Job Asserts His Integrity
“I have made a covenant with my aeyes;
How then could I gaze at a virgin?
2 “And what is athe portion of God from above
Or the heritage of the Almighty from on high?
3 “Is it not acalamity to the unjust
And disaster to bthose who work iniquity?
4 “Does He not asee my ways
And bnumber all my steps?
5 “If I have awalked with falsehood,
And my foot has hastened after deceit,
6 Let Him aweigh me with accurate scales,
And let God know bmy integrity.
7 “If my step has aturned from the way,
Or my heart followed my eyes,
Or if any bspot has stuck to my hands,
8 Let me asow and another eat,
And let my bcrops be uprooted.
9 “If my heart has been aenticed by a woman,
Or I have lurked at my neighbor’s doorway,
10 May my wife agrind for another,
And let bothers kneel down over her.
11 “For that would be a alustful crime;
Moreover, it would be ban iniquity punishable by judges.
12 “For it would be afire that consumes to bAbaddon,
And would cuproot all my increase.
13 “If I have adespised the claim of my male or female slaves
When they filed a complaint against me,
14 What then could I do when God arises?
And when He calls me to account, what will I answer Him?
15 “Did not aHe who made me in the womb make him,
And the same one fashion us in the womb?
16 “If I have kept athe poor from their desire,
Or have caused the eyes of bthe widow to fail,
17 Or have aeaten my morsel alone,
And bthe orphan has not shared it
18 (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father,
And from infancy I guided her),
19 If I have seen anyone perish afor lack of clothing,
Or that bthe needy had no covering,
20 If his loins have not thanked me,
And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep,
21 If I have lifted up my hand against athe orphan,
Because I saw I had support bin the gate,
22 Let my shoulder fall from the socket,
And my aarm be broken off at the elbow.
23 “For acalamity from God is a terror to me,
And because of bHis majesty I can do nothing.
24 “If I have put my confidence in agold,
And called fine gold my trust,
25 If I have agloated because my wealth was great,
And because my hand had secured so much;
26 If I have alooked at the sun when it shone
Or the moon going in splendor,
27 And my heart became secretly enticed,
And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,
28 That too would have been aan iniquity calling for judgment,
For I would have bdenied God above.
29 “Have I arejoiced at the extinction of my enemy,
Or exulted when evil befell him?
30 “No, aI have not allowed my mouth to sin
By asking for his life in ba curse.
31 “Have the men of my tent not said,
‘Who can find one who has not been asatisfied with his meat’?
32 “The alien has not lodged outside,
For I have opened my doors to the traveler.
33 “Have I acovered my transgressions like Adam,
By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,
34 Because I afeared the great multitude,
And the contempt of families terrified me,
And kept silent and did not go out of doors?
35 “Oh that I had one to hear me!
Behold, here is my signature;
aLet the Almighty answer me!
And the indictment which my badversary has written,
36 Surely I would carry it on my shoulder,
I would bind it to myself like a crown.
37 “I would declare to Him athe number of my steps;
Like ba prince I would approach Him.
38 “If my aland cries out against me,
And its furrows weep together;
39 If I have aeaten its fruit without money,
Or have bcaused its owners to lose their lives,
40 Let abriars grow instead of wheat,
And stinkweed instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.
Elihu in Anger Rebukes Job
Then these three men ceased answering Job, because he was arighteous in his own eyes. 2 But the anger of Elihu the son of Barachel the aBuzite, of the family of Ram burned; against Job his anger burned bbecause he justified himself cbefore God. 3 And his anger burned against his three friends because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job. 4 Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job because they were years older than he. 5 And when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouth of the three men his anger burned.
6 So Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite spoke out and said,
“I am young in years and you are aold;
Therefore I was shy and afraid to tell you what I think.
7 “I thought aage should speak,
And increased years should teach wisdom.
8 “But it is a spirit in man,
And the abreath of the Almighty gives them bunderstanding.
9 “The abundant in years may not be wise,
Nor may aelders understand justice.
10 “So I say, ‘Listen to me,
I too will tell what I think.’
11 “Behold, I waited for your words,
I listened to your reasonings,
While you pondered what to say.
12 “I even paid close attention to you;
Indeed, there was no one who refuted Job,
Not one of you who answered his words.
13 “Do not say,
‘aWe have found wisdom;
God will rout him, not man.’
14 “For he has not arranged his words against me,
Nor will I reply to him with your arguments.
15 “They are dismayed, they no longer answer;
Words have failed them.
16 “Shall I wait, because they do not speak,
Because they stop and no longer answer?
17 “I too will answer my share,
I also will tell my opinion.
18 “For I am full of words;
The spirit within me constrains me.
19 “Behold, my belly is like unvented wine,
Like new wineskins it is about to burst.
20 “Let me speak that I may get relief;
Let me open my lips and answer.
21 “Let me now abe partial to no one,
Nor flatter any man.
22 “For I do not know how to flatter,
Else my Maker would soon take me away.
Elihu Claims to Speak for God
“However now, Job, please ahear my speech,
And listen to all my words.
2 “Behold now, I open my mouth,
My tongue in my mouth speaks.
3 “My words are from the uprightness of my heart,
And my lips speak aknowledge sincerely.
4 “The aSpirit of God has made me,
And the bbreath of the Almighty gives me life.
5 “aRefute me if you can;
Array yourselves before me, take your stand.
6 “Behold, I belong to God like you;
I too have been formed out of the aclay.
7 “Behold, ano fear of me should terrify you,
Nor should my pressure weigh heavily on you.
8 “Surely you have spoken in my hearing,
And I have heard the sound of your words:
9 ‘I am apure, bwithout transgression;
I am innocent and there cis no guilt in me.
10 ‘Behold, He invents pretexts against me;
He acounts me as His enemy.
11 ‘He aputs my feet in the stocks;
He watches all my paths.’
12 “Behold, let me tell you, ayou are not right in this,
For God is greater than man.
13 “Why do you acomplain against Him
That He does not give an account of all His doings?
14 “Indeed aGod speaks once,
Or twice, yet no one notices it.
15 “In a adream, a vision of the night,
When sound sleep falls on men,
While they slumber in their beds,
16 Then aHe opens the ears of men,
And seals their instruction,
17 That He may turn man aside from his conduct,
And keep man from pride;
18 He akeeps back his soul from the pit,
And his life from passing over binto Sheol.
19 “Man is also chastened with apain on his bed,
And with unceasing complaint in his bones;
20 So that his life aloathes bread,
And his soul favorite food.
21 “His aflesh wastes away from sight,
And his bbones which were not seen stick out.
22 “Then ahis soul draws near to the pit,
And his life to those who bring death.
23 “If there is an angel as amediator for him,
One out of a thousand,
To remind a man what is right for him,
24 Then let him be gracious to him, and say,
‘Deliver him from agoing down to the pit,
I have found a bransom’;
25 Let his flesh become fresher than in youth,
Let him return to the days of his youthful vigor;
26 Then he will apray to God, and He will accept him,
That bhe may see His face with joy,
And He may restore His righteousness to man.
27 “He will sing to men and say,
‘I ahave sinned and perverted what is right,
And it is not bproper for me.
28 ‘He has redeemed my soul from going to the pit,
And my life shall asee the light.’
29 “Behold, God does aall these oftentimes with men,
30 To abring back his soul from the pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life.
31 “Pay attention, O Job, listen to me;
Keep silent, and let me speak.
32 “Then if you have anything to say, answer me;
Speak, for I desire to justify you.
33 “If not, alisten to me;
Keep silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”