Font Size
Job 17-18
Common English Bible
Job 17-18
Common English Bible
Another lament
17 My spirit is broken,
my days extinguished,
the grave,[a] mine.
2 Surely mockers are with me,
and my eye looks on their rebellion.
3 Take my guarantee.
Who else is willing to make an agreement?
4 You’ve closed their mind to insight;
therefore, you won’t be exalted.
5 He denounces his friends for gain,
and his children’s eyes fail.
6 He makes me a popular proverb;
I’m like spit in people’s faces.
7 My eye is weak from grief;
my limbs like a shadow—all of them.
8 Those who do the right thing are amazed at this;
the guiltless become troubled about the godless.
9 The innocent clings to his way;
the one whose hands are clean grows stronger.
10 But you can bring all of them again,
and I won’t find a wise one among you.
11 My days have passed;
my goals are destroyed, my heart’s desires.
12 They turn night into day;
light is near because of the darkness.
13 If I hope for the underworld[b] as my dwelling,
lay out my bed in darkness,
14 I’ve called corruption “my father,”
the worm, “my mother and sister.”
15 Where then is my hope?
My hope—who can see it?
16 Will they go down with me to the underworld;[c]
will we descend together to the dust?
Attack from a friend
18 Bildad from Shuah answered:
2 How long? Would you all stop talking.
Try to understand and then we can speak.
3 Why are we considered beasts,
ignorant in your sight?
4 To you who tear yourself in rage—
will earth be forsaken for your sake,
a rock be dislodged from its place?
Evil people’s fate
5 To be sure, the light of the wicked goes out;
the blaze of their fire doesn’t shine.
6 The light in their tent becomes dark,
and their lamp above doesn’t shine.
7 Their strong strides slow down;
their plans trip themselves.
8 They are caught by their feet in a net;
they walk on mesh.
9 A trap grabs them by the heel;
a snare tightens on them.
10 A rope is hidden on the ground for them;
a trap for them along the path.
11 Terrors round about scare them;
they follow their steps.
12 Their offspring hunger;
calamity is ready for their spouses.
13 It eats some of their skin.
Death’s firstborn consumes their limbs.
14 They are snatched from the safety of their tent;
it parades them before the king of terrors.
15 Nothing they own remains in their tent;
sulfur is scattered over their home.
16 Their roots dry out below;
their branches wither above.
17 The memory of them will perish from the earth;
they will achieve no recognition abroad.
18 They are thrust from light into darkness,
banished from the world.
19 They have no offspring or descendants among their people,
no survivor in their dwelling place.
20 Their successors are appalled at what happens to them;
their predecessors pull their hair.
21 These are surely the dwelling places of the evil;
this is the place of the one who doesn’t know God.
Job 17-18
New International Version
Job 17-18
New International Version
17 1 My spirit(A) is broken,
my days are cut short,(B)
the grave awaits me.(C)
2 Surely mockers(D) surround me;(E)
my eyes must dwell on their hostility.
3 “Give me, O God, the pledge you demand.(F)
Who else will put up security(G) for me?(H)
4 You have closed their minds to understanding;(I)
therefore you will not let them triumph.
5 If anyone denounces their friends for reward,(J)
the eyes of their children will fail.(K)
6 “God has made me a byword(L) to everyone,(M)
a man in whose face people spit.(N)
7 My eyes have grown dim with grief;(O)
my whole frame is but a shadow.(P)
8 The upright are appalled at this;
the innocent are aroused(Q) against the ungodly.
9 Nevertheless, the righteous(R) will hold to their ways,
and those with clean hands(S) will grow stronger.(T)
10 “But come on, all of you, try again!
I will not find a wise man among you.(U)
11 My days have passed,(V) my plans are shattered.
Yet the desires of my heart(W)
12 turn night into day;(X)
in the face of the darkness light is near.(Y)
13 If the only home I hope for is the grave,(Z)
if I spread out my bed(AA) in the realm of darkness,(AB)
14 if I say to corruption,(AC) ‘You are my father,’
and to the worm,(AD) ‘My mother’ or ‘My sister,’
15 where then is my hope—(AE)
who can see any hope for me?(AF)
16 Will it go down to the gates of death?(AG)
Will we descend together into the dust?”(AH)
Bildad
18 Then Bildad the Shuhite(AI) replied:
2 “When will you end these speeches?(AJ)
Be sensible, and then we can talk.
3 Why are we regarded as cattle(AK)
and considered stupid in your sight?(AL)
4 You who tear yourself(AM) to pieces in your anger,(AN)
is the earth to be abandoned for your sake?
Or must the rocks be moved from their place?(AO)
5 “The lamp of a wicked man is snuffed out;(AP)
the flame of his fire stops burning.(AQ)
6 The light in his tent(AR) becomes dark;(AS)
the lamp beside him goes out.(AT)
7 The vigor(AU) of his step is weakened;(AV)
his own schemes(AW) throw him down.(AX)
8 His feet thrust him into a net;(AY)
he wanders into its mesh.
9 A trap seizes him by the heel;
a snare(AZ) holds him fast.(BA)
10 A noose(BB) is hidden for him on the ground;
a trap(BC) lies in his path.(BD)
11 Terrors(BE) startle him on every side(BF)
and dog(BG) his every step.
12 Calamity(BH) is hungry(BI) for him;
disaster(BJ) is ready for him when he falls.(BK)
13 It eats away parts of his skin;(BL)
death’s firstborn devours his limbs.(BM)
14 He is torn from the security of his tent(BN)
and marched off to the king(BO) of terrors.(BP)
15 Fire resides[a] in his tent;(BQ)
burning sulfur(BR) is scattered over his dwelling.
16 His roots dry up below(BS)
and his branches wither above.(BT)
17 The memory of him perishes from the earth;(BU)
he has no name(BV) in the land.(BW)
18 He is driven from light into the realm of darkness(BX)
and is banished(BY) from the world.(BZ)
19 He has no offspring(CA) or descendants(CB) among his people,
no survivor(CC) where once he lived.(CD)
20 People of the west are appalled(CE) at his fate;(CF)
those of the east are seized with horror.
21 Surely such is the dwelling(CG) of an evil man;(CH)
such is the place(CI) of one who does not know God.”(CJ)
Footnotes
- Job 18:15 Or Nothing he had remains
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.