Friday, May 29, 2026
Scripture Readings
- Primary Reading: Job 34-36
- Secondary Reading: Psalms 62
Key Verse
Job 35:7 — “If thou be righteous, what givest thou him? or what receiveth he of thine hand?”
Devotional Thought
Elihu has been speaking for some time now, and on this Friday near the end of May, his words in Job 34–36 press a question that every sufferer eventually faces: will we trust God’s justice even when we cannot trace His hand? Job has insisted on his own righteousness and complained that God has taken away his judgment. Elihu answers not by defending Job’s friends or explaining Job’s suffering, but by lifting his eyes to the character of God Himself. “Far be it from God, that he should do wickedness,” he declares. God “accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor: for they all are the work of his hands.” His eyes are on the ways of man; there is no darkness where the workers of iniquity may hide.
Then Elihu turns to something we often forget: God is not indebted to us. “If thou sinnest, what doest thou against him?… If thou be righteous, what givest thou him?” Our sin cannot wound His majesty, and our goodness cannot enrich Him. Yet He is not distant or indifferent. Elihu observes that God “giveth songs in the night” and “openeth their ear in discipline,” using even affliction as a teacher, drawing His children back from iniquity. He “delivereth the poor in his affliction.” The God of the whirlwind is not a cold accountant but a Father who sings over His own in the dark.
Psalm 62 sounds the same note from David’s pen: “Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation.” David, who knew betrayal and the lies of men who “bless with their mouth, but curse inwardly,” learned to pour out his heart before God rather than defend himself. “Trust in him at all times; ye people.” Men of low degree are vanity, men of high degree are a lie; power belongs to God, and mercy belongs to the Lord, who renders to every man according to his work.
As spring gives way to summer and the days lengthen, we may find our own seasons of waiting lengthening too — unanswered prayers, unexplained losses, a wound that seems incurable. Elihu’s counsel and David’s song meet us here: stop demanding that God explain Himself, and instead magnify His work, which every man may behold. His greatness is past finding out, but His ear is open to the cry of the afflicted. Wait on Him. He is not silent forever.
Reflection
- When you are suffering, do you find yourself demanding that God explain His ways, or are you learning to wait on Him as your rock even in the dark?
- Elihu says God “openeth their ear in discipline.” What might God be teaching you through a hard season that you could not have learned in comfort?
Prayer
O Lord, You are great, and we know You not; Your years cannot be searched out. Forgive us for the times we have multiplied words against You, insisting on our own righteousness and questioning Your justice. Teach us to wait upon You alone, for from You comes our salvation. You are our rock and our defence; we shall not be greatly moved. Open our ears in discipline, and give us songs in the night. Help us to pour out our hearts before You at all times, trusting not in riches or in men, but in Your power and Your mercy, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Psalm Verse
Psalms 62:1 — “Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation.”