Elihu

Biblical Account

Elihu first appears in chapter 32 of the Book of Job. The text introduces him as "Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram" (Job 32:2). His name is commonly interpreted to mean "He is my God."

When the debate between Job and Job's three friends comes to an end, Elihu intervenes. He explains that he waited for his elders to speak first. He then declares that understanding comes not from age but from the spirit in man and the breath of the Almighty (Job 32:6-9). Elihu is angry with both sides: with Job because he justified himself rather than God, and with the three friends because they had found no answer and yet had condemned Job (Job 32:2-3).

His discourse is divided into four speeches spanning chapters 32–37. Their main points are as follows:

• God speaks to people through dreams and even through suffering such as illness.
• Suffering can serve as discipline and instruction that turns a person away from pride (Job 33:14-30; 36:15).
• God does not commit injustice (Job 34:10-12).

At the end of chapter 37, Elihu extols the majesty of God revealed in the storm and in the phenomena of nature. Immediately afterward, in chapter 38, God speaks to Job out of the whirlwind.

Significance Within Scripture

Elihu does not appear in the opening section of Job (chapters 1–2), nor is he named in the closing section. In Job 42:7-10, God rebukes the three friends but says nothing about Elihu. The New Testament does not mention Elihu either.

Several other individuals in the Old Testament bear the same name. One example is Elihu, an ancestor of Samuel (1 Samuel 1:1), who is a different person from the Elihu of Job.

Interpretation and Debate

Assessments of Elihu vary more by individual interpreter than by denomination.

• Favorable view: Elihu is seen as moving beyond the three friends' reasoning that people suffer because of their sin. He explains suffering as instruction and refinement and prepares the way for God's own speech. Proponents point to the fact that Elihu is not rebuked by God.
• Critical view: This view focuses on his verbose and self-assured manner. It holds that his reasoning ultimately differs little from that of the three friends and interprets God's silence toward him as a sign of dismissal.
• Literary-critical view: Noting that Elihu is absent from the opening and closing sections and that his speeches differ in style, this view holds that they were added later. Conservative scholars, by contrast, regard them as part of the book's original composition.

Some interpreters connect "Buzite" with Buz, the son of Abraham's brother Nahor (Genesis 22:21). Because the text does not state this directly, however, the connection should be regarded as conjecture.

The Elihu speeches are frequently cited in discussions of theodicy, which address suffering and the justice of God.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, Elihu is treated mainly in expository sermons on Job and in Bible study. In these settings his speeches are often presented as the section that explains the meaning of suffering. His deference to his elders before speaking, and his statement that "understanding comes not from age but from the Spirit of God," are sometimes quoted in sermons for young adult groups and in similar settings. Compared with Job or the three friends, however, he is relatively seldom treated on his own.