New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Job Says There Is No Arbitrator between God and Man

1 Then Job answered,

2 “In truth I know that this is so;

But how can a man be in the right before God?

3 “If one wished to dispute with Him,

He could not answer Him once in a thousandtimes.

4 “Wise in heart and mighty in strength,

Who has defied Him without harm?

5 “It is Godwho removes the mountains, they know nothow,

When He overturns them in His anger;

6 Who shakes the earth out of its place,

And its pillars tremble;

7 Who commands the sun not to shine,

And sets a seal upon the stars;

8 Who alone stretches out the heavens

And tramples down the waves of the sea;

9 Who makes the Bear, Orion and the Pleiades,

And the chambers of the south;

10 Who does great things, unfathomable,

And wondrous works without number.

11 “Were He to pass by me, I would not see Him;

Were He to move pastme,I would not perceive Him.

12 “Were He to snatch away, who could restrain Him?

Who could say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’

13 “God will not turn back His anger;

Beneath Him crouch the helpers of Rahab.

14 “How then can I answer Him,

Andchoose my words before Him?

15 “For though I were right, I could not answer;

I would have to implore the mercy of my judge.

16 “If I called and He answered me,

I could not believe that He was listening to my voice.

17 “For He bruises me with a tempest

And multiplies my wounds without cause.

18 “He will not allow me to get my breath,

But saturates me with bitterness.

19 “Ifit is a matterof power, behold,He isthe strong one!

And ifit is a matterof justice, who can summon Him?

20 “Though I am righteous, my mouth will condemn me;

Though I am guiltless, He will declare me guilty.

21 “I am guiltless;

I do not take notice of myself;

I despise my life.

22 “It isallone; therefore I say,

‘He destroys the guiltless and the wicked.’

23 “If the scourge kills suddenly,

He mocks the despair of the innocent.

24 “The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;

He covers the faces of its judges.

Ifit isnotHe,then who is it?

25 “Now my days are swifter than a runner;

They flee away, they see no good.

26 “They slip by like reed boats,

Like an eagle that swoops on its prey.

27 “Though I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,

I will leave off mysadcountenance and be cheerful,’

28 I am afraid of all my pains,

I know that You will not acquit me.

29 “I am accounted wicked,

Why then should I toil in vain?

30 “If I should wash myself with snow

And cleanse my hands with lye,

31 Yet You would plunge me into the pit,

And my own clothes would abhor me.

32 “ForHe isnot a man as I am that I may answer Him,

That we may go to court together.

33 “There is no umpire between us,

Who may lay his hand upon us both.

34 “Let Him remove His rod from me,

And let not dread of Him terrify me.

35 “ThenI would speak and not fear Him;

But I am not like that in myself.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/9-d1e524d27342eebdde2d76b29d164f4b.mp3?version_id=100—

Job Despairs of God’s Dealings

1 “I loathe my own life;

I will give full vent to my complaint;

I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.

2 “I will say to God, ‘Do not condemn me;

Let me know why You contend with me.

3 ‘Is it right for You indeed to oppress,

To reject the labor of Your hands,

And to look favorably on the schemes of the wicked?

4 ‘Have You eyes of flesh?

Or do You see as a man sees?

5 ‘Are Your days as the days of a mortal,

Or Your years as man’s years,

6 That You should seek for my guilt

And search after my sin?

7 ‘According to Your knowledge I am indeed not guilty,

Yet there is no deliverance from Your hand.

8 ‘Your hands fashioned and made me altogether,

And would You destroy me?

9 ‘Remember now, that You have made me as clay;

And would You turn me into dust again?

10 ‘Did You not pour me out like milk

And curdle me like cheese;

11 Clothe me with skin and flesh,

And knit me together with bones and sinews?

12 ‘You have granted me life and lovingkindness;

And Your care has preserved my spirit.

13 ‘Yet these things You have concealed in Your heart;

I know that this is within You:

14 If I sin, then You would take note of me,

And would not acquit me of my guilt.

15 ‘If I am wicked, woe to me!

And if I am righteous, I dare not lift up my head.

I amsated with disgrace and conscious of my misery.

16 ‘Shouldmy headbe lifted up, You would hunt me like a lion;

And again You would show Your power against me.

17 ‘You renew Your witnesses against me

And increase Your anger toward me;

Hardship after hardship is with me.

18 ‘Why then have You brought me out of the womb?

Would that I had died and no eye had seen me!

19 ‘I should have been as though I had not been,

Carried from womb to tomb.’

20 “Would He not let my few days alone?

Withdraw from me that I may have a little cheer

21 Before I go-and I shall not return-

To the land of darkness and deep shadow,

22 The land of utter gloom as darknessitself,

Of deep shadow without order,

And which shines as the darkness.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/10-832a20c942b62c8fb3f8ad098805ea67.mp3?version_id=100—

Zophar Rebukes Job

1 Then Zophar the Naamathite answered,

2 “Shall a multitude of words go unanswered,

And a talkative man be acquitted?

3 “Shall your boasts silence men?

And shall you scoff and none rebuke?

4 “For you have said, ‘My teaching is pure,

And I am innocent in your eyes.’

5 “But would that God might speak,

And open His lips against you,

6 And show you the secrets of wisdom!

For sound wisdom has two sides.

Know then that God forgets a part of your iniquity.

7 “Can you discover the depths of God?

Can you discover the limits of the Almighty?

8 “They arehigh as the heavens, what can you do?

Deeper than Sheol, what can you know?

9 “Its measure is longer than the earth

And broader than the sea.

10 “If He passes by or shuts up,

Or calls an assembly, who can restrain Him?

11 “For He knows false men,

And He sees iniquity without investigating.

12 “An idiot will become intelligent

When the foal of a wild donkey is born a man.

13 “If you would direct your heart right

And spread out your hand to Him,

14 If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away,

And do not let wickedness dwell in your tents;

15 “Then, indeed, you could lift up your face withoutmoraldefect,

And you would be steadfast and not fear.

16 “For you would forgetyourtrouble,

As waters that have passed by, you would rememberit.

17 “Your life would be brighter than noonday;

Darkness would be like the morning.

18 “Then you would trust, because there is hope;

And you would look around and rest securely.

19 “You would lie down and none would disturbyou,

And many would entreat your favor.

20 “But the eyes of the wicked will fail,

And there will be no escape for them;

And their hope is to breathe their last.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/11-bb42a48af8c675580120cd9fb52d2a7c.mp3?version_id=100—

Job Chides His Accusers

1 Then Job responded,

2 “Truly then you are the people,

And with you wisdom will die!

3 “But I have intelligence as well as you;

I am not inferior to you.

And who does not know such things as these?

4 “I am a joke to my friends,

The one who called on God and He answered him;

The justandblamelessmanis a joke.

5 “He who is at ease holds calamity in contempt,

As prepared for those whose feet slip.

6 “The tents of the destroyers prosper,

And those who provoke God are secure,

Whom God brings into their power.

7 “But now ask the beasts, and let them teach you;

And the birds of the heavens, and let them tell you.

8 “Or speak to the earth, and let it teach you;

And let the fish of the sea declare to you.

9 “Who among all these does not know

That the hand of the Lordhas done this,

10 In whose hand is the life of every living thing,

And the breath of all mankind?

11 “Does not the ear test words,

As the palate tastes its food?

12 “Wisdom is with aged men,

Withlong life is understanding.

Job Speaks of the Power of God

13 “With Him are wisdom and might;

To Him belong counsel and understanding.

14 “Behold, He tears down, and it cannot be rebuilt;

He imprisons a man, and there can be no release.

15 “Behold, He restrains the waters, and they dry up;

And He sends them out, and they inundate the earth.

16 “With Him are strength and sound wisdom,

The misled and the misleader belong to Him.

17 “He makes counselors walk barefoot

And makes fools of judges.

18 “He loosens the bond of kings

And binds their loins with a girdle.

19 “He makes priests walk barefoot

And overthrows the secure ones.

20 “He deprives the trusted ones of speech

And takes away the discernment of the elders.

21 “He pours contempt on nobles

And loosens the belt of the strong.

22 “He reveals mysteries from the darkness

And brings the deep darkness into light.

23 “He makes the nations great, then destroys them;

He enlarges the nations, then leads them away.

24 “He deprives of intelligence the chiefs of the earth’s people

And makes them wander in a pathless waste.

25 “They grope in darkness with no light,

And He makes them stagger like a drunken man.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/12-7b67b89d6bc83190c505c7e0bf595761.mp3?version_id=100—

Job Says His Friends’ Proverbs Are Ashes

1 “Behold, my eye has seen allthis,

My ear has heard and understood it.

2 “What you know I also know;

I am not inferior to you.

3 “But I would speak to the Almighty,

And I desire to argue with God.

4 “But you smear with lies;

You are all worthless physicians.

5 “O that you would be completely silent,

And that it would become your wisdom!

6 “Please hear my argument

And listen to the contentions of my lips.

7 “Will you speak what is unjust for God,

And speak what is deceitful for Him?

8 “Will you show partiality for Him?

Will you contend for God?

9 “Will it be well when He examines you?

Or will you deceive Him as one deceives a man?

10 “He will surely reprove you

If you secretly show partiality.

11 “Will not His majesty terrify you,

And the dread of Him fall on you?

12 “Your memorable sayings are proverbs of ashes,

Your defenses are defenses of clay.

Job Is Sure He Will Be Vindicated

13 “Be silent before me so that I may speak;

Then let come on me what may.

14 “Why should I take my flesh in my teeth

And put my life in my hands?

15 “Though He slay me,

I will hope in Him.

Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him.

16 “This also will be my salvation,

For a godless man may not come before His presence.

17 “Listen carefully to my speech,

And let my declarationfillyour ears.

18 “Behold now, I have prepared my case;

I know that I will be vindicated.

19 “Who will contend with me?

For then I would be silent and die.

20 “Only two things do not do to me,

Then I will not hide from Your face:

21 Remove Your hand from me,

And let not the dread of You terrify me.

22 “Then call, and I will answer;

Or let me speak, then reply to me.

23 “How many are my iniquities and sins?

Make known to me my rebellion and my sin.

24 “Why do You hide Your face

And consider me Your enemy?

25 “Will You cause a driven leaf to tremble?

Or will You pursue the dry chaff?

26 “For You write bitter things against me

And make me to inherit the iniquities of my youth.

27 “You put my feet in the stocks

And watch all my paths;

You set a limit for the soles of my feet,

28 While I am decaying like a rotten thing,

Like a garment that is moth-eaten.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/13-44cad941287cb50a893f86d0c7cf4c63.mp3?version_id=100—

Job Speaks of the Finality of Death

1 “Man, who is born of woman,

Is short-lived and full of turmoil.

2 “Like a flower he comes forth and withers.

He also flees like a shadow and does not remain.

3 “You also open Your eyes on him

And bring him into judgment with Yourself.

4 “Who can make the clean out of the unclean?

No one!

5 “Since his days are determined,

The number of his months is with You;

And his limits You have set so that he cannot pass.

6 “Turn Your gaze from him that he may rest,

Until he fulfills his day like a hired man.

7 “For there is hope for a tree,

When it is cut down, that it will sprout again,

And its shoots will not fail.

8 “Though its roots grow old in the ground

And its stump dies in the dry soil,

9 At the scent of water it will flourish

And put forth sprigs like a plant.

10 “But man dies and lies prostrate.

Man expires, and where is he?

11 “Aswater evaporates from the sea,

And a river becomes parched and dried up,

12 So man lies down and does not rise.

Until the heavens are no longer,

He will not awake nor be aroused out of his sleep.

13 “Oh that You would hide me in Sheol,

That You would conceal me until Your wrath returnsto You,

That You would set a limit for me and remember me!

14 “If a man dies, will he liveagain?

All the days of my struggle I will wait

Until my change comes.

15 “You will call, and I will answer You;

You will long for the work of Your hands.

16 “For now You number my steps,

You do not observe my sin.

17 “My transgression is sealed up in a bag,

And You wrap up my iniquity.

18 “But the falling mountain crumbles away,

And the rock moves from its place;

19 Water wears away stones,

Its torrents wash away the dust of the earth;

So You destroy man’s hope.

20 “You forever overpower him and he departs;

Youchange his appearance and send him away.

21 “His sons achieve honor, but he does not knowit;

Or they become insignificant, but he does not perceive it.

22 “But his body pains him,

And he mourns only for himself.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/14-54a873a532a7cba59faa2607945be93c.mp3?version_id=100—

Eliphaz Says Job Presumes Much

1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded,

2 “Should a wise man answer with windy knowledge

And fill himself with the east wind?

3 “Should he argue with useless talk,

Or with words which are not profitable?

4 “Indeed, you do away with reverence

And hinder meditation before God.

5 “For your guilt teaches your mouth,

And you choose the language of the crafty.

6 “Your own mouth condemns you, and not I;

And your own lips testify against you.

7 “Were you the first man to be born,

Or were you brought forth before the hills?

8 “Do you hear the secret counsel of God,

And limit wisdom to yourself?

9 “What do you know that we do not know?

Whatdo you understand that we do not?

10 “Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us,

Older than your father.

11 “Are the consolations of God too small for you,

Even the wordspokengently with you?

12 “Why does your heart carry you away?

And why do your eyes flash,

13 That you should turn your spirit against God

And allowsuchwords to go out of your mouth?

14 “What is man, that he should be pure,

Or he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?

15 “Behold, He puts no trust in His holy ones,

And the heavens are not pure in His sight;

16 How much less one who is detestable and corrupt,

Man, who drinks iniquity like water!

What Eliphaz Has Seen of Life

17 “I will tell you, listen to me;

And what I have seen I will also declare;

18 What wise men have told,

And have not concealed from their fathers,

19 To whom alone the land was given,

And no alien passed among them.

20 “The wicked man writhes in pain allhisdays,

And numbered are the years stored up for the ruthless.

21 “Sounds of terror are in his ears;

While at peace the destroyer comes upon him.

22 “He does not believe that he will return from darkness,

And he is destined for the sword.

23 “He wanders about for food, saying, ‘Where is it?’

He knows that a day of darkness is at hand.

24 “Distress and anguish terrify him,

They overpower him like a king ready for the attack,

25 Because he has stretched out his hand against God

And conducts himself arrogantly against the Almighty.

26 “He rushes headlong at Him

With his massive shield.

27 “For he has covered his face with his fat

And made his thighs heavy with flesh.

28 “He has lived in desolate cities,

In houses no one would inhabit,

Which are destined to become ruins.

29 “He will not become rich, nor will his wealth endure;

And his grain will not bend down to the ground.

30 “He will not escape from darkness;

The flame will wither his shoots,

And by the breath of His mouth he will go away.

31 “Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself;

For emptiness will be his reward.

32 “It will be accomplished before his time,

And his palm branch will not be green.

33 “He will drop off his unripe grape like the vine,

And will cast off his flower like the olive tree.

34 “For the company of the godless is barren,

And fire consumes the tents of the corrupt.

35 “They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity,

And their mind prepares deception.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/15-ef13bf06231a8f698d264943d7ae6d1b.mp3?version_id=100—

Job Says Friends Are Sorry Comforters

1 Then Job answered,

2 “I have heard many such things;

Sorry comforters are you all.

3 “Is therenolimit to windy words?

Or what plagues you that you answer?

4 “I too could speak like you,

If I were in your place.

I could compose words against you

And shake my head at you.

5 “I could strengthen you with my mouth,

And the solace of my lips could lessenyour pain.

Job Says God Shattered Him

6 “If I speak, my pain is not lessened,

And if I hold back, what has left me?

7 “But now He has exhausted me;

You have laid waste all my company.

8 “You have shriveled me up,

It has become a witness;

And my leanness rises up against me,

It testifies to my face.

9 “His anger has torn me and hunted me down,

He has gnashed at me with His teeth;

My adversary glares at me.

10 “They have gaped at me with their mouth,

They have slapped me on the cheek with contempt;

They have massed themselves against me.

11 “God hands me over to ruffians

And tosses me into the hands of the wicked.

12 “I was at ease, but He shattered me,

And He has grasped me by the neck and shaken me to pieces;

He has also set me up as His target.

13 “His arrows surround me.

Without mercy He splits my kidneys open;

He pours out my gall on the ground.

14 “He breaks through me with breach after breach;

He runs at me like a warrior.

15 “I have sewed sackcloth over my skin

And thrust my horn in the dust.

16 “My face is flushed from weeping,

And deep darkness is on my eyelids,

17 Although there is no violence in my hands,

And my prayer is pure.

18 “O earth, do not cover my blood,

And let there be norestingplace for my cry.

19 “Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven,

And my advocate is on high.

20 “My friends are my scoffers;

My eye weeps to God.

21 “O that a man might plead with God

As a man with his neighbor!

22 “For when a few years are past,

I shall go the way of no return.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/16-3403c2fada46c800b98b8bc5a224c413.mp3?version_id=100—

Job Says He Has Become a Byword

1 “My spirit is broken, my days are extinguished,

The grave isreadyfor me.

2 “Surely mockers are with me,

And my eye gazes on their provocation.

3 “Lay down, now, a pledge for me with Yourself;

Who is there that will be my guarantor?

4 “For You have kept their heart from understanding,

Therefore You will not exaltthem.

5 “He who informs against friends for a shareof the spoil,

The eyes of his children also will languish.

6 “But He has made me a byword of the people,

And I am one at whom men spit.

7 “My eye has also grown dim because of grief,

And all my members are as a shadow.

8 “The upright will be appalled at this,

And the innocent will stir up himself against the godless.

9 “Nevertheless the righteous will hold to his way,

And he who has clean hands will grow stronger and stronger.

10 “But come again all of you now,

For I do not find a wise man among you.

11 “My days are past, my plans are torn apart,

Eventhe wishes of my heart.

12 “They make night into day,saying,

‘The light is near,’ in the presence of darkness.

13 “If I look for Sheol as my home,

I make my bed in the darkness;

14 If I call to the pit, ‘You are my father’;

To the worm, ‘my mother and my sister’;

15 Where now is my hope?

And who regards my hope?

16 “Will it go down with me to Sheol?

Shall we together go down into the dust?”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/17-4c374ca0cf38df82b20ea4637a853d33.mp3?version_id=100—

Bildad Speaks of the Wicked

1 Then Bildad the Shuhite responded,

2 “How long will you hunt for words?

Show understanding and then we can talk.

3 “Why are we regarded as beasts,

As stupid in your eyes?

4 “O you who tear yourself in your anger-

For your sake is the earth to be abandoned,

Or the rock to be moved from its place?

5 “Indeed, the light of the wicked goes out,

And the flame of his fire gives no light.

6 “The light in his tent is darkened,

And his lamp goes out above him.

7 “His vigorous stride is shortened,

And his own scheme brings him down.

8 “For he is thrown into the net by his own feet,

And he steps on the webbing.

9 “A snare seizeshimby the heel,

Anda trap snaps shut on him.

10 “A noose for him is hidden in the ground,

And a trap for him on the path.

11 “All around terrors frighten him,

And harry him at every step.

12 “His strength is famished,

And calamity is ready at his side.

13 “His skin is devoured by disease,

The firstborn of death devours his limbs.

14 “He is torn from the security of his tent,

And they march him before the king of terrors.

15 “There dwells in his tent nothing of his;

Brimstone is scattered on his habitation.

16 “His roots are dried below,

And his branch is cut off above.

17 “Memory of him perishes from the earth,

And he has no name abroad.

18 “He is driven from light into darkness,

And chased from the inhabited world.

19 “He has no offspring or posterity among his people,

Nor any survivor where he sojourned.

20 “Those in the west are appalled at his fate,

And those in the east are seized with horror.

21 “Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked,

And this is the place of him who does not know God.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/80/32k/JOB/18-a940c83221383d60c294f6293cae496b.mp3?version_id=100—