Job Chapter 22
Eliphaz accuses Job of great wickedness
1 Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:
2 “Can a man bring God any benefit? No, a wise man is of no benefit to himself.
3 Does the Almighty take pleasure in your being justified, or gain anything from you making your ways perfect?
4 Does he punish you, or bring you into judgment, because of your piety?
5 Surely your wickedness is great, and your sins are endless.
6 For you have taken pledges from your brothers without cause, and stripped the naked of their garments.
7 You have not given water to the weary, and withheld bread from the hungry.
8 But the wealthy possess the land, and the distinguished dwell in it.
9 You have sent the widows away empty-handed, and the arms of the fatherless are broken.
10 Therefore, snares surround you, and sudden terror overwhelms you;
11 Or darkness, so that you cannot see, and a flood of water covers you.
12 Is not God in the height of heaven? Look at the lofty stars, how high they are!
13 And you say, “What does God know? How can he judge through the darkness?”
14 The clouds surround him, so that he cannot see; he walks on the circuit of heaven.
15 Will you go to the ancient path trod by wicked men,
16 who were cut off before their time, whose foundation was like a spilled river?
17 They said to God, “Depart from us!” And what had the Almighty done for them?
18 He had filled their houses with good things. But let their counsel be far from me!
19 The righteous will see and be glad, but the innocent will mock them, saying,
20 “ Our adversaries are destroyed, and fire has consumed what was left of them.”
21 Submit to him now, and you will have peace; and by this good will come to you.
22 Receive instruction from his mouth, and lay up his words in your heart.
23 If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored; you will remove affliction far from your tent.
24 You will have gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks.
25 The Almighty will be your defense, and you will have abundant silver.
26 For then you will delight yourself in the Almighty, and lift up your face to God.
27 You will pray to him, and he will hear you, and you will pay your vows.
28 You will also decide a thing, and it will be established for you, and light will shine on your ways.
29 When they are brought low, you will say, “There will be exaltation!” And God will save the humble of heart.
30 He will deliver the innocent, and by the cleanness of your hands they will be delivered.
Job Chapter 23
Job desires to plead his case before God
1 Then Job answered and said:
2 “ Even today I will speak bitterly, for my wound is greater than my groaning.
3 Oh, that I knew where I might find God! I would go even to his throne.
4 I would present my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments.
5 I would know what he would answer me and understand what he would say.
6 Would he contend with me in great power? No, but he would listen to me.
7 There the righteous would reason with him, and I would forever escape from my judge.
8 Behold, I go to the east, but I will not find him; to the west, but I will not perceive him.
9 Though he shows his strength to the north, I will not see him; though he hides himself to the south, I will not behold him.
10 But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
11 My feet have kept to his steps; I have kept to his way and have not turned aside.”
12 I have not departed from the commandment of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my food.
13 But he determines a thing, and who can change it? It is what his soul desires, and it is done.
14 He will accomplish what he has determined for me; and many such things are in him.
15 Therefore I am appalled in his presence; when I consider him, I am in awe of him.
16 God has made my heart faint; the Almighty has troubled me.
17 Why was I not cut off from darkness, or my face covered with gloom?
Job Chapter 24
Job complains that God is indifferent to evil.
1 Since the times are not hidden from the Almighty, why do those who know him not see his days?
2 They move boundary markers, they steal flocks and pasture them.
3 They take away the donkey of the fatherless, and take the widow’s ox as a pledge.
4 They turn the needy away from the way, and all the poor of the land hide themselves away.
5 Behold, like wild donkeys in the desert, they go out early to their work to steal; the desert is food for their children.
6 In the field they reap their pasture, and the wicked gather the grapes of another’s vineyard.
7 They make the naked lie without clothing, without a covering from the cold.
8 They are drenched by the rains of the mountains, and they embrace the rocks for lack of shelter.
9 They take the breast of the fatherless, and from the poor they take a pledge.
10 They make the naked walk without clothing, and take away the sheaves from the hungry.
11 Within their walls they press out oil, they tread the winepresses, yet they die of thirst.
12 From the city the dying groan, and the souls of the slain cry out, but God does not heed their prayer.
13 They are the ones who rebel against the light, who have never known his ways, nor walked in his paths.
14 In the light the murderer rises; he kills the poor and needy, and at night he is like a thief.
15 The eye of the adulterer waits for the night, saying, “No one will see me,” and he hides his face.
16 In the darkness they undermine the houses they marked out for themselves by day; they do not know the light.
17 For the morning is like the shadow of death to them all; if they are known, the terrors of the shadow of death overtake them.
18 They flee swiftly like a stream of water; their portion is cursed in the earth; they shall not walk in the way of the vineyards.
19 Drought and heat snatch away the snow’s waters; so does Sheol snatch away sinners.
20 Mother’s womb forgets them; worms taste them sweetly; they are never remembered again, and the wicked are broken down like a tree.
21 He afflicts the barren woman who cannot conceive, and does nothing good for the widow.
22 But he advances the strong by his power; once he rises, none of them are secure in life.
23 He gives them security and confidence; his eyes are on their ways.
24 They are exalted for a little while, but they vanish; they are brought low like all the others; they are gathered in and cut off like the heads of grain.
25 But if not, who will now deny me or reduce my words to nothing?
Job Chapter 25
Bildad denies that man can be justified before God
1 Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:
2 “Sovereignty and fear are with him; he makes peace in his high places.
3 Are his armies numbered? On whom is his light not?
4 How then can a man be righteous before God? And how can one born of woman be pure?
5 Behold, even the moon is not bright, nor are the stars pure in his sight;
6 how much less man, who is a worm, and the son of man, also a worm?”
Job Chapter 26
Job proclaims the sovereignty of God
1 Then Job answered and said:
2 “How have you helped him who has no power? How have you protected the arm without strength?
3 How have you counseled him who has no knowledge, and what fullness of understanding have you revealed?
4 To whom have you spoken words, and whose spirit proceeds from you?
5 The shades in the depths quake, the seas and all that dwells in them.
6 Sheol is exposed before him, and Abaddon has no covering.
7 He stretches out the north over empty space; he hangs the earth on nothing.
8 He binds up the waters in his clouds, and the clouds do not burst beneath them.
9 He covers the face of his throne and spreads his cloud over it.
10 He has set a limit on the surface of the waters, to the end of light and darkness.
11 The pillars of heaven quake and are terrified at his rebuke.
12 He stirs up the sea by his power, and by his understanding he strikes down its pride.
13 By his spirit he adorned the heavens; his hand fashioned the crooked serpent.
14 Behold, these are but the fringes of his ways; and how faint is the whisper we hear of him! But the thunder of his power, who can understand it?
Job Chapter 27
Job describes the punishment of the wicked
1 Then Job resumed his speech and said:
2 As surely as God lives, who has taken away my right, and the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter,
3 as long as I live, and the breath of God is in my nostrils,
4 my lips will not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit.
5 Far be it from me that I will vindicate you; till I die I will not renounce my integrity.
6 I hold fast to my righteousness and will not let it go; my heart will not reproach me all my days.
7 Let my enemy be like the wicked, and my adversary like the unrighteous.
8 For what hope is there for the wicked, though he has gained much, when God takes away his life?
9 Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him?
10 Will he delight in the Almighty? Will he call on God at all times?
11 I will teach you concerning the hand of God; I will not hide what is with the Almighty.
12 Behold, you have all seen it; why then have you become so utterly vain?
13 This is the portion of the wicked man with God, and the heritage that the violent will receive from the Almighty:
14 If his children are multiplied, they will be for the sword; and his little ones will not be satisfied with bread.
15 Those who remain of him will be buried in death, and their widows will not mourn for them.
16 Though he heaps up silver like dust, and prepares garments like clay;
17 He will have prepared them, but the righteous will be clothed, and the innocent will divide the silver.
18 He builds his house like a moth, like a tent a watchman puts up.
19 He lies down rich, but for the last time; he opens his eyes and finds nothing.
20 Terrors like floods overwhelm him; a whirlwind sweeps him away in the night.
21 The east wind lifts him up, and he is gone; a tempest snatches him from his place.
22 God will strike him down and show no mercy; he will try to escape his hand.
23 People clap their hands at him and hiss at him from their place.
Job Chapter 28
Man in search of wisdom
1 Surely silver has its mines, and gold has a place where it is refined.
2 Iron is extracted from the dust, and copper is smelted from the rock.
3 They put an end to darkness, and they examine everything thoroughly, the stones that are in darkness and in the shadow of death.
4 They dig mines far from inhabited places, in forgotten places where no foot can pass. They are suspended and tossed about, far from other men.
5 Bread comes from the earth, and beneath it is as though turned into fire.
6 There is a place whose stones are sapphire, and its dust is gold.
7 A path that no bird knows, nor the eye of the vulture sees;
8 no wild beast treads upon it, nor does a lion pass over it.
9 He laid his hand on the flint, and overturned the mountains by their roots.
10 He cut out rivers from the rocks, and his eyes beheld all that is precious.
11 He stopped the rivers at their source, and brought hidden things to light.
12 But where can wisdom be found? Where is the place of understanding?
13 Man does not know its value, nor is it found in the land of the living.
14 The deep says, “It is not in me,” and the sea says, “Nor with me.”
15 It cannot be bought with gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.
16 It cannot be valued in gold from Ophir, nor in precious onyx or sapphire.
17 Gold cannot compare with it, nor diamonds, nor can it be exchanged for ornaments of fine gold.
18 Coral and pearls are not mentioned; wisdom is better than rubies.
19 The topaz of Ethiopia cannot compare with it; it cannot be valued in fine gold.
20 Where then does wisdom come from? And where is the place of understanding?
21 For it is hidden from the eyes of all living things, and concealed from every bird of the air.
22 Abaddon and Death said, “We have heard its fame with our ears.”
23 God understands its way and knows its place.
24 For he looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
25 When he gives weight to the wind and measures the waters,
26 when he assigns a law to the rain and a path to the flash of thunder,
27 then he sees it and makes it known; he prepares it and reveals it also.
28 And he says to man, “Behold, the fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.”
Job Chapter 29
Job remembers his former faithfulness
1 Then Job resumed his speech and said:
2 “Oh, that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me,
3 when he made his lamp shine on my head, by whose light I walked in darkness;
4 as I was in the days of my youth, when the favor of God watched over my tent;
5 when the Almighty was still with me, and my children were around me;
6 when I washed my steps with milk, and the rock poured out for me rivers of oil!
7 When I went out to the gate for judgment, and had my seat prepared in the public square,
8 the young men saw me and hid themselves, and the old men rose and stood.
9 The princes restrained their words; they put their hands over their mouths.
10 The voice of the rulers was muffled, and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.
11 The ears that heard me called me blessed, and the eyes that saw me bore witness,
12 because I rescued the poor who cried out, and the fatherless who had no helper.
13 The blessing of the one about to perish came upon me, and I gave joy to the widow’s heart.
14 I clothed myself with righteousness, and it covered me; my justice was like a robe and a diadem.
15 I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame.
16 I was a father to the needy, and I sought out the cause of the one I did not understand;
17 I broke the fangs of the wicked, and made them loose their prey from their teeth.
18 I said, “I will die in my nest, and my days will be as numerous as the sand.”
19 My root was spread out by the waters, and the dew remained on my branches.
20 My glory was renewed within me, and my bow was strengthened in my hand.
21 They listened to me and waited, and were silent at my counsel.
22 They did not reply to my words, and my wisdom flowed before them.
23 They waited for me as for the rain, and opened their mouths as for the latter rain.
24 Though I laughed with them, they did not believe it; they did not let down the light of my face.
25 I judged their ways; I sat among them as their commander, and dwelt as a king over the army, as one who comforts those who mourn.
Job Chapter 30
Job laments his current misfortune
1 But now those younger than I laugh at me, whose fathers I would have disdained to put with the dogs of my flock.
2 And what good would even the strength of their hands do me? They have no strength at all.
3 Because of poverty and hunger they wandered alone; they fled to the wilderness, to a dark, desolate, and deserted place.
4 They gathered mallows among the bushes, and juniper roots to keep warm.
5 They were driven out from among the people, and everyone cried out for them as for a thief.
6 They lived in the ravines of the brooks, in the caves of the earth, and in the rocks.
7 They roared among the bushes, and gathered together under the thorn bushes.
8 Children of vile men, and men without name, lower than the very earth.
9 And now I am the object of their scorn, and I have become a proverb to them.
10 They abhor me, they shun me, and they do not even stop their spitting in my face.
11 For God has loosed his cord and afflicted me; therefore they have let loose before my face.
12 The mob rises up on my right hand; they push against my feet and prepare paths of destruction for me.
13 They make my path obstructed; they take advantage of my downfall, and there is no helper against them.
14 They come as through a wide breach; they turn against my calamity.
15 Troubles have turned against me; they fight against my honor like the wind, and my prosperity passes away like a cloud.
16 And now my soul is poured out within me; days of affliction have taken hold of me.
17 Night pierces my bones, and my gnawing pains have no rest.
18 Violence distorts my clothing; it binds me like the neck of my tunic.
19 He has thrown me into the mire, and I have become like dust and ashes.
20 I cry out to you, but you do not listen; I stand before you, but you do not hear me.
21 You have turned cruelly toward me; with the power of your hand you pursue me.
22 You lifted me up on the wind, you made me ride on it, and you dissolved my substance.
23 For I know that you are leading me to death, to the house appointed for all the living.
24 But he will not stretch out his hand against Sheol; shall the buried cry out when he breaks them?
25 Have I not wept for the afflicted? And has not my soul grieved for the needy?
26 When I looked for good, then evil came; and when I looked for light, darkness came.
27 My heart is in turmoil, and there is no rest; days of affliction have overwhelmed me.
28 I go about blackened, but not by the sun; I have risen up in the congregation, and cried out.
29 I have become a brother to jackals, and a companion to ostriches.
30 My skin has blackened and peeled away, and my bones burn with heat.
31 My harp has been turned into mourning, and my flute into the voice of wailing.
Job Chapter 31
Job affirms his integrity
1 I made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?
2 For what reward would God give me from above, and what inheritance would the Almighty from on high?
3 Is there no destruction for the wicked, and no exile for those who do iniquity?
4 Does he not see my ways and count all my steps?
5 If I have walked with falsehood, and if my foot has hastened to deceitful things,
6 let God weigh me in the balances of justice, and let him know my integrity.
7 If my steps have strayed from the path, if my heart has gone after my eyes, and if anything has clung to my hands,
8 let me sow, and another eat, and let my sowing be plucked up.
9 If my heart has been enticed by a woman, and if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 let my wife grind for another, and let others bow down to her.
11 For it is wickedness and iniquity that the judges must punish.
12 For it is a fire that would devour even to Abaddon and consume all my possessions.
13 If I had despised the right of my male and female servants when they contended with me,
14 what would I do when God arises? And when he inquires, what would I answer him?
15 Did not he who made me in the womb make him? Did not one man arrange us from the womb?
16 If I have withheld the joy of the poor or caused the eyes of the widow to fail;
17 if I have eaten my morsel alone, and the fatherless has not eaten of it
18 (for from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, and from my mother’s womb I was a guide to the widow);
19 if I have seen someone perish without clothing, or the needy without shelter;
20 If their loins did not bless me, and they were not warmed by the fleece of my sheep;
21 If I lifted up my hand against the fatherless, though I saw that they helped me at the gate;
22 If my shoulder fell from my shoulder, and the bone of my arm was broken;
23 For I feared the wrath of God, against whose majesty I had no power.
24 If I put my hope in gold, and said to gold, “You are my trust”;
25 If I rejoiced when my riches increased, and when my hand found much;
26 If I looked at the sun when it shone, or at the moon when it went beautiful,
27 If my heart was secretly enticed, and my mouth kissed my hand;
28 This too would be a wicked act judged against me, for I would have denied the sovereign God.
29 If I rejoiced at the ruin of him who hated me, and was glad when evil found him,
30 (I did not even give my tongue to sin, asking for a curse upon his soul);
31 if my servants did not say, “Who is not satisfied with his flesh?”
32 (The stranger did not spend the night outside; I opened my doors to the traveler);
33 if I concealed my transgressions like a man, hiding my iniquity in my bosom,
34 for I was afraid of the great multitude, and the contempt of the families terrified me, so I kept silent and did not go out of my door;
35 Oh, that I had someone to hear me! Behold, my confidence is that the Almighty will testify for me, though my adversary brings charges against me.
36 Surely I would carry it on my shoulder, and gird it upon me like a crown.
37 I would count the number of my steps to him, and as a prince I would stand before him.
38 If my land cries out against me, and all its furrows weep;
39 If I have eaten its produce without money, or afflicted the soul of its owners,
40 Let thistles grow for me instead of wheat, and thorns instead of barley. Here end the words of Job.
Job Chapter 32
Elihu justifies his right to answer Job
1 These three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.
2 Then Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became angry with Job; he became angry because Job justified himself rather than God.
3 He also became angry with his three friends, because they could find no answer, even though they had condemned Job.
4 Now Elihu had waited for Job in the dispute, because the others were older than he.
5 But when Elihu saw that there was no answer from the three men, he became angry.
6 Then Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite answered and said: “I am young, and you are old; therefore I was afraid and afraid to tell you my opinion.
7 I said, ‘The days will speak, and many years will declare wisdom.’
8 Surely there is a spirit in man, and the breath of the Almighty gives him understanding.”
9 Wise are not those who are old, nor do the aged understand justice.
10 Therefore I said, “Listen to me; I too will declare my wisdom.”
11 Behold, I have waited for your words; I have listened to your arguments, while you sought words.
12 I have paid attention to you, and behold, there is not one among you who can rebuke Job or answer his words.
13 So do not say, “We have found wisdom; God has overcome him, not man.”
14 Now Job has not directed his words against me, nor will I answer him with your words.
15 They were dismayed; they answered no more; their arguments failed them.
16 I, therefore, have waited, but they did not speak; rather, they were silent and answered no more.
17 Therefore I also will answer my part; I also will declare my judgment.
18 For I am full of words, and the spirit within me compels me.
19 Indeed, my heart is like wine that has no vent, and bursts like new wineskins.
20 I will speak, therefore, and breathe; I will open my lips and answer.
21 I will not show partiality now, nor will I use flattering titles with anyone.
22 For I do not know how to speak flattery; otherwise, my Maker would soon consume me.
Job Chapter 33
Elihu censures Job
1 Therefore, Job, hear my words, and listen to all my words.
2 Behold, I will now open my mouth, and my tongue will speak in my throat.
3 My words will declare the uprightness of my heart, and what my lips know they will speak in truth.
4 The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
5 Answer me if you can; arrange your words, stand up.
6 Here I am in God’s place, according to your word; I too was formed from clay.
7 Behold, my terror will not frighten you, nor will my hand be heavy upon you.
8 Surely you spoke in my hearing, and I heard the sound of your words, saying:
9 “I am clean and without blemish; I am innocent, and there is no wickedness in me.”
10 Behold, he has sought reproaches against me, and counts me as his enemy;
11 He put my feet in the stocks, and watches all my paths.
12 Behold, in this you have not spoken rightly; I will answer you that God is greater than man.
13 Why do you contend with him? For he does not give an account of any of his words.
14 Yet God speaks in one way and in another, but man does not perceive it.
15 In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, as they slumber on their beds,
16 then he opens the ears of men and instructs them in his counsel,
17 to turn man from his wicked ways and remove pride from man.
18 He keeps his soul from the pit, and his life from perishing by the sword.
19 Also on his bed he is chastened with severe pain in all his bones,
20 so that his life makes him loathe bread, and his soul loathes choice food.
21 His flesh wastes away, so that it is not seen, and his bones, which were not seen before, are revealed.
22 His soul draws near to the grave, and his life to those who cause death.
23 If there were near him an eloquent mediator, a very chosen one, to declare to man his duty;
24 Let him say to him that God had mercy on him, that He delivered him from going down to the pit, that he found redemption;
25 His flesh will be more tender than that of a child, he will return to the days of his youth.
26 He will pray to God, and God will love him, and he will see His face with joy; and He will restore to man his righteousness.
27 He looks upon men; and if he says, “I have sinned, and perverted what was right, and it profited me nothing,
” 28 God will redeem his soul from going down to the pit, and his life will see the light.
29 Behold, all these things God does two or three times with man,
30 to bring his soul back from the pit, and to give him light with the light of the living.
31 Listen, Job, and hear me; be silent, and I will speak.
32 If you have a reason, answer me; speak, for I want to justify you.
33 But if not, listen to me; be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.
Job Chapter 34
Elihu justifies God
1 Elihu also said:
2 “Hear my words, you wise men; listen to me, you learned men.
3 For the ear tests words as the palate tastes food.
4 Let us choose what is right for ourselves; let us consider what is good for ourselves.
5 For Job has said, ‘I am righteous, but God has taken away my rights. ’
6 Should I lie against my own judgment? My wound is grievous, though I have done no wrong.
7 Who is like Job, who drinks in scorn like water,
8 who keeps company with evildoers, and walks with wicked men?
9 For he has said, ‘It profits a man nothing to please God. ’
10 Therefore, you men of understanding, listen to me: Far be it from God to do wickedness, and from the Almighty to do wrong!
11 For he will repay a person according to their deeds, and reward them according to their conduct.”
12 Yes, indeed, God will not do injustice, and the Almighty will not pervert justice.
13 Who has visited the earth for him? And who has established the whole world?
14 If he were to set his heart upon man, and thus gather up his spirit and his breath,
15 all flesh would perish together, and man would return to dust.
16 If then you have understanding, hear this; listen to the voice of my words.
17 Shall he who hates justice rule? And shall you condemn him who is so righteous?
18 Shall they say of the king, ‘Wicked,’ and of princes, ‘Ungodly’?
19 How much less of him who shows no partiality to princes, nor regards the rich more than the poor, for all are the work of his hands?
20 In a moment they will die, and at midnight the peoples will be in turmoil and pass away, and without a hand the mighty will be taken away.
21 For his eyes are on the ways of man, and he sees all his steps.
22 There is no darkness or shadow of death where evildoers can hide.
23 Therefore he does not burden man with more than is right, that he should go to God for judgment.
24 He will break the strong without question, and will set others in their place.
25 Therefore he will make their works known, when he overthrows them in the night, and they are broken.
26 He will strike them down like the wicked in a place where they may be seen;
27 because they thus departed from him, and considered none of his ways,
28 Bringing the cry of the poor before him, and letting him hear the cry of the needy.
29 If he grants rest, who can disturb it? If he hides his face, who can see him? This applies to a nation as well as to a single person:
30 Let no wicked man reign, to the oppression of the people.
31 Surely it is fitting to say to God, “I have borne my punishment; I will offend no more.”
32 Teach me what I do not see; if I have done wrong, I will do it no more.
33 Is this according to your judgment? He will reward you, whether you refuse or accept, but not I. If not, tell me what you know.
34 Let discerning men say with me, and let the wise man who hears me say:
35 Job does not speak with wisdom, and his words are not with understanding.
36 I wish that Job would be thoroughly tested, because of his answers like those of wicked men.
37 For to his sin he added rebellion; he claps his hands against us, and multiplies his words against God.
Job Chapter 35
1 Elihu continued his reasoning and said:
2 “Do you think it is right to say, ‘I am more righteous than God’?
3 For you said, ‘What advantage will I have? Or what profit will I gain from not sinning?’
4 I will answer you and your companions with you.
5 Look to the heavens and see; the clouds are higher than you.
6 If you sin, what will you gain against him? If your transgressions are many, what will you do to him?
7 If you are righteous, what will you give him? Or what will he receive from your hand?
8 Your wickedness will harm a man like yourself, but your righteousness will profit a son of man.
9 They cry out because of the multitude of oppressions, and they wail because of the power of the great.
10 And no one says, “Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,
11 who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth, and makes us wiser than the birds of the air?”
12 There they cry out, but he will not hear, because of the pride of the wicked.
13 Surely God will not hear vanity, nor will the Almighty regard it.
14 How much less when you say that you pay no attention to him? The case is before him; therefore, wait for him.
15 But now, because in his anger he does not punish, nor inquire harshly,
16 therefore Job opens his mouth in vain, and multiplies words without knowledge.
Job Chapter 36
Elihu extols the greatness of God
1 Elihu added,
“2 Wait a little while, and I will show you, for I still have arguments in defense of God.
3 I will take my knowledge from afar, and I will ascribe righteousness to my Maker.
4 For my words are not false; with you is one who is blameless in his understanding.
5 Behold, God is great, yet he does not despise anyone; he is mighty in strength of wisdom.
6 He will not grant life to the wicked, but to the afflicted he will give justice.
7 He will not turn his eyes from the righteous; rather, he will set them on thrones with kings forever, and they will be exalted.
8 And if they are caught in chains, and bound with cords of affliction,
9 he will show them their deeds, and that their transgressions have prevailed.
10 He also opens their ears to instruction, and tells them to turn from their iniquity.”
11 If they listen and serve him, they will spend their days in prosperity and their years in happiness.
12 But if they do not listen, they will be put to the sword and perish without wisdom.
13 But the hypocrites in their hearts store up wrath for themselves, and they will not cry out when he binds them.
14 Their souls will die in their youth, and their lives among the sodomites.
15 He will deliver the poor from their poverty, and in their affliction he will open their ears.
16 He will also bring you out of the mouth of trouble into a spacious place, free from all distress, and he will prepare a table full of rich food for you.
17 But you have filled the judgment of the wicked, instead of upholding justice and righteousness.
18 Therefore be afraid, lest in his anger he strike you down with a blow that you cannot take away with a great ransom.
19 Does he value your riches, your gold, or all your might?
20 Do not long for the night, when nations vanish from their places.
21 Beware, do not turn to iniquity, for you chose it rather than affliction.
22 Behold, God is exalted in his power; what teacher is like him?
23 Who has prescribed his way for him? And who can say to him, “You have done wrong”?
24 Remember to magnify his work, which all men behold.
25 All men see it; man observes it from afar.
26 Behold, God is great, and we do not know him; nor can the course of his years be traced.
27 He draws up the drops of water, as the vapor becomes rain,
28 which the clouds pour down, dripping abundantly upon mankind.
29 Who can fathom the expanse of the clouds, and the roar of his dwelling?
30 Behold, he spreads his light over him, and covers the depths of the sea with it.
31 Though by these means he punishes the nations, he provides sustenance for the multitude.
32 He hides the light with the clouds, and commands it not to shine, interposing them.
33 The thunder declares his indignation, and the tempest proclaims his wrath against iniquity.
Job Chapter 37
1 Therefore my heart also trembles, and leaps from its place.
2 Listen carefully to the thunder of his voice, and the sound that comes from his mouth.
3 He directs it under all the heavens, and his light to the ends of the earth.
4 After it the sound roars, he thunders with a majestic voice; and though his voice is heard, it does not restrain them.
5 God thunders marvelously with his voice; he does great things that we cannot understand.
6 For he says to the snow, “Fall on the earth,” and to the light rain, and to the pouring downpours.
7 Thus he makes all mankind withdraw, that all mankind may know his work.
8 The beasts go into their hiding places, and remain in their lairs.
9 From the south comes the whirlwind, and the cold from the north winds.
10 By the breath of God ice is given, and the broad waters are frozen.
11 He also disperses the thick cloud with his sprinkling water, and with his light he scatters the mist.
12 Likewise, by his design the clouds swirl about, to do on the face of the world, on the earth, what he commands them.
13 Sometimes as a scourge, sometimes for the sake of his land, sometimes out of mercy he will bring them.
14 Listen to this, Job; stop and consider the wonders of God.
15 Do you know how God arranges them, and makes the light of his cloud shine?
16 Have you known the differences of the clouds, the wonders of him who is perfect in wisdom?
17 Why are your garments hot when he calms the earth with the south wind?
18 Did you stretch out the heavens with him, firm as a molten mirror?
19 Show us what we should say to him, for we cannot order our thoughts because of the darkness.
20 Must we tell him when I speak? No matter how much a man reasons, he will remain as though in a daze.
21 But now one can no longer look upon the bright light in the heavens, after the wind passes and cleanses them,
22 coming from the north, the golden brightness. In God there is a terrible majesty.
23 He is Almighty, whom we cannot reach, great in power; and in judgment and in multitude of righteousness he will not afflict.
24 Therefore men will fear him; he does not regard any who think in their own heart to be wise.
Job Chapter 38
Jehovah convinces Job of his ignorance
1 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:
2 “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
3 Now gird up your loins like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.
4 Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you have understanding.
5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched a measuring line across it?
6 On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone,
7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8 Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb,
9 when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness,
10 when I set my decree over it and set its doors and bars in place,
11 and said, ‘Thus far you may come, and no farther; here your proud waves must stay.’”
12 Have you commanded the morning in your days? Have you shown the dawn its place,
13 that it may occupy the ends of the earth, and that the wicked may be shaken out of it?
14 Its appearance is changed like clay under a seal, and it becomes as if clothed;
15 but the light is taken away from the wicked, and the upright arm is broken.
16 Have you entered into the springs of the sea, and walked in and searched the deep?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you, and have you seen the gates of the shadow of death?
18 Have you considered the breadth of the earth? Tell me if you know all this.
19 Where is the way to the dwelling of light, and where is the place of darkness,
20 that you may bring them to their limits, and understand the paths to their house?
21 You know it! For you were already born then, and the number of your days is great.
22 Have you entered the storehouses of the snow, or seen the storehouses of the hail,
23 which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of war and battle?
24 By what path is the light divided, and the east wind scattered upon the earth?
25 Who allotted a channel for the flood, and a path for the lightning and thunder,
26 to make it rain on the uninhabited land, on the desert where there is no man,
27 to satisfy the parched and barren land, and to make the tender grass spring up?
28 Does rain have a father? Or who begot the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb did ice come? And who begot the frost of heaven?
30 The waters harden like stone, and the face of the deep freezes.
31 Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades, or loose the cords of Orion?
32 Can you bring forth the constellations of heaven in their seasons, or guide out the Bear with its cubs?
33 Do you know the statutes of the heavens? Can you establish their power on earth?
34 Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, so that a flood of waters may cover you?
35 Can you send forth lightnings, so that they may go? And they will say to you, “Here we are”?
36 Who puts wisdom in the heart? Or who gives understanding to the spirit?
37 Who by wisdom numbered the heavens? Or who tilts the wineskins of the heavens,
38 when the dust has become hard, and the clods stick together?
39 Can you hunt prey for the lion? Can you satisfy the hunger of the young lions,
40 when they lie in their dens, or are in their lairs to lie in wait?
41 Who provides food for the raven, when its young cry out to God, and wander about for lack of food?
Job Chapter 39
1 Do you know when the wild goats give birth? Or have you seen the deer when they are calving?
2 Have you counted the months of their pregnancy, and know the time when they will give birth?
3 They bend down, they bring forth their young, they endure their pain.
4 Their young grow strong, they thrive on pasture; they go out, and do not return to them.
5 Who has set the wild donkey free, and who has untied its bonds?
6 I have given it a home in the wilderness, and its dwelling place in barren lands.
7 It scorns the crowd in the city; it does not listen to the voice of the drover.
8 Its pasture is the hidden part of the mountains, and it seeks out every green thing.
9 Will the wild ox serve you, or remain in your manger?
10 Can you bind the wild ox with a yoke for the furrow? Will it plow the valleys for you?
11 Will you trust him because of his great strength, and entrust him with your labor?
12 Will you trust him to gather your seed, and collect it on your threshing floor?
13 Did you give the peacock beautiful wings, or the ostrich wings and feathers?
14 It lays its eggs on the ground, and warms them in the dust,
15 forgetting that the foot may trample them, and that the wild beast may break them.
16 It is hard-hearted toward its young, as though they were not its own, not fearing that its labor may have been in vain;
17 for God has deprived it of wisdom, and has not given it understanding.
18 When it rises on high, it mocks the horse and its rider.
19 Did you give the horse its strength? Did you clothe its neck with a flowing mane?
20 Can you make it tremble like a locust? The snorting of its nostrils is dreadful.
21 He digs the ground, rejoices in his strength, and goes out to meet the weapons;
22 He laughs at terror and is not afraid, nor does he turn his face from the sword.
23 The quiver rattles against him, the iron of the spear and the javelin;
24 He paws the ground with fury and rage, heedless of the trumpet’s blast;
25 rather, he says among the trumpets, “Aha!” And from afar he smells the battle, the shout of the captains, and the uproar.
26 Does the hawk fly by your wisdom, and spread its wings toward the south?
27 Does the eagle soar at your command, and make its nest on high?
28 It dwells and resides on the rock, on the summit of the crag and the cliff.
29 From there it stalks its prey; its eyes observe from afar.
30 Its young ones suck blood; and where there are carcasses, there it is.
Job Chapter 40
1 Then the Lord answered Job, saying,
2 “Is it wise to contend with the Almighty? Let him who argues with God answer this.”
3 So Job answered the Lord, saying,
4 “ Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand over my mouth.
5 Once I have spoken, but I will not answer; twice, but I will not speak again.” Manifestations of God’s Power
6 The Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, saying,
7 “Gird up your loins like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.
8 Will you also nullify my judgment? Will you condemn me, that you may justify yourself?
9 Do you have an arm like God’s? And can you thunder with a voice like his?
10 Now adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and clothe yourself with glory and beauty.
11 Pour out the heat of your anger; look upon all who are proud, and bring them low.
12 Look at all the proud and humble them, and crush the wicked in their place.
13 Cover them all in the dust, hide their faces in darkness;
14 and I will also acknowledge to you that your right hand can save you.
15 Look at Behemoth, which I made just like you; it eats grass like an ox.
16 Look at its strength in its loins, and its power in the muscles of its belly.
17 Its tail sways like a cedar, and the sinews of its thighs are tightly knit together.
18 Its bones are as strong as bronze, and its limbs like bars of iron.
19 It is the beginning of the ways of God; its Maker can draw his sword near it.
20 Surely the mountains yield grass for it, and all the beasts of the field play there.
21 It lies down under the shade, in the secret places of the reeds and wetlands.
22 The shady trees cover him with their shade; the willows of the brook surround him.
23 Behold, the river bursts forth, yet he is not disturbed; he remains calm, though the whole Jordan crashes against his mouth.
24 Can one seize him while he is awake, and pierce his nose?
Job Chapter 41
1 Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook, or with a line you lower into its tongue?
2 Can you put a rope through its nose, or pierce its jaw with a hook?
3 Will it make many supplications to you? Will it speak flattering words to you?
4 Will it make a covenant with you, that you may take it as your servant forever?
5 Will you play with it as with a bird, or will you tie it up for your maidens?
6 Will its companions make a feast of it? Will they divide it among the merchants?
7 Can you cut its skin with a sword, or its head with a fisherman’s harpoon?
8 Lay your hand on it; you will remember the battle, but you will not return.
9 Behold, the hope of it will be mocked; at the very sight of it, people will faint.
10 There is no one bold enough to rouse it; who then can stand before me?
11 Who has given to me first, that I should repay? Everything under heaven is mine.
12 I will not keep silent about his limbs, nor about his strength and the grace of his form.
13 Who can uncover the front of his garment? Who can approach him with his double bridle?
14 Who can open the doors of his face? The rows of his teeth are terrifying.
15 The glory of his garments is strong shields, tightly closed together.
16 They are joined to one another, so that no air can enter between them.
17 They stick together; they are locked together, so that they cannot separate.
18 With his sneezing he kindles fire, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.
19 From his mouth go torches of fire; sparks of fire go forth.
20 From his nostrils comes smoke, like from a boiling pot or cauldron.
21 His breath kindles coals, and a flame flashes from his mouth.
22 Strength is in his neck, but trouble goes before him.
23 The weak parts of his flesh are hardened; they are firm and cannot move.
24 His heart is as firm as a rock, as hard as a millstone.
25 The strong fear his greatness, and because of his weakness they strive to purify themselves.
26 When one strikes him, neither sword, nor spear, nor dart, nor breastplate will endure.
27 He regards iron as chaff, and bronze as rotten wood.
28 An arrow cannot make him flee; sling stones are like chaff to him.
29 He considers all weapons as chaff, and he scoffs at the wielding of the javelin.
30 Under his arms are sharp shells; he imprints his sharpness on the ground.
31 He makes the deep boil like a pot, and turns it like a pot of ointment.
32 He makes the path behind him shine, so that the deep seems white.
33 There is nothing on earth like him, a creature made without fear.
34 He despises all that is high; he is king over all the proud.
Job Chapter 42
Job's Confession and Justification
1 Then Job answered the Lord and said:
2 “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
3 ‘Who is this that obscures counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
4 ‘ Listen, I pray, and I will speak; I will question you, and you will answer me.
’ 5 My ears had heard of you, but now my eyes see you.
6 Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.”
7 After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My anger is kindled against you and your two companions, because you have not spoken about me what is right, as my servant Job has.
8 Now then, take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer a burnt offering for yourselves, and my servant Job will pray for you. For I will surely listen to him, so that I will not treat you with disgrace, because you have not spoken of me uprightly, as my servant Job has.
9 So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the Lord had told them; and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer. Restoration of Job’s Prosperity
Restoration of Job's Prosperity
10 And the Lord restored Job’s fortunes when he had prayed for his friends, and the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.
11 Then all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before came to him and ate bread with him in his house. They comforted him and consoled him concerning all the adversity that the Lord had brought upon him, and each of them gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.
12 The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand donkeys.
13 He also had seven sons and three daughters.
14 He named the first daughter Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch.
15 Nowhere in all the land were there women as beautiful as Job’s daughters, and their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers.
16 After this, Job lived 140 years and saw his children and their children to the fourth generation.
17 So Job died, an old man and full of days.