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Job 35

KJV · Chapter 35/42

1Elihu spake moreover, and said,

2Thinkest thou this to be right, that thou saidst, My righteousness is more than God’s?

3For thou saidst, What advantage will it be unto thee? and, What profit shall I have, if I be cleansed from my sin?

4I will answer thee, and thy companions with thee.

5Look unto the heavens, and see; and behold the clouds which are higher than thou.

6If thou sinnest, what doest thou against him? or if thy transgressions be multiplied, what doest thou unto him?

7If thou be righteous, what givest thou him? or what receiveth he of thine hand?

8Thy wickedness may hurt a man as thou art; and thy righteousness may profit the son of man.

9By reason of the multitude of oppressions they make the oppressed to cry: they cry out by reason of the arm of the mighty.

10But none saith, Where is God my maker, who giveth songs in the night;

11Who teacheth us more than the beasts of the earth, and maketh us wiser than the fowls of heaven?

12There they cry, but none giveth answer, because of the pride of evil men.

13Surely God will not hear vanity, neither will the Almighty regard it.

14Although thou sayest thou shalt not see him, yet judgment is before him; therefore trust thou in him.

15But now, because it is not so, he hath visited in his anger; yet he knoweth it not in great extremity:

16Therefore doth Job open his mouth in vain; he multiplieth words without knowledge.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Elihu questions Job's claim that his personal righteousness would be greater than God's, arguing that neither human sin diminishes God nor human righteousness benefits Him — both affect only other people. He suggests that Job cries out but receives no answer because he does not seek God with genuine humility.

Explanation

Here Elihu presents an important theological argument about God's transcendence: He is not diminished by human sin nor exalted by human virtue, since He is completely self-sufficient and beyond any need for human approval or contribution. His suggestion that Job's cries go unanswered because of "the pride of evil men" (verse 12) is an implicit accusation that is not entirely fair, since God Himself, later in the book, does not condemn Job in this specific way. Application for today: human goodness or sin has real consequences for other people and for oneself, but it does not change God's essential nature or greatness.

Fun facts

  • The observation that God makes us "wiser than the beasts of the earth" and "wiser than the fowls of heaven" (verse 11) acknowledges humanity's distinctive rational capacity as a specific divine gift, a theme that echoes the creation narrative in Genesis 1:26-28.
  • This is one of Elihu's shortest speeches, functioning as a bridge between the more elaborate arguments of chapters 34 and 36, maintaining a tone of respectful yet firm rebuke directed at Job.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Job 35:1Elihu speaks again — a short narrator line that opens his third speech to Job.
  2. Job 35:2Elihu accuses Job of effectively saying that his own righteousness is greater than God’s — a harsh reading of Job’s insistence on his own innocence.
  3. Job 35:3He paraphrases what he understands of Job’s argument: “What advantage will it be unto thee? and, What profit shall I have, if I be cleansed from my sin?” — echoing similar complaints Job already made back in chapters 9 and 10.
  4. Job 35:4Elihu announces that he will answer both Job and the three friends — signaling that his response covers both sides of the debate.
  5. Job 35:5He invites Job to look up at the heavens and the clouds, higher than any person — using the distance between high and low as an image of God’s transcendence.
  6. Job 35:6Elihu asks what Job’s sin would actually do to God — the argument is that human failure does not diminish or affect God in any way.
  7. Job 35:7On the other side, he asks what Job’s righteousness would give to God — repeating, in different words, the argument Eliphaz had already made back in chapter 22.
  8. Job 35:8Elihu concludes that the real effect of human wickedness or righteousness falls on other human beings, not on God — suggesting that Job’s suffering is not some cosmic “transaction” with God.
  9. Job 35:9Elihu explains why so many people cry out and get no answer: to him, the cry of the sufferer is not always sincere — sometimes it is just a complaint about the pain itself, without truly seeking the One who sent it.
  10. Job 35:10Continuing the previous verse about the oppressed crying out: Elihu notes that no one truly asks, “Where is God my maker, who giveth songs in the night” — people seek relief, not God Himself.
  11. Job 35:11God teaches us more than the beasts and makes us wiser than the birds of the air, says Elihu — but that wisdom is rarely used to actually seek God.
  12. Job 35:12So when they cry out, they get no answer — Elihu attributes this to the arrogance of the wicked surrounding such a shallow cry.
  13. Job 35:13“Surely God will not hear vanity” sums up the idea: empty prayers, with no real seeking, produce no answer, in Elihu’s view.
  14. Job 35:14Elihu directly criticizes Job’s complaint that he cannot see God — insisting that Job’s case is already before Him, and that Job should therefore wait patiently.
  15. Job 35:15This obscure verse discusses why God’s judgment seems to take so long — Elihu suggests that the absence of immediate punishment does not mean the absence of justice.
  16. Job 35:16Elihu closes his third speech with a direct accusation: Job opens his mouth in vain and multiplies words without knowledge.

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