((re: Elihu: Alter holds a particularly dim view of Elihu, stating, “At this point, in the original text, the Lord would have spoken out from the whirlwind, but a lapse in judgment by an ancient editor postponed that brilliant consummation for six chapters in which the tediuous Elihu os allowed to hold forth.” \parencite[460]{alter}))
+Interpolations
+Allow a small diversion.
+It is important to reckon with two interpolations within the text that appear to be later additions, and it would be nice to address these before coming to the text that they interrupt.
+The first interpolation is that of a poem that comprises the entirety of chapter 28. The poem takes the form of a Hymn to Wisdom that Alter describes as “a fine poem in its own right, but one that expresses a pious view of wisdom as fear of the Lord that could scarcely be that of Job”. \parencite[458]{alter}
+The NOAB, however, suggests an additional interpretation of the Hymn to Wisdom, which is that it may have originally been the conclusion of Elihu’s speech. For evidence, they mention that this topic, the elevation of wisdom, feels familiar to those chapters of Elihu’s, wherein the youngster harps on the topic of wisdom and knowledge at length. Additionally, the editors note the similarity in the final verse of the Hymn, “And he said to humankind, “Truly the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding”” (Job 28:28, NRSV) closely echoes Elihu’s final words as they stand: “Therefore mortals fear him; he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit.” (Job 37:24, NRSV)
+Indeed, the second of these interpolations is Elihu’s speech — and, indeed, the entire character of Elihu, who is never mentioned outside his own chapters — in chapters 32–37.
+Alter holds a particularly dim view of Elihu, stating, “At this point, in the original text, the Lord would have spoken out from the whirlwind, but a lapse in judgment by an ancient editor postponed that brilliant consummation for six chapters in which the tedious Elihu is allowed to hold forth.” \parencite[460]{alter}