The Tanakh Podcast

Iyov has been asking for an audience with God.Now God appears.But rather than answers, he merely poses questions!What is going on?

Elihu's final words. In Elihu's view, just as you don't know how to predict the weather, you will never fully comprehend God.

Iyov's 4th Speech. Until now, we have seen suffering as a result of past actions. The question has been whether Iyov is guilty or innocent. But now, Elihu adjusts our perspective. Can we see suffering as future oriented?

This is Elihu's 3rd Speech. His essential argument is that God is transcendent; consequently Iyov cannot expect that God is directly manipulating and punishing him. In the course of time, justice is done. In the meantime, most people suffer the consequences of their own actions.

Elihu's 2nd Speech addresses Iyov's claim that if: a.Iyov is just, an b. Iyov is suffering, then c. God must be unjust. Elihu is outraged that Iyov is accusing God, and he gives his own approach.

Elihu's first speech explains the theory of "yissurin shel ahava" - corrective, or educational suffering.

Iyov has said his piece. The three "friends" are out of words. Enter Elihu! A young man who has sat listening to each of the arguments. He is angry. He is besides himself. He cannot hold his words inside. With great irony, in this chapter, Elihu just talks about talking, but in fact says very little. See the chart of the instances of the word "milah" in Tanakh here: https://mg.alhatorah.org/Graph/4405

In this chapter we see Iyov's plea for the defense where he lists all his virtues and appeals to God to explain why he has deserved his punishment and torture.

Yesterday, Iyov - in his closing argument - reflected on his glory days; today we hear about his fall from grace, his derision and humiliation at the hands of the lowest in society, and we hear of his physical pain.

Iyov reminsces about a time in which he had prestige, wealth, family, and he devoted his life to justice. In this podcast we focus on the phrase "I clothed myself in righteousness and it robed me" and we speak about a thorough integrated personality in which the inner self is fully expressed.