הֲזֹאת חָשַׁבְתָּ לְמִשְׁפָּט. שֶׁהוּא מִשְׁפַּט הַבְּרִיּוֹת כְּנֶגֶד יוֹצְרָם, אֲשֶׁר אָמַרְתָּ צִדְקִי מִשֶּׁל הַבּוֹרֵא:

Elihu’s Address Do you consider this to be customary that this is the custom of the creatures toward their Creator, what you said—‘My righteousness is greater than that of the Creator’?

That you say, ‘What will it benefit you ways of uprightness,

and what profit will I have more than if I had sinned?’

and your companions with you who remained silent at your words.

Gaze at the heavens And since He is high and you are low, and He has no benefit from your wickedness and righteousness, why do you boast to Him about your righteousness?

a man like yourself your wickedness or your righteousness can and will benefit. Observe [that there are] many wicked men. who,...

Because of the many oppressed ones whom they oppress, they [the wicked] cause the creatures to cry out before Him, and the poor cry for help from the arm of those who oppress them.

And he did not say The wicked man [did not say]

‘Where is God, my Maker?’ to fear Him.

Who deals destruction Heb. זמירות like (Lev. 25:4), “nor prune (תזמר) your vineyard,” for He cuts off the wicked at night, e.g., Amraphel and his allies, Egypt, and Sennacherib.

Who teaches us He teaches us more wisdom than [He does] the beasts; i.e., He esteemed us and made us greater than the beasts and the birds.

There they cry out And see that there the poor cry out because of the pride of those who oppress them, and He does not answer, for...

Indeed, God will not hear vanity immediately.

neither will the Almighty see it to avenge it immediately, but He is longsuffering.

Surely you who say Surely you, whose cry comes only because of Him, and you say and cry that you do not see Him to debate with Him. That is to say that those who complain and cry, He does not hasten to answer, yet you cry that you do not see Him?

present your case before Him (Your arguments—absent in some editions) wherever He is.

and wait And hope for consolations.

And now you should know that this visitation [of His Wrath upon you is nothing according [compared] to your many iniquities.

and He did not know because of the great multiplicity Because of your many sins, the Creator acted as though He did not know them.

of the...multiplicity Heb. בפש, an expression of multiplicity, like (Malachi 3:20), “and be fat (ופשתם),” and like (Jer. 50:11), “as you become fat (תפושו)”; (Lev. 13:51), “that the mark has spread (פשה).”

he increases Heb. כביר, an expression meaning, exceedingly.