Job 33
33:1 a Listen: Elihu begged to be heard (33:1 b; 34:2 c, 16 d), which is what Job had also sought (13:6 e).33:5 f By inviting Job to make his case, Elihu acted as though he were God, or at least the arbiter that Job had been seeking (9:32-35 g).
33:7 h you don’t need to be afraid of me (literally my terror shall not make you afraid): God’s terrors (6:4 i; 7:14 j; 9:34 k; 13:21 l; 23:15 m) had been thrown in Job’s face by Eliphaz (15:21 n, 24 o; 22:10 p), Bildad (18:11 q, 14 r), and Zophar (20:25 s).
• Elihu promised not to come down hard on Job, but later he broke his word (34:7-9 t, 33-37 u).
33:9 v You said: Job claimed to be pure and without sin, using various terms (9:21 w; 10:6-7 x; 11:4 y; 13:23-24 z; 15:14-16 aa; 16:17 ab; 31:1-40 ac).
33:11 ad Job frequently complained about God’s surveillance (7:20 ae; 10:14 af; 13:27 ag); he wanted relief from having his every move scrutinized (14:16 ah; 29:2 ai).
33:13 aj Job’s central complaint was that God does not respond (9:16 ak; 19:7 al; 23:2-7 am).
33:15 an He speaks in dreams: See, e.g., Gen 15:12 ao; 20:3 ap; 31:24 aq; 40:1–41:36 ar; Dan 2:1-45 as; Joel 2:28 at; Acts 16:9-10 au.
33:18 av from crossing over the river of death: This phrase may also be translated from passing [i.e., dying] by the sword. Both translations fit the context (cp. 36:12 aw).
33:22 ax angels of death wait for them: Cp. Exod 12:23 ay; 2 Sam 24:16 az; 1 Cor 10:10 ba.
33:23 bb An angel from heaven would intercede, taking the role of the mediator Job longed for (see 5:1 bc; 9:33-34 bd; 16:18-21 be).
33:24 bf The ransom is ultimately found in Christ (Matt 20:28 bg; Rom 3:24-25 bh; 1 Tim 2:6 bi; 1 Pet 1:18-19 bj).
33:26 bk God will receive him with joy: Cp. Num 6:24-26 bl; Ps 67:1 bm; Acts 2:28 bn; Jude 1:24 bo.
33:32 bp For Elihu to say that he was anxious to see Job justified sounds ironic; he had entered the discussion in the first place “because Job refused to admit that he had sinned” (32:1-5 bq).
Copyright information for
TNotes