Daily Devotional | Elihu: Righteous Indignation

When I was young, my dad and I watched the movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. In the story Jefferson Smith stood up against corruption by holding a 24-hour, one-man filibuster on the Senate floor. In his speech, he wasn’t just speaking to the Senate chair, but to the entire Senate and any onlookers.

Elihu has been giving Job his opinion on the man’s desperate situation. Now, he moves from talking to Job to addressing the crowd that had gathered. He begins, “Hear my words, you wise men; listen to me, you men of learning” (v. 2). He speaks to them as if they were a jury in a court case that would give a verdict after his final argument. He ends with the appeal, “Men of understanding declare, wise men who hear me say to me, ‘Job speaks without knowledge; his words lack insight’” (vv. 34–35).

What is Elihu’s verdict? He not only views Job as a person covering up sin, but he also said Job was in a state of rebellion. “To his sin he adds rebellion; scornfully he claps his hands among us and multiplies his words against God” (v. 37). The clapping of the hands is an expression of contempt. Lamentations 2 states, “All who pass your way clap their hands at you; they scoff and shake their heads at the Daughter of Jerusalem” (Lam. 2:15).

Elihu is anything but kind toward Job. He publicly scolded him and actively recruited others to join in his “righteous” indignation toward this dear man of God. Do we do the same? With the advent of social media, it can be easy to publicly attack a fellow Christian without knowing the whole story. In Job 34, Elihu shows us how it’s done.

Go Deeper

What can we learn from Elihu when we comment on social media? Do you think twice before criticizing a fellow Christian? Do you try to get others to side with you?

Pray with Us: We give You thanks, almighty God, for nourishing us in Christ. By Your Spirit, You assure us that we belong to Your family and are heirs to Your everlasting kingdom. Help us to be encouragers to others, and not critics.

BY Eric W. Moore

Eric Moore is Professor and Chair of the Applied Theology Field at Moody Theological Seminary. Eric is graduate of Michigan State University, Dallas Theological Seminary, the University of Michigan, and Western Seminary. He is the author of Pastoring the Small Church and a contributor to the One Volume Seminary (Moody Publishers). He has pastored Tree of Life Bible Fellowship church for over two decades. Eric and his wife, Marilyn, live in southeast Michigan and have three children.