Job 22
New King James Version
Eliphaz Accuses Job of Wickedness
22 Then (A)Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:
2 “Can(B) a man be profitable to God,
Though he who is wise may be profitable to himself?
3 Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that you are righteous?
Or is it gain to Him that you make your ways blameless?
4 “Is it because of your fear of Him that He corrects you,
And enters into judgment with you?
5 Is not your wickedness great,
And your iniquity without end?
6 For you have (C)taken pledges from your brother for no reason,
And stripped the naked of their clothing.
7 You have not given the weary water to drink,
And you (D)have withheld bread from the hungry.
8 But the [a]mighty man possessed the land,
And the honorable man dwelt in it.
9 You have sent widows away empty,
And the [b]strength of the fatherless was crushed.
10 Therefore snares are all around you,
And sudden fear troubles you,
11 Or darkness so that you cannot see;
And an abundance of (E)water covers you.
12 “Is not God in the height of heaven?
And see the highest stars, how lofty they are!
13 And you say, (F)‘What does God know?
Can He judge through the deep darkness?
14 (G)Thick clouds cover Him, so that He cannot see,
And He walks above the circle of heaven.’
15 Will you keep to the old way
Which wicked men have trod,
16 Who (H)were cut down before their time,
Whose foundations were swept away by a flood?
17 (I)They said to God, ‘Depart from us!
What can the Almighty do to [c]them?’
18 Yet He filled their houses with good things;
But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
19 “The(J) righteous see it and are glad,
And the innocent laugh at them:
20 ‘Surely our [d]adversaries are cut down,
And the fire consumes their remnant.’
21 “Now acquaint yourself with Him, and (K)be at peace;
Thereby good will come to you.
22 Receive, please, (L)instruction from His mouth,
And (M)lay up His words in your heart.
23 If you return to the Almighty, you will be built up;
You will remove iniquity far from your tents.
24 Then you will (N)lay your gold in the dust,
And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks.
25 Yes, the Almighty will be your [e]gold
And your precious silver;
26 For then you will have your (O)delight in the Almighty,
And lift up your face to God.
27 (P)You will make your prayer to Him,
He will hear you,
And you will pay your vows.
28 You will also declare a thing,
And it will be established for you;
So light will shine on your ways.
29 When they cast you down, and you say, ‘Exaltation will come!’
Then (Q)He will save the humble person.
30 He will even deliver one who is not innocent;
Yes, he will be delivered by the purity of your hands.”
Job 22
Lexham English Bible
Eliphaz’s Third Speech
22 Then[a] Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,
2 “Can a man be of use to God?
Yes, can the wise be of use to him?
3 Is it a pleasure to Shaddai if you are righteous,
or[b] a gain if you make your ways blameless?
4 Does he reprove you because of your reverence
or enter into judgment with you?
5 Is not your wickedness great,
and there is no end to your iniquities?
6 “Indeed, you have required a pledge from your family for nothing,
and you have stripped off the clothes of the naked.
7 You have given no water for the weary to drink,
and you withheld food from the hungry.
8 And the land belongs to the man of power,[c]
and the favored[d] lives in it.
9 You have sent widows away empty-handed,
and the arms of orphans were crushed.
10 Therefore trapping nets are all around you,
and panic suddenly terrifies you,
11 or it is so dark you cannot see,
and a flood of water covers you.
12 “Is not God in the height of the heavens?
But[e] see how lofty are the highest stars.[f]
13 And you ask, ‘What does God know?
Can he judge through deep gloom?
14 Thick clouds are a covering for him, so that he does not see;
and he walks about on the dome of heaven.’
15 Will you keep to the way of old
that the people of mischief have trod,
16 who were snatched away before their time,[g]
whose foundation was washed away by a current?
17 Those who said to God, ‘Turn away from us,’
and ‘What can Shaddai do to us?’
18 Yet[h] he himself[i] filled up their houses with good things,
but[j] the schemes of the wicked are repugnant to me.
19 The righteous see, and they rejoice,
but[k] the innocent one mocks at them.
20 Surely[l] our foe perishes,
and fire has consumed their remainder.[m]
21 “Please reconcile yourself with him,
and be at peace; in this way,[n] good will come to you.
22 Please receive instruction from his mouth,
and place his words in your heart.
23 If you return to Shaddai, you will be restored;
if you remove wickedness from your tent,
24 and if you put gold ore in the dust,
and the gold of Ophir in the rock of wadis,
25 then[o] Shaddai will be your gold ore
and your precious silver.[p]
26 Indeed, then you will delight yourself in Shaddai,
and you will expect that God will be good to you.[q]
27 You will pray to him, and he will hear you,
and you will pay your vows.
28 And you will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you,
and light will shine on your ways.
29 When they are humiliated, you say,[r] ‘It is pride,’
for[s] he saves the humble.[t]
30 He will deliver the guilty,
and he will escape because of the cleanness of your hands.”
Footnotes
- Job 22:1 Hebrew “And”
- Job 22:3 Hebrew “and”
- Job 22:8 Literally “man of power for him”
- Job 22:8 Literally “lifted up of face”
- Job 22:12 Hebrew “And”
- Job 22:12 Literally “top of stars,” or “head of stars”
- Job 22:16 Literally “and not time”
- Job 22:18 Hebrew “And”
- Job 22:18 Emphatic personal pronoun
- Job 22:18 Hebrew “and”
- Job 22:19 Hebrew “and”
- Job 22:20 Literally “If not”
- Job 22:20 Or “their wealth”
- Job 22:21 Literally “by them”
- Job 22:25 Hebrew “And”
- Job 22:25 Literally “silver of the best for you,” or “silver of the best belonging to you”
- Job 22:26 Literally “you will lift up to God your face”
- Job 22:29 Literally “and you say,” or “then you say”
- Job 22:29 Hebrew “and”
- Job 22:29 Literally “downward of eyes”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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