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There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job; and this man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God and abstained from evil.

And there were born to him seven sons and three daughters.

And his substance was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she-asses, and very many servants; and this man was greater than all the children of the east.

And his sons went and made a feast in the house of each one on his day; and they sent and invited their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

And it was so, when the days of the feasting were gone about, that Job sent and hallowed them; and he rose up early in the morning, and offered up burnt-offerings [according to] the number of them all; for Job said, It may be that my children have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually.

And there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah; and Satan came also among them.

And Jehovah said to Satan, Whence comest thou? And Satan answered Jehovah and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

And Jehovah said to Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God and abstaineth from evil?

And Satan answered Jehovah and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?

10 Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is spread abroad in the land.

11 But put forth thy hand now and touch all that he hath, [and see] if he will not curse thee to thy face!

12 And Jehovah said to Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy hand; only upon himself put not forth thy hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of Jehovah.

13 And there was a day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in the house of their brother, the firstborn.

14 And there came a messenger to Job and said, The oxen were ploughing, and the asses feeding beside them;

15 and [they of] Sheba fell [upon them] and took them, and the servants have they smitten with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped, alone, to tell thee.

16 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed them; and I only am escaped, alone, to tell thee.

17 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, The Chaldeans made three bands, and fell upon the camels and took them, and the servants have they smitten with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped, alone, to tell thee.

18 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, Thy sons and thy daughters were eating and drinking wine in the house of their brother, the firstborn;

19 and behold, there came a great wind from over the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young men, and they died; and I only am escaped, alone, to tell thee.

20 And Job rose up, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down on the ground, and worshipped;

21 and he said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: Jehovah gave, and Jehovah hath taken away; blessed be the name of Jehovah!

22 In all this Job sinned not, nor ascribed anything unseemly to God.

And there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah, and Satan also came among them to present himself before Jehovah.

And Jehovah said to Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered Jehovah and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

And Jehovah said to Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God and abstaineth from evil? and still he remaineth firm in his integrity, though thou movedst me against him, to swallow him up without cause.

And Satan answered Jehovah and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life;

but put forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, [and see] if he will not curse thee to thy face!

And Jehovah said to Satan, Behold, he is in thy hand; only spare his life.

And Satan went forth from the presence of Jehovah; and he smote Job with a grievous botch from the sole of his foot unto his crown.

And he took a potsherd to scrape himself with; and he sat among the ashes.

And his wife said to him, Dost thou still remain firm in thine integrity? curse God and die.

10 But he said to her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. We have also received good from God, and should we not receive evil? In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

11 And three friends of Job heard of all this evil that was come upon him. And they came each one from his place: Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite; and they made an appointment together to come to condole with him and to comfort him.

12 And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice and wept. And they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward the heavens.

13 And they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights; and none spoke a word to him; for they saw that [his] anguish was very great.

Prologue

In the land of Uz(A) there lived a man whose name was Job.(B) This man was blameless(C) and upright;(D) he feared God(E) and shunned evil.(F) He had seven sons(G) and three daughters,(H) and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys,(I) and had a large number of servants.(J) He was the greatest man(K) among all the people of the East.(L)

His sons used to hold feasts(M) in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. When a period of feasting had run its course, Job would make arrangements for them to be purified.(N) Early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering(O) for each of them, thinking, “Perhaps my children have sinned(P) and cursed God(Q) in their hearts.” This was Job’s regular custom.

One day the angels[a](R) came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan[b](S) also came with them.(T) The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”

Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”(U)

Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job?(V) There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God(W) and shuns evil.”(X)

“Does Job fear God for nothing?”(Y) Satan replied. 10 “Have you not put a hedge(Z) around him and his household and everything he has?(AA) You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land.(AB) 11 But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has,(AC) and he will surely curse you to your face.”(AD)

12 The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has(AE) is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”(AF)

Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

13 One day when Job’s sons and daughters(AG) were feasting(AH) and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 14 a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing(AI) nearby, 15 and the Sabeans(AJ) attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

16 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens(AK) and burned up the sheep and the servants,(AL) and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

17 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans(AM) formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

18 While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters(AN) were feasting(AO) and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 19 when suddenly a mighty wind(AP) swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead,(AQ) and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!(AR)

20 At this, Job got up and tore his robe(AS) and shaved his head.(AT) Then he fell to the ground in worship(AU) 21 and said:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
    and naked I will depart.[c](AV)
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;(AW)
    may the name of the Lord be praised.”(AX)

22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.(AY)

On another day the angels[d](AZ) came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them(BA) to present himself before him. And the Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”

Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”(BB)

Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.(BC) And he still maintains his integrity,(BD) though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.”(BE)

“Skin for skin!” Satan replied. “A man will give all he has(BF) for his own life. But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones,(BG) and he will surely curse you to your face.”(BH)

The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, he is in your hands;(BI) but you must spare his life.”(BJ)

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.(BK) Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.(BL)

His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity?(BM) Curse God and die!”(BN)

10 He replied, “You are talking like a foolish[e] woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”(BO)

In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.(BP)

11 When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite,(BQ) Bildad the Shuhite(BR) and Zophar the Naamathite,(BS) heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him.(BT) 12 When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him;(BU) they began to weep aloud,(BV) and they tore their robes(BW) and sprinkled dust on their heads.(BX) 13 Then they sat on the ground(BY) with him for seven days and seven nights.(BZ) No one said a word to him,(CA) because they saw how great his suffering was.

Footnotes

  1. Job 1:6 Hebrew the sons of God
  2. Job 1:6 Hebrew satan means adversary.
  3. Job 1:21 Or will return there
  4. Job 2:1 Hebrew the sons of God
  5. Job 2:10 The Hebrew word rendered foolish denotes moral deficiency.