to put (used in a great variety of applications · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
man
אִ֭ישׁ'ish
H376
a man as an individual or a male person · noun, common masculine singular absolute
enter
לַהֲלֹ֥ךְla.ha.Lokh
H1980
to walk (in a great variety of applications · preposition + verb, qal infinitive construct
judgment
בַּמִּשְׁפָּֽטba.mish.Pat
H4941
properly · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
God
אֵ֝֗ל'El
H410
strength · noun, common masculine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Ezra 9:13 And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our i…
Psalms 119:137 Righteous art thou, O LORD, and upright are thy judgments.
Daniel 9:7-9 O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Je…
Romans 9:20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Job 9:32-33 For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment.
Job 11:6 And that he would shew thee the secrets of wisdom, that they are double to that which is! Know therefore that God exacteth of thee less than…
Job 11:11 For he knoweth vain men: he seeth wickedness also; will he not then consider it?
Job 16:21 O that one might plead for a man with God, as a man pleadeth for his neighbour!
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Job 34:16-30
Elihu here addresses himself more directly to Job. He had spoken to the rest (Job 34:10) as men of understanding; now, speaking to Job; he puts an if upon his understanding: If thou hast understanding, hear this and observe it, Job 34:16.
I. Hear this, That God is not to be quarrelled with for any thing that he does. It is daring presumption to arraign and condemn God's proceedings, as Job had done by his discontents. It was, 1. As absurd as it would be to advance one to power that is a professed enemy to justice: Shall even he that hates right govern? Job 34:17. The righteous Lord so loves righteousness that, in comparison with him, even Job himself, though a perfect and upright man, might…
(Co1 10:13; Lam 3:32; Isa 27:8). Better, as UMBREIT, "He does not (needs not to) regard (as in Job 34:14; Isa 41:20) man long (so Hebrew, Gen 46:29) in order that he may go (be brought by God) into judgment." Literally, "lest his (attention) upon men" (Job 11:10-11). So Job 34:24, "without number" ought to be translated, "without [needing any] searching out," such as has to be made in human judgments.
Adam Clarke on Job 34:23
For he will not lay upon man - The meaning appears to be this: He will not call man a second time into judgment; he does not try a cause twice; his decisions are just, and his sentence without appeal. Mr. Good translates: -
"Behold, not to man hath he intrusted the time
Of coming into judgment with God."
Man's time is not in his own hand; nor is his lot cast or ruled by his own wisdom and power. When God thinks best, he will judge for him; and, if oppressed or calumniated, he will bring forth his righteousness as the light, and do him justice on his adversaries.
John Gill on Job 34:23
For he will not lay upon man more than right,.... Neither in a way of duty, his law being holy, just, and good, not any of his commandments grievous, but all his precepts concerning all things right, his yoke easy and his burden light; nor in a way of punishment, always punishing then less than their iniquities deserve; nor in a way of chastisement, suffering nothing to befall his people but what is common to men; and he is faithful to bear them up under it and through it, and to make a way to escape out of it: or the phrase, "than right", being a supplement, may be left out, and the words be connected with what follows,
that he should enter into judgment with God; and the sense is, either…
The Church Fathers
"For he has not appointed a time for anyone to go before God in judgment," that is, recognize the power of God and do not consider him as a man, and do not desire to be with him in judgment, as he brings afflictions to many criminals as their punishment but makes the righteous prosper and increase instead of them.
For it is no longer in the power of man to come near to God for judgment. This verse requires the greater discussion, the more painful is that which it speaks of, if it is neglected. Here doubtless that judgment is not designated which punishes by eternal retribution, but that which, conceived by the mind, cleanses through our conversation [al. 'conversion.']. For whoever is afraid of being condemned by the first of these does not desire to approach near it. By its being said then, For it is no longer in the power of man to come near to God for judgment, it is pointed out at once that there is a kind of judgment, which is at last desired even by the damned and reprobate. And what is that, but this of which Paul the Apostle speaks, For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged? [l Cor. 11, 31] and of which it is said by the Prophet, There is no judgment in their goings, [Is. 59, 8] and of which David says, The honour of a king loveth judgment, [Ps 99, 4] namely, that he who now knows God by Faith, should carefully judge what he owes Him in his works. Whence it is written again, Be judged before the Lord, and wait for Him. [Job 35, 14] He in truth is judged before the Lord, who beholds the Lord in his heart, and examines into his conduct with anxious enquiry, beneath His presence. For a man waits for Him the more confidently, the more he daily examines his life with suspicion. For he, who comes to His final judgment, is no longer judged before Him, but by Him. Of this judgment also the Lord speaks by the Prophet to the forgetful soul, Put Me in remembrance, that we may plead together; tell me, if thou hast any thing, that thou mayest be justified. [Is. 43, 26] For the mind of every one ought anxiously to enquire into its pleas before God, and the pleas of God against itself. It should weigh carefully either what good things it has received from Him, or what an ill return it has made for His goodness by wicked living. And this the Elect never cease to do day by day. Whence Solomon well says, The thoughts of the righteous are judgments. [Prov. l2, 5] For they, approach the secret chambers of the Judge, in the recesses of their own heart; they consider how sharply He smites at last, Who long patiently bears with them. They are afraid for the sins which they remember they have committed; and they punish by their tears the faults which they know they…
21 For His eyes are upon the ways of each one,
And He seeth all his steps.
22 There is no darkness nor shadow of death
Wherein the workers of iniquity might hide themselves.
23 For He needeth not long to regard a man
That he may enter into judgment with God.
As the preceding strophe showed that God's creative order excludes all partiality, so this strophe shows that His omniscience qualifies Him to be an impartial judge. He sees everything, nothing can escape His gaze; He sees through man without being obliged to wait for the result of a judicial investigation. שׂים with על does not here signify: to lay upon (Saad., Gecat.), but as Job 37:15, and as with אל (Job 34:14) or בּ (Job 23:6); to d…
We don’t set the time: Elihu rejected Job’s wish for a quick (21:19), published time of judgment (24:1).
Rashi on Job 34:23
For He will not place additional [guilt] on a man That is to say: You said (23:6), ‘He will not place upon me anything but my sins,’ only my sins alone, and I reply to you that the Holy One, blessed be He, will not place on His creatures additional accusations over their transgression. [The word] עוד is an expression of addition.
to go to God in judgment When He comes upon His creatures to debate with them.
