Job’s Character and Greatness

1 There was a man in the land of Uz whose[fn] name was Job. That[fn] man was blameless and upright and God-fearing and turning away from evil. 2 And seven sons and three daughters were born to him. 3 Then[fn] his livestock came to be seven thousand sheep and goats and three thousand camels and five hundred pairs[fn] of oxen and five hundred female donkeys, and he had very many slaves, and that man was greater than all the people of the east. 4 And his sons used to go and hold a feast at each other’s house[fn] on his day, and they would send, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and to drink with them. 5 Then when[fn] the days of the feast had run their course, Job would send,[fn] and he would sanctify them. Thus[fn] he would arise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of all of them, because Job thought,[fn] “Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed[fn] God in their heart.” This is what Job used to do all the time.[fn]

6 And it happened one day[fn] that[fn] the sons of God[fn] came to present themselves before Yahweh, and Satan[fn] also came into their midst.

7 So[fn] Yahweh said to Satan,[fn] “From where have you come?” Then[fn] Satan[fn] answered Yahweh and said, “From roaming on the earth and from walking about in it.”

8 So[fn] Yahweh said to Satan,[fn] “Have you considered[fn] my servant Job? Indeed,[fn] there is no one like him on the earth—a blameless man and upright and God-fearing and turning away from evil.”

9 Then[fn] Satan[fn] answered Yahweh and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Have you[fn] not put a fence around him and his household and around all that belongs to him[fn] on every side?[fn] You have blessed the work of his hands, and his livestock[fn] has increased in the land. 11 But,[fn] on the other hand, stretch out[fn] your hand and touch all that belongs to him[fn] and see whether[fn] he will curse[fn] you to your face.”

12 So[fn] Yahweh said to Satan,[fn] “Look, all that belongs to him[fn] is in your power.[fn] Only do not stretch out your hand against[fn] him.” So[fn] Satan[fn] went out from Yahweh’s presence.[fn]

The Adversary’s Attack on Job’s Possessions

13 And then there was one day when[fn] his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their firstborn brother’s house. 14 And a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing, and the female donkeys were feeding beside them.[fn] 15 Then[fn] the Sabeans attacked,[fn] and they took them, and they slew the servants by the edge of the sword.[fn] But[fn] I escaped, even I alone, to tell you.”

16 While this one was still speaking, another[fn] came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens, and it blazed up against the sheep and goats and against the servants, and it consumed them. But I escaped, even I alone, to tell you.”

17 While this one was still speaking, another[fn] came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three divisions, and they made a raid on the camels, and they carried them away, and they struck your servants by the edge of the sword,[fn] but I escaped, even I alone, to tell you.”

18 At the time[fn] this one was speaking, another[fn] came and said, “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their firstborn brother’s house. 19 And behold,[fn] a great wind came from across the desert, and it struck the four corners of the house so that[fn] it fell upon the young people, and they died. But I escaped, even I alone, to tell you.”

20 Then[fn] Job arose and tore his outer garment[fn] and shaved his head; then[fn] he fell upon the ground and he worshiped. 21 Then[fn] he said, “Naked I came out from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return there. Yahweh gives, and Yahweh takes. Let Yahweh’s name be blessed.” 22 In all this, Job did not sin and did not charge God with wrongdoing.[fn]

The Adversary’s Attack on Job’s Person

2 And then[fn] one day the sons of God[fn] came to present themselves before Yahweh, and Satan[fn] also came into their midst to present himself before Yahweh.

2 So[fn] Yahweh asked[fn] Satan,[fn] “From where have you come?” And Satan[fn] answered Yahweh and said, “From roaming on the earth and from walking about in it.”

3 So[fn] Yahweh asked[fn] Satan,[fn] “Have you considered[fn] my servant Job? Indeed,[fn] there is no one like him on the earth—a blameless man and upright and God-fearing and turning away from evil. And still he persists in his blamelessness even though[fn] you incited me against him to destroy him for nothing.”

4 Then[fn] Satan[fn] answered him and said, “Skin for skin! All that that[fn] man has he will give for his life. 5 But stretch out[fn] your hand and touch his bones and his flesh, and see whether[fn] he will curse[fn] you to your face.”[fn]

6 So[fn] Yahweh said to Satan,[fn] “All right,[fn] he is in your power.[fn] Only spare his life.”

Job’s Blameless Behavior

7 So[fn] Satan[fn] went out from Yahweh’s presence,[fn] and he inflicted Job with loathsome skin sores from the sole of his foot up to the crown of his head. 8 So[fn] he took for himself a potsherd with which to scrape himself, and he sat in the midst of the ashes.

9 Then[fn] his wife said to him, “Are you still persisting in your blamelessness? Curse[fn] God and die.”

10 So[fn] he said to her, “You speak like one of the foolish women speaks. Indeed, should we receive the good from God, but[fn] not receive the evil?” In all this, Job did not sin with his lips.

11 Thus[fn] Job’s three friends heard of this calamity that had come upon him. So[fn] each set out from his own place: Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite. And they met[fn] together to come to console him and to comfort him.

12 Thus[fn] they lifted up their eyes[fn] from afar, but[fn] they did not recognize him, so[fn] they raised their voice, and they wept, and each man tore his outer garment[fn] and threw dust on their heads toward the sky.[fn] 13 Then[fn] they sat with him on the ground for seven days and seven nights, but[fn] no one spoke[fn] a word to him because they saw that his[fn] suffering was very great.

Job Regrets His Birth

3 Afterward[fn] Job opened his mouth and cursed[fn] his day. 2 Thus[fn] Job spoke up[fn] and said,

• 3 “Let the day perish on which I was born, and the night that said, ‘A man-child is conceived.’
• 4 Let that day become[fn] darkness; may God not seek it from above,
• nor may daylight shine on it.
• 5 Let darkness and deep shadow claim it; let clouds[fn] settle on it;
• let them[fn] terrify it with the blackness[fn] of day.
• 6 Let darkness seize that night;[fn] let it not rejoice among the days of the year;
• let it not enter among the number of the months.
• 7 Look, let that night become[fn] barren; let a joyful song not enter it.
• 8 Let those who curse the day curse it, those who are skilled at rousing Leviathan.
• 9 Let the stars of its dawn be dark; let it hope for light but[fn] there be none,
• and let it not see the eyelids of dawn
• 10 because it did not shut the doors of my mother’s womb, nor[fn] did it hide trouble from my eyes.

Job Wishes He Had Died

• 11 “Why did I not die at[fn] birth? Why did I not come forth from the womb and expire?
• 12 Why did the knees receive me and the breasts, that I could suck?
• 13 For now I would lie down, and I would be at peace; I would be asleep; then I would be at rest[fn]
• 14 with kings and counselors of the earth, who rebuild[fn] ruins for themselves,
• 15 or with high officials who have gold ,[fn] who fill up their houses with silver.
• 16 Or why was I not hidden like a miscarriage, like infants who did not see the light?
• 17 There the wicked cease from troubling, and there the weary[fn] are at rest;
• 18 the prisoners are at ease together; they do not hear the oppressor’s voice.
• 19 The small and the great are there, and the slave is free from his masters.[fn]

Job Wishes He Might Die

• 20 “Why does he[fn] give light to one in misery and life to those bitter of soul,
• 21 who wait for death, but[fn] it does not come ,[fn] and search[fn] for it more than for treasures,
• 22 who rejoice exceedingly ,[fn] and they are glad when they find the grave?
• 23 Why does he to a man whose way is hidden, and God has fenced him in all around?
• 24 For[fn] my sighing comes before[fn] my bread,[fn] and my groanings gush forth like water
• 25 because the dread that I feel[fn] has come upon me, and what I feared befalls me.
• 26 I am not at ease, and I am not at peace, and I do not have rest, thus[fn] turmoil has come.”

Eliphaz’s First Response to Job

4 Then[fn] Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,

• 2 “If someone would test a word with you, would you be offended? But[fn] who can refrain from speaking?
• 3 Look, you have instructed many, and you have strengthened weak hands.
• 4 Your words have raised up the one who stumbles, and you have strengthened knees giving way.
• 5 But now it has come to you, and you are worn out; it touches you, and you are horrified.
• 6 Is not your fear in God your confidence? Is not your hope even[fn] the integrity of your ways?
• 7 “Think[fn] now, who has perished who is innocent? Or[fn] where are the upright destroyed?
• 8 Just as I have seen, plowers of mischief and sowers of trouble will reap it.
• 9 By[fn] the breath of God they perish, and by[fn] the blast of his anger they come to an end.
• 10 The roar of the lion and the voice of a lion in its prime, and the teeth of the young lions are broken.
• 11 The lion is perishing without[fn] prey, and the lion’s whelps are scattered.
• 12 “And a word came stealing to me, and my ear received the whisper from it.
• 13 Amid troubling thoughts from night visions, at the falling of deep sleep on men,
• 14 dread met me, and trembling, and it made many of my bones shake.
• 15 And a spirit glided before my face; the hair of my flesh[fn] bristled.
• 16 It stood still, but[fn] I could not recognize its appearance; a form was before[fn] my eyes;
• there was a hush, and I heard a voice:
• 17 ‘Can a human being be more righteous than God, or can a man be more pure than his Maker?
• 18 Look, he does not trust in his servants and he charges his angels with error.
• 19 How much more dwellers in clay houses, whose foundation is in the dust?
• They are crushed like a moth.
• 20 Between morning and evening[fn] they are destroyed; without anyone regarding it they perish forever.
• 21 Is not their tent cord pulled up within them? They die, but[fn] not in[fn] wisdom.’

Eliphaz’s Response Continues

• And to which of the holy ones will you turn?
• 2 For vexation will slay the fool, and jealousy will kill the simple.
• 3 I have seen a fool taking root, but[fn] suddenly I cursed his dwelling.
• 4 His children are far from deliverance, and they are crushed in the gate,
• and there is no deliverer—
• 5 whose harvest the hungry eats, and he takes it from behind[fn] the thorns;
• and the thirsty pants after their wealth.
• 6 Indeed,[fn] mischief does not come from the dust, and trouble does not sprout from the earth.
• 7 But a human being is born to trouble, and they soar aloft[fn] like sparks .[fn]
• 8 “But I myself[fn] will seek God, and to God I would commit my cause.
• 9 He is doing great and unsearchable[fn] things, marvelous things without number[fn]—
• 10 the one who is giving rain on the surface of[fn] the earth and is sending water on the surface of[fn] the fields,
• 11 to set the lowly on high, and those mourning are lifted to safety.
• 12 He is frustrating the devices of the crafty, and their hands do not achieve success.
• 13 He is capturing the wise in their craftiness, and the schemes of the wily are rushed.
• 14 In the daytime they meet with darkness, and they grope at noon[fn] as in the night.
• 15 And[fn] he saves from the sword of[fn] their mouth, even[fn] the poor from the hand of the strong.
• 16 So[fn] there is hope[fn] for the powerless, and wickedness shuts its mouth.
• 17 “Look, happy is the human being whom God reproves; and you must not despise the discipline of Shaddai,
• 18 for he himself[fn] wounds, but[fn] he binds up; he strikes, but[fn] his hands heal.
• 19 From[fn] six troubles he will deliver you, and in seven evil shall not touch you.
• 20 In famine he will redeem you from death, and in war from the power of[fn] the sword.
• 21 From the scourge of the tongue you shall be hidden, and you shall not be afraid of[fn] destruction when it comes.
• 22 At destruction and famine[fn] you shall laugh, and you shall not fear the wild animals of the earth.
• 23 For your covenant will be with the stones of the field, and the wild animals[fn] of the field will be at peace with you.
• 24 And you shall know that your tent is safe, and you will inspect your fold, and you shall not be missing anything.
• 25 And you shall know that your offspring are many, and your descendants like the vegetation of the earth.
• 26 You shall come in maturity to the grave, as the raising up of a stack of sheaves in its season.
• 27 “Look, we have searched this out—it is true; hear it and know it yourself .”[fn]

Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

6  Then[fn] Job answered and said,

• 2 “If only my vexation could be well weighed, and my calamity could be lifted up together with it in the balances,
• 3 for then it would be heavier than the sand of the seas; therefore my words have been rash,
• 4 for the arrows of Shaddai are in me; my spirit drinks their poison;
• the terrors of God are arrayed against me.
• 5 Does the wild ass bray over grass, or the ox bellow over its fodder?
• 6 Can tasteless food be eaten without[fn] salt, or is there taste in the white of a marshmallow plant?
• 7 I refused[fn] to touch them; they are like food that will make me ill .[fn]
• 8 “ O that[fn] my request may come, and that God may grant my hope,
• 9 that[fn] God would decide that[fn] he would crush me, that he would let loose his hand and kill me .[fn]
• 10 But[fn] it will still be my consolation, and I would recoil in unrelenting[fn] pain,
• for I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
• 11 What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that I should hold out ?[fn]
• 12 Or is my strength like the strength of stones? Or is my flesh bronze?
• 13 Indeed ,[fn] my help is not in me, and any success is driven from me.
• 14 “Loyal love[fn] should come for the afflicted from his friend, even if[fn] he forsakes the fear of Shaddai.
• 15 My companions are treacherous like a torrent-bed; like a streambed of wadis[fn] they flow away,
• 16 which are growing dark because of ice upon them, it will pile up snow.
• 17 In time they dry up, they disappear; when it is hot, they vanish from their place.
• 18 The paths of their way wind around; they go up into the wasteland, and they perish.
• 19 The caravans of Tema looked; the traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them.
• 20 They are disappointed, because they trusted; they came here[fn] and they are confounded.
• 21 “For now you[fn] have become such ;[fn] you see terrors, and you fear.
• 22 Is it because I have said, ‘Give to me,’ or,[fn] ‘Offer a bribe for me from your wealth’?
• 23 or,[fn] ‘Save me from the foe’s hand,’ or,[fn] ‘Ransom me from the tyrants’ hand’?
• 24 Teach me, and I myself[fn] will be silent; and make me understand how I have gone astray.
• 25 How painful are upright words ![fn] But[fn] what does your reproof[fn] reprove?
• 26 Do you intend to reprove my words[fn] and consider the words of a desperate man as wind?
• 27 Even over the orphan you would cast the lot, and you would bargain over your friend.
• 28 “ Therefore[fn] be prepared, turn to me, and I surely will not lie to your face.[fn]
• 29 Please turn, let no injustice happen; indeed,[fn] turn, my righteousness is still intact .[fn]
• 30 Is there injustice on my tongue? Or can my palate not discern calamity?[fn]

Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

• And are not his[fn] days like the days of a laborer?
• 2 Like a slave he longs for the shadow, and like a laborer he waits for his wages.
• 3 So I had to inherit[fn] months of worthlessness, and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
• 4 When I lie down, I say,[fn] ‘When shall I rise?’ But[fn] the night is long,
• and I have my fill of tossing until dawn.
• 5 My body is clothed with maggots and clods of dust; my skin hardens, then[fn] it gives way again.
• 6 “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and they come to an end without hope .[fn]
• 7 Remember that my life is a breath; my eye will not return to see good.
• 8 The eye of the one seeing me will not see me; your eyes are upon me, but[fn] I will be gone.[fn]
• 9 A cloud vanishes, and it goes away, so he who goes down to Sheol will not come up.
• 10 He does not return again to his house, and his place does not recognize him again.
• 11 “Even[fn] I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in my spirit’s anguish;
• I will complain in my inner self’s[fn] bitterness.
• 12 Am I the sea, or a sea monster, that you set a guard over me?
• 13 When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me, and my couch[fn] will ease my complaint,’
• 14 then[fn] you terrify me with dreams,[fn] and with visions you terrify[fn] me.
• 15 So[fn] my inner self[fn] will choose[fn] strangling— death more than my existence .[fn]
• 16 I loathe my life; I would not live forever; depart from me, for my days are a breath.
• 17 “What is a human being that you make him great and that you fix your mind on him ,[fn]
• 18 so that[fn] you visit him every morning ,[fn] you test him every moment ?[fn]
• 19 How long[fn] will you not turn away from me? Or not leave me alone until I swallow[fn] my spit?
• 20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you, watcher of humanity? Why have you made me as a target for yourself,
• so that[fn] I have become a burden to myself?[fn]
• 21 And why do you not pardon my transgression and take away my guilt?
• For now I shall lie in the dust,
• and you will seek me, but[fn] I will be no more .”[fn]

Bildad’s First Response to Job

8 Then[fn] Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,[fn]

• 2 “How long[fn] will you say these things, and the words of your mouth be a mighty wind?
• 3 Does God pervert justice, or[fn] Shaddai pervert righteousness?
• 4 If your children sinned against him, then[fn] he sent them into the power[fn] of their transgression.
• 5 If you yourself[fn] would seek God, then[fn] you would plead to Shaddai for grace.
• 6 If you are pure and upright, indeed,[fn] now he will rouse himself for you,
• and he will restore your righteous abode.
• 7 Though[fn] your beginning was small, your end[fn] will be very great.
• 8 “Indeed,[fn] please inquire of former generations, and consider what their ancestors have found ,[fn]
• 9 for we are of yesterday, and we do not know, for our days on earth are a shadow.
• 10 Will they themselves[fn] not teach you and tell you[fn] and utter[fn] words from their heart?
• 11 Can papyrus grow tall where there is not a marsh? Will reeds flourish without water?[fn]
• 12 While it is in its flower and is not plucked, yet[fn] it withers before[fn] all grass.
• 13 So are the paths of all who forget God; and the hope of the godless will perish,
• 14 whose confidence is cut off and whose trust[fn] is a spider’s house.
• 15 He will lean himself against his house, but[fn] it will not stand; he will take hold of it, but[fn] it will not endure.
• 16 He is thriving[fn] before[fn] the sun, and his plant shoots spread over his garden.
• 17 His roots twine over a stone heap; he sees a house of stone.
• 18 If he destroys him from his place, then[fn] it deceives him, saying, ‘I have never seen you.’
• 19 Look, this is the joy of his way, and from dust others will spring up.
• 20 “Look, God will not reject the blameless, and he will not uphold the hand of evildoers.
• 21 Yet he will fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with a shout of joy.
• 22 Those who hate you will be clothed with shame, and the tent of the wicked will be no more .”[fn]

Job’s Third Speech: A Response to Bildad

9 Then[fn] Job answered and said,

• 2 “Truly I know that it is so, but[fn] how can a human being be just before God?
• 3 If he wants to contend with him, he cannot answer him one time in a thousand.
• 4 He is wise in[fn] heart and mighty in[fn] strength; who has resisted him and succeeded?[fn]
• 5 “He is the one who moves mountains, and they do not know how, who overturns them in his anger.
• 6 He is the one who shakes the earth from its place, and its pillars tremble.
• 7 He is the one who commands the sun, and it does not rise, and he seals up the stars .[fn]
• 8 He is the one who alone stretches out the heavens and who tramples on the waves of the sea.
• 9 He is the one who made the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.
• 10 He is the one who does great things beyond understanding[fn] and marvelous things beyond number .[fn]
• 11 “ If[fn] he passes by me, I would not see him ;[fn] and if he should move on, I would not recognize him .[fn]
• 12 If[fn] he would snatch away, who could turn him? Who could say to him, ‘What are you doing?’
• 13 God will not turn back his anger; beneath him the helpers of Rahab bow.
• 14 How much less[fn] can I myself[fn] answer him? How can I choose my words with him,
• 15 whom I cannot answer, even though I am righteous? From[fn] my judge I must implore grace.
• 16 If I summon him, and he should answer me, I do not believe that he will listen to my voice—
• 17 who crushes me with a tempest and multiplies[fn] my wounds without cause.
• 18 He will not allow me to catch[fn] my breath; rather, he will fill me with bitterness.
• 19 If it is a matter of[fn] strength, look, he is mighty. But[fn] if it is a matter of[fn] justice, who can summon me?[fn]
• 20 Even though I am righteous, my mouth will condemn me; even though I am blameless, yet[fn] it would pronounce me guilty.
• 21 “I am blameless; I do not care about myself;[fn] I loathe my life.
• 22 It is all one; therefore I say, ‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’
• 23 When the whip[fn] kills suddenly, he mocks at the despair of the innocent.
• 24 The earth is given into the hand of the wicked; he covers the face of its judge—
• if it is not he, then who is it?
• 25 “And my days are swifter than a runner; they flee away; they do not see good.
• 26 They go by like papyrus skiffs, like an eagle swoops down on its prey.
• 27 Though[fn] I say ,[fn] ‘I will forget my complaint; I will change my expression, and I will rejoice,’
• 28 I become afraid of all my sufferings; I know that you do not consider me innocent.
• 29 If I shall be declared guilty, why then should I labor in vain?
• 30 If I wash myself with soap,[fn] and I cleanse my hands with lye,
• 31 then you plunge me into the slime pit, and my clothes abhor me.
• 32 “For[fn] he is not a mortal like me that I can answer him, that we can come to trial together .[fn]
• 33 There is no arbiter between us that he might lay his hand on both of us.
• 34 May he remove his rod from me, and let his dread not terrify me;
• 35 then I would speak and not fear him,[fn] for in myself I am not fearful .[fn]

Job Continues His Response to Bildad

• I want to give vent to my complaint;[fn]
• I want to speak out of the bitterness of my inner self.[fn]
• 2 I will say to God, ‘You should not condemn me; let me know why you contend against me.
• 3 Is it good for you that you oppress, that you despise the labor of your hands,
• and you smile over the schemes of the wicked?
• 4 Do you have eyes of flesh ?[fn] Or do you see as human beings see ?[fn]
• 5 Are your days as the days of human beings, or your years as the days of man,
• 6 that you seek out my iniquity, and you search for my sin
• 7 because of your knowledge that I am not guilty, and there is no escaping from your hand?
• 8 Your hands fashioned me and made me[fn] altogether ,[fn] then[fn] you destroyed me.
• 9 Please[fn] remember that you made me like clay, but[fn] you turn me into dust again?
• 10 Did you not pour me out like milk and curdle me[fn] like cheese?
• 11 You clothed me with skin and flesh, and you knit me together with bones and sinews.
• 12 You have granted me life and loyal love, and your care has preserved my spirit.
• 13 “ ‘Yet[fn] you hid these things in your heart; I know that this was your purpose .[fn]
• 14 If I had sinned, then[fn] you would be watching me, and you would not acquit me of my guilt.
• 15 If I am guilty, woe to me! But[fn] if I am righteous, I dare not lift my head;
• I am filled with shame, and just look at my misery!
• 16 And if my head grows bold, you would hunt me as the lion in its prime; and you repeat your exploits against me .[fn]
• 17 You renew your witnesses against me, and you increase your vexation against me;
• relief forces[fn] are against me.
• 18 So[fn] why did you bring me forth from the womb? I should have passed away, and no eye should have seen me .[fn]
• 19 I should have been as though I had not been; I should have been brought from the womb to the grave.
• 20 Are not my days few? Let him leave me alone; let him turn from me, and let me rejoice a little.
• 21 Before I go—and I will not return— to the land of darkness and deep shadow,
• 22 to the land of darkness, like the darkness of a deep shadow and chaos ,[fn]
• so that[fn] it shines forth like darkness.’ ”

Zophar’s First Response to Job

11 Then[fn] Zophar the Naamathite answered and said,

• 2 “Should an abundance of words go unanswered, or a man full of talk[fn] be vindicated?[fn]
• 3 Should your loose talk put people to silence? And when you mock, shall no one put you to shame ?[fn]
• 4 For you say, ‘My teaching is pure, and I am clean in your sight.’
• 5 But,[fn] O that[fn] God might speak, and that he would open his lips to you,
• 6 and that he would tell you the secrets of wisdom, for insight has many sides .[fn]
• And know that God on your behalf[fn] has forgotten some of[fn] your guilt.
• 7 “Can you find out the essence of God, or can you find out the ultimate limits[fn] of Shaddai?
• 8 It is higher than the heaven ;[fn] what can you do? It is deeper than Sheol; what can you know?
• 9 Its measure is longer than the earth and broader than the sea.
• 10 “If he passes through and imprisons someone[fn] and summons the assembly ,[fn] then[fn] who can hinder him?
• 11 For he knows those who are worthless ;[fn] when he sees[fn] iniquity, he will not consider it .[fn]
• 12 But[fn] an empty-headed person[fn] will get understanding when[fn] a wild donkey’s colt is born as a human being.
• 13 “If you yourself[fn] direct your heart and stretch out your hands to him—
• 14 if iniquity[fn] is in your hand, put it far away, and you must not let wickedness reside in your tents—
• 15 surely then you will lift up your face without[fn] blemish, and you will be firmly established and will not fear.[fn]
• 16 For you yourself[fn] will forget your misery; you will remember it as water that has flowed past.
• 17 “ And your life will be brighter than noon ;[fn] its darkness will be like the morning.
• 18 And you will have confidence because there is hope; and you will be well protected— you will sleep in safety .[fn]
• 19 And you will lie down, and no one will make you afraid ;[fn] and many will entreat your favor .[fn]
• 20 But[fn] the eyes of the wicked will fail; and refuge will be lost to them,
• and their hope is to breathe their last breath .”[fn]

Job’s Fourth Speech

12  Then[fn] Job answered and said,

• 2 “Truly indeed you[fn] are the people, and wisdom will die with you.[fn]
• 3 I also have insight[fn] like you;[fn] I am not more inferior than you.[fn]
• And who does not know things like these ?[fn]
• 4 I am a laughingstock to my friends:[fn] ‘ He calls on God, and he answers him.’
• A righteous, blameless man is a laughingstock.
• 5 Those at ease have contempt[fn] for the thought of disaster ,[fn] but it is ready for those unstable of foot.
• 6 The tents of the destroyers are at peace, and there is security for those who provoke God,
• for those whom God brings into his hand.[fn]
• 7 “But[fn] ask[fn] the animals, and they will teach you, and the birds of the heaven, and they will tell you;
• 8 or ask the earth, and it will teach you, and the fishes of the sea will declare to you.
• 9 Who among all of these does not know that Yahweh’s hand has done this?
• 10 In whose hand is the life of all living things and the breath of every human being ?[fn]
• 11 Does not the ear test words and the palate taste food for itself?
• 12 Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding is in length of days.
• 13 “With him are wisdom and powerful deeds, and to him belong counsel and understanding.
• 14 If he tears down, then[fn] it will not be rebuilt; if he shuts a man in, then[fn] he cannot be freed.
• 15 Look, if he withholds the water,[fn] then[fn] they dry up; and if he sends them out, then[fn] they overwhelm the land.
• 16 “Strength and sound wisdom are with him; the deceived and the deceiver are his.[fn]
• 17 He leads counselors away stripped, and he makes fools of judges.
• 18 He loosens the fetters of kings, and he binds a loincloth on their loins.
• 19 He leads priests away stripped, and he overthrows the members of ancient families .[fn]
• 20 He deprives the trustworthy of speech, and he takes away the discretion of elders.
• 21 He pours contempt on noblemen, and he loosens the girdle of the mighty.
• 22 “He uncovers mysteries out of darkness, and he brings deep shadow to the light.
• 23 He makes the nations great, then[fn] he destroys them; he expands the nations, then[fn] he guides them.
• 24 He strips away the insight of the heads of the earth’s people, and he makes them wander in a pathless wasteland .[fn]
• 25 They grope in the dark without[fn] light, and he makes them stagger like a[fn] drunkard.

Job’s Fourth Speech Continues

• my ear has heard and has understood it.
• 2 What you[fn] know ,[fn] I myself[fn] also know— I am not more inferior than you.[fn]
• 3 But I would speak to Shaddai, and I desire to argue with God.
• 4 “But[fn] you[fn] whitewash with lies ;[fn] all of you[fn] are worthless healers .[fn]
• 5 O that[fn] you[fn] would keep completely silent, and that it would become wisdom for you.[fn]
• 6 Please hear my argument, and listen attentively to the pleadings of my lips.
• 7 “Will you[fn] speak falsely for God? And will you[fn] speak deceitfully for him?
• 8 Will you[fn] show partiality for him ?[fn] Or do you[fn] want to plead God’s case?
• 9 Will it be well, if he examines you?[fn] Or can you[fn] deceive him like deceiving a human being?
• 10 “Surely he will rebuke you[fn] if you[fn] show partiality[fn] in secret.
• 11 Will not his majesty terrify you,[fn] and his dread fall upon you?[fn]
• 12 Your[fn] maxims are proverbs of ashes; your[fn] defenses are defenses of clay.
• 13 “ Let me have silence ,[fn] and I myself[fn] will speak, and let come over me whatever may.
• 14 Why should I take my flesh in my teeth and[fn] put[fn] my life in my hand?
• 15 Look,[fn] though he kill me, I will hope in[fn] him; however, I will defend my ways before him .[fn]
• 16 Moreover, this is salvation to me, that the godless would not come before him .[fn]
• 17 “Listen carefully to my words, and let my exposition be in your ears.
• 18 Please look,[fn] I have prepared my case; I know that I myself[fn] will be vindicated.
• 19 Who is he who will contend with me? For then I would be silent, and I would pass away.

Job Argues His Case with God

• 20 “Only you[fn] must not do these two things to me; then I will not hide from your face:
• 21 withdraw your[fn] hand from me, and let not your[fn] dread terrify me.
• 22 Then[fn] call, and I myself[fn] will answer; or let me speak, then[fn] reply to me.
• 23 “ How many[fn] are my iniquities and sins? Make known to me my transgression and my sin.
• 24 Why do you[fn] hide your[fn] face and count me as your[fn] enemy?
• 25 Will you[fn] terrify a blown leaf? And will you[fn] pursue dry stubble?
• 26 “Indeed, you[fn] write bitter things against me, and you[fn] make me reap the iniquities of my childhood.
• 27 And you[fn] put my feet in the block, and you[fn] watch all my paths;
• you carve a mark on the soles of my feet.[fn]
• 28 And he himself[fn]wastes away like something rotten, like a garment that the moth has eaten.

Job Continues to Argue His Case with God

• is short of days and full of troubles.[fn]
• 2 Like a flower he comes up, and he withers away; and he flees like a[fn] shadow, but[fn] he does not last.
• 3 Even on such a one you fix your eyes, and you bring me into judgment with you.
• 4 “Who can bring a clean thing from an unclean thing? No one![fn]
• 5 If his days are determined, the number of his months is with you; you have appointed his boundaries, and he cannot cross them.
• 6 Look away from him, and let him desist until he enjoys his days like a laborer.
• 7 “Indeed, there is hope for a tree: if it is cut down, then[fn] it will sprout again,
• and its new shoots will not cease;
• 8 though its root grows old in the earth, and its stump dies in the dust,
• 9 at[fn] the scent of water it will bud, and it will put forth branches like a young plant.
• 10 “But[fn] a man dies, and he dwindles away; thus[fn] a human being passes away, and where is he?[fn]
• 11 As water disappears from a lake, and a river withers away and dries up,[fn]
• 12 so[fn] a man lies down, and he does not arise. Until the heavens are no more ,[fn] they will not awaken,
• and they will not be roused out of their sleep.
• 13 “ O that[fn] you would conceal me in Sheol, that you would hide me until your wrath is past ,[fn]
• that you would appoint a set time for me and remember me.
• 14 If a man dies, will he live again? All the days of my compulsory service I will wait,
• until the coming of my relief.
• 15 You would call, and I myself[fn] would answer you; you would long for the work of your hand.
• 16 For then[fn] you would count my steps, but you would not keep watch over my sin.
• 17 My transgression would be sealed in a bag, and you would cover over my guilt.
• 18 “But[fn] a mountain falls; it crumbles away, and a rock moves away from its place.
• 19 Water wears away stones; its torrents wash away the soil of the earth;
• so[fn] you destroy the hope of human beings.
• 20 You overpower him forever, and he passes away; you change his countenance ,[fn] then[fn] you send him away.
• 21 His children may come to honor, but[fn] he does not know it; or[fn] they may become lowly, but[fn] he does not realize it.[fn]
• 22 He feels only the pain of his own body,[fn] and his inner self[fn] mourns for him.”[fn]

Eliphaz’s Second Response to Job

15 Then[fn] Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,

• 2 “Should the wise answer with windy knowledge, and should he fill his stomach with the east wind?
• 3 Should he argue in talk that is not profitable or in words with which he cannot do good?
• 4 “ What is worse ,[fn] you yourself[fn] are doing away with fear, and you are lessening meditation before[fn] God.
• 5 For your iniquity teaches your mouth, and you choose the tongue of the crafty.
• 6 Your mouth condemns you, and not I; and your lips testify against you.
• 7 “Were you born the firstborn of the human race? And were you brought forth before[fn] the hills?
• 8 Have you listened in God’s confidential discussion? And do you limit wisdom to yourself?
• 9 What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not clear to us?
• 10 Both the gray-haired and the old are among us— those older than your father .[fn]
• 11 “Are the consolations of God too small for you, a word spoken gently with you?
• 12 Why does your heart carry you away? And why do your eyes flash,
• 13 that you turn your spirit against God, and you let such words go out of your mouth?
• 14 “What is a human being, that he can be clean, or[fn] that one born of a woman can be righteous?
• 15 Look, he does not trust his holy ones, and the heavens are not clean in his eyes.
• 16 How much less[fn] he who is abominable and corrupt,[fn] a man drinking wickedness like water.
• 17 “I will show you, listen to me; and what I have seen, I will tell[fn]—
• 18 what wise men have told, and they have not hidden that which is from their ancestors,
• 19 to whom alone[fn] the land was given, and no stranger passed through their midst.
• 20 “All of the wicked one’s days he is writhing, even[fn] through the number of years that are laid up for the tyrant.
• 21 Sounds of terror are in his ears; in prosperity the destroyer will come against him.
• 22 He cannot trust that he will return[fn] from darkness, and he himself[fn] is destined for the sword.
• 23 “He is wandering for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’ He knows that a day of darkness is ready at hand .[fn]
• 24 Anguish and distress terrify him; they[fn] overpower him like a king ready for the battle.
• 25 Because he stretched out his hand against God, and he was arrogant to Shaddai;
• 26 he stubbornly[fn] runs against him with his thick-bossed shield .[fn]
• 27 “Because he has covered his face with his fat and has gathered fat upon his loins,
• 28 he will dwell[fn] in desolate cities, in houses that they should not inhabit,
• which are destined for rubble.
• 29 He will not become rich, and his wealth will not endure, and their possessions will not stretch across the earth.[fn]
• 30 “He will not escape from darkness; a flame will dry up his new shoot,
• and by the wind of his mouth he shall be removed.
• 31 Let him not trust in emptiness—he will be deceiving himself— for worthlessness will be his recompense.
• 32 It will be paid in full before his time ,[fn] and his branch will not flourish.
• 33 “He will shake off his unripe fruit like the vine, and he will cast off his blossom like the olive tree;
• 34 for the company of the godless is barren, and fire consumes the tents of those who accept bribes.
• 35 They conceive trouble and bring forth mischief, and their womb prepares deceit.”

Job’s Fifth Speech

• 2 “I have heard many things like these; all of you are miserable comforters .[fn]
• 3 Is there a limit to windy words? What provokes you that you answer?
• 4 I myself[fn] also could talk as you, if you were in my place ;[fn]
• I could join against you with words,
• and I could shake at you with my head.
• 5 I could[fn] encourage you with my mouth, and the solace of my lips would[fn] ease the pain.
• 6 If I speak, my pain is not relieved; and if I cease, how much will leave me?
• 7 “Surely now he has worn me out; you[fn] have devastated all my company.
• 8 Thus[fn] you shriveled me up;[fn] it became a witness.
• And my leanness has risen up against me;
• it testifies to my face.
• 9 His wrath has torn, and he has been hostile toward me; he gnashed at me with his teeth.
• My foe sharpens his eyes against me.
• 10 They gaped at me with their mouth; they struck my cheeks with disgrace;
• they have massed themselves together against me.
• 11 God delivers me to an evil one, and he casts me into the hands of the wicked.
• 12 “I was at ease, then[fn] he broke me in two, and he seized me by my neck;
• then[fn] he shattered me
• and set me up as a target for him.
• 13 His archers surround me; he slashes open my kidneys, and he does not have compassion;
• he pours out my gall on the ground.
• 14 He breached me breach upon breach ;[fn] he rushes at me like a warrior.
• 15 “I have sewed sackcloth on my skin, and I have inserted my pride[fn] in the dust.
• 16 My face is red because of weeping, and deep shadows are on my eyelids,
• 17 although[fn] violence is not on my hands, and my prayer is pure.
• 18 “O earth, you should not cover my blood, and let there be no place[fn] for my cry for help.
• 19 So now look, my witness is in the heavens, and he who vouches for me is in the heights.
• 20 My friends scorn me; my eye pours out tears to God,
• 21 and it argues[fn] for a mortal with God, and as a human[fn] for his friend.
• 22 Indeed, after a few years[fn] have come, then[fn] I will go the way from which I will not return.

Job’s Fifth Speech, Continued

• the graveyard is for me.
• 2 Surely[fn] mockery is with me, and my eye rests[fn] on their provocation.
• 3 Please lay down a pledge for me with yourself; who is he who will give security for my hand?[fn]
• 4 Indeed,[fn] you have closed their mind from understanding; therefore, you will not let them triumph.
• 5 He denounces friends for reward, so[fn] his children’s eyes will fail.
• 6 “And he has made me a proverb for[fn] the peoples, and I am one before whom people spit .[fn]
• 7 And my eye has grown dim from grief, and the limbs of my body are all[fn] like a shadow.
• 8 The upright are appalled at this, and the innocent excites himself over the godless.
• 9 But[fn] the righteous holds on to his way, and he who has clean hands[fn] increases in strength.
• 10 But[fn] all of you must return[fn]— please come ![fn] But[fn] I shall not find a wise person among you.
• 11 “My days are past; my plans are broken down— even the desires of my heart.
• 12 They make night into day, saying, ‘Light is near to darkness .’[fn]
• 13 If I hope for Sheol as my house, if I spread my couch in the darkness,
• 14 if I call to the pit, ‘You are my father,’ to the maggot, ‘ You are my mother or[fn] my sister,’
• 15 where[fn] then is my hope? And who will see my hope ?[fn]
• 16 Will they go down to the bars of Sheol? Or shall we descend together into the dust?”

Bildad’s Second Speech

18 Then[fn] Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,

• 2 “How long[fn] will you[fn] hunt for words?[fn] Consider,[fn] and afterward we shall speak.
• 3 Why are we considered as animals? Why are we taken as[fn] stupid in your[fn] eyes?
• 4 “You who are tearing yourself[fn] in your[fn] anger, will the earth be forsaken because of you?[fn]
• Or[fn] will the rock be removed from its place?
• 5 Furthermore,[fn] the light of the wicked is put out, and the flame of his fire will not shine.
• 6 The light becomes dark in his tent, and his lamp above him is put out.
• 7 “ His strong steps[fn] are shortened, and his own schemes[fn] throw him down,
• 8 for he is thrust into a net by his feet, and he walks into a pitfall.
• 9 A trap seizes him by the heel; a snare takes hold of him.
• 10 His rope is hidden in the ground, and his trap on the path.
• 11 “Sudden terrors terrify him all around, and they chase him at his heels.
• 12 His wealth will become hunger, and disaster is ready for his stumbling.
• 13 It consumes parts of his skin; the firstborn of death consumes his limbs.
• 14 He is torn from his tent in which he trusted ,[fn] and it brought him to the king of terrors.
• 15 “ Nothing[fn] remains for him in his tent; sulfur is scattered upon his dwelling place.
• 16 His roots dry up below ,[fn] and its branches[fn] wither away above.[fn]
• 17 His remembrance perishes from the earth, and there is not a name for him on the street.
• 18 “They thrust him from light into darkness, and they drive him out from the world.
• 19 There is no offspring for him nor[fn] a descendant among his people, and there is not a survivor in his abode.
• 20 Those of the west are appalled over his fate ,[fn] and those of the east are seized with horror .[fn]
• 21 Surely these are the dwellings of the godless, and this is the dwelling place of him who knows not God.”

Job’s Sixth Speech: A Response to Bildad

19  Then[fn] Job answered and said,

• 2 “How long[fn] will you[fn] torment me[fn] and crush me with words?
• 3 These ten times you[fn] have disgraced me; you[fn] are not ashamed that you[fn] have attacked[fn] me.
• 4 And what is more, if I have truly erred, my error remains with me.
• 5 If indeed you[fn] must magnify yourselves against me, and you[fn] must let my disgrace argue against me,
• 6 know then that God has wronged me and has surrounded me with his net.
• 7 “Look, I cry out, ‘Violence!’ but[fn] I am not answered; I cry out, but[fn] there is no justice.
• 8 He has walled up my way so that[fn] I cannot pass; and he has set darkness upon my paths.
• 9 He has taken my glory from me, and he has removed the crown of[fn] my head.
• 10 He has broken me down all around, and I am gone. And he has uprooted my hope like a tree,
• 11 and he has kindled his wrath against me, and he has counted me as one of his foes .[fn]
• 12 His troops have come together and have thrown up their rampart[fn] against me
• and have encamped around my tent.
• 13 “He has removed my kinsfolk from me, and my acquaintances have only[fn] turned aside from me.
• 14 My relatives have failed, and my close friends have forgotten me.
• 15 The sojourners in[fn] my house and my slave women count me as a stranger; I have become a foreigner in their eyes.
• 16 I call to my servant, but[fn] he does not answer; I must personally[fn] plead with him.
• 17 My breath is repulsive to my wife, and I am loathsome to my own family .[fn]
• 18 Little boys also despise me; when I rise, then[fn] they talk against me.
• 19 All my intimate friends[fn] abhor me, and these whom I have loved have turned against me.
• 20 My bones[fn] cling to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.
• 21 “Pity me, pity me, you my friends, for God’s hand has touched me.
• 22 Why do you[fn] pursue me like God? And are not satisfied with my flesh?
• 23 “ O that[fn] my words could be written down! O that they could be inscribed in a scroll ![fn]
• 24 That with a pen of iron and with lead they might be engraved on a rock forever!
• 25 But[fn] I myself[fn] know that my redeemer is alive, and at the last he will stand up upon the earth .[fn]
• 26 And after my skin has been thus destroyed, but[fn] from[fn] my flesh I will see God,
• 27 whom I will see for myself ,[fn] and whom my eyes will see and not a stranger.[fn]
• My heart faints within me.[fn]
• 28 “If you[fn] say, ‘How will we persecute him?’ And ‘The root of the trouble is found’ in me,[fn]
• 29 be afraid for yourselves because of the sword ,[fn] for wrath brings punishment by[fn] the sword,
• so that you may know that there is judgment.”

Zophar’s Second Speech

20  Then[fn] Zophar the Naamathite answered and said,

• 2 “Therefore my disquieting thoughts bring me back for the sake of[fn] my inward excitement.[fn]
• 3 I hear discipline that insults me, and a spirit beyond my understanding answers me.
• 4 “Did you[fn] know this from of old, since the setting of the human being on earth,
• 5 that the rejoicing of the wicked is short ,[fn] and the joy of the godless lasts only a moment ?[fn]
• 6 Even though his stature mounts up to the heaven, and his head reaches to the clouds,
• 7 he will perish forever like his dung; those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’
• 8 He will fly away like a dream, and they will not find him, and he will be chased away like a vision of the night.
• 9 The eye that saw him will not see him again ,[fn] and his place will no longer behold him.
• 10 His children will seek favors from the poor, and his hands will return his wealth.
• 11 His bones were full of his vigor, but[fn] it will lie down with him on[fn] the dust.
• 12 “Though wickedness tastes sweet in his mouth, and he hides it under his tongue,
• 13 though he spares it and does not let it go and holds it back in the midst of his palate,
• 14 in his bowels his food is turned, the venom of horned vipers is within him .[fn]
• 15 He swallows riches, but[fn] he vomits them[fn] up; God drives them[fn] out from his stomach.
• 16 He will suck the poison of horned vipers; the viper’s tongue will kill him.
• 17 He will not enjoy the streams ,[fn] the torrents of honey and curds.
• 18 Returning the products of his toil, he will not swallow;[fn] according to the profit of his trade, he will not enjoy ,[fn]
• 19 for he has oppressed; he has abandoned the poor; he has seized a house but[fn] did not build it.
• 20 Because he has not known satisfaction in his stomach, he lets nothing escape that he desires .[fn]
• 21 There is nothing left after he has eaten ;[fn] therefore his prosperity will not endure.
• 22 In the fullness of his excess he will be in distress ;[fn] all of misery’s power will come upon him.
• 23 When his stomach fills up ,[fn] God will send his burning anger[fn] upon him, and he will let it rain down upon him[fn] as his food.
• 24 “He will flee from an iron weapon, but an arrow of bronze will pierce him.
• 25 He draws it forth, and it comes out from his body, and the glittering point comes from his gall-bladder;
• terrors come upon him.
• 26 Total darkness[fn] is hidden for his treasures;[fn] an unfanned fire[fn] will devour him;
• the remnant[fn] will be consumed[fn] in his tent.
• 27 The heavens will reveal his guilt, and the earth will rise up against him.
• 28 The products of his house will be carried away[fn] like gushing waters[fn] on the day of his wrath.
• 29 This is a wicked human being’s portion from God and the inheritance of his decree from God.”[fn]

Job’s Seventh Speech: A Response to Zophar

21 Then[fn] Job answered and said,

• 2 “Listen carefully to my words, and let this be your[fn] consolation.
• 3 Bear with me, and I myself[fn] will speak; then[fn] after my speaking you can mock.
• 4 As for me, is my complaint for human beings? And if so, why cannot I be impatient?
• 5 Turn to me and be appalled, and place your hand on your mouth.
• 6 And when I think of it, I am horrified,[fn] and shuddering seizes my flesh.
• 7 “Why do the wicked live, grow old, even grow mighty in power?
• 8 With them their offspring are established before them ,[fn] and their descendants before their eyes.
• 9 Their houses are safe without fear, and the rod of God is not upon them.
• 10 His bull breeds and does not fail; his cow calves and does not miscarry.
• 11 They send out their little ones like the flock, and their children dance around.
• 12 They sing[fn] to the tambourine and lyre, and they rejoice to the sound of the long flute.
• 13 They spend their days in prosperity, and in peace they go down to Sheol.
• 14 And they say to God, ‘Turn away from us, for[fn] we do not desire to know your ways.
• 15 Who is Shaddai that we should serve him, or[fn] what would we benefit when we plead with him?’
• 16 Look, their prosperity is not in their hands; the schemes of the wicked are repugnant[fn] to me.
• 17 “How often is the lamp of the wicked put out, and their disaster comes upon them?
• He[fn] distributes pains in his anger.
• 18 How often are they like straw before[fn] the wind, and like chaff that the storm carries away?
• 19 ‘God stores up his iniquity for his children’?[fn] Then let him repay it to him that[fn] he may know.
• 20 Let his eyes see his decay, and let him drink from the wrath of Shaddai,
• 21 for what does he care for[fn] his house after him, when the number of his months is[fn] cut off?
• 22 Can anyone teach knowledge to God, since[fn] he himself[fn] judges high ones?
• 23 This one dies in full prosperity ,[fn] completely[fn] at ease and secure.
• 24 His vats are full with milk and the marrow of his bones is moist.
• 25 Yet[fn] another dies with a bitter inner self[fn] and has not tasted prosperity.
• 26 They lie down together in the dust, and maggots cover them.
• 27 “Look, I know your[fn] thoughts and the schemes you devise against me.
• 28 For you say, ‘Where is the nobleman’s house, and where are the tents in which the wicked dwell ?’[fn]
• 29 Do you not ask those traveling the roads, and do you not take notice of their accounts?
• 30 Indeed, the wicked is spared from the day of disaster; he is delivered from the day of wrath.
• 31 Who denounces his way to his face? And who repays him for what he has done?
• 32 When[fn] he is brought to the grave, then[fn] someone stands guard over the tomb.
• 33 The clods of the valley are sweet to him; everyone will follow after him,
• and before[fn] him they are innumerable .[fn]
• 34 So[fn] how will you comfort me with emptiness, when[fn] fraud is left in your answers?”

Eliphaz’s Third Speech

22 Then[fn] Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,

• 2 “Can a man be of use to God? Yes, can the wise be of use to him?
• 3 Is it a pleasure to Shaddai if you are righteous, or[fn] a gain if you make your ways blameless?
• 4 Does he reprove you because of your reverence or enter into judgment with you?
• 5 Is not your wickedness great, and there is no end to your iniquities?
• 6 “Indeed, you have required a pledge from your family for nothing, and you have stripped off the clothes of the naked.
• 7 You have given no water for the weary to drink, and you withheld food from the hungry.
• 8 And the land belongs to the man of power ,[fn] and the favored[fn] lives in it.
• 9 You have sent widows away empty-handed, and the arms of orphans were crushed.
• 10 Therefore trapping nets are all around you, and panic suddenly terrifies you,
• 11 or it is so dark you cannot see, and a flood of water covers you.
• 12 “ Is not God in the height of the heavens? But[fn] see how lofty are the highest stars .[fn]
• 13 And you ask, ‘What does God know? Can he judge through deep gloom?
• 14 Thick clouds are a covering for him, so that he does not see; and he walks about on the dome of heaven.’
• 15 Will you keep to the way of old that the people of mischief have trod,
• 16 who were snatched away before their time ,[fn] whose foundation was washed away by a current?
• 17 Those who said to God, ‘Turn away from us,’ and ‘What can Shaddai do to us?’
• 18 Yet[fn] he himself[fn] filled up their houses with good things, but[fn] the schemes of the wicked are repugnant to me.
• 19 The righteous see, and they rejoice, but[fn] the innocent one mocks at them.
• 20 Surely[fn] our foe perishes, and fire has consumed their remainder.[fn]
• 21 “Please reconcile yourself with him, and be at peace; in this way ,[fn] good will come to you.
• 22 Please receive instruction from his mouth, and place his words in your heart.
• 23 If you return to Shaddai, you will be restored; if you remove wickedness from your tent,
• 24 and if you put gold ore in the dust, and the gold of Ophir in the rock of wadis,
• 25 then[fn] Shaddai will be your gold ore and your precious silver .[fn]
• 26 Indeed, then you will delight yourself in Shaddai, and you will expect that God will be good to you .[fn]
• 27 You will pray to him, and he will hear you, and you will pay your vows.
• 28 And you will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you, and light will shine on your ways.
• 29 When they are humiliated, you say ,[fn] ‘ It is pride,’ for[fn] he saves the humble .[fn]
• 30 He will deliver the guilty, and he will escape because of the cleanness of your hands.”

Job’s Eighth Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

23 Then[fn] Job answered and said,

• 2 “Even today my complaint is bitter; my hand is heavy in addition to my groaning.
• 3 O that[fn] I knew and that I might find him; O that I might come to his dwelling.
• 4 I would lay my case before him ,[fn] and I would fill my mouth with arguments.
• 5 I want to know the words with which he would answer me, and I want to understand what he would say to me.
• 6 Would he contend with me in the greatness of his strength? No, but he himself[fn] would give heed to me.
• 7 There an upright person could reason with him, and I would be acquitted forever by my judge.
• 8 “When I go forward, he is not there ,[fn] or[fn] backward, I cannot see him.[fn]
• 9 When he works[fn] on the left, I cannot perceive[fn] him; he turns to the right, but[fn] I cannot see him.
• 10 But he knows the way that I take ;[fn] he tests me—I shall come out like gold.
• 11 My foot has held on to his steps; I have kept his way, and I have not turned aside.
• 12 From the commandment of his lips, indeed[fn] I have not departed; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily food.
• 13 “But[fn] he is alone ,[fn] and who can dissuade him? And whatever he desires ,[fn] indeed ,[fn] he does it.
• 14 For he will carry out what he appoints for me ,[fn] and many things like these are with him.
• 15 Therefore, I am horrified because of his presence; when I consider, I tremble[fn] because of him.
• 16 Indeed,[fn] God has made my heart faint, and Shaddai has terrified me.
• 17 Indeed, I have not been silenced because of darkness ,[fn] and because of me he[fn] conceals thick darkness.

Job’s Eighth Speech, Continued

• and why do not those who know him see his days?
• 2 They[fn] remove border stones; they seize flocks, and they pasture them.
• 3 They drive away the donkey of orphans; they take the widow’s ox as a pledge.
• 4 They thrust the poor off the road; the needy of the earth hide themselves together.[fn]
• 5 “Look, like wild donkeys in the desert they[fn] go out to their labor as searchers for the prey;
• the wilderness is[fn] their[fn] food for the young.
• 6 They reap their[fn] fodder in the field, and they glean in the vineyard of the wicked.
• 7 They spend the night naked, without[fn] clothing, and they have no garment in the cold.
• 8 They are wet from the rainstorm of the mountains,[fn] and they cling to the rock without[fn] refuge.
• 9 “They[fn] snatch the orphan from the breast, and they take a pledge against the needy.[fn]
• 10 They[fn] go about naked, without clothing, and hungry, they carry the sheaves.[fn]
• 11 Between their terraces they press out oil; they tread the presses, but[fn] they are thirsty.
• 12 From the city people groan, and the throat[fn] of the wounded cries for help;
• yet[fn] God does not regard it as unseemly .[fn]
• 13 “Those are among the ones rebelling against the light; they do not recognize his ways,
• and they do not stay in his paths.
• 14 At dusk[fn] the murderer rises; he kills the needy and the poor,
• and in the night he is like a[fn] thief.
• 15 And the eye of the adulterer waits for dusk, saying, ‘No eye will see me,’[fn]
• and he places a covering on his face.
• 16 He digs through houses in the darkness; by day they shut themselves in—
• they do not know the light
• 17 because morning likewise is to them deep darkness; indeed, they know about the terrors of deep darkness.
• 18 “He himself[fn] is swift on the water’s surface; their portion is cursed in the land.
• No one turns toward the path of their vineyards .[fn]
• 19 Drought and heat snatch away the snow waters, like Sheol snatches away those[fn] who have sinned.
• 20 The womb forgets him. The maggot feasts on him until he is no longer remembered,
• and wickedness is broken like a[fn] tree.
• 21 He feeds on the barren, who does not have a child, and does no good to the widow.
• 22 Yet[fn] he[fn] carries off the tyrants by his strength; if he rises up, then[fn] he[fn] cannot be certain of life.[fn]
• 23 He[fn] gives security to him, and he is[fn] supported, but[fn] his eyes are upon their ways.
• 24 They are exalted a little while, then[fn] they are gone .[fn] And they are brought low; they are cut off like all others,
• and like the heads of grain they wither away.
• 25 “And if it is not so, then who can prove me a liar and reduce my word to nothing?”

Bildad’s Third Speech

25 Then[fn] Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,[fn]

• 2 “Domination and dread are with him who makes peace in his high heavens.
• 3 Is there a number to his troops? And upon whom does his light not rise?
• 4 “Indeed,[fn] how can a human being be righteous before God? And how will he who is born of a woman be pure?
• 5 Look, even the moon is not bright ,[fn] and the stars are not pure in his sight.
• 6 How much less[fn] for a human being who is a maggot, and a human[fn] who is a worm?”

Job’s Ninth Speech: A Response to Bildad

26 Then[fn] Job answered and said,

• 2 “How you[fn] have helped one who has no power![fn] How you[fn] have assisted the arm that has no strength ![fn]
• 3 How you[fn] have advised one who has no wisdom ![fn] And what sound wisdom you[fn] have made known in abundance![fn]
• 4 With whose help[fn] have you[fn] uttered words, and whose breath has come forth from you?[fn]
• 5 “The spirits of the dead tremble below the waters and their inhabitants.
• 6 Sheol is naked before him, and there is no covering for Abaddon.
• 7 He stretches out the north over emptiness; he hangs the earth over nothing .[fn]
• 8 He ties up the water in its clouds, and the cloud is not torn open beneath it.[fn]
• 9 He covers the face of the full moon;[fn] he spreads his cloud over it.
• 10 He has described a circle[fn] on the face of the water between light and darkness .[fn]
• 11 “ The pillars of heaven tremble, and they are astounded at his rebuke.
• 12 By his power he stilled the sea, and by his understanding he struck down Rahab.
• 13 By his breath the heavens were made clear ;[fn] his hand pierced the fleeing snake.
• 14 Look, these are the outer fringes of his ways, and how faint is the word[fn] that we hear of him!
• But[fn] who can understand the thunder of his power?”

Job Continues His Final Speech

27 Then[fn] Job again took up his discourse and said,

• 2 “As God lives,[fn] he has removed my justice, and Shaddai has made my inner self[fn] bitter.
• 3 For as long as[fn] my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nose,
• 4 my lips surely will not speak falseness, and my tongue surely will not utter deceit.
• 5 Far be it from me that I would say that you[fn] are right ;[fn] until I pass away, I will not put away from me my blamelessness.
• 6 I hold fast to my righteousness, and I will not let it go; my heart will not blame any of my days.
• 7 “Let my enemy be like the wicked and my opponent like the unrighteous,
• 8 for what is the hope of the godless when he cuts them off, when God takes away his life?
• 9 Will God hear his cry of distress when distress comes upon him?
• 10 Or, in Shaddai will he find delight? Will he call upon God at all times?
• 11 “I will teach you[fn] about[fn] God’s hand; I will not conceal that which is with Shaddai.
• 12 Look, you all have seen, and why in the world[fn] have you become altogether vain ?[fn]
• 13 “This is the portion of the wicked human being with God, and they receive from Shaddai the inheritance of the ruthless.
• 14 If their children multiply, it is for the sword, and his offspring do not have enough to eat .[fn]
• 15 Their[fn] survivors are buried through[fn] the plague, and their[fn] widows do not weep.
• 16 If he heaps up silver like the dust and fashions clothing like the clay,
• 17 he makes it ready, and the righteous will wear it, and the innocent will divide the silver.
• 18 “He builds his house like the moth, and like a booth that a watchman has made.
• 19 He goes to bed with wealth, but[fn] he will do so no more;[fn] he opens his eyes, and it is gone .[fn]
• 20 Terrors overtake him like the water; a storm wind carries him off in the night.
• 21 The east wind lifts him up, and he is gone, and it sweeps him away from his place.
• 22 And it hurls at him, and it has no compassion; he will quickly flee from its power.
• 23 It claps its hands over him, and it hisses at him from its place.

Job’s Discourse on Wisdom

• and a place for gold to be refined .[fn]
• 2 Iron is taken from dust, and he pours out copper from ore.
• 3 He puts an end to darkness, and he searches out the farthest limits
• for the ore in gloom and deep shadow.
• 4 He breaks open a mine shaft away from where people dwell ;[fn] those who are forgotten by travelers ,[fn]
• they dangle, they sway far away from human beings.
• 5 As for the earth, from it comes food,[fn] but[fn] underneath it, it is turned up as by fire.
• 6 Its stones are the place of sapphire, and the earthen dirt has[fn] gold.
• 7 “ It is a path a bird of prey does not know and the black kite’s eye has not seen.
• 8 Proud wild animals[fn] have not trodden it; the lion in its prime has not prowled over it.
• 9 He puts his hand on the hard rock; he overturns mountains by the roots.
• 10 He cuts out tunnels in the rocks, and his eye sees every treasure.
• 11 He dams up rivers from their sources, and he brings secret things to the light.
• 12 “But[fn] from where will wisdom be found? And where in the world[fn] is the place of understanding?
• 13 A human being does not know its proper value, and it is not found in the land of the living.
• 14 The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’ and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
• 15 “Refined gold cannot be gotten in its place, and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.
• 16 It cannot be bought for the gold of Ophir, for precious onyx or[fn] sapphire.
• 17 Gold and glass cannot be compared with it, and its substitution cannot be an ornament of refined gold.
• 18 Black corals and crystal will not be mentioned, and wisdom’s price is more than red corals.
• 19 The topaz of Cush cannot be compared with it; it cannot be bought for pure gold.
• 20 Indeed,[fn] from where does wisdom come? And where in the world[fn] is the place of understanding?
• 21 It is hidden from the eyes of all living, and it is concealed from the birds of the heaven.
• 22 Abaddon and Death say, ‘We heard its rumor with our ears.’
• 23 “God understands its way, and he knows its place,
• 24 for he himself[fn] looks to the end of the earth; he sees under all the heaven.
• 25 When he gave[fn] weight to the wind and he apportioned the waters by measure,
• 26 when he made[fn] a rule for the rain and a way for the thunder’s lightning bolt,
• 27 then he saw it and talked about it; he established it, and moreover, he explored it.
• 28 And to the human beings he said, ‘Look, the fear of the Lord is wisdom,
• and to depart from evil is understanding.’ ”

Job’s Final Defense

29 Then[fn] Job again took up his discourse and said,

• 2 “O that I were[fn] as in the months before, as in the days when God watched over me,
• 3 when his shining lamp was over my head— by his light I walked through darkness—
• 4 as when I was in the days of my prime, when God’s confiding was over my house ,[fn]
• 5 when Shaddai was still with me, my children were all around me,
• 6 when my paths were washed in sour milk, and the rock poured out streams of oil for me.
• 7 “At my going out the gate to the city, I secured my seat in the square.
• 8 Young men saw me and stepped aside, and the aged rose up and stood.
• 9 Officials refrained from talking, and they laid their hand on their mouth.
• 10 The voices[fn] of nobles were hushed, and their tongue stuck to their palate.
• 11 “When the ear heard and commended me, and the eye saw and testified in support of me
• 12 because I saved the needy who cried for help, and I saved[fn] the orphan for whom there was no helper.
• 13 The blessing of the wretched came upon me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.
• 14 I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; my justice was like a robe and a headband.
• 15 “I was eyes to the blind, and I was feet to the lame.
• 16 I was a father to the poor, and I investigated the stranger’s[fn] legal dispute.
• 17 And I broke the evil one’s jaw bones, and I made his prey drop from his teeth.
• 18 “And I thought, ‘I will pass away in my nest, and like the phoenix I shall multiply my days.
• 19 My roots were open to water, and dew spent the night on my branches;
• 20 My glory was new with me, and I was revitalized regularly .’[fn]
• 21 “They listened to me and waited, and they kept silent for my counsel.
• 22 After my word, they did not speak again, and my word dropped down like dew upon them.
• 23 And they waited for me as for the rain, and they opened their mouth wide as for the spring rain.
• 24 I smiled for them when they had no confidence in anything, and they did not extinguish the light of my face.
• 25 I chose their way, and I sat as head, and I dwelled like a king among the troops,
• like one who comforts mourners.

Job’s Final Defense Continued

• whose fathers I rejected for setting with the dogs of my sheep and goats.
• 2 Moreover, what use to me is the strength of their hands ?[fn] With them, vigor is destroyed.
• 3 Through want and through barren hunger they are gnawing in the dry region in the darkness of desolation and waste.
• 4 They are picking salt herbs, the leaves of bushes, and the roots of broom trees to warm themselves.
• 5 They were driven out from fellow people; they shout at them as at a[fn] thief,
• 6 so that they dwell[fn] in holes of the ground and in the rocks.
• 7 They bray among the bushes; they are gathered under the nettles.
• 8 A senseless crowd ,[fn] yes, a disreputable brood ,[fn] they were cast out from the land.
• 9 “But now I am their mocking song, and I have become a byword for them.
• 10 They abhor me; they keep aloof from me, and they do not withhold spit from my face
• 11 because he has loosened his bowstring and humbled me, and they have thrown off restraint in my presence .[fn]
• 12 On the right hand the brood rises[fn] up; they put me to flight,[fn]
• and they build up their siege ramps[fn] against me.
• 13 They destroy my path; they promote my destruction;
• they have no helper.
• 14 As through a wide breach they come; amid a crash they rush on.
• 15 Terrors are turned upon me; my honor is pursued as by the wind,
• and my hope of deliverance passed by like a cloud.
• 16 “And now my life is poured out onto me; days of misery have taken hold of me.
• 17 At night I am in great pain ;[fn] my pains do not take a rest.
• 18 He seizes my clothing with great power ;[fn] he grasps me by my tunic’s collar.
• 19 He has cast me into the dirt, and I have become like dust[fn] and ashes.
• 20 I cry to you for help, but[fn] you do not answer me; I stand, and you merely look at me.
• 21 You have turned cruel to me; you persecute me with your hand’s might.
• 22 You lift me up to the wind—you make me ride it, and you toss me about in the storm.
• 23 Indeed, I know that you will bring me to death and to the house of assembly for all the living.
• 24 “Surely someone must not send a hand against the needy when, in his misfortune, there is a cry of help for them.
• 25 Have I not wept for the unfortunate ,[fn] and grieved myself over the poor?
• 26 Indeed, I hoped for good, but evil came, and I waited for light, but darkness came.
• 27 My bowels are in turmoil, and they are not still; days of misery come to confront me.
• 28 I go about in mourning garb, but not in sunlight; I stand up in the assembly, and I cry for help.
• 29 I am a companion for the jackals and a companion for ostriches .[fn]
• 30 My skin turns black on me, and my bones burn with heat.
• 31 So[fn] my lyre came to be used for mourning, and my flute for the voice of those who weep.

Job’s Final Defense Continued

• so[fn] how could I look closely upon a virgin?
• 2 And what is the portion of God from above or[fn] the heritage of Shaddai from on high?
• 3 Is not disaster for the evil one and ruin for the workers of mischief?
• 4 Does he not see my ways and count all my steps?
• 5 “If I have walked with falseness, and my foot has hastened to deceit,
• 6 let him weigh me in the balance of justice, and let God know my blamelessness.
• 7 If my steps have turned aside from the way, and my heart has walked after my eyes,
• and my hand has clung to a spot,
• 8 let me sow, and let another eat, and let my crops be rooted out.
• 9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman, and at my neighbor’s doorway I have lain in wait,
• 10 let my wife grind for another, and let other men kneel over her,
• 11 for that is a shameful act, and that is a criminal offense .[fn]
• 12 Indeed, that is a fire that will consume up to Abaddon, and it would uproot all my crop.
• 13 “If I have rejected my male or[fn] female slave’s case when their complaint was against me,
• 14 then[fn] what shall I do when God rises up? And when he enquires, how shall I answer him?
• 15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them? And did not one fashion us in the womb?
• 16 “If I have withheld the desire of the poor from them, or[fn] I have caused the widow’s eyes to fail,
• 17 or I have eaten my morsel alone ,[fn] and the orphan has not eaten from it
• 18 (for from my childhood he[fn] grew up with[fn] me like a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided her[fn]),
• 19 if I have seen the one who perishes because of no clothing or[fn] that there is no covering for the poor,
• 20 if his loins have not blessed me, or[fn] by means of my sheep’s fleece he has warmed himself,
• 21 if I have raised my hand against an orphan because I saw my supporters at the gate,
• 22 then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder, and let my arm be broken from its socket.
• 23 Indeed, the disaster from God was a dread for me, and I was powerless[fn] because of his majesty.
• 24 “If I have made gold my trust, or[fn] I have called fine gold my security,
• 25 if I have rejoiced because my wealth was great or[fn] because my hand found a fortune,
• 26 if I looked at the sun when it shone or[fn] at the moon moving in splendor,
• 27 and I was secretly enticed ,[fn] and my hand threw them a kiss ,[fn]
• 28 this also is an iniquity to be judged, for I have deceived God above.
• 29 “If I have rejoiced at the ruin of the one who hated me or[fn] have exulted when evil overtook him—
• 30 no,[fn] I have not allowed my mouth to sin, to ask his life with a curse.
• 31 Have the people of my tent not said ,[fn] ‘ O that[fn] someone[fn] had not been satisfied with his meat’?
• 32 An alien has not lodged in the street; I have opened my door to the traveler.
• 33 Have I concealed[fn] my transgressions as other human beings to hide my iniquity in my bosom
• 34 because I dreaded the great multitude, and the contempt of clans terrified me,
• so that I kept quiet, I did not go out of the doorway?
• 35 O that[fn] I had[fn] someone hearing me! Here is my signature;
• let Shaddai answer me!
• As for[fn] the written communication that my adversary[fn] has written,
• 36 I would surely[fn] carry it on my shoulder; I would bind it on me like a crown.
• 37 I would give him an account of my steps; I would approach him like a noble.
• 38 If my land has cried out against me, and its furrows have wept together,
• 39 if I have eaten its yield without payment, or[fn] I have caused the breath of its owners to die,
• 40 let thorns grow in place of wheat and noxious weeds in place of barley.”
• The words of Job are ended.

Elihu Rebukes Job and His Three Friends

32 Then these three men ceased from answering Job because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2 So Elihu the son of Barakel the Buzite, from the clan of Ram, became angry.[fn] He became angry[fn] at Job because he justified himself rather than God, 3 and he became angry[fn] at his three friends because they had not found an answer, and they had declared Job guilty. 4 Thus Elihu had waited for Job to speak[fn] because they were older than he.[fn] 5 When Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouth of the three men, he became angry.[fn]

• 6 Then Elihu the son of Barakel the Buzite spoke up[fn] and said, “I am young,[fn] but[fn] you[fn] are old;
• therefore I feared and became afraid of explaining my knowledge to you.[fn]
• 7 I thought,[fn] ‘Let days[fn] speak, and let many years teach wisdom.’
• 8 “Truly, it is a spirit in a human being, and the breath of Shaddai teaches them.
• 9 It is not the aged[fn] who are wise, or[fn] it is not the elders who understand justice.
• 10 Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me; let me also declare my knowledge myself.’
• 11 “Look, I waited for your[fn] words; I listened for your[fn] insight,
• until you searched out what to say .[fn]
• 12 And I directed my attention to you;[fn] and, look, there is no one for Job who refuted,
• answering his words among you.
• 13 So do not say, ‘We have found wisdom; let God refute him, not a man.’
• 14 But[fn] he did not direct his words[fn] to me, and I will not answer him with your[fn] words.
• 15 “They are dismayed; they no longer answer; they have nothing to say .[fn]
• 16 And I have waited because they do not speak, because they stand there and no longer answer.
• 17 I myself will answer my share also; I myself will declare my knowledge also,
• 18 for I am full of words;[fn] the spirit within me[fn] urges me.
• 19 “Look, my internal organs are like unopened wine, like new wineskins it[fn] is ready to burst open.
• 20 Let me speak that I may find relief ;[fn] let me open my lips, and let me answer.
• 21 Please let me not show partiality to anyone ,[fn] and let me not show flattery to human beings,
• 22 for I do not know how to flatter ,[fn] else my Maker would soon[fn] put an end to me.

Elihu Rebukes Job

• and hear[fn] all my words.
• 2 Please look, I open my mouth; my tongue in my mouth speaks.
• 3 My words declare my heart’s uprightness, and my lips sincerely speak what my lips know .[fn]
• 4 The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of Shaddai gives life to me.
• 5 “If you are able, answer me. Present your argument before me ;[fn] take your stand.
• 6 Look, before God I am like you ;[fn] I myself was also formed from clay.
• 7 Look, dread of me should not terrify you, and my hand will not be heavy upon you.
• 8 “Surely you have spoken in my ears, and I have heard the sound of your words:[fn]
• 9 ‘I am clean, without transgression; I am pure, and there is no guilt in me.
• 10 Look, he finds fault against me; he reckons me as his enemy;
• 11 he puts my feet in the block; he watches all my paths.’
• 12 “Look, in this you are not right—I will answer you: Indeed, God is greater than a human being.
• 13 Why do you contend against him, that he will not answer all a person’s words?
• 14 Indeed, God speaks in one way, even[fn] in two,[fn] yet someone does not perceive it.
• 15 “In a dream, a vision of the night, when a deep sleep falls on men slumbering on their bed,
• 16 then he opens the ear of men, and he frightens them with a warning[fn]
• 17 to turn human beings aside from their deeds, and he keeps man from pride.
• 18 He spares his life from the pit and his life from passing over the river of death.
• 19 “And he is reproved with pain on his bed, even[fn] with the strife of his bones continually,
• 20 so that[fn] his life loathes bread, and his inner self[fn] loathes appetizing food .[fn]
• 21 His flesh is wasted away from sight, and his bones, which are invisible, are bared.
• 22 And he[fn] draws near to the pit and his life to the killers.
• 23 “If there is a messenger beside him, a mediator, one of a thousand,[fn] to declare to a human being his uprightness
• 24 so that[fn] he is gracious to him, and he says, ‘Deliver him from descending into the pit;
• I have found a ransom.’
• 25 His flesh is renewed with his youth; he returns to the days of his youthful strength.
• 26 He prays to God, then he accepts him, and he sees his face with a shout of joy,
• and he repays to the human being his righteousness.
• 27 “He will sing to men, and he will say, ‘I have sinned and have perverted what is right,
• and it was not paid back to me.
• 28 He redeemed my life from going down into the pit, so[fn] I will enjoy the light .’[fn]
• 29 Look, God does all these things twice, three times[fn] with a person
• 30 to bring his life back from the pit so that he may enjoy the light of life .[fn]
• 31 “Listen attentively, Job; listen to me; be silent, and I will speak.
• 32 If you have anything to say ,[fn] answer me ;[fn] speak, for I desire to justify you .[fn]
• 33 If not, you listen to me; be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”

Elihu Asserts God’s Justice

34 Thus[fn] Elihu spoke up[fn] and said,

• 2 “Hear my words, you wise men, and listen to me, you who know,
• 3 for the ear tests words, and the palate tastes food .[fn]
• 4 Let us choose justice for ourselves; let us determine among ourselves what is good—
• 5 for Job has said, ‘I am righteous, but God has taken away my justice.
• 6 Should I lie concerning my justice? Though I am without transgression, my wound caused by an arrow is incurable.’
• 7 What man is like Job, who drinks scorn like water?
• 8 And he goes on the road in company with instigators of mischief, and walks with men of wickedness.
• 9 Indeed, he says, ‘A man does not profit when he takes delight in God.’
• 10 “Therefore, listen to me, people who have sense :[fn] far be it from God that he should commit wickedness[fn]
• and that Shaddai should do wrong .[fn]
• 11 Indeed, he will repay according to a human being’s deeds, and according to a man’s way he will let it happen to him.
• 12 What’s more, God truly does not act wickedly, and Shaddai does not pervert justice.
• 13 Who gave him charge over the earth? Or[fn] who laid on him the whole world?
• 14 If he should set his heart to it, and he should gather his spirit and his breath to himself,
• 15 all flesh would perish together, and humankind would return to dust.
• 16 “But[fn] if you have understanding, hear this; listen to what I say .[fn]
• 17 Shall he who hates justice really govern? Or will you[fn] declare the Righteous One, the Mighty, guilty?—
• 18 the one who says to a king, ‘You worthless man,’ to noblemen, ‘You wicked man,’
• 19 who shows no partiality to officials[fn] and who does not take note of the noble more than of the insignificant ,[fn]
• for all of them are the work of his hands?
• 20 In a moment they die, and in the middle of the night the people are shaken, and they pass away,
• and they take away the mighty effortlessly .[fn]
• 21 “Indeed, his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he sees all his steps.
• 22 There is no darkness, and there is no deep shadow where instigators of mischief might hide themselves.
• 23 Indeed, he has not yet appointed a time for man to go to God in the judgment.
• 24 He shatters the mighty without investigation, and he sets others in their place.
• 25 Therefore he knows their works, and he overturns them in the night
• so that[fn] they are crushed.
• 26 He strikes them where the wicked stood ,[fn] where there are onlookers ,[fn]
• 27 because they have turned aside from him and have not understood any of his ways,
• 28 so that they cause the cry of distress from the helpless to come to him, and he hears the cry of distress from the needy,
• 29 but he remains quiet, and who can condemn? And he hides his face, and who can behold him?
• Yet[fn] he is over a nation and over a person alike,
• 30 so that godless human beings should not reign, nor those who ensnare the people.
• 31 “Indeed, does anyone say to God, ‘I have endured chastisement; I will not act corruptly again;
• 32 teach me yourself what I cannot see ;[fn] if I have done wrong, I will not repeat it’?
• 33 According to your judgment ,[fn] must he repay it because you rejected this? Indeed, you must choose, and not I, so[fn] declare what you know.
• 34 Those who have sense[fn] say to me, and the wise man hearing me says:
• 35 ‘Job speaks without knowledge, and his words are without insight.
• 36 Would that Job were tested up to the end because his answers are like those from men of mischief,
• 37 for he adds transgression to his sin; he claps hands among us,
• and he multiplies his words against God.’ ”

Elihu Condemns Job

35 Moreover,[fn] Elihu spoke up[fn] and said,

• 2 “Do you think this is justice when you say, ‘ I am right[fn] before God’?
• 3 If you ask what it profits you: ‘How do I benefit by refraining from my sin ?’[fn]
• 4 I myself[fn] will give answer to you[fn] and to your friends with you.
• 5 “Look at the heavens, and see; and observe the clouds that are higher than you.
• 6 If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against him? And if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?
• 7 If you are righteous, what do you give to him, or what does he receive from your hand?
• 8 Your wickedness affects a person like yourself, and your righteousness affects humans.
• 9 “Because of the multitude of oppressions, they cry out; they cry for help because of the arm of the mighty.
• 10 But[fn] no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,
• 11 who teaches us more than the animals of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?’
• 12 There they cry out, but[fn] he does not answer because of the pride of evildoers .[fn]
• 13 “Surely God does not hear an empty plea, and Shaddai does not regard it.
• 14 How much less[fn] when you say that you do not see him, that the case is before him ,[fn] and you are waiting for him!
• 15 But[fn] now, because his anger does not punish, and he does not acknowledge the transgression at all,
• 16 therefore[fn] Job opens his mouth in empty talk— without knowledge he multiplies words.”

Elihu Extols God’s Greatness

36 Then[fn] Elihu continued and said,

• 2 “Bear with me a little longer, and I will explain ,[fn] for I still have something to say on God’s behalf .[fn]
• 3 I will bring my knowledge from far away, and I will ascribe righteousness to my maker,
• 4 for truly my words[fn] are not falsehood; one who has perfect knowledge is with you.[fn]
• 5 Look, God is mighty but[fn] does not despise anyone; he is mighty and good in understanding .[fn]
• 6 He does not keep the wicked alive but[fn] grants justice to the afflicted.
• 7 He does not withdraw his eyes from the righteous, but[fn] he sets them forever with kings on the throne, and they are exalted.
• 8 “And if they are tied up with fetters, if they are caught in the cords of misery,
• 9 then[fn] he declares their work to them, and their transgressions, that they are behaving arrogantly.
• 10 So[fn] he opens their ear to the discipline, and he commands that they return from mischief.
• 11 If they listen and serve him, they complete their days in prosperity and their years in pleasantness.
• 12 But[fn] if they do not listen, they perish by the sword, and they pass away without knowledge.
• 13 And the godless of heart cherish anger; they do not cry for help when he binds them.
• 14 They die in their youth ,[fn] and their life ends among the male shrine prostitutes.
• 15 He delivers the afflicted by his misery, and he opens their ears by the adversity.
• 16 And what’s more, he allured you out of distress[fn] into a broad place, where in place of it was no constraint;
• and what was set on your table is full of fatness.
• 17 But[fn] you are obsessed with the judgment of the wicked; judgment and justice take hold of you.
• 18 Yes,[fn] it is wrath, so that it will not incite you into mockery; and do not let the ransom’s greatness turn you aside.
• 19 Will your cry for help sustain you without distress, or[fn] all the efforts of your strength?
• 20 You must not long for the night, to cut off people in their place .[fn]
• 21 Take care, you must not turn to mischief, for because of this you have been tried by misery.
• 22 “Look, God is exalted in his power; who is a teacher like him?
• 23 Who has prescribed his way for him? Or[fn] who says, ‘You have done wrong’?
• 24 Remember that you should extol his work, of which people have sung.
• 25 All human beings have looked on it; everyone watches from afar.
• 26 “Look, God is exalted, and we do not know him; the number of his years is unsearchable.
• 27 Indeed, he draws up the drops of water; he distills the rain into its mist,
• 28 which the clouds pour down; they shower abundantly on human beings.
• 29 “Moreover, can anyone understand[fn] the spreading of clouds, the thundering of his dwelling place?
• 30 Look, he scatters his lightning around him, and he covers the roots of the sea.
• 31 Indeed, he judges people by them; he gives food in abundance .[fn]
• 32 He covers his hands with lightning, and he commands it the place at which to strike.
• 33 His thundering tells about him; the livestock also tell concerning what rises .[fn]

Elihu Extols God’s Majesty

• and it leaps from its place.
• 2 Listen carefully to his voice’s thunder and the rumbling that goes out from his mouth.
• 3 He lets it loose under all the heavens, and his lightning to the earth’s corners.
• 4 After it, his voice roars; it thunders with his majestic voice ,[fn]
• and he does not restrain it when his voice is heard.
• 5 “God thunders with his voice in marvelous ways; he does great things, and we cannot comprehend.
• 6 For to the snow he says, ‘Fall on the earth’; and the shower of rain, his heavy shower of rain[fn]—
• 7 he stops all human beings from working[fn] so that everyone whom he has made may know it .[fn]
• 8 Then[fn] the animal goes into its den, and it remains in its den.
• 9 “ The storm wind comes from its chamber and cold from the north wind.
• 10 By God’s breath, ice is given, and the broad waters are frozen.
• 11 Also, he loads down thick clouds with moisture; his lightning scatters the clouds.
• 12 And they[fn] turn around by his guidance to accomplish all that he has commanded them
• on the face of the habitable world .[fn]
• 13 Whether as correction[fn] or for his land, or as loyal love, he lets it happen.
• 14 “Hear this, Job; stand still and consider carefully God’s wondrous works.
• 15 Do you know how God commands them[fn] and how he causes his cloud’s lightning to shine?
• 16 Do you know about the hovering of the clouds, the marvelous works of the one with perfect knowledge ?[fn]
• 17 You whose garments are hot, when the earth is being still because of the south wind,
• 18 with him can you spread out the skies, hard as a molten mirror?
• 19 “Teach us what we should say to him; we cannot draw up our case because of the presence of darkness.
• 20 Should he be told that I want to speak? Or did a man say that he would be communicated with?
• 21 So then, they do not look at the light when it is bright in the skies, when[fn] the wind has passed and has cleansed them.
• 22 From the north comes gold— awesome majesty is around God.
• 23 As for Shaddai, we cannot attain him; he is exalted in power,
• and he does not oppress justice and abundant righteousness.
• 24 Therefore people revered him; he does not regard any[fn] who think that they are wise .”[fn]

Yahweh Challenges Job

38 Then[fn] Yahweh answered Job from the storm, and he said,

• 2 “Who is this darkening counsel by words without knowledge?
• 3 Prepare yourself for a difficult task like a man ,[fn] and I will question you, and you shall declare to me.
• 4 “Where were you at my laying the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you possess understanding.
• 5 Who determined its measurement? Yes, you do know. Or who stretched the measuring line upon it?
• 6 On what were its bases sunk? Or who laid its cornerstone,
• 7 when the morning stars were singing together and all the sons of God[fn] shouted for joy?
• 8 “Or who shut the sea in with doors at its bursting, when it went out of the womb,
• 9 at my making the clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band,
• 10 and I prescribed my rule for it, and I set bars and doors,
• 11 and I said, ‘You shall come up to here, but[fn] you shall not go further, and here it will set a boundary for your proud surging waves ’?[fn]
• 12 “Have you ever in your life[fn] commanded the morning? Have you made the dawn know its place,
• 13 to take hold of the earth’s skirts so that[fn] the wicked might be shaken off from it?
• 14 It is changed like clay under a seal, and they appear like a garment.
• 15 And their light is withheld from the wicked, and their uplifted arm is broken.
• 16 “Have you entered into the sea’s sources? Or have you walked around in the recesses of the deep?
• 17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Or have you seen the gates of deep shadow?
• 18 Have you considered closely the earth’s vast expanse? Declare it, if you know all of it.
• 19 “Where then[fn] is the way where the light dwells? And where then[fn] is its place,
• 20 that you may take it to its territory, and that you might discern the paths to its home?
• 21 You know, for you were born then, and the number of your days is great.
• 22 Have you entered into the storehouses of the snow, or[fn] have you seen the storehouses of the hail,
• 23 which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war?
• 24 Where then[fn] is the way where the light is distributed, where he scatters the east wind upon the earth?
• 25 “Who has cut open a channel for the torrents and a way for the thunder bolts ,[fn]
• 26 to bring rain on a land where no one lives ,[fn] a desert where no humans live ,[fn]
• 27 to satisfy desert and wasteland, and to cause the ground to put forth the rising of grass?
• 28 Is there a father for the rain, or who fathered the drops of dew?
• 29 From whose womb did the ice come forth, and who fathered the frost of heaven?
• 30 Like stone the waters become hard, and the faces of the deep freeze.
• 31 “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades, or can you loosen the cords of Orion?
• 32 Can you lead forth the southern constellations at their appointed time, or[fn] can you lead the Bear with its children?
• 33 Do you know heaven’s statutes, or can you establish their rule on the earth?
• 34 Can you lift up your voice to the clouds so that[fn] a flood of water may cover you?
• 35 Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go? And will they say to you, ‘Here we are’?
• 36 Who has put wisdom in the ibis,[fn] or who has given understanding to the rooster?[fn]
• 37 Who can number the clouds with wisdom? Or[fn] who can tilt heaven’s jars,
• 38 at the flowing of the dust into a cast and the clods cling together?
• 39 “Can you hunt prey for the lion? And can you satisfy the hunger of strong lions
• 40 when they are crouched in the dens, when they lie in the thicket in an ambush?
• 41 Who prepares for the crow its prey, when its young ones cry to God for help,
• and they wander around for lack of food ?[fn]