1,21He said,
'Naked I came out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return,
the L-rd gave, and the L-rd has taken away. Blessed be the name of the L-rd.'
1,22In all this, Job did not
sin, nor charge G-d with wrongdoing.
2,1Again it happened on
the day when the G-d's sons came to present themselves before the L-rd,
that Satan came also among them to present himself before the L-rd.
2,2And the L-rd said to Satan, Where
have you come from?
Satan answered the L-rd, and said, From going back and forth in the
earth, and from walking up and down in it.
2,3And the L-rd said to Satan,
Have you considered my servant Job? For there is none like him in the
earth, a blameless and an upright man, one who fears G-d, and turns away
from evil. He still maintains his integrity, although you incited me
against him, to ruin him without cause.
2,4Satan answered the L-rd,
and said, Skin for skin. Yes, all that a man has he will give for his
life. 2,5But put forth your
hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will renounce you to
your face.
2,6And the L-rd said to Satan,
Behold, he is in your hand. Only spare his life.
2,7So Satan went forth
from the presence of the L-rd, and struck Job with painful sores from the
sole of his foot to his head.
2,8He took for himself a potsherd to
scrape himself with, and he sat among the ashes.
2,9Then his wife said to him, Do
you still maintain your integrity? Renounce G-d, and die.
2,10But he said to her,
You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. What? Shall we
receive good at the hand of G-d, and shall we not receive evil?
In all this Job didn't sin with his lips.
2,11Now when Job's three friends
heard of all this evil that had come on him, they each came from his own
place: Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the
Naamathite, and they made an appointment together to come to sympathize
with him and to comfort him.
2,12When they lifted up their eyes
from a distance, and didn't recognize him, they raised their voices, and
wept; and they each tore his robe, and sprinkled dust on their heads
toward the sky. 2,13So they
sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and none
spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.
3,1After this Job opened
his mouth, and cursed the day of his birth.
3,2And Job answered, and said,
3,3 Let the day perish
in which I was born,
the night which said, 'There is a boy conceived.'
3,4Let that day be
darkness.
Don't let G-d from above seek for it,
neither let the light shine on it.
3,5Let darkness and the
shadow of death claim it for their own.
Let a cloud dwell on it.
Let all that makes black the day terrify it.
3,6As for that night, let
thick darkness seize on it.
Let it not rejoice among the days of the year.
Let it not come into the number of the months.
3,7Behold, let that night
be barren.
Let no joyful voice come therein.
3,8Let them curse it who
curse the day,
who are ready to rouse up leviathan.
3,9Let the stars of its
twilight be dark.
Let it look for light, but have none,
neither let it see the eyelids of the morning,
3,10because it didn't
shut up the doors of my mother's womb,
nor did it hide trouble from my eyes.
3,11 Why didn't I die
from the womb?
Why didn't I give up the spirit when my mother bore me?
3,12Why did the knees
receive me?
Or why the breast, that I should nurse?
3,13For now should I have
lain down and been quiet.
I should have slept, then I would have been at rest,
3,14with kings and
counselors of the earth,
who built up waste places for themselves;
3,15or with princes who
had gold,
who filled their houses with silver:
3,16or as a hidden
untimely birth I had not been,
as infants who never saw light.
3,17There the wicked
cease from troubling.
There the weary are at rest.
3,18There the prisoners
are at ease together.
They don't hear the voice of the taskmaster.
3,19The small and the
great are there.
The servant is free from his master.
3,20 Why is light given
to him who is in misery,
life to the bitter in soul,
3,21Who long for death,
but it doesn't come;
and dig for it more than for hidden treasures,
3,22who rejoice
exceedingly,
and are glad, when they can find the grave?
3,23Why is light given to
a man whose way is hidden,
whom G-d has hedged in?
3,24For my sighing comes
before I eat.
My groanings are poured out like water.
3,25For the thing which I
fear comes on me,
That which I am afraid of comes to me.
3,26I am not at ease,
neither am I quiet, neither have I rest;
but trouble comes.
4,1Then Eliphaz the
Temanite answered,
4,2If someone ventures
to talk with you, will you be grieved?
But who can withhold himself from speaking?
4,3Behold, you have
instructed many,
you have strengthened the weak hands.
4,4Your words have
supported him who was falling,
You have made firm the feeble knees.
4,5But now it has come to
you, and you faint.
It touches you, and you are troubled.
4,6Isn't your piety
your confidence?
Isn't the integrity of your ways your hope?
4,7 Remember, now,
whoever perished, being innocent?
Or where were the upright cut off?
4,8According to what I
have seen, those who plow iniquity,
and sow trouble,
reap the same.
4,9By the breath of G-d
they perish.
By the blast of his anger are they consumed.
4,10The roaring of the
lion,
and the voice of the fierce lion,
the teeth of the young lions, are broken.
4,11The old lion perishes
for lack of prey.
The cubs of the lioness are scattered abroad.
4,12 Now a thing was
secretly brought to me.
My ear received a whisper of it.
4,13In thoughts from the
visions of the night,
when deep sleep falls on men,
4,14fear came on me, and
trembling,
which made all my bones shake.
4,15Then a spirit passed
before my face.
The hair of my flesh stood up.
4,16It stood still, but I
couldn't discern its appearance.
A form was before my eyes.
Silence, then I heard a voice, saying,
4,17'Shall mortal man
be more just than G-d?
Shall a man be more pure than his Maker?
4,18Behold, he puts no
trust in his servants.
He charges his angels with error.
4,19How much more, those
who dwell in houses of clay,
whose foundation is in the dust,
who are crushed before the moth!
4,20Between morning and
evening they are destroyed.
They perish forever without any regarding it.
4,21Isn't their tent
cord plucked up within them?
They die, and that without wisdom.'
5,1 Call now; is there
any who will answer you?
To which of the holy ones will you turn?
5,2For resentment kills
the foolish man,
and jealousy kills the simple.
5,3I have seen the
foolish taking root,
but suddenly I cursed his habitation.
5,4His children are far
from safety.
They are crushed in the gate.
Neither is there any to deliver them,
5,5whose harvest the
hungry eats up,
and take it even out of the thorns.
The snare gapes for their substance.
5,6For affliction
doesn't come forth from the dust,
neither does trouble spring out of the ground;
5,7but man is born to
trouble,
as the sparks fly upward.
5,8 But as for me, I
would seek G-d.
I would commit my cause to G-d,
5,9who does great things
that can't be fathomed,
marvelous things without number;
5,10who gives rain on the
earth,
and sends waters on the fields;
5,11so that he sets up on
high those who are low,
those who mourn are exalted to safety.
5,12He frustrates the
devices of the crafty,
So that their hands can't perform their enterprise.
5,13He takes the wise in
their own craftiness;
the counsel of the cunning is carried headlong.
5,14They meet with
darkness in the day time,
and grope at noonday as in the night.
5,15But he saves from the
sword of their mouth,
even the needy from the hand of the mighty.
5,16So the poor has hope,
and injustice shuts her mouth.
5,17 Behold, happy is
the man whom G-d corrects.
Therefore do not despise the chastening of the Almighty.
5,18For he wounds, and
binds up.
He injures, and his hands make whole.
5,19He will deliver you
in six troubles;
yes, in seven no evil shall touch you.
5,20In famine he will
redeem you from death;
in war, from the power of the sword.
5,21You shall be hidden
from the scourge of the tongue,
neither shall you be afraid of destruction when it comes.
5,22At destruction and
famine you shall laugh,
neither shall you be afraid of the animals of the earth.
5,23For you shall be
allied with the stones of the field.
The animals of the field shall be at peace with you.
5,24You shall know that
your tent is in peace.
You shall visit your fold, and shall miss nothing.
5,25You shall know also
that your seed shall be great,
Your offspring as the grass of the earth.
5,26You shall come to
your grave in a full age,
like a shock of grain comes in its season.
5,27Look this, we have
searched it, so it is.
Hear it, and know it for your good.
6,1Then Job answered, and said,
6,2 Oh that my anguish
were weighed,
and all my calamity laid in the balances!
6,3For now it would be
heavier than the sand of the seas,
therefore have my words been rash.
6,4For the arrows of the
Almighty are within me.
My spirit drinks up their poison.
The terrors of G-d set themselves in array against me.
6,5Does the wild donkey
bray when he has grass?
Or does the ox low over his fodder?
6,6Can that which has no
flavor be eaten without salt?
Or is there any taste in the white of an egg?
6,7My soul refuses to
touch them.
They are as loathsome food to me.
6,8 Oh that I might
have my request,
that G-d would grant the thing that I long for,
6,9even that it would
please G-d to crush me;
that he would let loose His hand, and cut me off!
6,10Be it still my
consolation,
yes, let me exult in pain that doesn't spare,
that I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
6,11What is my strength,
that I should wait?
What is my end, that I should be patient?
6,12Is my strength the
strength of stones?
Or is my flesh of brass?
6,13Isn't it that I
have no help in me,
That wisdom is driven quite from me?
6,14 To him who is
ready to faint, kindness should be shown from his friend;
even to him who forsakes the fear of the Almighty.
6,15My brothers have
dealt deceitfully as a brook,
as the channel of brooks that pass away;
6,16Which are black by
reason of the ice,
in which the snow hides itself.
6,17In the dry season,
they vanish.
When it is hot, they are consumed out of their place.
6,18The caravans that
travel beside them turn aside.
They go up into the waste, and perish.
6,19The caravans of Tema
looked.
The companies of Sheba waited for them.
6,20They were distressed
because they were confident.
They came there, and were confounded.
6,21For now you are
nothing.
You see a terror, and are afraid.
6,22Did I say, 'Give to
me?'
or, 'Offer a present for me from your substance?'
6,23or, 'Deliver me
from the adversary's hand?'
or, 'Redeem me from the hand of the oppressors?'
6,24 Teach me, and I
will hold my peace.
Cause me to understand wherein I have erred.
6,25How forcible are
words of uprightness!
But your reproof, what does it reprove?
6,26Do You intend to
reprove words,
since the speeches of one who is desperate are as wind?
6,27You would even
cast lots for the fatherless,
and make merchandise of your friend.
6,28Now therefore be
pleased to look at me,
for surely I shall not lie to your face.
6,29Please return.
Let there be no injustice.
Yes, return again.
My cause is righteous.
6,30Is there injustice on
my tongue?
Can't my taste discern mischievous things?
7,1 Isn't a man
forced to labor on earth?
Aren't his days like the days of a hired hand?
7,2As a servant who
earnestly desires the shadow,
as a hireling who looks for his wages,
7,3so am I made to
possess months of misery,
wearisome nights are appointed to me.
7,4When I lie down, I say,
'When shall I arise, and the night be gone?'
I toss and turn until the dawning of the day.
7,5My flesh is clothed
with worms and clods of dust.
My skin closes up, and breaks out afresh.
7,6My days are swifter
than a weaver's shuttle,
and are spent without hope.
7,7Remember that life is a breath.
My eye shall no more see good.
7,8The eye of him who
sees me shall see me no more.
Your eyes shall be on me, but I shall not be.
7,9As the cloud is
consumed and vanishes away,
so he who goes down to Hell shall come up no more.
7,10He shall return no
more to his house,
neither shall his place know him any more.
7,11 Therefore I will
not keep silent.
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit.
I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
7,12Am I a sea, or a sea
monster,
that you put a guard over me?
7,13When I say, 'My bed
shall comfort me.
My couch shall ease my complaint;'
7,14then you scare me
with dreams,
and terrify me through visions:
7,15so that my soul
chooses strangling,
death rather than my bones.
7,16I loathe my life.
I don't want to live forever.
Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath.
7,17What is man, that you
should magnify him,
that you should set your mind on him,
7,18that you should visit
him every morning,
and test him every moment?
7,19How long will you not
look away from me,
nor leave me alone until I swallow down my spittle?
7,20If I have sinned,
what do I do to you, you watcher of men?
Why have you set me as a mark for you,
so that I am a burden to myself?
7,21Why do you not pardon
my disobedience, and take away my iniquity?
For now shall I lie down in the dust.
You will seek me diligently, but I shall not be.
8,1Then Bildad the Shuhite
answered,
8,2 How long will you
speak these things?
Shall the words of your mouth be a mighty wind?
8,3Does G-d pervert
justice?
Or does the Almighty pervert righteousness?
8,4If your children have
sinned against him,
He has delivered them into the hand of their disobedience.
8,5If you want to seek
G-d diligently,
make your supplication to the Almighty.
8,6If you were pure and
upright,
surely now he would awaken for you,
and make the habitation of your righteousness prosperous.
8,7Though your beginning
was small,
yet your latter end would greatly increase.
8,8 Please inquire of
past generations.
Find out about the learning of their fathers.
8,9For we are but of
yesterday, and know nothing,
because our days on earth are a shadow.
8,10Shall they not teach
you, tell you,
and utter words out of their heart?
8,11 Can the papyrus
grow up without mire?
Can the rushes grow without water?
8,12While it is yet in
its greenness, not cut down,
it withers before any other reed.
8,13So are the paths of
all who forget G-d.
The hope of the godless man shall perish,
8,14Whose confidence
shall break apart,
Whose trust is a spider's web.
8,15He shall lean on his
house, but it shall not stand.
He shall cling to it, but it shall not endure.
8,16He is green before
the sun.
His shoots go forth over his garden.
8,17His roots are wrapped
around the rock pile.
He sees the place of stones.
8,18If he is destroyed
from his place,
then it shall deny him, saying, 'I have not seen you.'
8,19Behold, this is the
joy of his way:
out of the earth, others shall spring.
8,20 Behold, G-d will
not cast away a blameless man,
neither will he uphold the evildoers.
8,21He will still fill
your mouth with laughter,
your lips with shouting.
8,22Those who hate you
shall be clothed with shame.
The tent of the wicked shall be no more.
9,1Then Job answered, and said,
9,2 Truly I know that
it is so,
but how can man be just with G-d?
9,3If he is pleased to
contend with him,
he can't answer him one time in a thousand.
9,4G-d who is wise in
heart, and mighty in strength:
who has hardened himself against him, and prospered?
9,5He removes the
mountains, and they don't know it,
when he overturns them in his anger.
9,6He shakes the earth
out of its place.
Its pillars tremble.
9,7He commands the sun,
and it doesn't rise,
and seals up the stars.
9,8He alone stretches out
the heavens,
and treads on the waves of the sea.
9,9He makes the Bear,
Orion, and the Pleiades,
and the rooms of the south.
9,10He does great things
past finding out;
yes, marvelous things without number.
9,11Behold, he goes by
me, and I don't see him.
He passes on also, but I don't perceive him.
9,12Behold, he snatches
away.
Who can hinder him?
Who will ask him, 'What are you doing?'
9,13 G-d will not
withdraw his anger.
The helpers of Rahab stoop under him.
9,14How much less shall I
answer him,
And choose my words to argue with him?
9,15Though I were
righteous, yet I wouldn't answer him.
I would make supplication to my judge.
9,16If I had called, and
he had answered me,
yet I wouldn't believe that he listened to my voice.
9,17For he breaks me with
a storm,
and multiplies my wounds without cause.
9,18He will not allow me
to catch my breath,
but fills me with bitterness.
9,19If it is a matter of
strength, behold, he is mighty!
If of justice, 'Who,' says he, 'will summon me?'
9,20Though I am
righteous, my own mouth shall condemn me.
Though I am blameless, it shall prove me perverse.
9,21I am blameless.
I don't respect myself.
I despise my life.
9,22 It is all the same.
Therefore I say he destroys the blameless and the wicked.
9,23If the scourge kills
suddenly,
he will mock at the trial of the innocent.
9,24The earth is given
into the hand of the wicked.
He covers the faces of its judges.
If not he, then who is it?
9,25 Now my days are
swifter than a runner.
They flee away, they see no good,
9,26They have passed away
as the swift ships,
as the eagle that swoops on the prey.
9,27If I say, 'I will
forget my complaint,
I will put off my sad face, and cheer up;'
9,28I am afraid of all my
sorrows,
I know that you will not hold me innocent.
9,29I shall be condemned.
Why then do I labor in vain?
9,30If I wash myself with
snow,
and cleanse my hands with lye,
9,31yet you will plunge
me in the ditch.
My own clothes shall abhor me.
9,32For he is not a man,
as I am, that I should answer him,
that we should come together in judgment.
9,33There is no umpire
between us,
that might lay his hand on us both.
9,34Let him take his rod
away from me.
Let his terror not make me afraid;
9,35then I would speak,
and not fear him,
for I am not so in myself.