Job: Elihu's Speech

Elihu bursts onto the scene as a young man burning with passion and full of words—but not all of them wise. Though he listens well, speaks respectfully, and rightly affirms that God still speaks to His people, Elihu, like Job’s other friends, wrongly assumes Job’s suffering is due to sin. Still, his speeches offer valuable lessons: God may use even misguided voices to remind us of profound truths. Through Elihu, we’re invited to remember that suffering is not always punitive, that youth must be tempered with humility, and that in darkness, God still gives His people “songs in the night”.

Most powerfully, Elihu foreshadows the gospel when he imagines a mediator—a gracious ransom to rescue the sinner from destruction. That longing is fulfilled in Jesus Christ, our one true Mediator, Rescuer, and Ransom. When suffering leaves us confused and desperate for answers, let us be still and listen. God still speaks—and He has spoken most clearly in Christ.