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Job 21
Expanded Bible
Job 21
Expanded Bible
Job Answers Zophar
21 Then Job answered:
2 “Listen carefully to my words [C Job feels that his previous speeches have not been heard],
and let this be ·the way you comfort me [L your consolation].
3 ·Be patient [Bear with me] while I speak.
After I have finished, you may ·continue to make fun of [ridicule; mock] me.
4 “My complaint is not just against people;
I have reason to be impatient.
5 Look at me and be ·shocked [desolated];
put your hand over your mouth in shock.
6 When I think about this [C the success of the wicked], I am terribly afraid
and ·my body shakes [L trembling seizes my flesh].
7 Why ·do evil people live a long time [L are evil people allowed to live]?
They grow old and ·become more powerful [increase in strength].
8 They see their children ·around [L established before] them;
they watch them grow up.
9 Their homes are safe and without fear;
·God does not punish them [L God’s rod is not on them].
10 Their bulls never fail to mate;
their cows ·have healthy calves [L calve and have no miscarriages].
11 They send out their ·children [infants] like a flock [C they will have many children, a sign of blessing];
their ·little ones [children] dance about.
12 They sing to the music of tambourines and ·harps [lyres],
and the sound of the flute makes them ·happy [rejoice].
13 Evil people ·enjoy successful lives [L live out their days in prosperity]
and then go ·peacefully [in tranquility] to ·the grave [L Sheol].
14 They say to God, ‘·Leave us alone [Get away from me]!
We don’t ·want [desire] to know your ways.
15 Who is ·the Almighty [Shaddai] that we should serve him?
What would we gain by ·praying to [interceding with] him?’
16 ·The success of the wicked is not their own doing [or Is not the success/prosperity of the wicked in their control/hand?].
Their ·way of thinking [plan; counsel] is ·different [far] from ·mine [or his; C that is, God’s].
17 Yet how often are the lamps of evil people ·turned off [extinguished; C the implied answer is not often; Job questions the type of teaching found in Proverbs; Prov. 24:19–20]?
How often does ·trouble [calamity] come to them [Prov. 24:21–22]?
How often ·do they suffer God’s angry punishment [L does he deal out pain in his anger]?
18 ·How often are they [or Let them be] like straw in the wind
or like chaff that is blown away by a storm [Ps. 1:4]?
19 It is said [C defenders of the idea that the wicked suffer for their sins], ‘God ·saves [stores] up a person’s ·punishment [guilt] for his children.’
But God should ·punish [pay back] the wicked themselves so they will know it.
20 Their eyes should see their own destruction,
and they should ·suffer [L drink from the] the anger of ·the Almighty [Shaddai].
21 They do not care about the families they leave behind
when their lives have come to an end.
22 “·No one [L Who…?] can teach knowledge to God;
he is the one who judges even the most ·important [exalted] people [C Job wants to teach God to punish the wicked but thinks his attempt will be futile].
23 One person dies ·while he still has all his strength [L in perfect vigor],
feeling completely safe and ·comfortable [untroubled].
24 His ·body [or pail] was ·well fed [L full of milk],
and ·his bones were strong and healthy [L the marrow of his bones were well lubricated].
25 But another person dies ·with an unhappy heart [L in bitterness],
never enjoying ·any happiness [or the good life].
26 They ·are buried next to each other [L lie down together in the dust],
and worms cover them both.
27 “I know very well your thoughts
and your ·plans [schemes] to ·wrong [hurt; do violence to] me.
28 You [C the friends] ask, ‘Where is this ·great man’s [L prince’s] house?
Where are the tents where the wicked live [C they don’t agree with Job that the wicked are rich and successful]?’
29 Have you never asked those who ·travel [L pass by on the road]?
Have you ·never listened to their stories [L not recognized their signs]?
30 On the day of ·God’s anger and punishment [L calamity; disaster],
it is the wicked who are spared.
31 Who will accuse them to their faces?
Who will pay them back for the evil they have done?
32 They are carried to their graves,
and someone keeps watch over their tombs [C a sign of a peaceful death and burial].
33 The dirt in the valley seems sweet to them.
Everybody follows after them,
and many people go before them.
34 “So how can you comfort me with this ·nonsense [empty/meaningless drivel]?
Your answers are ·only lies [or disloyal]!”
Job 21
New International Version
Job 21
New International Version
Job
21 Then Job replied:
2 “Listen carefully to my words;(A)
let this be the consolation you give me.(B)
3 Bear with me while I speak,
and after I have spoken, mock on.(C)
4 “Is my complaint(D) directed to a human being?
Why should I not be impatient?(E)
5 Look at me and be appalled;
clap your hand over your mouth.(F)
6 When I think about this, I am terrified;(G)
trembling seizes my body.(H)
7 Why do the wicked live on,
growing old and increasing in power?(I)
8 They see their children established around them,
their offspring before their eyes.(J)
9 Their homes are safe and free from fear;(K)
the rod of God is not on them.(L)
10 Their bulls never fail to breed;
their cows calve and do not miscarry.(M)
11 They send forth their children as a flock;(N)
their little ones dance about.
12 They sing to the music of timbrel and lyre;(O)
they make merry to the sound of the pipe.(P)
13 They spend their years in prosperity(Q)
and go down to the grave(R) in peace.[a](S)
14 Yet they say to God, ‘Leave us alone!(T)
We have no desire to know your ways.(U)
15 Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him?
What would we gain by praying to him?’(V)
16 But their prosperity is not in their own hands,
so I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.(W)
17 “Yet how often is the lamp of the wicked snuffed out?(X)
How often does calamity(Y) come upon them,
the fate God allots in his anger?(Z)
18 How often are they like straw before the wind,
like chaff(AA) swept away(AB) by a gale?(AC)
19 It is said, ‘God stores up the punishment of the wicked for their children.’(AD)
Let him repay the wicked, so that they themselves will experience it!(AE)
20 Let their own eyes see their destruction;(AF)
let them drink(AG) the cup of the wrath of the Almighty.(AH)
21 For what do they care about the families they leave behind(AI)
when their allotted months(AJ) come to an end?(AK)
22 “Can anyone teach knowledge to God,(AL)
since he judges even the highest?(AM)
23 One person dies in full vigor,(AN)
completely secure and at ease,(AO)
24 well nourished(AP) in body,[b]
bones(AQ) rich with marrow.(AR)
25 Another dies in bitterness of soul,(AS)
never having enjoyed anything good.
26 Side by side they lie in the dust,(AT)
and worms(AU) cover them both.(AV)
27 “I know full well what you are thinking,
the schemes by which you would wrong me.
28 You say, ‘Where now is the house of the great,(AW)
the tents where the wicked lived?’(AX)
29 Have you never questioned those who travel?
Have you paid no regard to their accounts—
30 that the wicked are spared from the day of calamity,(AY)
that they are delivered from[c] the day of wrath?(AZ)
31 Who denounces their conduct to their face?
Who repays them for what they have done?(BA)
32 They are carried to the grave,
and watch is kept over their tombs.(BB)
33 The soil in the valley is sweet to them;(BC)
everyone follows after them,
and a countless throng goes[d] before them.(BD)
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