Job 35:7

If you look at the heavens and contemplate the clouds, you will understand that you sinned. And what do you need to do? It is necessary that you approach the high priest and implore him to offer a victim for you. "If any one does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the expiation of our sins." If you will do this, you will dissolve your numerous sins. And for those irremediable sins from which we cannot be cured, Jesus Christ came from heaven to cure what was irremediable, and so that it might happen that "blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven and whose sins are covered."

These words mean, you will do no wrong to him, and you will not be more useful to him by being righteous. In fact, he said, "If I have sinned, what shall I be able to do?" What shall I do to you? Elihu says, Why did you say that? Does God care about the fact that you sinned, as if he is the victim of an injustice or as if he is suffering damage?

Look unto the heaven, and see, and behold the sky, that it is higher than thou. If thou hast sinned, what wilt thou hurt Him? If thine iniquities have been multiplied, what wilt thou do against Him? If, moreover, thou hast acted justly, what wilt thou give Him, or what will He receive of thy hand?

Although these words ought not to have been said to blessed Job, who knew greater truths, yet the things, which are said, are true, namely, that neither do our sins hurt God, nor our good deeds assist Him. Whence he followed, and added, (ver. 8.) Thine iniquity will hurt a man that is like thee, and thy righteousness will profit the son of man. But amongst these things we must carefully notice that which he says, Look into the heavens, and see, and behold the sky, that it is higher than thou. For from speaking in this way he doubtless signifies, that Job should consider, how much less he could either benefit, or injure, God by his conduct, since he could neither benefit, nor injure, the loftiness of the heaven, or of the sky. For although we can understand by the heaven, or the sky, the heavenly powers, who are ever steadily gazing on the sight of the Godhead, (in order that, when we behold that the angelic spirits are still far distant from us, we may acknowledge how far we are distant below, from the Creator and Lord of spirits Himself,) yet nothing prevents our understanding by them in this place the material substance of heaven and sky. For if we look attentively at outward things, we are recalled by their very means to inward things. For the wonderful works of the visible creation, are the footsteps of our Creator. For we cannot as yet behold Him Himself; but we are yet tending to a sight of Him, if we admire Him in these things which He has made. We call, therefore, the creation His footsteps, because we journey onwards towards Him by-following up those things which proceed from Him. Whence Paul says, The invisible things of Him are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead. [Rom. 1, 20] Whence also it is written in the Book of Wisdom, For by the greatness and beauty of the creatures the Maker of them can be intelligently seen. [Wisd. 13, 5] For to our mind, which is through sin scattered abroad, God is not as yet made known within, as He really is. But while He sets before us from without the beauty of His creation, He gives us, as it were, certain hints, and shews what to follow within. He leads us on wonderfully by these same outward forms to inward things, He intimates with boundless admiration what He is, by shewing us these marvels without, which are not Himself. For hence it is written of Wisdom, She sheweth herself cheerfully unto them in the ways, and meeteth them in all forethought. [Wisd. 6, 16]

For the works of the creation are, when considered, ways to the Creator. For when we see these things, which are made, we admire the power of their Maker. In these ways we are met by Wisdom, with all forethought, because the power of our Maker is set before us, to be enquired into, in every thing, which appears to have been wonderfully wrought. And wherever the soul turns itself, if it looks attentively, it finds God in the very same objects, through which it forsook Him; and again acknowledges His power, from a consideration of those objects, for the love of which it abandoned Him. And it is recalled, when converted, by those things, by which, when perverted, it fell. For we make efforts to rise on the very spot where we fell, and in rising, we place, as it were, the hand of consideration on the spot, where, falling with the foot of slippery love, we were lying prostrate through neglect. But because we have, by visible things, fallen from invisible, it is right that we should again strive, by visible things, to reach invisible; in order that what was to the soul a fall to the bottom, may be a step in turn to the summit, and that it may rise by the same paces by which it fell: while, as was before said, those objects, rightly considered, recal us to God, which, when improperly chosen, separated us from Him. Eliu, therefore, in order to apply the force of consideration, and to shew from bodily objects, how far higher is God than man, well observed, Look unto the heaven, and see, and behold the sky, that it is higher than thou. For we learn from these created and corporeal objects, how far we are distant from the loftiness of our Creator: because, by every thing which we behold, we are warned to be humble; in order that the beauty of the creature, when considered, may be, as it were, a kind of lesson to our mind. Let him say then, Look unto the heaven, and see, and behold the sky, that it is higher than thou. If thou hast sinned, in what wilt thou hurt Him? If thine iniquities have been multiplied, what wilt thou do against Him? If, moreover, thou hast acted justly, what wilt thou give Him, or what will He receive of thy hand? As if he were saying, Understand from the very creatures, which thou seest by thy bodily senses, to be higher than thyself, how far thou art removed from the loftiness of the Divine Power, and conclude, from this thy consideration, that thou canst neither benefit God by thy good living, nor, again, injure Him by thy evil deeds.

But if, as we before said, we understand the superior Powers by 'heaven,' or the 'sky,' Eliu, in these words, warns us to consider, that, because the angelic spirits themselves cannot fully contemplate the power of our Creator, (though it is certain that they are higher than ourselves, as not having fallen into the lowest depths,) we should hence infer, how far we are inferior to God, who are beneath even those sublime creatures, who are yet far His inferiors. As if he were to say, Lo ! how widely thou art separated from the loftiness of the Godhead, from Whose might even those powers shrink in their humility, who surpass thee with immeasurable loftiness; and how far inferior thou art to the Most High, who discernest that thou art inferior to those, who are inferior to Him. But, by pointing out the highest objects, he brings to an equality...

He begins from what he had said last, showing that God cannot be helped or harmed by our good and evil works, and this is so because of his high character. So he says, "If you sin," against yourself or God, "what harm will you do him?" as if to say: He will suffer no detriment from this. As to the sins which are committed against one's neighbor, he then says, "and if your iniquities are multiplied," by which you unjustly wound your neighbors, "what will you do against him?" as if to say: In no way will he be injured by this. As to the goods which are done to one's neighbor, he then says, "Further, if you act justly", giving what is due to your neighbor, "what will you give to him?" as if to say: What will he gain from this. As to the works of divine worship, he says, "Or what will he receive from your hand", in sacrifices and oblations? He implies the answer is, "Nothing", as Psalm 49 says, "I will not accept calves from your house."