Context No. 3654 of 4322 · Job

Job 33:17-33: in context

17that he may withdraw man from his purpose, and hide pride from man. 18He keeps back his soul from the pit, and his life from perishing by the sword. 19“He is chastened also with pain on his bed, with continual strife in his bones, 20so that his life abhors bread, and his soul dainty food. 21His flesh is so consumed away that it can’t be seen. His bones that were not seen stick out. 22Yes, his soul draws near to the pit, and his life to the destroyers. 23“If there is beside him an angel, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to show to man what is right for him, 24then God is gracious to him, and says, ‘Deliver him from going down to the pit, I have found a ransom.’ 25His flesh will be fresher than a child’s. He returns to the days of his youth. 26He prays to God, and he is favorable to him, so that he sees his face with joy. He restores to man his righteousness. 27He sings before men, and says, ‘I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it didn’t profit me. 28He has redeemed my soul from going into the pit. My life will see the light.’ 29“Behold, God does all these things, twice, yes three times, with a man, 30to bring back his soul from the pit, that he may be enlightened with the light of the living. 31Mark well, Job, and listen to me. Hold your peace, and I will speak. 32If you have anything to say, answer me. Speak, for I desire to justify you. 33If not, listen to me. Hold your peace, and I will teach you wisdom.”

Elihu describes the many ways God works to save a person from destruction. He speaks through dreams in the night, and through suffering on a sickbed, all to turn a person back from pride and from the pit. God is not silent; he is at work, often through means we would not choose, to draw us back from ruin.

And then comes a remarkable picture: if there is a mediator for the person, an angel, one among a thousand, to declare what is right, then God is gracious and says, deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom. God seeks to rescue, providing a mediator and a ransom so that the soul need not perish. This anticipates the very heart of the gospel. God has found a ransom, and provided the one Mediator, Christ, who declares to us what is right and pays the price for our deliverance. Elihu, groping in the dimness of an earlier age, glimpses what would be fully revealed in Jesus: a gracious God who does not want us to perish, but has found a ransom to bring us back to life.

Do I recognize God's gracious purpose to save me, even through suffering that turns me from pride, and do I rest in the Mediator and the ransom he has provided in Christ?

Sources

Job 33:24: "Then God is gracious to him, and says, Deliver him from going down to the pit, I have found a ransom."
Job 33:29-30: "Behold, God does all these things... to bring back his soul from the pit, that he may be enlightened with the light of the living."
1 Timothy 2:6: "[Christ Jesus] who gave himself as a ransom for all."