The symposium, consisting of speeches by Job and by each of his three friends, tells a very different story. In the first speech, Job curses the day that he was born, insisting that life under the conditions that he must bear is not worthwhile. Because he is conscious of no wrongdoing, he sees no justice in the way he must suffer. To this speech, Eliphaz replies that righteous people do not suffer; only the wicked are tormented in this fashion. For Job to declare himself innocent is to charge Yahweh with injustice; that a man should be more just than God is unreasonable. Eliphaz argues that in God's sight, no human being is righteous. All humans have sinned, and any suffering they must endure is a just punishment for their transgressions. Bildad adds his support to what Eliphaz says by insisting that God does not pervert justice; neither does he ever act unrighteously. Zophar goes even further in his accusations against Job: Job is not being punished as much as he deserves, for Yahweh is both a just and a merciful God, and mercy always means treating a person better than that person deserves.
To each of these speeches, Job makes an effective reply. He challenges his accusers to point out any evil deed that he has committed. If he has failed simply because he is mortal, it is not his fault, for he was created that way. His conduct has been as good as that of his accusers. After the first round of speeches, the cycle is repeated, with Job again making a reply after each friend speaks. In the third cycle of speeches, only Eliphaz and Bildad speak. In Job's final reply, he makes a masterful defense of his own position, at the conclusion of which we are told, "The words of Job are ended."
The speeches of Elihu represent a further attempt to find justification for Job's affliction. Elihu admits that the arguments of the three friends have been adequately refuted by Job, but he believes he can present other ones that will show how Job has been in the wrong. He suggests that Job's suffering may be a warning so that he won't sin, and then he repeats the same arguments that the three friends made.
