² 
“Can a vigorous man be of use to God,
Or a wise man be useful to himself?^(A)
3 
“Is it any pleasure or joy to ^[a]the Almighty that you are righteous?
Or is it of benefit to Him that you make your ways perfect?^(B)
4 
“Is it because of your fear of Him that He corrects you,
That He enters into judgment against you?
⁵ 
“Is not your wickedness great,
And your sins without end?
⁶ 
“For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause,
And stripped men naked.
⁷ 
“You have not given water to the weary to drink,
And you have withheld bread from the hungry.^(C)
8 
“But the land is possessed by the man with power,
And the favored and honorable man dwells in it.
⁹ 
“You have sent widows away empty-handed,
And the arms (strength) of the fatherless have been broken.
¹⁰ 
“Therefore snares surround you,
And sudden dread terrifies and overwhelms you;
¹¹ 
Or darkness, so that you cannot see,
And a flood of water covers you.

¹² 
“Is not God in the height of heaven?
And behold the distant stars, how high they are!
¹³ 
“You say, ‘What does God know [about me]?
Can He judge through the thick darkness?
¹⁴ 
‘Thick clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see,
And He walks on the vault (circle) of the heavens.’
¹⁵ 
“Will you keep to the ancient path
That wicked men walked [in the time of Noah],^(D)
16 
Men who were snatched away before their time,
Whose foundations were poured out like a river?
¹⁷ 
“They said to God, ‘Depart from us!
What can the Almighty do for us or to us?’
¹⁸ 
“Yet He filled their houses with good things;
But the counsel of the wicked and ungodly is far from me.
¹⁹ 
“The righteous see it and are glad;
And the innocent mock and laugh at them, saying,
²⁰ 
‘Surely our adversaries are cut off and destroyed,
And fire has consumed their abundance.’

²¹ 
“Now yield and submit yourself to Him [agree with God and be conformed to His will] and be at peace;
In this way [you will prosper and great] good will come to you.
²² 
“Please receive the law and instruction from His mouth
And establish His words in your heart and keep them.^(E)
23 
“If you return to the Almighty [and submit and humble yourself before Him], you will be built up [and restored];
If you remove unrighteousness far from your tents,
²⁴ 
And place your gold in the dust,
And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks [considering it of little value],
²⁵ 
And make the Almighty your gold
And your precious silver,
²⁶ 
Then you will have delight in the Almighty,
And you will lift up your face to God.
²⁷ 
“You will pray to Him, and He will hear you,
And you will pay your vows.
²⁸ 
“You will also decide and decree a thing, and it will be established for you;
And the light [of God’s favor] will shine upon your ways.
²⁹ 
“When you are cast down and humbled, you will speak with confidence,
And the humble person He will lift up and save.
³⁰ 
“He will even rescue the one [for whom you intercede] who is not innocent;
And he will be rescued through the cleanness of your hands.”^(F)