“Because of the multitude of oppressions people cry out; they call for help because of the arm of the mighty.
Elihu has just told Job that human sin and human righteousness add nothing to God, who is higher than the clouds. Now he looks at the world below those clouds. Crowds there are crying out under the weight of powerful men. The question underneath this verse is one every sufferer asks: if God hears, why does the cry seem to go nowhere?
Where the Verse Sits
One writer divides the chapter into three parts:
Samuel RidoutThe chapter may be divided into three portions: (1) God's transcendent greatness (verses 1-8). (2) Why the cry of the oppressed is not answered (verses 9-13). (3) A call to trust Him (verses 14-16).
So verse 9 is not a complaint. It is the opening of a diagnosis.
The Cry Is Real and Universal
Kelly reads "the arm of the mighty" as their violence, and treats this scene as the world's normal state:
William KellyNo doubt, in a world like this there is never a shortage of oppressors. Oppression abounds, and the oppressed cry out and wail because of the violence of the mighty. Is it that God does not hear or feel? No. The problem is that even human anguish fails to lead them to God.
The same cry rises today, and it usually goes somewhere other than God:
Leslie M. GrantJob was not the only one who suffered what he considered oppression. Elihu knew there were multitudes who cried out for help (v.9), and we know it is the same today... People do not find help, because they cry out to governments or institutions instead of to God. More often they cry out against the government.
The Question Nobody Asks
Verse 10 supplies what verse 9 is missing. The sufferers cry, but nobody asks where their Maker is.
William KellyLong afterwards the prophet complained of the same pride and folly in stricken Israel. He said, "They do not cry to me from the heart, but they wail upon their beds" (Hosea 7:14). So Elihu says of people in general that no one asked, "Where is God my Maker?" He is the One who can change everything and rescue at the very worst moment.
The cry is for relief, not for God:
Samuel RidoutThey are taken up with their own misery. They seek relief only for their own sake, and they have no thought of God's will or of His glory. They do not ask, "Where is God my Maker? What can I learn of Him in these things?" And is this not nearly universal? Where do we find people turning to God in their affliction? The hungry want bread, but they do not want God. Give them bread, and they are quite content to go on in complete ignorance of Him.
Made for More Than Groaning
Verse 11 says God teaches us more than the beasts. Animals also cry when they are hurt. What sets a human being apart is the ability to speak to the One who made him.
F. B. HoleThe God who gives the songs in the night teaches man whom He made. People are beings of a far higher order than the beasts and birds. They can have fellowship with Him, whether in songs of joy or cries of need. Verse 10 mentions the songs and verse 12 the cries.
God hears those who actually turn to Him:
William KellyHis eyes and His ears are open to those who appeal to Him. They are not open to empty cries that carry no more spiritual, or perhaps even moral, feeling than the animals that perish.
Why the Cry Goes Unanswered
Verse 12 names the reason: pride. The silence comes from the state of the one crying, not from any defect in God.
Arno Clemens GaebeleinElihu gives the reasons why God does not answer the cry of the afflicted. It is not His indifference but man's sin and forgetfulness of Him... The true reason is the evildoer's pride. God will in no way hear vanity. Pride, vanity, self-will and everything that goes with them make it impossible for a righteous God to hear. So Job's claim that it makes no difference to God whether a man sins or is righteous is disproved.
Ridout draws the practical edge:
Samuel RidoutPride, vanity, self-will are what turn the heavens into brass. The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart. This is the theme of the prayer the Lord taught: God's glory comes first. If men ignore that, they need not be surprised that their prayer for daily bread seems to be ignored.
From Groans to Songs
The silence is not neglect. Kelly says God has His reasons, and the way out is within reach:
William KellyIf He seems to disregard the cry of the oppressed, He has good reason: they fail to ask rightly. If they asked rightly, their laments would soon turn into songs of thankful praise in the night. To groan is not enough — an animal can do that. The tried person must cry to God.
Summary
- Cry — Oppression fills the world. The cry of verse 9 is real, and Elihu never limits it to Job.
- Direction — The cry goes sideways: to governments, to institutions, to anyone but the Maker. Pain alone does not turn a heart to God.
- Difference — Animals groan too. Man alone was taught more than the beasts, made for fellowship with God in both songs and cries.
- Cause — Verse 12 names pride as the reason heaven stays silent; an empty cry with no heart behind it is not heard.
- Change — Ask rightly, and the laments turn into songs. The God who does not answer vanity gives songs in the night.