Mordecai’s Greatness

10 Now King Ahasuerus laid a tribute on the land and on the ^(A)coastlands of the sea. ² And all the ^[a]accomplishments of his authority and strength, and the full account of the greatness of Mordecai ^(B)to which the king ^[b]advanced him, are they not written in ^(C)the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Media and Persia? ³ For Mordecai the Jew was ^(D)second only to King Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews and in favor with his many kinsmen, ^(E)one who sought the good of his people and one who spoke for the welfare of his whole nation.

Job’s Character and Wealth

1 There was a man in the ^(A)land of Uz whose name was ^(B)Job; and that man was ^(C)blameless, upright, ^(D)fearing God and ^(E)turning away from evil. ^2 (F)Seven sons and three daughters were born to him. ^3 (G)His possessions also were 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and very many servants; and that man was ^(H)the greatest of all the ^[a]men of the east. ⁴ His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. ⁵ When the days of feasting had completed their cycle, Job would send and consecrate them, rising up early in the morning and offering ^(I)burnt offerings according to the number of them all; for Job said, “^(J)Perhaps my sons have sinned and ^(K)cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually.

^6 (L)Now there was a day when the ^(M)sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and ^[b]Satan also came among them. ⁷ The Lord said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “^(N)From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” ⁸ The Lord said to Satan, “Have you ^[c]considered ^(O)My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, ^(P)a blameless and upright man, ^[d]fearing God and turning away from evil.” ⁹ Then ^(Q)Satan answered the ^[e]Lord, “Does Job fear God for nothing? ^10 (R)Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? ^(S)You have blessed the work of his hands, and his ^(T)possessions have increased in the land. ^11 (U)But put forth Your hand now and ^(V)touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.” ¹² Then the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your ^[f]power, only do not put forth your hand on him.” So Satan departed from the presence of the Lord.

Satan Allowed to Test Job

¹³ Now on the day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, ¹⁴ a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the ^[g]donkeys feeding beside them, ¹⁵ and ^[h]the ^(W)Sabeans ^[i]attacked and took them. They also ^[j]slew the servants with the edge of the sword, and ^[k]I alone have escaped to tell you.” ¹⁶ While he was still speaking, another also came and said, “^(X)The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ¹⁷ While he was still speaking, another also came and said, “The ^(Y)Chaldeans formed three bands and made a raid on the camels and took them and ^[l]slew the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” ¹⁸ While he was still speaking, another also came and said, “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, ¹⁹ and behold, a great wind came from across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people and they died, and I alone have escaped to tell you.”

²⁰ Then Job arose and ^(Z)tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped. ²¹ He said,

^22 (AC)Through all this Job did not sin nor did he ^[m]blame God.

Job Loses His Health

2 ^(AD)Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. ² The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” ³ The Lord said to Satan, “Have you ^[n]considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man ^[o]fearing God and turning away from evil. And he still ^(AE)holds fast his integrity, although you incited Me against him to ^[p]ruin him without cause.” ⁴ Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. ^5 (AF)However, put forth Your hand now, and ^(AG)touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse You to Your face.” ⁶ So the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your ^[q]power, only spare his life.”

⁷ Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and smote Job with ^(AH)sore boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. ⁸ And he took a potsherd to scrape himself while ^(AI)he was sitting among the ashes.

⁹ Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” ¹⁰ But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. ^(AJ)Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” ^(AK)In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

¹¹ Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him, they came each one from his own place, Eliphaz the ^(AL)Temanite, Bildad the ^(AM)Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite; and they made an appointment together to come to ^(AN)sympathize with him and comfort him. ¹² When they lifted up their eyes at a distance and did not recognize him, they raised their voices and wept. And each of them ^(AO)tore his robe and they ^(AP)threw dust over their heads toward the sky. ^13 (AQ)Then they sat down on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights with no one speaking a word to him, for they saw that his pain was very great.

The Excellence of Love

13 If I speak with the ^(A)tongues of men and of ^(B)angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a ^(C)clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of ^(D)prophecy, and know all ^(E)mysteries and all ^(F)knowledge; and if I have ^(G)all faith, so as to ^(H)remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ And if I ^(I)give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I ^(J)surrender my body ^[a]to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

⁴ Love ^(K)is patient, love is kind and ^(L)is not jealous; love does not brag and is not ^(M)arrogant, ⁵ does not act unbecomingly; it ^(N)does not seek its own, is not provoked, ^(O)does not take into account a wrong suffered, ^6 (P)does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but ^(Q)rejoices with the truth; ^7 [b](R)bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

⁸ Love never fails; but if there are gifts of ^[c](S)prophecy, they will be done away; if there are ^(T)tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. ⁹ For we ^(U)know in part and we prophesy in part; ¹⁰ but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. ¹¹ When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I ^[d]became a man, I did away with childish things. ¹² For now we ^(V)see in a mirror ^[e]dimly, but then ^(W)face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also ^(X)have been fully known. ¹³ But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the ^[f]greatest of these is ^(Y)love.