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Job 36 Bible study: Who is a teacher like him?
The vapor Elihu says rain distills from (36:27) is a Hebrew word found only here and in the "mist" of Genesis 2:6, when "the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth" (Genesis 2:5). And the "lightning" God covers his hands with (36:32) is, in Hebrew, the word for light, the light of 36:30.
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“Behold, God is great, and we don’t know him. The number of his years is unsearchable.”
Try it · Did you catch it?
“In the next chapter, Elihu uses the words "perfect in knowledge" of God.”
Is that in Job 36, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
"Elihu also continued"
Every word of this chapter is Elihu's. The heading is "Elihu also continued, and said" (36:1) (tap continued). His three earlier speeches open with answered (32:6, 34:1, 35:1); this one opens with the verb of Job's own headings, "Job again took up his parable, and said" (27:1, 29:1). It is the last time the book names Elihu. His speech runs on through chapter 37, and the next heading is "Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind" (38:1). He begins, "Bear with me a little, and I will show you; for I still have something to say on God’s behalf" (36:2), and "I will get my knowledge from afar, and will ascribe righteousness to my Maker" (36:3) (tap Maker). "For truly my words are not false. One who is perfect in knowledge is with you" (36:4). The book never says whether Elihu is right; these notes set out what he says.
Honest questions
Questions people ask about Job 36
That was a taste
The rest of Job 36 is waiting in Favor
- "He also opens their ears"
- "Out of distress"
- "God is great"
- Correction, elsewhere in Scripture
- Rain and light
- "Who is a teacher like him?"
- 12 questions as you read
- 13 more Hebrew words
- A short check at the end
- Your notes, saved as you go
Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach Job 36 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
גָּלָהgalahsay ga-LAH
Brown-Driver-Briggs: "uncover, remove", and for this use, "uncover the ear of one, i.e. reveal to him". "He also opens their ears to instruction" (36:10), and "opens their ear in oppression" (36:15): in Hebrew, he uncovers their ear. Elihu had used the same two words before: "then he opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction" (33:16), where instruction is another word. In Job, opens with ear comes only in these three verses, all Elihu's. In 1 Samuel the WEB gives the same phrase as revealed: "Now the LORD had revealed to Samuel a day before Saul came" (1 Samuel 9:15).
For your group
Job 36 Bible study questions
- 1"Who is a teacher like him?" (36:22). What has God taught you that you don't think you could have learned any other way?
- 2A psalm says, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted" (Psalm 119:71), and the LORD said to Satan, "you incited me against him, to ruin him without cause" (Job 2:3). How do you hold both of those when someone you love is suffering?
- 3"Behold, God is great, and we don’t know him" (36:26). What do you do with the things about God you can't understand?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Job 36 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.
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Questions
What is Favor?
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.
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Can I read Job 36 straight away?
Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach Job 36 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.
Do I need a group?
No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.
I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?
Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.
Which Bible does Favor use?
The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.
Is Favor tied to a church?
No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.
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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home