoke to us, and we did not listen... But has He given you up, given up His pursuit of your soul? No.

Not only was Job judging God, but he was also not subject to Him. There was a lack of submission in his heart. If God was dealing with him, why did he not ask Him, instead of murmuring?

Since God is invisible, He speaks to man in ways that do not show Him personally, but ways that awaken man's serious attention... Though man may not perceive that it is God speaking to him, yet often God does so "in a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men." At such a time God has a captive audience, whether man wants to listen or not. God spoke to Pilate's wife this way (Matthew 27:19), though sadly Pilate did not act on her advice. He had already trapped himself by his weak indecision.

When all is quiet at last, God can speak... So insomnia, or sleeplessness, can sometimes be a hidden blessing. It is always a good habit, when we cannot sleep, to praise and pray.

The word for deep sleep, tardemah, is never used of natural sleep. It is used of sleep that is either supernatural, sent for a special purpose (Gen. 2:21; Gen. 15:12; Job 4:13; Job 33:15), or spiritual, part of God's dealings in governing man (Prov. 19:15; Isa. 29:10).

When the light of nature is withdrawn, when all is silent, He speaks in "a still small voice" and makes known His mind. So instruction is sealed on the heart of man. His purpose is to correct wrong thoughts and actions, to withdraw man from "mischief," or his purpose, and to hide pride from man (geber, the hero or mighty man). This goes deeper than action, for pride lurks in the heart, and God would hide it from man — hinder its control over him.

If a dream is a warning against what I may be inclined to do, or if it humbles me, then I should take it to heart.

Verses 15-22. He shows God using the plough — of a dream, of a striking providence, of bodily pain or sickness — to break up such fallow ground. And such is the work to this day... Verses 23-24. The sower comes after the ploughman. The seed is the Gospel. God provides the ransom and brings deliverance to the sinner.

He begins with the first work of God in the man who does not know Him. It is grace working to awaken an unconverted soul... It is exactly what marks divine mercy in appealing to the unconverted man. He is carried away by his own will. But God knows how to bend or break it.

The same truth is in even fuller force now, for we do not need a revelation by dreams and visions, but have it in the written word of God. He who spoke in many ways (dreams among the rest) has now given us the full revelation of Himself in His Son.

I think I have been aware of God whispering little things to me about myself. He advised me to be careful about what I was doing. He made me judge myself in a way I had not done before... The great point is that it is altogether inferior to the word. This is where we have our great advantage.

Here Elihu rightly begins at the beginning. He starts with the first work of God in the man who does not know Him. It is grace working to wake up a soul that is not yet converted... This is exactly what marks out God's mercy when He appeals to the man who is not converted. His own will carries him away. But God knows how to bend it or break it.

"Then he opens the ears of men" (verse 16). That is what this chapter shows. It does not say "believing" men; it is any man, so that he may believe. Yet we do not always behave as believers. When that happens, we may get a little word that simply shows us where we are — that we are "walking as men," as the apostle said.

Elihu makes it plain that God does speak to man in this way. When the light of nature is gone, when all is silent, He speaks in "a still small voice" and makes His mind known. In this way He seals the instruction on the heart of man. His aim is to correct wrong thoughts and actions, to draw man back from "mischief," or from his own purpose, and to hide pride from man. The word for man here is geber, the hero or mighty man. This goes deeper than what a man does, for pride hides in the heart, and God would hide that pride from him — He keeps it from ruling him.

When there was no Bible, no written revelation of God, God spoke to individuals by dreams and visions. He does not do so any longer, for we have His finished Word, which makes His will known to us.

He may speak in a dream or a vision. Scripture records that He has often done so, and He clearly still does. It happens most with simple believers who know little of the Bible, and who may not even have much of it in their own language. Where believers have the Bible to teach them — a better kind of guidance — dreams in which God speaks are rare by comparison. And if God does speak to a man in a dream, what is it for? To change his course, and to humble his pride into the dust.

When God sends people dreams, He "opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction" (v.16). This is not to flatter man's pride, but the very opposite: "to turn man from his deed, and conceal pride from man" (v.17). In other words, if a dream is a warning against what I may be inclined to do, or if it humbles me, then I should take it to heart.

Then, too, "sickness" comes and strikes many. It stops all activity. The whirl of busy life gives way to the quiet of a bed of pain. This has done good to thousands. Then, "He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction" (Job 33:16). In the quiet they learn how worthless their own efforts are, and where they can find true peace.

In this chapter Elihu shows Job one common way God deals with people, though God does not always work this way. He is not limited in how He reaches men, and can act on the soul in many ways. Elihu rightly begins at the beginning, with the first work of God in the man who does not know Him. It is grace working to awaken a soul that does not know God… This is just what marks out divine mercy when it appeals to such a man. His own will carries him away. But God knows how to bend or break it.

We all forget too easily the weighty fact that "God tries the righteous." "He does not withdraw His eyes from them." We are in His hands and always under His eye. We are the objects of His deep, tender, unchanging love; but we are also the subjects of His wise moral government. His dealings with us are varied. They are sometimes preventive, sometimes corrective, always instructive. We may be bent on some course of our own, the end of which would be moral ruin. He steps in and withdraws us from our purpose. He dashes our castles in the air to pieces. He scatters our golden dreams. He breaks in on many a favourite plan our hearts clung to — a plan that would have ended in certain destruction.

His object is to correct wrong thoughts and actions. He withdraws man from "mischief," or his purpose, and hides pride from man (geber, the hero or mighty man). This goes deeper than action, for pride lurks in the heart, and God would hide it from man — hinder its control over him. "Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins" (Ps. 19:13). So man is kept back from destruction. He bows to the correction of God's truth, and so is spared the smiting of the rod, or of the sword.

Chastenings are not always for actual faults. Job 33:18-19 says, "he keeps back his soul from the pit, his life from perishing by the sword. Man is also rebuked with pain on his bed and with continual strife in his bones." Verse 17 tells us the purpose: to hide pride from man. Then in chapter 36 the chastening is for positive faults (v. 9).

When there was no Bible, the revelation of God, God spoke to man individually by dreams and visions. He does not do so any longer, for we have His completed Word in which His will is made known to us.

When God sends dreams to people, He "opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction" (v.16). This is not to flatter man's pride. It does the very opposite: it is "to turn man from his deed, and conceal pride from man" (v.17). In other words, if a dream is a warning against what I may be inclined to do, or if it humbles me, then I should take it to heart.

Every effort to justify myself before God is striving against God… God "opens the ears of men, that He may withdraw man from his purpose, and hide pride from man." Then the man must pass through this sore pain and affliction. It may be through some fall that all self-trust is blighted.

In this very chapter Elihu points out to Job a fairly common way of God's dealings, though by no means a fixed rule. God is not at all limited in His methods of reaching men, but can act on the soul in many ways. He begins with the first work of God in a man who does not know Him. It is grace working to awaken a soul that has not yet turned to God... "He keeps back his soul from the pit" — such is the merciful purpose of God's intervention — "and his life from perishing by the sword."

In these remarkable words Elihu was acting the part of the interpreter with Job. He showed the good purpose of God in His dealings with men, however hostile those dealings appear. He aims at delivering them from the "pit" of self-esteem and self-satisfaction in this life, and the "pit" of judgment and condemnation in the life to come.

Chastenings are not always for actual faults. In Job it is said (chapter 33:18-19), "He keeps back his soul from the pit... He is chastened also with pain upon his bed, and with strong pain in many of his bones"; and we find from verse 17 that this is for the purpose of hiding pride from man. Then in chapter 36 the chastening is for actual faults.

His aim is to correct wrong thoughts and actions, to withdraw man from "mischief," or his own purpose, and to hide pride from man — the word means the hero, the mighty man. This goes deeper than action, for pride hides in the heart, and God would hide it from man — stop it controlling him. "Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins" (Psalm 19:13). So man is kept back from destruction. He bows to the correction of God's truth, and is spared the striking of the rod, or of the sword.

"Then he opens the ears of men" (v. 16). That is what is shown in this chapter. It is not "believing" men; it is any man, so that he might believe... "That he may withdraw man from his purpose, and hide pride from man." You see, it is one who had never yet been broken. "He keeps back his soul from the pit, and his life from perishing by the sword." He was on the straight road to it.

There is another way God has of pursuing a soul: He preserves from sudden danger. I well remember when I was a boy of sixteen, a brother of mine shot a partridge. The bird fell into the water. "Fetch it," he said, and I plunged into the sea. The bird was not worth sixpence, but I risked my life, risked my soul, to get it. Only the mercy of God brought me to shore... But He spared me, that He might save me.

"Then he is gracious to him, and says, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom." This is a vivid way of presenting what God was about to do in due time. It is not given here only as a picture and a promise. The language is plain — perhaps as clear as any words in the Old Testament, looking forward to that infinite work which we now know was finished at the cross of Christ.

Job 33:14. He states man's natural dullness and lack of feeling toward God. Job 33:15-22. He shows God using the plough — a dream, a striking providence, physical pain or sickness — to break up such hard, unworked ground. And this is still His work today. Job 33:23-24. The sower comes after the ploughman. The seed is the gospel. God provides a ransom and brings deliverance to the sinner.

Another way God speaks is by inflicting "strong pain." It often comes in bed. There a man cannot occupy himself with the many things that keep him from listening to God (v. 19). Sickness and suffering have often driven people to the Lord.

"He is chastened also with pain on his bed." It is not only these dealings with the soul, but also with the body. There he touches the very case of Job.

As we have admitted, there is a great measure of truth in what the friends have said. But it has been one-sided truth, distorted and spoiled by a wrong principle: that all suffering is for wickedness. That principle makes every affliction proof that the sufferer is simply a sinner found out.

Chastenings are not always for actual faults. In Job it is said (chap. 33:18-19), "He keeps back his soul from the pit, and his life from perishing by the sword. He is chastened also with pain on his bed, and all his bones with strong pain." Verse 17 shows that this is to hide pride from man. Then in chapter 36 the chastening is for positive faults (v. 9).

He chastises them by sickness; and it is important to keep truth in the inner man. Men hide their faults; they want to walk as if all were going well; but God judges His people. He tries the heart and the mind. They are held in bonds of affliction. God shows them their faults, or their unbroken self-will. Man "is chastened also with pain on his bed, and all his bones with strong pain," Job 33:19.

Elihu shows that God's purpose is Job's full deliverance. This is His purpose too when He permits all the buffeting and conflict the believer passes through. Yes, he comes to the last sinking point. Then: "If there is a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to show to man his uprightness, then He is gracious to him. He says, Deliver him from going down to the pit, I have found a ransom."

But God has another way of speaking to men. If they do not listen to His word, He may send them His rod. In enlarging on this, Elihu practically describes the case of Job. Severe chastening pains come on him, and his bones seem to wither in deadly struggle... He is brought so low that he loathes even the food that would keep him alive. "The food I refused to touch has become my food of sorrow." "My soul is weary of my life."

God has another way of speaking: He sends "strong pain." It often comes in a man's bed, where he cannot keep himself busy with the many things that keep him from listening to God (v.19). Sickness and suffering have often driven people to the Lord. A man finds himself unable even to eat (v.20). Then he loses weight and becomes little more than "skin and bones." An early death stares him in the face.

He is also chastised with pains on his bed, and the strife of his bones is lasting. And his life loathes bread, and his soul the food it desires. His flesh wastes out of sight, and his bones that were not seen stand out.

It is exactly what marks out divine mercy in appealing to the unconverted man. He is carried away by his own will. But God knows how to bend or break it. "He keeps back his soul from the pit" (such is the merciful object of God's intervention), "and his life from perishing by the sword."

God may also speak through pain and sickness. Verses 19-22 describe it in vivid detail. He may keep speaking until the sufferer comes face to face with death itself... How often has a blow like this led a careless sinner to turn to God and awakened him for his eternal salvation. How often too has a believer had to look back to a time of severe sickness as an occasion of much spiritual blessing.

God uses these outward means of dealing with a man. He works by His word, and as a rule also by a messenger He sends — an interpreter, as we are told, one among a thousand. "Then He is gracious to him, and says, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom." That is a strikingly vivid way of presenting what God was about to do in due time... Here the language is plain — perhaps as clear as any words in the Old Testament. It looks forward to that infinite work which we now know to be finished in the cross of Christ.

Another way God speaks is by inflicting "strong pain." It often comes in one's bed, where a man cannot occupy himself with the many devices that keep him from listening to God (v.19). Sickness and suffering have often driven people to the Lord. One finds himself unable even to eat (v.20). Then he loses weight and becomes little more than "skin and bones." An early death stares him in the face (vv.21-22).

Sore chastening pains come upon him, and his bones seem to wither in the struggle for life. "The night racks my bones, and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest" (Job 30:17). He is brought so low that he hates even the food which would sustain his life... His flesh is wasted away, and his bones look and stare upon him. "My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh" (Job 19:20).

"He is chastened also with pain upon his bed." It is not only these dealings with the soul, but also with the body. There he touches the very case of Job... "His flesh is consumed away" — how true it was of poor Job... He is a fallen man. He may be a believing man. But still he is a man, as we can say, with the flesh in him. And that flesh may be working strongly, as it did in Job as well as the others.

Elihu does not say in so many words that Job has refused to listen to God's warnings. He does not say he is describing Job's case exactly. He speaks of God's method of dealing with men. Has it no voice for Job? Can he not at least see that God is speaking in the affliction and that He has something to say?

It is exactly what characterizes divine mercy in appealing to the unconverted man. He is carried away by his own will. But God knows how to bend or break it. "He keeps back his soul from the pit" (such is the merciful object of God's intervention), "and his life from perishing by the sword." Here is more than a dream of the night or a passing vision. Here are corrective ways.

God may speak through pain and sickness, described so vividly in verses 19-22, until the sufferer comes face to face with death itself... How often has a careless sinner, when struck this way, been led to turn to God and awakened for his eternal salvation. How often too has a saint had to look back to a time of severe sickness as an occasion of much spiritual blessing.

If they do not listen to His word, He may send them His rod. As he expands on this, Elihu is in effect describing the case of Job. Painful chastening comes upon him, and his bones seem to wither in deadly struggle. "The night racks my bones, and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest" (Job 30:17). He is brought so low that he loathes even the food that would keep him alive... His flesh is wasted away, and his bones look and stare at him. "My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh" (Job 19:20). He is at the last of life, drawing near to the grave, or the more dreadful "pit of destruction." "I know that You will bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living" (Job 30:23).

Elihu does not say in so many words that Job has refused to listen to God's warnings, nor does he say he is describing his case exactly. He speaks of God's method of dealing with men. Has it no voice for Job? Can he not at least see that God is speaking in the affliction, and that He has something to say?

And again, God may speak through pain and sickness. Verses 19-22 describe it vividly. God speaks until the sufferer comes face to face with death itself. How often has a careless sinner, when struck down like this, been led to turn to God and awakened for his eternal salvation. How often too has a believer had to look back to a time of severe sickness as an occasion of much spiritual blessing.

The man is carried away by his own will. But God knows how to bend or break it. "He keeps back his soul from the pit" — this is the merciful purpose of God's intervention — "and his life from perishing by the sword." Here is more than a dream of the night or a passing vision. Here are corrective ways, as well as glimpses of God's light, or of His judgment, which the man was despising.

One finds himself unable even to eat (v.20). Then he loses weight and becomes little more than "skin and bones," with an early death staring him in the face (vv.21-22). "His soul draws near the pit." Is there any help?

The word for "messenger" is "angel," and this suggests a supernatural revealer of the mind of God... Here we have a suggestion of the Mediator. The next word makes this stronger: "an Interpreter," or "Mediator" — one sent as an ambassador to make known the mind of God. No ordinary messenger will do; it must be "one of a thousand."

There may be many who can sympathise and sometimes condemn the afflicted one, as Job's three friends did. To give the mind of God is another and a greater thing.

"Then He is gracious to him, and says, Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom." This is a vivid way of presenting what God was about to do in due time... Here we have plain enough language — perhaps as clear as any words in the Old Testament, anticipating that infinite work which we now know to be finished in the cross of Christ.

What the sinner needs to be shown is what uprightness means for him: bowing before God, and owning his true state without holding back or hiding anything. This would be genuine uprightness, and it would at once draw out the response from the heart of God.

Job 33:15-22. He shows God using the plough — a dream, a striking providence, bodily pain or sickness — to break up such unploughed ground. And such is the work to this day. Job 33:23-24. The sower comes after the ploughman. The seed is the Gospel. God provides the ransom, and deliverance comes to the sinner.

The word for "messenger" is "angel," and this suggests a supernatural revealer of the mind of God. We find this often in the Old Testament, where the "angel" made known the will of God (see Judges 2:1; Judges 13:3). The "angel of Jehovah" is indeed His representative — so fully that Scripture calls Him Jehovah Himself ("The angel of His presence," Isaiah 63:9). Here we have a hint of the Mediator, and the next word makes it stronger: "an Interpreter," or "Mediator" (see Genesis 42:23; 2 Chronicles 32:21) — one whom God sends as an ambassador to make His mind known. An ordinary messenger will not do; it must be "one of a thousand."

Times of emergency are the opportunity for the one Elihu called a "messenger," an "interpreter." He can show what God has to say in these things. Such people are not common, as we know, but they are of great value, and Elihu called them "one among a thousand," which shows how rare they are. Many can pity the afflicted one, and sometimes condemn him, as Job's three friends did. To give the mind of God is another and a greater thing.

Yes, there is help, but only in God, who knows how to send a messenger at the right time, a messenger who is also a mediator, "one among a thousand" (v.23). Such an individual is typical of the Lord Jesus, the "one mediator between God and men" (1 Tim. 2:5).

He had asked for someone with feelings like his own, when he was crushed in spirit under the hand of God. He longed for a man who would step in between God and himself. And God now gives him what he wanted (not yet the man Christ Jesus), a man of God indeed, but with weaknesses like his own.

We fully grant that the Hebrew word can sometimes be translated "duty," but that hardly fits man's sinful state and condition before God. No doubt his state calls for self-judgment; but you could not press this on him as a duty... The sinner needs someone to show him what, for him, is uprightness: bowing before God, and owning his true state, holding nothing back and hiding nothing.

This interpreter is to show man his uprightness. But whose uprightness, or righteousness, does this mean?... Most commentators explain that the interpreter tells the sufferer how to do right before God, and critics even suggest changing the word "uprightness" to "fault." There is a deeper meaning here. The word "his" should carry a capital "H" — not man's righteousness, but God's.

The moment the conscience bows under the sin and confesses it, it comes into an upright position. Where evil has been, uprightness of soul shows itself in the awareness of that evil, and in the power to confess it... Get sin judged in the conscience, and then comes the revelation of the unfailing love of God to meet the need.

If a man is to profit from God's chastening, he must understand its purpose, and for that he needs someone who can explain it. The word for "messenger" is "angel," and this points to a heavenly messenger who reveals the mind of God. Often in the Old Testament the "angel" made known the will of God (see Judges 2:1; 13:3). The "angel of Jehovah" is His representative — so fully that Scripture calls Him Jehovah Himself ("The angel of His presence," Isa. 63:9). So here we have a hint of the Mediator, and the next word strengthens it: "an Interpreter," or "Mediator" (see Gen. 42:23; 2 Chron. 32:21) — one whom God sends as an ambassador to make His mind known. And an ordinary messenger will not do; it must be "one of a thousand."

The word translated "ransom" here means a "covering," close to the word translated "atonement" in the Old Testament. Before Christ came, God covered the sin of the repentant sinner from His own holy eye. He was waiting for the time when the sacrifice of Christ, enough for everything, would make full propitiation. So Romans speaks of God passing over "former sins" in "his divine forbearance" (Rom. 3:25). Those past sins were the sins of believers who lived before Christ — Job's among them.

The means of such grace is wonderful: "Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom" (v.24). Elihu could not have understood the full weight of his own words. We know the ransom is the Lord Jesus Himself, in His perfect sacrifice for sinners at the cross. Job's friends could not think of suggesting a ransom for Job. But Elihu's heart overflowed with the conviction that there must be such a ransom, since he knew the character of His Creator. The Spirit of God put such words into his mouth. It was not any man who had found the ransom, but God.

Look at that drunkard! He is "going down into the pit." … Look at the man who only claims to believe — respectable and respected, honest and honourable, the most religious and most self-righteous church or chapel member, whether a robed priest or an ordinary member of the congregation! He too is "going down into the pit." The word of God says that everyone is travelling that road, whatever their outward, moral, or religious state, unless they have personally taken for themselves the ransom that God found and God gave.

"He is merciful to him, and says, 'Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom'" — a strikingly vivid way of setting out what God was about to do in due time, and not merely a promise given here in picture form. The language here is plain enough. These are perhaps as clear as any words in the Old Testament, looking ahead to that infinite work which we now know was finished at the cross of Christ.

In Elihu's words we find a beautiful expression of the good news of God — "I have found a ransom"; or, in the language of the New Testament, "having obtained (Greek: found) eternal redemption" (Heb. 9:12).

Now we see the blessed results of this work of the Interpreter in the ransomed man. He can now pray with confidence and rejoice in God's favour, seeing His face with joy. He has found a righteousness — not of his own goodness but of Another — "the righteousness which is of God by faith."

Job 33:15-22. He shows God using the plough — a dream, a striking providence, bodily pain or sickness — to break up that hard ground. And such is the work to this day… Job 33:23-24. The sower comes after the ploughman. The seed is the Gospel. God provides the ransom; He brings deliverance to the sinner. Job 33:25-26. The condition of the believer… Job 33:29-30. Elihu tells Job these are samples of God's way in saving souls.

He was a godly man; there was no one like him. Yet God saw a defect in him… Here God does not deal first with outward sin, but with the inward working of a man's ignorance of himself, and then with its breaking out, through God's dealings, into actual sin. So when Job was brought into God's presence, the thing was found out and came into his conscience. When God reveals His presence, the effect is first submission, then confession. "I have uttered what I did not understand… I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes." And God restores him to full blessing… Job was not upright in the full, true sense until he despised himself and said so — that is, until he confessed. Then his flesh became fresher than a child's again.

So a freshness better than that of youth is given — as Naaman gives us an example. "His flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean" (2 Kings 5:14). It is a new birth, by the incorruptible seed of the word of God.

What freshness of soul this gives! "His flesh shall be fresher than a child's; he shall return to the days of his youth." It is no longer, "Oh that I was as in months past." The old "I" is done with. It is no longer I, but Christ in me; no more wretched striving to justify the old me. Ah, no! but my soul filled with freshness in contemplating God's ransom, and God's perfection in justifying me by that ransom.

We have here nothing at all about the two natures. The Old Testament saint never understood that. Man cannot profit by that truth, or understand it, until he sees Christ by faith — sees the Son and believes in Him. Now we are made to understand it simply and fully… "He looks upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted what was right, and it profited me not" — there you see is just what the repentant soul says. It is not called "repentance" here… but here we have the thing, repentance, although the word is not used. It is very comforting to think that this was what God was doing in those days, and was known to be doing — because the gospel was not preached then.

Elihu seems to call himself the interpreter Job asked for. He says that a go-between, an interpreter, would bring the solution Job was looking for… Elihu says that the only complete answer to this will come when the full results of the interpreter's coming have reached us.

Now we see the blessed results of this work of the Interpreter in the ransomed man. He can now pray with confidence, rejoice in God's favour, and see His face with joy. He has found a righteousness — not from his own goodness but from Another — "the righteousness from God that depends on faith." No doubt this includes God recognising faithfulness in a child of God, as in Job's case. But the principle carries us much further.

Elihu speaks of God showing man what was righteous. That came to light in the path our Lord walked. But he adds, "He will render to man His righteousness." That could only be as a result of the work upon the cross (Job 33:23-26).

He would never surrender his integrity. He would never let go his righteousness. But, as Elihu puts it, his "righteousness," or his "uprightness" (see Job 33:23, 26) would now mean something different. It would mean bowing under God's hand. It would mean trusting the searching work of His discipline, and learning the lesson God would teach. In short, it would mean looking away from himself to God, and living on that new principle before Him — centred in God and no longer in self.

The freshness of that new life will overflow in thankful prayer to God. Take Saul of Tarsus. God's grace woke him and saved him, and he had the distinction of having God say of him, "Behold, he is praying" (Acts 9:11). That is the result of being born again: "then man prays to God, and He accepts him" (v.26). More than that, "he sees His face with a shout of joy" — a wonderful honour given to every believer, because God has rendered to him His righteousness (v.26). We throw away our own righteousness as filthy rags, and the believer's confidence is now in God's righteousness.

He takes notice of every departure from Him. But the door is always open for "repentance." When a man judges his sin, and sees it in the light in which God sees it, nothing stands in the way of immediate restoration. The moment the conscience bows under the sin and confesses it, it comes into an upright position... So the church of God, or an individual soul, must come into this state of uprightness before God, so that He can restore it; Job 33:23-26. Judge sin in the conscience, and then God reveals His unfailing love to meet the need.

The way to be cleared is so simple. Why should anyone walk with a burdened conscience? Make an upright and honest confession, and we are not only forgiven but cleansed. Elihu says the same of the soul that has come to judge itself: "then man prays to God, and He accepts him; he sees His face with a shout of joy."

"I have sinned" — this is uprightness. A sinner's uprightness consists in owning his condition. God says he is a sinner, and his uprightness is to own it. This is the way God is going to save souls at this time. The truth must be out, and owned, as to what you are. God will not, as it were, electroplate you over and make you look like silver when you are nothing but dross. The very first step in the conversion of a soul is owning his sins before God. Not to your fellow man, not to a priest, but to God. Sin confessed is sin forgiven.

"I had sinned and perverted what was right." Job will soon admit his sin. He had perverted, that is, misunderstood, the righteous character of God. In the same way the sinner can look back to the time when he was "a blasphemer and injurious." But God has not repaid that iniquity to the one who was once guilty. "It was not recompensed to me" — for so should the last clause of verse 27 read.

The wording of verse 27 may be a little uncertain. But the original King James Version seems the most likely to be correct... A real work in the heart of men must begin with God. The person is moved when he realises that God is watching him. He confesses his own sin and perversion, and admits that he has gained nothing by it. So there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

Mark those words, "If any say, I have sinned." Is this the language of your heart now? Can you cast yourself at the feet of Christ a confessed sinner? You may take that place without any fear of being a hypocrite. In owning what you are, as a sinner, before God, there is no fear of deceiving yourself, much less of deceiving God... It is not, If any have served me, or If any have not sinned. It is, If any have sinned.

The word translated "ransom" here simply means a "covering," related to the word translated "atonement" in the Old Testament. Before Christ came, God covered the sin of the repentant sinner before His holy eye. He waited for the time when Christ's all-sufficient sacrifice would make full propitiation. This is why Scripture speaks of the passing over of sins done beforehand, through the forbearance of God (Romans 3:25). Those past sins were the sins of believers who lived before Christ — Job's among them.

It is not you who found the ransom; God found it. Satan may tell Him of all your sins. He may point above all to your deep ingratitude and failure since you were a child of God. God's reply is, "I have found a ransom."

Take sides fully with your true Master against the sin which is both His enemy and yours. This means you must not excuse yourself in the least degree for giving way to sin, nor blame it on anything or anyone else, but blame yourself fully for it. Let it be stressed that this is a vitally important matter, for far too many defeat themselves by not honestly taking the full blame for their failures.

shachath, "a pit, a pitfall to entrap animals," place of doom and corruption. Job 33:18, 24, 28, 30

In these remarkable words Elihu was certainly acting as the interpreter with Job. He showed the good purpose of God in His dealings, which seem so much against men. God aims to deliver them from the "pit" of self-esteem and self-satisfaction in this life, and from the "pit" of judgment and condemnation in the life to come.

"I have sinned:" this is uprightness. A sinner's uprightness consists in owning his condition. God says he is a sinner, and his uprightness is to own it. This is the way God is going to save souls at this time. The truth must be out, and owned, as to what you are. God will not, so to speak, electroplate you over and make you look like silver, when you are nothing but dross.

A real work in the heart of men must begin with God. The individual is moved when he realises that God is watching him. He confesses his own sin and perversion, and admits that he has gained nothing by it. So there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. There is an immediate answer from God, "He will deliver his soul from going into the Pit, and his life shall see the light" (v.28). This is certainly because of the ransom that God has found. In fact it is the ransom that God has provided — the sacrifice of His own beloved Son.

In Elihu's words we find a beautiful expression of the gospel of God: "Then He is gracious to him, and says, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom." The New Testament says the same thing in its own language — "having obtained (Greek, found) eternal redemption" (Heb. 9:12).

Then comes the precious word: "He will deliver his soul from going down into the pit; and his life shall see the light." That means the knowledge of a present and full salvation. If you are looking only to Christ, and resting only on Christ, this is what His death has secured for you: you should know the forgiveness of your sins.

Now he can speak to God in prayer and look on His face with joy. In the same way, the ransomed soul can speak to other people. "He looks upon men" should rather read, "He sings to men." It is part of the new song he has learned, and many will hear it and be turned to the Lord… But this sin has not been repaid to the once guilty man.

Not one person in heaven will sing, "I have never sinned, so I got here by myself." The song up there tells of our hopeless ruin — and of the grace of God.

Job 33:15-22. He shows God using the plough — of a dream, of a striking providence, of bodily pain or sickness — to break up that hard, unbroken ground. And that is still the work today. Job 33:23-24. The sower comes after the ploughman. The seed is the Gospel. God provides the ransom, and deliverance comes to the sinner… Job 33:29-30. Elihu tells Job these are samples of God's way in saving souls.

Nor does God speak only once to a man, but "twice, in fact three times," for we are poor listeners, and God is concerned deeply that souls should be brought back from the Pit — delivered from the negative horror of being without God, and instead given the positive blessing of being "enlightened with the light of life."

Look! God does all this twice, three times, with man, to bring back his soul from corruption, that he may be enlightened with the light of life.

shachath, "a pit, a pitfall to entrap animals," place of doom and corruption. Job 33:18, 24, 28, 30.

We are the objects of His deep, tender, and unchanging love; but we are also the subjects of His wise moral government. His dealings with us are varied. They are sometimes preventive; sometimes corrective; always instructive. We may be set on some course of our own that would end in moral ruin. He steps in and turns us back from it. He smashes our castles in the air, scatters our golden dreams, and breaks into many a favourite plan we had set our hearts on — a plan that would have destroyed us. "Behold, God does all these things, twice, three times, with a man, to bring back his soul from the pit, to be enlightened with the light of the living."

This is not a doctrine of how grace wakes sinners from the sleep of death. It is a lifelike sketch of His detailed ways. He uses sickness and sorrow, and dreams or visions. Above all, He uses people who come with the light of God to deal with a man's conscience. All this comes out vividly, and so does the effect it produces — "to bring back his soul from the pit, to be enlightened with the light of the living." It speaks to the point so powerfully that we know how often preachers still make it a favourite theme when they bring the gospel to those who are not converted.

Elihu said this before God gave the law through Moses, yet even then he assures Job that God worked these things often with man. Therefore the gospel of God's grace has always been the way God meets man's need. The simplicity of this is beautiful, and Job could have no objection to it.

This is not a doctrine of how grace wakes sinners from the sleep of death. It is a sketch drawn from life of His detailed ways. He uses sickness and sorrow, and dreams or visions. Above all, He uses those who come with the light of God to deal with the conscience of man. All this stands out vividly, and so does the effect it produces: "To bring back his soul from the pit, to be enlightened with the light of the living." It speaks to the point so forcibly that preachers of the gospel still make it a favourite theme today. Elihu's words are not the fullest material or the deepest ground to preach from. Still, it is striking how much living power clings to this earliest record of God's way with a waking sinner, written hundreds — indeed two thousand — years before the gospel of God's grace went out.

shachath, 'a pit, a pitfall to entrap animals,' place of doom and corruption. Job 33:18, 24, 28, 30; Ps. 9:15; Ps. 30:9; Ps. 35:7; Ezek. 28:8; etc.

God does not speak only once to a man, but "twice, in fact three times," because we listen so poorly. God cares deeply that souls be brought back from the Pit. There is the negative side: He delivers them from the horror of being without God. There is the positive side: He gives them the blessing of being enlightened with the light of life.

The comparison of the light of life in the Old Testament and the New has something remarkable in it. In the Old it means coming into the outward light of this world, as if born into it… But for the New, "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men," and then, "Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." This is not the light of nature — life in this world. In the Old sense, "seeing the light" means being born: having light in this world, having life in it. Now the Light of life is having Christ, and seeing by the power of that life which is in Him. He is at the same time the Light itself.

You may take that place without any fear of being a hypocrite. In owning what you are, as a sinner, before God, there is no fear of deceiving yourself, much less of deceiving God. If this is your confessed state, God will deliver your soul from going into the pit. You will be enlightened with the light of the living. Do not rest until you know this for certain: "God has justified you freely through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."

These are God's frequent ways: dreams, painful discipline, and messengers. By them He wakes a man to a right sense of himself before God. By them He rescues him from corruption, so that he may be enlightened with the light of life… The everlasting gospel had its witness in Elihu, as surely as Noah preached righteousness to the ungodly before the flood.

After this glowing utterance in which Elihu brings in God in His grace, he turns to Job. "Do you have anything to say? Then answer me." But Elihu waits in vain. Job's lips are sealed.

Elihu addresses himself directly to Job, for it was Job who needed an answer for his predicament. Elihu wanted time to say all that was on his mind, yet he did not demand that he should do all the speaking. Rather, he invites Job to speak out plainly if he has anything to say. Elihu was not putting Job down, as his friends did. He wanted Job to be justified. He did not mean that Job should justify himself, for this was already Job's tragic mistake. No doubt he wanted Job to be justified from God's viewpoint, just as the tax collector was justified rather than the Pharisee, when he prayed, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!"

Elihu was for Job; but he was not for his self-righteousness. Against this he was angry. When the blessed Jesus walked this earth, nothing made Him so angry as the self-righteousness of the Pharisees. At this He was filled with indignation. You may have been deeply grieved that you could not be self-righteous, so as to justify yourself. The very attempt has grieved Him more.

He brings the light of "truth" to bear upon Job's conscience. At the same time he applies the precious balm of "grace" to his heart… Truth puts everyone in his right place. And just because it does so, it cannot hand out flattering titles to a poor guilty mortal, however much that mortal might enjoy them. Man must be brought to know himself, to see his true condition, to confess what he really is. This was precisely what Job needed. He did not know himself, and his friends could not give him that knowledge. He needed to be led down into the depths; but his friends could not take him there. He needed self-judgment; but his friends were completely unable to produce it.

And now, Job, what have you to say to all this? Elihu wants to bring out Job's true condition — he would not excuse his wrong, but treat him with complete fairness. He pauses for a reply: Job is not to be forced, but does he not agree with what has been said? May we not read his silence as an acknowledgment of the truth of what we have been dwelling on?

Those who carry far more weight in godliness and discernment see him differently. In him they find a fairer and fuller assessment of Job and his friends. They also find the first real insight, shown throughout the book, into the place and aim of discipline through suffering.

Job then had nothing to say. No doubt he recognised that Elihu's message was higher than he had considered, and he wisely chose to listen.

Elihu desired time to say all that was on his mind, yet he did not demand that he should do all the speaking. Rather, he invites Job to speak out plainly if he has anything to say (v.32). Elihu was not putting Job down, as his friends did. He wanted Job justified. He did not mean that Job should justify himself, for this was already Job's tragic mistake. No doubt he wanted Job justified from God's viewpoint, just as the tax collector was justified and the Pharisee was not, when he prayed, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" (Luke 18:13-14).

Job was as busy as he could be, justifying himself. He goes so far as to say, "My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go" (Job 27:6). He never made it out, though. At the end of the story he has to put his hand on his mouth and say, "Behold, I am of small account" (Job 40:4). The Lord seems to say, "I will never let you go, Job, till you have given up those filthy rags, your own righteousness. Then I will justify you. I will give you My righteousness." … Only the presence of God can enable anyone to let go of their own righteousness. Not that they have any to let go, really — they only think they have.

God's very object, His desire, His purpose in sending His beloved Son into this world was to justify ungodly sinners. Let the anxious, awakened sinner know this — in coming to Him, He is most ready, and He desires to justify you. The moment you believe on Him who raised up Jesus from the dead for our justification, that moment you are justified from all things. See Acts 13:38; Romans 4:24 to 5:1.

The common thought is that God is our Judge, and so He is; but who made Him a Judge? Who put God on the judgment seat? You did! I did! The sin and guilt of man have forced God into the place of judgment. God must judge sin. Otherwise God and man would be alike, neither of them thinking much about it, and there would be no righteousness. Yet He has no desire to take the place of judgment. Even here, to Job, He says, "I desire to justify you" (Job 33:32).

He reminds Job of his own desire for such a person. Job had said, "There is no arbiter between us, who might lay his hand on us both" (Job 9:33), and, "that he would argue the case of a man with God, as a son of man does with his neighbour" (Job 16:21). To this desire Elihu now replies: "Behold, I am toward God as you are; I too was pinched off from a piece of clay. Behold, no fear of me need terrify you; my pressure will not be heavy upon you" (Job 33:6-7).

Elihu had asked Job to speak if he had anything to say. He rightly adds, "if not, listen to me; be silent, and I will teach you wisdom" (v.33). Job then had nothing to say. No doubt he recognised that Elihu's message was higher than he had considered. He wisely chose to listen.

Elihu is truly answering Job's desire for an arbiter. Job's silence may well be a sign of beginning conviction.

Job 33:29-30. Elihu tells Job that these are samples of God's way in saving souls. Job 33:31-33. He asks Job at the last, as at the first, whether he had anything to say.

And now, Job, what have you to say to all this? Elihu wants to bring out Job's true condition. He would not justify his wrong, but would treat him with complete fairness. He pauses for a reply. He will not force Job, but does Job not agree with what he has heard? May we not read his silence as an admission that what we have been dwelling on is true?

He invites Job to speak out plainly, if he has anything to say. Elihu was not putting Job down, as his friends did; he wanted Job to be justified. He did not mean that Job should justify himself, for that was already Job's tragic mistake. No doubt he wanted Job justified from God's viewpoint. God justified the tax collector rather than the Pharisee, when the tax collector prayed, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" (Luke 18:13-14).

Elihu speaks against his own wish. He stands in front of men he would gladly have learned from, if only they could have taught him the mind of God. Yet he is careful to stand for nothing except what comes from God. He has learned, as never before, that spiritual wisdom is of God's Spirit, not of a man's age. It is the very opposite of self-confidence or boasting, though his heart is so full that he has to speak.

On what other ground could a younger man speak, and correct everyone who had gone before? He kept silent until even Job had no more to say. He spoke only when Job, as much as his friends, could not help feeling that the riddle was still unexplained. That silence is the strongest proof of how little he deserves the charge of being bold, forward, meddling, conceited, arrogant, or boastful. He certainly shows in the clearest light how completely those failed who had condemned Job without answering him, and who did it with hints that condemned themselves.

After this glowing speech, in which Elihu brings in God in His grace, he turns to Job. "Have you anything to say? Then answer me." But Elihu waits in vain. Job's lips are sealed.

Elihu had asked Job to speak if he had anything to say. Now he tells him, and rightly, "If not, listen to me; be silent, and I will teach you wisdom" (v. 33). Job then had nothing to say. No doubt he recognised that Elihu's message was higher than he had thought, and he wisely chose to listen.