10 Now [living] at Caesarea there was a man whose name was Cornelius, a centurion (captain) of what was known as the Italian Regiment,

² A devout man who venerated God and treated Him with reverential obedience, as did all his household; and he gave much alms to the people and prayed continually to God.

³ About the ninth hour (about 3:00 p.m.) of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God entering and saying to him, Cornelius!

⁴ And he, gazing intently at him, became frightened and said, What is it, Lord? And the angel said to him, Your prayers and your [generous] gifts to the poor have come up [as a sacrifice] to God and have been remembered by Him.

⁵ And now send men to Joppa and have them call for and invite here a certain Simon whose surname is Peter;

⁶ He is lodging with Simon a tanner, whose house is by the seaside.

⁷ When the angel who spoke to him had left, Cornelius called two of his servants and a God-fearing soldier from among his own personal attendants.

⁸ And having rehearsed everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.

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5 Call now—is there any who will answer you? And to which of the holy [angels] will you turn?

² For ^[a]vexation and rage kill the foolish man; jealousy and indignation slay the simple.

³ I have seen the foolish taking root [and outwardly prospering], but suddenly I saw that his dwelling was cursed [for his doom was certain].

⁴ His children are far from safety; [involved in their father’s ruin] they are crushed in the [court of justice in the city’s] gate, and there is no one to deliver them.

⁵ His harvest the hungry eat and take it even [when it grows] among the thorns; the snare opens for [his] wealth.

⁶ For affliction comes not forth from the dust, neither does trouble spring forth out of the ground.

⁷ But man is born to trouble as the sparks and the flames fly upward.

⁸ As for me, I would seek God and inquire of and require Him, and to God would I commit my cause—

⁹ Who does great things and unsearchable, marvelous things without number,

¹⁰ Who gives rain upon the earth and sends waters upon the fields,

¹¹ So that He sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn He lifts to safety.

¹² He frustrates the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise or anything of [lasting] worth.

¹³ He catches the [so-called] wise in their own trickiness, and the counsel of the schemers is brought to a quick end.^(A)

¹⁴ In the daytime they meet in darkness, and at noon they grope as in the night.

¹⁵ But [God] saves [the fatherless] from the sword of their mouth, and the needy from the hand of the mighty.

¹⁶ So the poor have hope, and iniquity shuts her mouth.

¹⁷ Happy and fortunate is the man whom God reproves; so do not despise or reject the correction of the Almighty [subjecting you to trial and suffering].

¹⁸ For He wounds, but He binds up; He smites, but His hands heal.

¹⁹ He will rescue you in six troubles; in seven nothing that is evil [for you] will touch you.

²⁰ In famine He will redeem you from death, and in war from the power of the sword.

²¹ You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, neither shall you be afraid of destruction when it comes.

²² At destruction and famine you shall laugh, neither shall you be afraid of the living creatures of the earth.

²³ For you shall be in league with the stones of the field, and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you.

²⁴ And you shall know that your tent shall be in peace, and you shall visit your fold and your dwelling and miss nothing [from them].

²⁵ You shall know also that your children shall be many, and your offspring as the grass of the earth.

²⁶ You shall come to your grave in ripe old age, and as a shock of grain goes up [to the threshing floor] in its season.

²⁷ This is what we have searched out; it is true. Hear and heed it and know for yourself [for your good].

6 Then Job answered,

² Oh, that my impatience and vexation might be [thoroughly] weighed and all my calamity be laid up over against them in the balances, one against the other [to see if my grief is unmanly]!

³ For now it would be heavier than the sand of the sea; therefore my words have been rash and wild,

⁴ [But it is] because the arrows of the Almighty are within me, the poison which my spirit drinks up; the terrors of God set themselves in array against me.

⁵ Does the wild ass bray when it has grass? Or does the ox low over its fodder?

⁶ Can that which has no taste to it be eaten without salt? Or is there any flavor in the white of an egg?

⁷ [These afflictions] my soul refuses to touch! Such things are like diseased food to me [sickening and repugnant]!

⁸ Oh, that I might have my request, and that God would grant me the thing that I long for!

⁹ I even wish that it would please God to crush me, that He would let loose His hand and cut me off!

¹⁰ Then would I still have consolation—yes, I would leap [for joy] amid unsparing pain [though I shrink from it]—that I have not concealed or denied the words of the Holy One!

¹¹ What strength have I left, that I should wait and hope? And what is ahead of me, that I should be patient?

¹² Is my strength and endurance that of stones? Or is my flesh made of bronze?

¹³ Is it not that I have no help in myself, and that wisdom is quite driven from me?

¹⁴ To him who is about to faint and despair, kindness is due from his friend, lest he forsake the fear of the Almighty.

¹⁵ [You] my brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook, as the channel of brooks that pass away,

¹⁶ Which are black and turbid by reason of the ice, and in which the snows hides itself;

¹⁷ When they get warm, they shrink and disappear; when it is hot, they vanish out of their place.

¹⁸ The caravans which travel by way of them turn aside; they go into the waste places and perish. [Such is my disappointment in you, the friends I fully trusted.]

¹⁹ The caravans of Tema looked [for water], the companies of Sheba waited for them [in vain].

²⁰ They were confounded because they had hoped [to find water]; they came there and were bitterly disappointed.

²¹ Now to me you are [like a dried-up brook]; you see my dismay and terror, and [believing me to be a victim of God’s anger] you are afraid [to sympathize with me].

²² Did I ever say, Bring me a gift, or Pay a bribe on my account from your wealth

²³ To deliver me from the adversary’s hand, or Redeem me from the hand of the oppressors?

²⁴ Teach me, and I will hold my peace; and cause me to understand wherein I have erred.

²⁵ How forcible are words of straightforward speech! But what does your arguing argue and prove or your reproof reprove?

²⁶ Do you imagine your words to be an argument, but the speeches of one who is desperate to be as wind?

²⁷ Yes, you would cast lots over the fatherless and bargain away your friend.

²⁸ Now be pleased to look upon me, that it may be evident to you if I lie [for surely I would not lie to your face].

²⁹ Return [from your suspicion], I pray you, let there be no injustice; yes, return again [to confidence in me], my vindication is in it.

³⁰ Is there wrong on my tongue? Cannot my taste discern what is destructive?