Job 37 "MY HEART TREMBLES" As Elihu's monologue continues and concludes in chapter 37, he is personally affected by what he has already said, and even more opens up to his mind by the Holy Spirit as he continues to look up to God. Light in millions of volts comes from the sky as God directs His creation like a maestro conducts his orchestra. God has even put light in the depths of the sea in certain fish He created. Some in the deep ocean give off flashes of light and others have phosphorescent light the absorbs light. Light in the absolute darkness beneath the surface of the water has to come from the Source of light Himself. He is the One who with His hands directs the lightning. With His voice He speaks with majestic sound that creates trembling in the bravest of men when it breaks beside them.
There is no power even in lightning, thunder and storm that can be compared to the power of the Almighty God, Creator of heaven and earth. Even though Elihu said the words, he was afraid of the impact of his own knowledge of God. There is a danger of presuming to speak for God and take Him for granted. We dare not presume to put words in His mouth, and take for granted what we think He says. He is His own interpreter. He makes known to us what He wants us to know. That is why we have the Bible which is the word of God to us. How presumptuous and rude it is for us to think we know what God meant to say but didn't. Elihu is suitably impressed with his own limitations, and his attention goes higher than Job and his friends, and higher than his own impetuous words. He was a youthful thinker who thought, because he was articulate, he was wise.
Finally, he concentrates on God Himself rather than on what he thought he knew about God. In this frame of mind and reference to the voice of God in thunder, lightning and storm, he puts into poetic words the marvels of science. In one little part of the greatness of God's creation, he is awestruck by thoughts of God Himself the Creator. The little speck we know as earth in as compared with the sun, stars and galaxies that form the starry heavens in space seemed very insignificant.
And yet God meticulously arranged in His creative plan, for water to vaporize until it is lighter than air and can rise by multitudes of tons into the atmosphere where it remains unseen until, in God's plan small drops of vapor come together to for drops of rain. As rain it comes back down to earth as gentle rain or as a downpour as He decides is best for the time and place. He makes ice crystals that are a miracle of scientific beauty that defies man's imagination. Those crystals are each different and yet each flake of snow is a form of singular and unique beauty. By the choice of the Designer they come to earth at appropriate times by the millions of tons, released at the appointed season. Animals know when to go into dens and hibernate because the Creator-God placed in them that instinct that comes at certain times of the year.
As Elihu elucidated on some of those things that were observable reflections of the mighty power of God, he is moved to determine that there is more than one reason God does those things. He uses the evidence of creation both in order and disorder to correct the wrong-doing of sinful people. He also maintains the fruitfulness of the land that has no intelligent response to give God except to give back to Him for our use, the benefits of its fullness. Then because of the awesome display of power, He reveals to us His mercy. He keeps the power He has, in His divine control lest everything be destroyed if such power is unrestrained.
If the clouds were not above us, we would quickly be cooked. If the seasons did not change, the earth would not bring forth the bounty hidden beneath its surface and we would starve to death. If the waters fell from the sky without His control, everything would be smashed to bits under its weight. In this remarkable poem, Elihu calls upon Job, and we hope on himself, to "Stand still... consider... learn."
The use of questions in teaching, is often the best way students learn. They deal with our preconceived notions in the light of reality. They make us face that which we have tried to avoid. Questions make us more aware of what we do not know, rather than what we know or think we know. Against the background of the "wonderful works of God," which are way beyond our comprehension, we face our puny limitations with our own questions, ""What is man that Thou art mindful of Him? Who are we anyway and why are we here?" How could we every have the arrogant face to debate God?
Elihu touched on only one small evidence of divine authority and power when he spoke of God's power in the sky. God's order and the infinity of His Person are seen in the unfolding of the universe of the starry heavens. We become very conscious of His unparalleled wisdom in the things that we cannot see but know they are real. Atoms, DNA, the intricacies of the human body, animal life and plant life are so astounding in their symmetry, function and purposeful design that we can only grasp a little of the divine order God put in everything. All that we see around us, above us and beneath us declare the glory of God and testify openly of the One we call "Father." It is reasonable and understandable to believe that there is an Eternal God who is the Father of eternity and has "All power in heaven and in earth." It is unreasonable and illogical to think that all we observe and cannot see but is real, came from nothing.
The more we learn and know about our God and His marvelous works, the more we realize what we do not know. Poetry and science seem to us to be far apart. When we have poetic science like we read in Job, we are amazed to think of all that was known in the ancient past by men guided by the Holy Spirit, that is only recently been "discovered" by present day scientists. The more Elihu had to say about God, the more impacting was his message on himself and others then as well as on us today. When we honor, reverence and give God the respect due to His holy name, we become inclined to say less and think more. It is in such times God is able to reveal to us more than we ever thought of. Consciousness of the presence of God is overwhelming to us and we find ourselves awestruck in worship, adoration, praise and grateful thanks to Him.
Elihu makes a powerful conclusion to his speech by pointing to the great truth that faith is far more important than seeking to understand God and His ways with us. Job wanted an explanation from God, and Elihu came very close to helping him in this before he finished speaking. Too bad he made a final statement that said, "He hath no regard for the wise in heart." We need to think carefully when we speak to God and speak to others about God. Godly fear is important in any communication we have with our gracious Father. To speak to Him carelessly or casually is not right. We should not speak to him even as we speak to our fathers in the flesh. Our heavenly Father is "the Almighty." His greatness surpasses human thought. The impact of His glory makes the earth tremble and heavens roar.
Our intimacy with Him as our Father, is not that of the casualness we are used to in communicating with human beings. We do marvel at the grace of God, and rightly so. We do tremble at the greatness of His power, and rightly so. We are humbled at the mercy of God and rightly so. May we never take anything about God and what He does, for granted. May we never lose the sense of awe that is associated with His name and Person as the Lord God of hosts, our Lord Jesus Christ. May we always be moved to worship when the name and work of divine Persons comes to our minds and hearts. May our awe of Him never be lost.