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Job 17-20
New American Standard Bible
Job 17-20
New American Standard Bible
Job Says He Has Become a Proverb
17 “My spirit is broken, my days are extinguished,
The [a](A)grave is ready for me.
2 (B)Mockers are certainly with me,
And my eye [b]gazes on their provocation.
3 “Make a pledge (C)for me with Yourself;
Who is there that will [c]be my guarantor?
4 For You have [d](D)kept their hearts away from understanding;
Therefore You will not exalt them.
5 He who (E)informs against friends for a share of the spoils,
The (F)eyes of his children also will perish.
6 “But He has made me a (G)proverb among the people,
And I am [e]one at whom people (H)spit.
7 My eye has also become (I)inexpressive because of grief,
And all my (J)body parts are like a shadow.
8 The upright will be appalled at this,
And the (K)innocent will stir himself up against the godless.
9 Nevertheless (L)the righteous will hold to his way,
And (M)the one who has clean hands will grow stronger and stronger.
10 But come again all of [f]you now,
For I (N)do not find a wise man among you.
11 My (O)days are past, my plans are torn apart,
The wishes of my heart.
12 They make night into day, saying,
‘The light is near,’ in the presence of darkness.
13 If I hope for [g](P)Sheol as my home,
I [h]make my bed in the darkness;
14 If I call to the (Q)grave, ‘You are my father’;
To the (R)maggot, ‘my mother and my sister’;
15 Where then is (S)my hope?
And who looks at my hope?
16 [i]Will it go down with me to Sheol?
Shall we together (T)go down into the dust?”
Bildad Speaks of the Wicked
18 Then Bildad the Shuhite responded,
2 “How long will you hunt for words?
Show understanding, and then we can talk.
3 Why are we (U)regarded as animals,
As stupid in your eyes?
4 [j]You who tear yourself in your anger—
Should the earth be abandoned for your sake,
Or the rock moved from its place?
5 “Indeed, the (V)light of the wicked goes out,
And the spark from his fire does not shine.
6 The light in his tent is (W)darkened,
And his lamp goes out above him.
7 His [k]vigorous stride is shortened,
And his (X)own plan brings him down.
8 For he is (Y)thrown into the net by his own feet,
And he steps on the webbing.
9 A snare seizes him by the heel,
And a trap snaps shut on him.
10 A noose for him is hidden in the ground,
And a trap for him on the pathway.
11 All around (Z)sudden terrors frighten him,
And (AA)harass him at every step.
12 His strength is (AB)famished,
And disaster is ready at his side.
13 [l]It devours parts of his skin,
The firstborn of death (AC)devours his [m]limbs.
14 He is (AD)torn from [n]the security of his tent,
And [o]they march him before the king of (AE)terrors.
15 [p]Nothing of his dwells in his tent;
(AF)Brimstone is scattered on his home.
16 His (AG)roots are dried below,
And his (AH)branch withers above.
17 (AI)The memory of him perishes from the earth,
And he has no name abroad.
18 [q]He is driven from light (AJ)into darkness,
And (AK)chased from the inhabited world.
19 He has no (AL)offspring or descendants among his people,
Nor any survivor where he resided.
20 Those in the west are appalled at (AM)his [r]fate,
And those in the east are seized with horror.
21 Certainly these are the (AN)dwellings of the wicked,
And this is the place of him who does not know God.”
Job Feels Insulted
19 Then Job responded,
2 “How long will you torment [s]me
And crush me with words?
3 These ten times you have insulted me;
You are not ashamed to wrong me.
4 Even if I have truly done wrong,
My error stays with me.
5 If indeed you (AO)exalt yourselves against me
And prove my disgrace to me,
6 Know then that (AP)God has wronged me
And has surrounded me with (AQ)His net.
Everything Is Against Him
7 “Behold, (AR)I cry, ‘Violence!’ but I get no answer;
I shout for help, but there is no justice.
8 He has (AS)blocked my way so that I cannot pass,
And He has put (AT)darkness on my paths.
9 He has (AU)stripped my honor from me
And removed the (AV)crown from my head.
10 He (AW)breaks me down on every side, and I am gone;
And He has uprooted my (AX)hope (AY)like a tree.
11 He has also (AZ)kindled His anger against me
And (BA)considered me as His enemy.
12 His (BB)troops come together
And (BC)build up their [t]way against me
And camp around my tent.
13 “He has (BD)removed my brothers far from me,
And my (BE)acquaintances have completely turned away from me.
14 My relatives have failed,
And my (BF)close friends have forgotten me.
15 Those who live in my house and my servant women consider me a stranger.
I am a foreigner in their sight.
16 I call to my servant, but he does not answer;
I have to implore his favor with my mouth.
17 My breath is offensive to my wife,
And I am loathsome to my own brothers.
18 Even young children despise me;
I stand up and they speak against me.
19 All [u]my (BG)associates loathe me,
And those I love have turned against me.
20 My (BH)bone clings to my skin and my flesh,
And I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.
21 Pity me, pity me, you friends of mine,
For the (BI)hand of God has struck me.
22 Why do you (BJ)persecute me as God does,
And are not satisfied with my flesh?
Job Says My Redeemer Lives
23 “Oh that my words were written!
Oh that they were (BK)recorded in a book!
24 That with an iron stylus and lead
They were engraved in the rock forever!
25 Yet as for me, I know that (BL)my Redeemer lives,
And at the last, He will take His stand on the [v]earth.
26 Even after my skin [w]is destroyed,
Yet from my flesh I will (BM)see God,
27 Whom I, on my part, shall behold for myself,
And whom my eyes will see, and not another.
My [x]heart (BN)faints [y]within me!
28 If you say, ‘How shall we (BO)persecute him?’
And ‘[z]What pretext for a case against him can we find?’
29 Then be afraid of (BP)the sword for yourselves,
For wrath brings the punishment of the sword,
So that you may know (BQ)there is judgment.”
Zophar Says the Rejoicing of the Wicked Is Short
20 Then Zophar the Naamathite responded,
2 “Therefore my disquieting thoughts make me [aa]respond,
Even because of my [ab]inward agitation.
3 I listened to (BR)the reprimand which insults me,
And the spirit of my understanding makes me answer.
4 Do you know this from (BS)ancient times,
From the establishment of mankind on earth,
5 That the (BT)rejoicing of the wicked is short,
And (BU)the joy of the godless momentary?
6 Though his arrogance [ac](BV)reaches the heavens,
And his head touches the clouds,
7 He (BW)perishes forever like his refuse;
Those who have seen him (BX)will say, ‘Where is he?’
8 He flies away like a (BY)dream, and they cannot find him;
Like a vision of the night he is (BZ)chased away.
9 The (CA)eye which saw him sees him no longer,
And (CB)his place no longer beholds him.
10 His (CC)sons [ad]favor the poor,
And his hands (CD)give back his wealth.
11 His (CE)bones are full of his youthful strength,
But it lies down with him [ae]in the dust.
12 “Though (CF)evil tastes sweet in his mouth
And he hides it under his tongue,
13 Though he [af]desires it and will not let it go,
But holds it (CG)in his [ag]mouth,
14 Yet his food in his stomach is changed
To the [ah]venom of cobras within him.
15 He swallows riches,
But will (CH)vomit them up;
God will expel them from his belly.
16 He sucks (CI)the poison of cobras;
The viper’s tongue kills him.
17 He does not look at (CJ)the streams,
The rivers flowing with honey and curds.
18 He (CK)returns the product of his labor
And cannot swallow it;
As to the riches of his trading,
He cannot even enjoy them.
19 For he has (CL)oppressed and neglected the poor;
He has seized a house which he has not built.
20 “Because he knew no quiet [ai]within him,
He does (CM)not retain anything he desires.
21 Nothing remains [aj]for him to devour,
Therefore (CN)his prosperity does not endure.
22 In the fullness of his excess he will be cramped;
The (CO)hand of everyone who suffers will come against him.
23 When he (CP)fills his belly,
God will send His fierce anger on him
And (CQ)rain it on him [ak]while he is eating.
24 He may (CR)flee from the iron weapon,
But the bronze bow will pierce him.
25 It is drawn and comes out of his back,
Even the flashing point from (CS)his gallbladder;
(CT)Terrors come upon him,
26 Complete (CU)darkness is held in reserve for his treasures,
And unfanned (CV)fire will devour him;
It will consume the survivor in his tent.
27 The (CW)heavens will reveal his guilt,
And the earth will rise up against him.
28 The (CX)increase of his house will disappear;
His possessions will flow away (CY)on the day of His anger.
29 This is a wicked person’s (CZ)portion from God,
The inheritance decreed to him by God.”
Footnotes
- Job 17:1 Lit graves are
- Job 17:2 Lit dwells
- Job 17:3 Lit strike hands with me
- Job 17:4 Lit hidden
- Job 17:6 Lit a spitting to the faces
- Job 17:10 As in some mss and ancient versions; MT them
- Job 17:13 I.e., the netherworld
- Job 17:13 Lit spread out
- Job 17:16 As in LXX; Heb possibly Let my limbs sink down to Sheol, since there is rest in the dust for all.
- Job 18:4 Lit The one who tears himself in his
- Job 18:7 Lit steps of his strength
- Job 18:13 Another reading is His skin is devoured by illness
- Job 18:13 Or parts
- Job 18:14 Lit his tent his trust
- Job 18:14 Lit you march or she marches
- Job 18:15 Another reading is Fire dwells in his tent
- Job 18:18 Lit They drive him...And chase him
- Job 18:20 Lit day
- Job 19:2 Lit my soul
- Job 19:12 I.e., siege ramp
- Job 19:19 Lit the men of my council
- Job 19:25 Lit dust
- Job 19:26 Lit which they have cut off
- Job 19:27 Lit kidneys
- Job 19:27 Lit in my loins
- Job 19:28 Or the root of the matter is found in him
- Job 20:2 Lit return
- Job 20:2 Lit haste within me
- Job 20:6 Lit goes up to
- Job 20:10 Or seek the favor of
- Job 20:11 Lit on
- Job 20:13 Lit spares it
- Job 20:13 Lit palate
- Job 20:14 Lit gall
- Job 20:20 Lit in his belly
- Job 20:21 Or of what he devours
- Job 20:23 Or as his food
Job 17-20
New Living Translation
Job 17-20
New Living Translation
Job Continues to Defend His Innocence
17 “My spirit is crushed,
and my life is nearly snuffed out.
The grave is ready to receive me.
2 I am surrounded by mockers.
I watch how bitterly they taunt me.
3 “You must defend my innocence, O God,
since no one else will stand up for me.
4 You have closed their minds to understanding,
but do not let them triumph.
5 They betray their friends for their own advantage,
so let their children faint with hunger.
6 “God has made a mockery of me among the people;
they spit in my face.
7 My eyes are swollen with weeping,
and I am but a shadow of my former self.
8 The virtuous are horrified when they see me.
The innocent rise up against the ungodly.
9 The righteous keep moving forward,
and those with clean hands become stronger and stronger.
10 “As for all of you, come back with a better argument,
though I still won’t find a wise man among you.
11 My days are over.
My hopes have disappeared.
My heart’s desires are broken.
12 These men say that night is day;
they claim that the darkness is light.
13 What if I go to the grave[a]
and make my bed in darkness?
14 What if I call the grave my father,
and the maggot my mother or my sister?
15 Where then is my hope?
Can anyone find it?
16 No, my hope will go down with me to the grave.
We will rest together in the dust!”
Bildad’s Second Response to Job
18 Then Bildad the Shuhite replied:
2 “How long before you stop talking?
Speak sense if you want us to answer!
3 Do you think we are mere animals?
Do you think we are stupid?
4 You may tear out your hair in anger,
but will that destroy the earth?
Will it make the rocks tremble?
5 “Surely the light of the wicked will be snuffed out.
The sparks of their fire will not glow.
6 The light in their tent will grow dark.
The lamp hanging above them will be quenched.
7 The confident stride of the wicked will be shortened.
Their own schemes will be their downfall.
8 The wicked walk into a net.
They fall into a pit.
9 A trap grabs them by the heel.
A snare holds them tight.
10 A noose lies hidden on the ground.
A rope is stretched across their path.
11 “Terrors surround the wicked
and trouble them at every step.
12 Hunger depletes their strength,
and calamity waits for them to stumble.
13 Disease eats their skin;
death devours their limbs.
14 They are torn from the security of their homes
and are brought down to the king of terrors.
15 The homes of the wicked will burn down;
burning sulfur rains on their houses.
16 Their roots will dry up,
and their branches will wither.
17 All memory of their existence will fade from the earth;
no one will remember their names.
18 They will be thrust from light into darkness,
driven from the world.
19 They will have neither children nor grandchildren,
nor any survivor in the place where they lived.
20 People in the west are appalled at their fate;
people in the east are horrified.
21 They will say, ‘This was the home of a wicked person,
the place of one who rejected God.’”
Job’s Sixth Speech: A Response to Bildad
19 Then Job spoke again:
2 “How long will you torture me?
How long will you try to crush me with your words?
3 You have already insulted me ten times.
You should be ashamed of treating me so badly.
4 Even if I have sinned,
that is my concern, not yours.
5 You think you’re better than I am,
using my humiliation as evidence of my sin.
6 But it is God who has wronged me,
capturing me in his net.[b]
7 “I cry out, ‘Help!’ but no one answers me.
I protest, but there is no justice.
8 God has blocked my way so I cannot move.
He has plunged my path into darkness.
9 He has stripped me of my honor
and removed the crown from my head.
10 He has demolished me on every side, and I am finished.
He has uprooted my hope like a fallen tree.
11 His fury burns against me;
he counts me as an enemy.
12 His troops advance.
They build up roads to attack me.
They camp all around my tent.
13 “My relatives stay far away,
and my friends have turned against me.
14 My family is gone,
and my close friends have forgotten me.
15 My servants and maids consider me a stranger.
I am like a foreigner to them.
16 When I call my servant, he doesn’t come;
I have to plead with him!
17 My breath is repulsive to my wife.
I am rejected by my own family.
18 Even young children despise me.
When I stand to speak, they turn their backs on me.
19 My close friends detest me.
Those I loved have turned against me.
20 I have been reduced to skin and bones
and have escaped death by the skin of my teeth.
21 “Have mercy on me, my friends, have mercy,
for the hand of God has struck me.
22 Must you also persecute me, like God does?
Haven’t you chewed me up enough?
23 “Oh, that my words could be recorded.
Oh, that they could be inscribed on a monument,
24 carved with an iron chisel and filled with lead,
engraved forever in the rock.
25 “But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives,
and he will stand upon the earth at last.
26 And after my body has decayed,
yet in my body I will see God![c]
27 I will see him for myself.
Yes, I will see him with my own eyes.
I am overwhelmed at the thought!
28 “How dare you go on persecuting me,
saying, ‘It’s his own fault’?
29 You should fear punishment yourselves,
for your attitude deserves punishment.
Then you will know that there is indeed a judgment.”
Zophar’s Second Response to Job
20 Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
2 “I must reply
because I am greatly disturbed.
3 I’ve had to endure your insults,
but now my spirit prompts me to reply.
4 “Don’t you realize that from the beginning of time,
ever since people were first placed on the earth,
5 the triumph of the wicked has been short lived
and the joy of the godless has been only temporary?
6 Though the pride of the godless reaches to the heavens
and their heads touch the clouds,
7 yet they will vanish forever,
thrown away like their own dung.
Those who knew them will ask,
‘Where are they?’
8 They will fade like a dream and not be found.
They will vanish like a vision in the night.
9 Those who once saw them will see them no more.
Their families will never see them again.
10 Their children will beg from the poor,
for they must give back their stolen riches.
11 Though they are young,
their bones will lie in the dust.
12 “They enjoyed the sweet taste of wickedness,
letting it melt under their tongue.
13 They savored it,
holding it long in their mouths.
14 But suddenly the food in their bellies turns sour,
a poisonous venom in their stomach.
15 They will vomit the wealth they swallowed.
God won’t let them keep it down.
16 They will suck the poison of cobras.
The viper will kill them.
17 They will never again enjoy streams of olive oil
or rivers of milk and honey.
18 They will give back everything they worked for.
Their wealth will bring them no joy.
19 For they oppressed the poor and left them destitute.
They foreclosed on their homes.
20 They were always greedy and never satisfied.
Nothing remains of all the things they dreamed about.
21 Nothing is left after they finish gorging themselves.
Therefore, their prosperity will not endure.
22 “In the midst of plenty, they will run into trouble
and be overcome by misery.
23 May God give them a bellyful of trouble.
May God rain down his anger upon them.
24 When they try to escape an iron weapon,
a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce them.
25 The arrow is pulled from their back,
and the arrowhead glistens with blood.[d]
The terrors of death are upon them.
26 Their treasures will be thrown into deepest darkness.
A wildfire will devour their goods,
consuming all they have left.
27 The heavens will reveal their guilt,
and the earth will testify against them.
28 A flood will sweep away their house.
God’s anger will descend on them in torrents.
29 This is the reward that God gives the wicked.
It is the inheritance decreed by God.”
Job 17-20
New International Version
Job 17-20
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)
Job
19 Then Job replied:
2 “How long will you torment(CK) me
and crush(CL) me with words?
3 Ten times(CM) now you have reproached(CN) me;
shamelessly you attack me.
4 If it is true that I have gone astray,
my error(CO) remains my concern alone.
5 If indeed you would exalt yourselves above me(CP)
and use my humiliation against me,
6 then know that God has wronged me(CQ)
and drawn his net(CR) around me.(CS)
7 “Though I cry, ‘Violence!’ I get no response;(CT)
though I call for help,(CU) there is no justice.(CV)
8 He has blocked my way so I cannot pass;(CW)
he has shrouded my paths in darkness.(CX)
9 He has stripped(CY) me of my honor(CZ)
and removed the crown from my head.(DA)
10 He tears me down(DB) on every side till I am gone;
he uproots my hope(DC) like a tree.(DD)
11 His anger(DE) burns against me;
he counts me among his enemies.(DF)
12 His troops advance in force;(DG)
they build a siege ramp(DH) against me
and encamp around my tent.(DI)
13 “He has alienated my family(DJ) from me;
my acquaintances are completely estranged from me.(DK)
14 My relatives have gone away;
my closest friends(DL) have forgotten me.
15 My guests(DM) and my female servants(DN) count me a foreigner;
they look on me as on a stranger.
16 I summon my servant, but he does not answer,
though I beg him with my own mouth.
17 My breath is offensive to my wife;
I am loathsome(DO) to my own family.
18 Even the little boys(DP) scorn me;
when I appear, they ridicule me.(DQ)
19 All my intimate friends(DR) detest me;(DS)
those I love have turned against me.(DT)
20 I am nothing but skin and bones;(DU)
I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.[b]
21 “Have pity on me, my friends,(DV) have pity,
for the hand of God has struck(DW) me.
22 Why do you pursue(DX) me as God does?(DY)
Will you never get enough of my flesh?(DZ)
23 “Oh, that my words were recorded,
that they were written on a scroll,(EA)
24 that they were inscribed with an iron tool(EB) on[c] lead,
or engraved in rock forever!(EC)
25 I know that my redeemer[d](ED) lives,(EE)
and that in the end he will stand on the earth.[e]
26 And after my skin has been destroyed,
yet[f] in[g] my flesh I will see God;(EF)
27 I myself will see him
with my own eyes(EG)—I, and not another.
How my heart yearns(EH) within me!
28 “If you say, ‘How we will hound(EI) him,
since the root of the trouble lies in him,[h]’
29 you should fear the sword yourselves;
for wrath will bring punishment by the sword,(EJ)
and then you will know that there is judgment.[i]”(EK)
Zophar
20 Then Zophar the Naamathite(EL) replied:
2 “My troubled thoughts prompt me to answer
because I am greatly disturbed.(EM)
3 I hear a rebuke(EN) that dishonors me,
and my understanding inspires me to reply.
4 “Surely you know how it has been from of old,(EO)
ever since mankind[j] was placed on the earth,
5 that the mirth of the wicked(EP) is brief,
the joy of the godless(EQ) lasts but a moment.(ER)
6 Though the pride(ES) of the godless person reaches to the heavens(ET)
and his head touches the clouds,(EU)
7 he will perish forever,(EV) like his own dung;
those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’(EW)
8 Like a dream(EX) he flies away,(EY) no more to be found,
banished(EZ) like a vision of the night.(FA)
9 The eye that saw him will not see him again;
his place will look on him no more.(FB)
10 His children(FC) must make amends to the poor;
his own hands must give back his wealth.(FD)
11 The youthful vigor(FE) that fills his bones(FF)
will lie with him in the dust.(FG)
12 “Though evil(FH) is sweet in his mouth
and he hides it under his tongue,(FI)
13 though he cannot bear to let it go
and lets it linger in his mouth,(FJ)
14 yet his food will turn sour in his stomach;(FK)
it will become the venom of serpents(FL) within him.
15 He will spit out the riches(FM) he swallowed;
God will make his stomach vomit(FN) them up.
16 He will suck the poison(FO) of serpents;
the fangs of an adder will kill him.(FP)
17 He will not enjoy the streams,
the rivers(FQ) flowing with honey(FR) and cream.(FS)
18 What he toiled for he must give back uneaten;(FT)
he will not enjoy the profit from his trading.(FU)
19 For he has oppressed the poor(FV) and left them destitute;(FW)
he has seized houses(FX) he did not build.
20 “Surely he will have no respite from his craving;(FY)
he cannot save himself by his treasure.(FZ)
21 Nothing is left for him to devour;
his prosperity will not endure.(GA)
22 In the midst of his plenty, distress will overtake him;(GB)
the full force of misery will come upon him.(GC)
23 When he has filled his belly,(GD)
God will vent his burning anger(GE) against him
and rain down his blows on him.(GF)
24 Though he flees(GG) from an iron weapon,
a bronze-tipped arrow pierces him.(GH)
25 He pulls it out of his back,
the gleaming point out of his liver.
Terrors(GI) will come over him;(GJ)
26 total darkness(GK) lies in wait for his treasures.
A fire(GL) unfanned will consume him(GM)
and devour what is left in his tent.(GN)
27 The heavens will expose his guilt;
the earth will rise up against him.(GO)
28 A flood will carry off his house,(GP)
rushing waters[k] on the day of God’s wrath.(GQ)
29 Such is the fate God allots the wicked,
the heritage appointed for them by God.”(GR)
Footnotes
- Job 18:15 Or Nothing he had remains
- Job 19:20 Or only by my gums
- Job 19:24 Or and
- Job 19:25 Or vindicator
- Job 19:25 Or on my grave
- Job 19:26 Or And after I awake, / though this body has been destroyed, / then
- Job 19:26 Or destroyed, / apart from
- Job 19:28 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts me
- Job 19:29 Or sword, / that you may come to know the Almighty
- Job 20:4 Or Adam
- Job 20:28 Or The possessions in his house will be carried off, / washed away
Job 17-20
King James Version
Job 17-20
King James Version
17 My breath is corrupt, my days are extinct, the graves are ready for me.
2 Are there not mockers with me? and doth not mine eye continue in their provocation?
3 Lay down now, put me in a surety with thee; who is he that will strike hands with me?
4 For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: therefore shalt thou not exalt them.
5 He that speaketh flattery to his friends, even the eyes of his children shall fail.
6 He hath made me also a byword of the people; and aforetime I was as a tabret.
7 Mine eye also is dim by reason of sorrow, and all my members are as a shadow.
8 Upright men shall be astonied at this, and the innocent shall stir up himself against the hypocrite.
9 The righteous also shall hold on his way, and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger.
10 But as for you all, do ye return, and come now: for I cannot find one wise man among you.
11 My days are past, my purposes are broken off, even the thoughts of my heart.
12 They change the night into day: the light is short because of darkness.
13 If I wait, the grave is mine house: I have made my bed in the darkness.
14 I have said to corruption, Thou art my father: to the worm, Thou art my mother, and my sister.
15 And where is now my hope? as for my hope, who shall see it?
16 They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together is in the dust.
18 Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said,
2 How long will it be ere ye make an end of words? mark, and afterwards we will speak.
3 Wherefore are we counted as beasts, and reputed vile in your sight?
4 He teareth himself in his anger: shall the earth be forsaken for thee? and shall the rock be removed out of his place?
5 Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, and the spark of his fire shall not shine.
6 The light shall be dark in his tabernacle, and his candle shall be put out with him.
7 The steps of his strength shall be straitened, and his own counsel shall cast him down.
8 For he is cast into a net by his own feet, and he walketh upon a snare.
9 The gin shall take him by the heel, and the robber shall prevail against him.
10 The snare is laid for him in the ground, and a trap for him in the way.
11 Terrors shall make him afraid on every side, and shall drive him to his feet.
12 His strength shall be hungerbitten, and destruction shall be ready at his side.
13 It shall devour the strength of his skin: even the firstborn of death shall devour his strength.
14 His confidence shall be rooted out of his tabernacle, and it shall bring him to the king of terrors.
15 It shall dwell in his tabernacle, because it is none of his: brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation.
16 His roots shall be dried up beneath, and above shall his branch be cut off.
17 His remembrance shall perish from the earth, and he shall have no name in the street.
18 He shall be driven from light into darkness, and chased out of the world.
19 He shall neither have son nor nephew among his people, nor any remaining in his dwellings.
20 They that come after him shall be astonied at his day, as they that went before were affrighted.
21 Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked, and this is the place of him that knoweth not God.
19 Then Job answered and said,
2 How long will ye vex my soul, and break me in pieces with words?
3 These ten times have ye reproached me: ye are not ashamed that ye make yourselves strange to me.
4 And be it indeed that I have erred, mine error remaineth with myself.
5 If indeed ye will magnify yourselves against me, and plead against me my reproach:
6 Know now that God hath overthrown me, and hath compassed me with his net.
7 Behold, I cry out of wrong, but I am not heard: I cry aloud, but there is no judgment.
8 He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass, and he hath set darkness in my paths.
9 He hath stripped me of my glory, and taken the crown from my head.
10 He hath destroyed me on every side, and I am gone: and mine hope hath he removed like a tree.
11 He hath also kindled his wrath against me, and he counteth me unto him as one of his enemies.
12 His troops come together, and raise up their way against me, and encamp round about my tabernacle.
13 He hath put my brethren far from me, and mine acquaintance are verily estranged from me.
14 My kinsfolk have failed, and my familiar friends have forgotten me.
15 They that dwell in mine house, and my maids, count me for a stranger: I am an alien in their sight.
16 I called my servant, and he gave me no answer; I intreated him with my mouth.
17 My breath is strange to my wife, though I intreated for the children's sake of mine own body.
18 Yea, young children despised me; I arose, and they spake against me.
19 All my inward friends abhorred me: and they whom I loved are turned against me.
20 My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.
21 Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends; for the hand of God hath touched me.
22 Why do ye persecute me as God, and are not satisfied with my flesh?
23 Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book!
24 That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever!
25 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:
26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
27 Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.
28 But ye should say, Why persecute we him, seeing the root of the matter is found in me?
29 Be ye afraid of the sword: for wrath bringeth the punishments of the sword, that ye may know there is a judgment.
20 Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said,
2 Therefore do my thoughts cause me to answer, and for this I make haste.
3 I have heard the check of my reproach, and the spirit of my understanding causeth me to answer.
4 Knowest thou not this of old, since man was placed upon earth,
5 That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?
6 Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds;
7 Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he?
8 He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night.
9 The eye also which saw him shall see him no more; neither shall his place any more behold him.
10 His children shall seek to please the poor, and his hands shall restore their goods.
11 His bones are full of the sin of his youth, which shall lie down with him in the dust.
12 Though wickedness be sweet in his mouth, though he hide it under his tongue;
13 Though he spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth:
14 Yet his meat in his bowels is turned, it is the gall of asps within him.
15 He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again: God shall cast them out of his belly.
16 He shall suck the poison of asps: the viper's tongue shall slay him.
17 He shall not see the rivers, the floods, the brooks of honey and butter.
18 That which he laboured for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down: according to his substance shall the restitution be, and he shall not rejoice therein.
19 Because he hath oppressed and hath forsaken the poor; because he hath violently taken away an house which he builded not;
20 Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired.
21 There shall none of his meat be left; therefore shall no man look for his goods.
22 In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: every hand of the wicked shall come upon him.
23 When he is about to fill his belly, God shall cast the fury of his wrath upon him, and shall rain it upon him while he is eating.
24 He shall flee from the iron weapon, and the bow of steel shall strike him through.
25 It is drawn, and cometh out of the body; yea, the glittering sword cometh out of his gall: terrors are upon him.
26 All darkness shall be hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle.
27 The heaven shall reveal his iniquity; and the earth shall rise up against him.
28 The increase of his house shall depart, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.
29 This is the portion of a wicked man from God, and the heritage appointed unto him by God.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
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New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.