Job 21
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Job’s Reply to Zophar
21 Then Job answered:
2 Pay close attention to my words;
let this be the consolation you offer.
3 Bear with me while I speak;
then after I have spoken, you may continue mocking.
4 As for me, is my complaint(A) against a man?
Then why shouldn’t I be impatient?
5 Look at me and shudder;(B)
put your hand over your mouth.(C)
6 When I think about it, I am terrified
and my body trembles(D) in horror.
7 Why do the wicked continue to live,
growing old and becoming powerful?
8 Their children are established while they are still alive,[a]
and their descendants, before their eyes.
9 Their homes are secure and free of fear;(E)
no rod from God strikes them.(F)
10 Their bulls breed without fail;
their cows calve and do not miscarry.
11 They let their little ones run around like lambs;
their children skip about,
12 singing to the tambourine and lyre
and rejoicing at the sound of the flute.(G)
13 They spend[b] their days in prosperity(H)
and go down to Sheol in peace.
14 Yet they say to God: “Leave us alone!
We don’t want to know Your ways.(I)
15 Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him,
and what will we gain by pleading with Him?”(J)
16 But their prosperity is not of their own doing.
The counsel of the wicked is far from me!(K)
17 How often is the lamp(L) of the wicked put out?
Does disaster[c] come on them?
Does He apportion destruction in His anger?
18 Are they like straw before the wind,
like chaff(M) a storm sweeps away?
19 God reserves a person’s punishment for his children.(N)
Let God repay the person himself, so that he may know it.
20 Let his own eyes see his demise;
let him drink from the Almighty’s wrath!(O)
21 For what does he care about his family once he is dead,(P)
when the number of his months has run out?(Q)
22 Can anyone teach God knowledge,(R)
since He judges the exalted ones?[d]
23 One person dies in excellent health,[e]
completely secure[f] and at ease.
24 His body is[g] well fed,[h]
and his bones are full of marrow.[i]
25 Yet another person dies with a bitter(S) soul,
having never tasted prosperity.
26 But they both lie in the dust,
and worms cover them.(T)
27 I know your thoughts very well,
the schemes you would wrong me with.
28 For you say, “Where now is the nobleman’s house?”
and “Where are the tents(U) the wicked lived in?”
29 Have you never consulted those who travel the roads?
Don’t you accept their reports?[j]
30 Indeed, the evil man is spared from the day of disaster,
rescued from the day of wrath.
31 Who would denounce his behavior to his face?
Who would repay(V) him for what he has done?
32 He is carried to the grave,
and someone keeps watch over his tomb.
33 The dirt on his grave is[k] sweet to him.
Everyone follows behind him,
and those who go before him are without number.
34 So how can you offer me such futile comfort?
Your answers are deceptive.
Footnotes
- Job 21:8 Lit established before them with them
- Job 21:13 Alt Hb tradition reads fully enjoy
- Job 21:17 Lit their disaster
- Job 21:22 Probably angels
- Job 21:23 Lit in bone of his perfection
- Job 21:23 Text emended; MT reads health, all at ease
- Job 21:24 Or His sides are; Hb obscure
- Job 21:24 Lit is full of milk
- Job 21:24 Lit and the marrow of his bones is watered
- Job 21:29 Lit signs
- Job 21:33 Lit The clods of the wadi are
Job 21
Common English Bible
Grant me a hearing
21 Then Job answered:
2 Listen carefully to my remarks
and let that comfort you.
3 Bear with me so I can speak, I myself;
and after my reply you can mock.
4 Are my complaints against another human;
why is my patience short?
5 Turn to me and be appalled;
lay your hand over your mouth.
6 If I recall it, I’m scared;
shaking seizes my body.
The success of the wicked
7 Why do the wicked live,
grow old, and even become strong?
8 Their children are always with them,
their offspring in their sight,
9 their houses safe from dread,
God’s punishing stick not upon them.
10 Their bull always breeds successfully;
their cows give birth and never miscarry.
11 They send forth their little ones like sheep;
their infants bounce around.
12 They raise drum and lyre,
rejoice at the sound of a flute.
13 They spend their days contentedly,
go down to the grave[a] peacefully.
14 They say to God, “Turn away from us;
we take no pleasure in knowing your ways;
15 who is the Almighty[b] that we should serve him,
and what can we gain if we meet him?”
16 Look, isn’t their well-being the work of their own hands?
A sinner’s logic is beyond me.
Desired vindication
17 How often does the lamp of the wicked flicker
or disaster come upon them,
with its fury inflicting pain on them?
18 Let them be like straw in the wind,
like dry grass stolen by a storm.
19 God stores up his punishment for his children.
Let him destroy them so they know.
20 Let their own eyes witness their doom.
Let them drink from the Almighty’s wrath.
21 What do they care about their household after they die,
when their numbered days are cut off?
A common fate
22 Will they instruct God—
he who judges the most powerful?
23 Someone dies in wonderful health,
completely comfortable and well,
24 their buckets full of milk,
their bones marrow-filled and sound.
25 Another dies in bitter spirit,
never having tasted the good things.
26 They lie together in the dust
and worms cover them.
Further disagreement
27 Look, I know your thoughts;
your plans harm me.
28 You say, “Where is the official’s house?
Where is the tent, the dwelling of the wicked?”
29 Haven’t you asked travelers
or paid attention to their reports?
30 On the day of disaster the wicked are spared;
on the day of fury they are rescued.
31 Who can criticize their behavior to their faces;
they act, and who can avenge them?
32 They are carried to their graves;
someone keeps guard over their tombs.
33 The soil near the desert streambed is sweet to them;
everyone marches after them—
those before them, beyond counting.
34 How empty is your comfort to me;
only deceit remains in your responses.
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