and he burned with anger against Job’s three friends because they had failed to refute Job, and yet had condemned him.
Parallel translations
- WEB Also his wrath was kindled against his three friends, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job.
- KJV Also against his three friends was his wrath kindled, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job.
- NKJV Also against his three friends his wrath was aroused, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job.
- NASB And his anger burned against his three friends because they had found no answer, yet they had condemned Job.
- NLT He was also angry with Job’s three friends, for they made God appear to be wrong by their inability to answer Job’s arguments.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Elihu is also angry at the three friends because they had condemned Job without finding a real answer. He faults them for failing to refute Job rightly.
Overview
Elihu's wrath extends to the three friends, whom he blames for declaring Job guilty while being unable to supply a sound argument. They had condemned without truly answering, which Elihu sees as a failure to honor the truth. This even-handed critique shows Elihu positioning himself above the flawed reasoning of both sides, though he too will fall short of God's own answer, which alone resolves the matter.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Job 8:6if you are pure and upright, even now He will rouse Himself on your behalf and restore your righteous estate.
- Job 24:25If this is not so, then who can prove me a liar and reduce my words to nothing?”
- Job 22:5–30Is not your wickedness great? Are not your iniquities endless?
- Acts 24:5We have found this man to be a pestilence, stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes,
- Job 32:1So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.
- Acts 24:13Nor can they prove to you any of their charges against me.
- Job 25:2–6“Dominion and awe belong to God; He establishes harmony in the heights of heaven.
- Job 15:34For the company of the godless will be barren, and fire will consume the tents of bribery.
- Job 26:2–4“How you have helped the powerless and saved the arm that is feeble!
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Job's cry for a mediator who can lay his hand on both God and man, and his confidence that 'my Redeemer lives' and will stand on the earth, reaches forward to Jesus the living Redeemer.
How Job 32:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.