New Living Translation (NLT)

Eliphaz’s Response Continues

1 “Cry for help, but will anyone answer you?

Which of the angelswill help you?

2 Surely resentment destroys the fool,

and jealousy kills the simple.

3 I have seen that fools may be successful for the moment,

but then comes sudden disaster.

4 Their children are abandoned far from help;

they are crushed in court with no one to defend them.

5 The hungry devour their harvest,

even when it is guarded by brambles.

The thirsty pant after their wealth.

6 But evil does not spring from the soil,

and trouble does not sprout from the earth.

7 People are born for trouble

as readily as sparks fly up from a fire.

8 “If I were you, I would go to God

and present my case to him.

9 He does great things too marvelous to understand.

He performs countless miracles.

10 He gives rain for the earth

and water for the fields.

11 He gives prosperity to the poor

and protects those who suffer.

12 He frustrates the plans of schemers

so the work of their hands will not succeed.

13 He traps the wise in their own cleverness

so their cunning schemes are thwarted.

14 They find it is dark in the daytime,

and they grope at noon as if it were night.

15 He rescues the poor from the cutting words of the strong,

and rescues them from the clutches of the powerful.

16 And so at last the poor have hope,

and the snapping jaws of the wicked are shut.

17 “But consider the joy of those corrected by God!

Do not despise the discipline of the Almighty when you sin.

18 For though he wounds, he also bandages.

He strikes, but his hands also heal.

19 From six disasters he will rescue you;

even in the seventh, he will keep you from evil.

20 He will save you from death in time of famine,

from the power of the sword in time of war.

21 You will be safe from slander

and have no fear when destruction comes.

22 You will laugh at destruction and famine;

wild animals will not terrify you.

23 You will be at peace with the stones of the field,

and its wild animals will be at peace with you.

24 You will know that your home is safe.

When you survey your possessions, nothing will be missing.

25 You will have many children;

your descendants will be as plentiful as grass!

26 You will go to the grave at a ripe old age,

like a sheaf of grain harvested at the proper time!

27 “We have studied life and found all this to be true.

Listen to my counsel, and apply it to yourself.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/5-15fd082fce23fab9d9a93e685ae4cadf.mp3?version_id=116—

Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

1 Then Job spoke again:

2 “If my misery could be weighed

and my troubles be put on the scales,

3 they would outweigh all the sands of the sea.

That is why I spoke impulsively.

4 For the Almighty has struck me down with his arrows.

Their poison infects my spirit.

God’s terrors are lined up against me.

5 Don’t I have a right to complain?

Don’t wild donkeys bray when they find no grass,

and oxen bellow when they have no food?

6 Don’t people complain about unsalted food?

Does anyone want the tasteless white of an egg?

7 My appetite disappears when I look at it;

I gag at the thought of eating it!

8 “Oh, that I might have my request,

that God would grant my desire.

9 I wish he would crush me.

I wish he would reach out his hand and kill me.

10 At least I can take comfort in this:

Despite the pain,

I have not denied the words of the Holy One.

11 But I don’t have the strength to endure.

I have nothing to live for.

12 Do I have the strength of a stone?

Is my body made of bronze?

13 No, I am utterly helpless,

without any chance of success.

14 “One should be kind to a fainting friend,

but you accuse me without any fear of the Almighty.

15 My brothers, you have proved as unreliable as a seasonal brook

that overflows its banks in the spring

16 when it is swollen with ice and melting snow.

17 But when the hot weather arrives, the water disappears.

The brook vanishes in the heat.

18 The caravans turn aside to be refreshed,

but there is nothing to drink, so they die.

19 The caravans from Tema search for this water;

the travelers from Sheba hope to find it.

20 They count on it but are disappointed.

When they arrive, their hopes are dashed.

21 You, too, have given no help.

You have seen my calamity, and you are afraid.

22 But why? Have I ever asked you for a gift?

Have I begged for anything of yours for myself?

23 Have I asked you to rescue me from my enemies,

or to save me from ruthless people?

24 Teach me, and I will keep quiet.

Show me what I have done wrong.

25 Honest words can be painful,

but what do your criticisms amount to?

26 Do you think your words are convincing

when you disregard my cry of desperation?

27 You would even send an orphan into slavery

or sell a friend.

28 Look at me!

Would I lie to your face?

29 Stop assuming my guilt,

for I have done no wrong.

30 Do you think I am lying?

Don’t I know the difference between right and wrong?

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/6-39d6e54df35e3469e82b3d004e448661.mp3?version_id=116—

1 “Is not all human life a struggle?

Our lives are like that of a hired hand,

2 like a worker who longs for the shade,

like a servant waiting to be paid.

3 I, too, have been assigned months of futility,

long and weary nights of misery.

4 Lying in bed, I think, ‘When will it be morning?’

But the night drags on, and I toss till dawn.

5 My body is covered with maggots and scabs.

My skin breaks open, oozing with pus.

Job Cries Out to God

6 “My days fly faster than a weaver’s shuttle.

They end without hope.

7 O God, remember that my life is but a breath,

and I will never again feel happiness.

8 You see me now, but not for long.

You will look for me, but I will be gone.

9 Just as a cloud dissipates and vanishes,

those who diewill not come back.

10 They are gone forever from their home—

never to be seen again.

11 “I cannot keep from speaking.

I must express my anguish.

My bitter soul must complain.

12 Am I a sea monster or a dragon

that you must place me under guard?

13 I think, ‘My bed will comfort me,

and sleep will ease my misery,’

14 but then you shatter me with dreams

and terrify me with visions.

15 I would rather be strangled—

rather die than suffer like this.

16 I hate my life and don’t want to go on living.

Oh, leave me alone for my few remaining days.

17 “What are people, that you should make so much of us,

that you should think of us so often?

18 For you examine us every morning

and test us every moment.

19 Why won’t you leave me alone,

at least long enough for me to swallow!

20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you,

O watcher of all humanity?

Why make me your target?

Am I a burden to you?

21 Why not just forgive my sin

and take away my guilt?

For soon I will lie down in the dust and die.

When you look for me, I will be gone.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/7-7aa0a234ade56214bac195a233981c42.mp3?version_id=116—

Bildad’s First Response to Job

1 Then Bildad the Shuhite replied to Job:

2 “How long will you go on like this?

You sound like a blustering wind.

3 Does God twist justice?

Does the Almighty twist what is right?

4 Your children must have sinned against him,

so their punishment was well deserved.

5 But if you pray to God

and seek the favor of the Almighty,

6 and if you are pure and live with integrity,

he will surely rise up and restore your happy home.

7 And though you started with little,

you will end with much.

8 “Just ask the previous generation.

Pay attention to the experience of our ancestors.

9 For we were born but yesterday and know nothing.

Our days on earth are as fleeting as a shadow.

10 But those who came before us will teach you.

They will teach you the wisdom of old.

11 “Can papyrus reeds grow tall without a marsh?

Can marsh grass flourish without water?

12 While they are still flowering, not ready to be cut,

they begin to wither more quickly than grass.

13 The same happens to all who forget God.

The hopes of the godless evaporate.

14 Their confidence hangs by a thread.

They are leaning on a spider’s web.

15 They cling to their home for security, but it won’t last.

They try to hold it tight, but it will not endure.

16 The godless seem like a lush plant growing in the sunshine,

its branches spreading across the garden.

17 Its roots grow down through a pile of stones;

it takes hold on a bed of rocks.

18 But when it is uprooted,

it’s as though it never existed!

19 That’s the end of its life,

and others spring up from the earth to replace it.

20 “But look, God will not reject a person of integrity,

nor will he lend a hand to the wicked.

21 He will once again fill your mouth with laughter

and your lips with shouts of joy.

22 Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,

and the home of the wicked will be destroyed.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/8-4a308d5ea24e7f7833d29a17cfd08351.mp3?version_id=116—

Job’s Third Speech: A Response to Bildad

1 Then Job spoke again:

2 “Yes, I know all this is true in principle.

But how can a person be declared innocent in God’s sight?

3 If someone wanted to take God to court,

would it be possible to answer him even once in a thousand times?

4 For God is so wise and so mighty.

Who has ever challenged him successfully?

5 “Without warning, he moves the mountains,

overturning them in his anger.

6 He shakes the earth from its place,

and its foundations tremble.

7 If he commands it, the sun won’t rise

and the stars won’t shine.

8 He alone has spread out the heavens

and marches on the waves of the sea.

9 He made all the stars—the Bear and Orion,

the Pleiades and the constellations of the southern sky.

10 He does great things too marvelous to understand.

He performs countless miracles.

11 “Yet when he comes near, I cannot see him.

When he moves by, I do not see him go.

12 If he snatches someone in death, who can stop him?

Who dares to ask, ‘What are you doing?’

13 And God does not restrain his anger.

Even the monsters of the seaare crushed beneath his feet.

14 “So who am I, that I should try to answer God

or even reason with him?

15 Even if I were right, I would have no defense.

I could only plead for mercy.

16 And even if I summoned him and he responded,

I’m not sure he would listen to me.

17 For he attacks me with a storm

and repeatedly wounds me without cause.

18 He will not let me catch my breath,

but fills me instead with bitter sorrows.

19 If it’s a question of strength, he’s the strong one.

If it’s a matter of justice, who dares to summon himto court?

20 Though I am innocent, my own mouth would pronounce me guilty.

Though I am blameless, itwould prove me wicked.

21 “I am innocent,

but it makes no difference to me—

I despise my life.

22 Innocent or wicked, it is all the same to God.

That’s why I say, ‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’

23 When a plaguesweeps through,

he laughs at the death of the innocent.

24 The whole earth is in the hands of the wicked,

and God blinds the eyes of the judges.

If he’s not the one who does it, who is?

25 “My life passes more swiftly than a runner.

It flees away without a glimpse of happiness.

26 It disappears like a swift papyrus boat,

like an eagle swooping down on its prey.

27 If I decided to forget my complaints,

to put away my sad face and be cheerful,

28 I would still dread all the pain,

for I know you will not find me innocent, O God.

29 Whatever happens, I will be found guilty.

So what’s the use of trying?

30 Even if I were to wash myself with soap

and clean my hands with lye,

31 you would plunge me into a muddy ditch,

and my own filthy clothing would hate me.

32 “God is not a mortal like me,

so I cannot argue with him or take him to trial.

33 If only there were a mediator between us,

someone who could bring us together.

34 The mediator could make God stop beating me,

and I would no longer live in terror of his punishment.

35 Then I could speak to him without fear,

but I cannot do that in my own strength.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/9-0d6e206ed84e5970aa512b9977fa5586.mp3?version_id=116—

Job Frames His Plea to God

1 “I am disgusted with my life.

Let me complain freely.

My bitter soul must complain.

2 I will say to God, ‘Don’t simply condemn me—

tell me the charge you are bringing against me.

3 What do you gain by oppressing me?

Why do you reject me, the work of your own hands,

while smiling on the schemes of the wicked?

4 Are your eyes like those of a human?

Do you see things only as people see them?

5 Is your lifetime only as long as ours?

Is your life so short

6 that you must quickly probe for my guilt

and search for my sin?

7 Although you know I am not guilty,

no one can rescue me from your hands.

8 “‘You formed me with your hands; you made me,

yet now you completely destroy me.

9 Remember that you made me from dust—

will you turn me back to dust so soon?

10 You guided my conception

and formed me in the womb.

11 You clothed me with skin and flesh,

and you knit my bones and sinews together.

12 You gave me life and showed me your unfailing love.

My life was preserved by your care.

13 “‘Yet your real motive—

your true intent—

14 was to watch me, and if I sinned,

you would not forgive my guilt.

15 If I am guilty, too bad for me;

and even if I’m innocent, I can’t hold my head high,

because I am filled with shame and misery.

16 And if I hold my head high, you hunt me like a lion

and display your awesome power against me.

17 Again and again you witness against me.

You pour out your growing anger on me

and bring fresh armies against me.

18 “‘Why, then, did you deliver me from my mother’s womb?

Why didn’t you let me die at birth?

19 It would be as though I had never existed,

going directly from the womb to the grave.

20 I have only a few days left, so leave me alone,

that I may have a moment of comfort

21 before I leave—never to return—

for the land of darkness and utter gloom.

22 It is a land as dark as midnight,

a land of gloom and confusion,

where even the light is dark as midnight.’”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/10-abd22011a95defe0dfa273d095080e80.mp3?version_id=116—

Zophar’s First Response to Job

1 Then Zophar the Naamathite replied to Job:

2 “Shouldn’t someone answer this torrent of words?

Is a person proved innocent just by a lot of talking?

3 Should I remain silent while you babble on?

When you mock God, shouldn’t someone make you ashamed?

4 You claim, ‘My beliefs are pure,’

and ‘I am clean in the sight of God.’

5 If only God would speak;

if only he would tell you what he thinks!

6 If only he would tell you the secrets of wisdom,

for true wisdom is not a simple matter.

Listen! God is doubtless punishing you

far less than you deserve!

7 “Can you solve the mysteries of God?

Can you discover everything about the Almighty?

8 Such knowledge is higher than the heavens—

and who are you?

It is deeper than the underworld—

what do you know?

9 It is broader than the earth

and wider than the sea.

10 If God comes and puts a person in prison

or calls the court to order, who can stop him?

11 For he knows those who are false,

and he takes note of all their sins.

12 An empty-headed person won’t become wise

any more than a wild donkey can bear a human child.

13 “If only you would prepare your heart

and lift up your hands to him in prayer!

14 Get rid of your sins,

and leave all iniquity behind you.

15 Then your face will brighten with innocence.

You will be strong and free of fear.

16 You will forget your misery;

it will be like water flowing away.

17 Your life will be brighter than the noonday.

Even darkness will be as bright as morning.

18 Having hope will give you courage.

You will be protected and will rest in safety.

19 You will lie down unafraid,

and many will look to you for help.

20 But the wicked will be blinded.

They will have no escape.

Their only hope is death.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/11-d7c2ccc8ea6dea82259a7093f7b5c767.mp3?version_id=116—

Job’s Fourth Speech: A Response to Zophar

1 Then Job spoke again:

2 “You people really know everything, don’t you?

And when you die, wisdom will die with you!

3 Well, I know a few things myself—

and you’re no better than I am.

Who doesn’t know these things you’ve been saying?

4 Yet my friends laugh at me,

for I call on God and expect an answer.

I am a just and blameless man,

yet they laugh at me.

5 People who are at ease mock those in trouble.

They give a push to people who are stumbling.

6 But robbers are left in peace,

and those who provoke God live in safety—

though God keeps them in his power.

7 “Just ask the animals, and they will teach you.

Ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you.

8 Speak to the earth, and it will instruct you.

Let the fish in the sea speak to you.

9 For they all know

that my disasterhas come from the hand of theLord.

10 For the life of every living thing is in his hand,

and the breath of every human being.

11 The ear tests the words it hears

just as the mouth distinguishes between foods.

12 Wisdom belongs to the aged,

and understanding to the old.

13 “But true wisdom and power are found in God;

counsel and understanding are his.

14 What he destroys cannot be rebuilt.

When he puts someone in prison, there is no escape.

15 If he holds back the rain, the earth becomes a desert.

If he releases the waters, they flood the earth.

16 Yes, strength and wisdom are his;

deceivers and deceived are both in his power.

17 He leads counselors away, stripped of good judgment;

wise judges become fools.

18 He removes the royal robe of kings.

They are led away with ropes around their waist.

19 He leads priests away, stripped of status;

he overthrows those with long years in power.

20 He silences the trusted adviser

and removes the insight of the elders.

21 He pours disgrace upon princes

and disarms the strong.

22 “He uncovers mysteries hidden in darkness;

he brings light to the deepest gloom.

23 He builds up nations, and he destroys them.

He expands nations, and he abandons them.

24 He strips kings of understanding

and leaves them wandering in a pathless wasteland.

25 They grope in the darkness without a light.

He makes them stagger like drunkards.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/12-ee8d91fddc05a7db9e92fcd1d753f42c.mp3?version_id=116—

Job Wants to Argue His Case with God

1 “Look, I have seen all this with my own eyes

and heard it with my own ears, and now I understand.

2 I know as much as you do.

You are no better than I am.

3 As for me, I would speak directly to the Almighty.

I want to argue my case with God himself.

4 As for you, you smear me with lies.

As physicians, you are worthless quacks.

5 If only you could be silent!

That’s the wisest thing you could do.

6 Listen to my charge;

pay attention to my arguments.

7 “Are you defending God with lies?

Do you make your dishonest arguments for his sake?

8 Will you slant your testimony in his favor?

Will you argue God’s case for him?

9 What will happen when he finds out what you are doing?

Can you fool him as easily as you fool people?

10 No, you will be in trouble with him

if you secretly slant your testimony in his favor.

11 Doesn’t his majesty terrify you?

Doesn’t your fear of him overwhelm you?

12 Your platitudes are as valuable as ashes.

Your defense is as fragile as a clay pot.

13 “Be silent now and leave me alone.

Let me speak, and I will face the consequences.

14 Why should I put myself in mortal danger

and take my life in my own hands?

15 God might kill me, but I have no other hope.

I am going to argue my case with him.

16 But this is what will save me—I am not godless.

If I were, I could not stand before him.

17 “Listen closely to what I am about to say.

Hear me out.

18 I have prepared my case;

I will be proved innocent.

19 Who can argue with me over this?

And if you prove me wrong, I will remain silent and die.

Job Asks How He Has Sinned

20 “O God, grant me these two things,

and then I will be able to face you.

21 Remove your heavy hand from me,

and don’t terrify me with your awesome presence.

22 Now summon me, and I will answer!

Or let me speak to you, and you reply.

23 Tell me, what have I done wrong?

Show me my rebellion and my sin.

24 Why do you turn away from me?

Why do you treat me as your enemy?

25 Would you terrify a leaf blown by the wind?

Would you chase dry straw?

26 “You write bitter accusations against me

and bring up all the sins of my youth.

27 You put my feet in stocks.

You examine all my paths.

You trace all my footprints.

28 I waste away like rotting wood,

like a moth-eaten coat.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/13-f8109882d8310d73e0f58cd0fc03b9c2.mp3?version_id=116—

1 “How frail is humanity!

How short is life, how full of trouble!

2 We blossom like a flower and then wither.

Like a passing shadow, we quickly disappear.

3 Must you keep an eye on such a frail creature

and demand an accounting from me?

4 Who can bring purity out of an impure person?

No one!

5 You have decided the length of our lives.

You know how many months we will live,

and we are not given a minute longer.

6 So leave us alone and let us rest!

We are like hired hands, so let us finish our work in peace.

7 “Even a tree has more hope!

If it is cut down, it will sprout again

and grow new branches.

8 Though its roots have grown old in the earth

and its stump decays,

9 at the scent of water it will bud

and sprout again like a new seedling.

10 “But when people die, their strength is gone.

They breathe their last, and then where are they?

11 As water evaporates from a lake

and a river disappears in drought,

12 people are laid to rest and do not rise again.

Until the heavens are no more, they will not wake up

nor be roused from their sleep.

13 “I wish you would hide me in the grave

and forget me there until your anger has passed.

But mark your calendar to think of me again!

14 Can the dead live again?

If so, this would give me hope through all my years of struggle,

and I would eagerly await the release of death.

15 You would call and I would answer,

and you would yearn for me, your handiwork.

16 For then you would guard my steps,

instead of watching for my sins.

17 My sins would be sealed in a pouch,

and you would cover my guilt.

18 “But instead, as mountains fall and crumble

and as rocks fall from a cliff,

19 as water wears away the stones

and floods wash away the soil,

so you destroy people’s hope.

20 You always overpower them, and they pass from the scene.

You disfigure them in death and send them away.

21 They never know if their children grow up in honor

or sink to insignificance.

22 They suffer painfully;

their life is full of trouble.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/6/32k/JOB/14-606e643799f8e37b92116c056e7491c2.mp3?version_id=116—