Job 36 Chapter Introduction

Structure and Formatting

This chapter is a continuation of Elihu’s speech. In this chapter, Elihu speaks primarily to Job, although others are present and listening.

• Verses 1–21: Elihu says that God uses suffering to warn and correct people.
• Verses 22–23: Elihu describes how great God is, using a storm that is gathering and approaching to describe God’s great power.

The ULT sets the lines of this chapter farther to the right on the page than the rest of the text because it is poetry.

Translation Issues in This Chapter

The difficulty of understanding verses 17–21

Verses 17–21 are very difficult to understand. Biblical scholars have offered a variety of explanations of what Elihu says in each verse. Published versions of the Bible differ significantly from one another in their renderings of this material. The ULT seeks to offer a consistent and reasonable translation of these verses. But if a translation of the Bible exists in your region, you may find that it differs from the ULT in several places in the way that it translates these verses. If there is a Bible translation in your region, you may wish to use the readings that it uses. If not, you may wish to follow the readings of ULT.

singular “you” and “your”

The pronouns “you” and “your” and the implied “you” in imperative verbs are singular throughout this chapter because Elihu is addressing Job. If your language marks a distinction between singular and plural “you,” use singular forms in your translation.

“hear” meaning “obey”

In verses 10, 11, and 12, Elihu uses the term “hear” in a specific sense to mean “obey.” You may wish to use the term “obey” in each instance in your translation.