Job 33
New King James Version
Elihu Contradicts Job
33 “But please, Job, hear my speech,
And listen to all my words.
2 Now, I open my mouth;
My tongue speaks in my mouth.
3 My words come from my upright heart;
My lips utter pure knowledge.
4 (A)The Spirit of God has made me,
And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
5 If you can answer me,
Set your words in order before me;
Take your stand.
6 (B)Truly I am [a]as your spokesman before God;
I also have been formed out of clay.
7 (C)Surely no fear of me will terrify you,
Nor will my hand be heavy on you.
8 “Surely you have spoken [b]in my hearing,
And I have heard the sound of your words, saying,
9 ‘I(D) am pure, without transgression;
I am innocent, and there is no iniquity in me.
10 Yet He finds occasions against me,
(E)He counts me as His enemy;
11 (F)He puts my feet in the stocks,
He watches all my paths.’
12 “Look, in this you are not righteous.
I will answer you,
For God is greater than man.
13 Why do you (G)contend with Him?
For He does not give an accounting of any of His words.
14 (H)For God may speak in one way, or in another,
Yet man does not perceive it.
15 (I)In a dream, in a vision of the night,
When deep sleep falls upon men,
While slumbering on their beds,
16 (J)Then He opens the ears of men,
And seals their instruction.
17 In order to turn man from his deed,
And conceal pride from man,
18 He keeps back his soul from the Pit,
And his life from [c]perishing by the sword.
19 “Man is also chastened with pain on his (K)bed,
And with strong pain in many of his bones,
20 (L)So that his life abhors (M)bread,
And his soul [d]succulent food.
21 His flesh wastes away from sight,
And his bones stick out which once were not seen.
22 Yes, his soul draws near the Pit,
And his life to the executioners.
23 “If there is a messenger for him,
A mediator, one among a thousand,
To show man His uprightness,
24 Then He is gracious to him, and says,
‘Deliver him from going down to the Pit;
I have found [e]a ransom’;
25 His flesh shall be young like a child’s,
He shall return to the days of his youth.
26 He shall pray to God, and He will delight in him,
He shall see His face with joy,
For He restores to man His righteousness.
27 Then he looks at men and (N)says,
‘I have sinned, and perverted what was right,
And it (O)did not profit me.’
28 He will (P)redeem [f]his soul from going down to the Pit,
And his life shall see the light.
29 “Behold, God works all these things,
Twice, in fact, three times with a man,
30 (Q)To bring back his soul from the Pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life.
Job 33
The Voice
33 Elihu: So now, Job, listen closely to my words;
lend an ear to my speeches.
2 Wait for it! I am about ready to part my lips;
even now, my tongue begins to stir within my mouth.
3 My words emerge from a heart of integrity;
my lips express their knowledge with sincerity.
4 God’s Spirit has fashioned me
and the breath of the Highest One[a] imparts life to me.
5 So refute me if you can;
go ahead and make your preparations and assume your position.
6 But remember I am just like you; we are both God’s vessels,
both pinched from the clay and formed by Him.
7 Look, there is no reason for you to be afraid of me;
my hand will not feel all that heavy on you.
8 Job, now you have said—and I heard it—
I heard the words sounded out:
9 “I am pure, without sin;
innocent indeed, and there is no wrongdoing within me!
10 But oh! God has come up with reasons to accuse me;
now He considers me His enemy.
11 He locks my feet in the shackles;
He watches all my paths, dogs my every step.”
12 But listen! You are wrong in all this
because God is greater than a mere man.
13 Why do you argue with Him,
complaining that He refuses to account for all of His actions?
14 For God does speak in one way and even another way—
yet no one may be able to perceive what He says.
15 One kind of answer God gives
comes in the form of a dream—in a night-vision—
When deep slumber comes to people
who have lain down to sleep in their beds.
16 Yes, this is often when He opens the ears of humanity,
and seals their life-corrections in the terrors of the night
17 So that He can turn one away from his evil deeds
and put down the arrogance of the proud.
18 He does all of this so that He might hold back one soul from the pit
and protect one life from passing over to the land of death.[b]
19 Or another kind of answer God gives comes thus:
one may be corrected through a bed of pain;
his bones may hold him in an unceasing trial,
20 In which his food becomes repulsive,
and he doesn’t hunger for even his favorite meals.
21 His body wastes away almost to nothing,
and bones, once hidden, stick out gruesomely.
22 Thus he is sobered as his soul approaches the rim of the pit,
as his life hears the whispers of the coming messengers of death.
23 If there is a heavenly messenger at one’s side, a mediator,
even just one out of the thousand in his regime of God’s messengers,
to proclaim what is right for that person according to God,
24 And to be gracious to him and to say,
“Spare this one from descending into the pit;
I have found a ransom that will save his life!
25 Then his skin will be renewed, as smooth and fresh as a child’s,
and he will be restored to the vim and vigor of his youth.”
26 He will make his appeal to God, and God will grant acceptance;
he will see God’s face and shout with joy,
knowing God has restored his right standing.
27 Then he comes to his fellow humans and sings out,
“I sinned and perverted what I knew to be right,
but God has not repaid me what I deserved.
28 He has instead paid that ransom
and spared me from descending into the pit
and my life now sees the light.”
29 Look! God does all of these things two,
even three times with a person,
30 In order to guide his soul back from the rim of the pit
so the light of life might shine on him.
31 Lend your ear, Job, and listen well to me;
remain silent, and I will do the talking.
32 If you have anything to say to me, say it. Make your answer to me;
go ahead and speak, because I do desire to see you justified to God.
33 But if not, then listen well to me;
stay quiet, and I will teach you wisdom.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.