Job 26
Expanded Bible
Job Answers Bildad
26 Then Job answered:
2 “You are no help to the ·helpless [powerless]!
You have not ·aided [rescued] the ·weak [L weak armed]!
3 ·Your advice lacks wisdom [or You have brought no counsel to those without wisdom]!
You have shown little understanding!
4 ·Who has helped you say these words [L Whose words do you speak]?
And ·where did you get these ideas [L whose breath comes from you]?
5 “The ·spirits of the dead [shades; L Rephaim; C departed ancestors] tremble,
·those who are beneath and in the waters [L the waters and their inhabitants are terrified; C symbol for the forces of evil].
6 ·Death [L The grave; Sheol] ·is naked [lies exposed] before God;
·destruction [Abaddon; C the underworld] is uncovered before him [C God is in control of them].
7 God stretches ·the northern sky [or Zaphon; C a reference to Baal’s mountain; indicating God’s control over it] out over empty space
and hangs the earth on nothing.
8 He wraps up the waters in his thick clouds,
but the clouds do not ·break under their weight [L burst under them].
9 He covers the face of the ·moon [or throne],
spreading his clouds over it.
10 He draws the horizon like a circle on the water
at the place where light and darkness meet.
11 ·Heaven’s foundations [L The pillars of heavens; C perhaps mountains] ·shake [quake]
·when he thunders at them [L astounded by his rebuke/blast].
12 With his power he ·quiets [stills] the ·sea [or Sea; C the powers of chaos];
by his ·wisdom [understanding] he ·destroys [struck] Rahab, the sea monster [9:13].
13 He breathes, and ·the sky clears [L he makes the heavens beautiful].
His hand ·stabs [slays] the fleeing ·snake [serpent; C Leviathan, another sea monster representing chaos; 3:8; Is. 27:1].
14 And these are ·only a small part of God’s works [L fringes of his way].
We only hear a small whisper of him.
Who could understand God’s thundering power?”
Job 26
Amplified Bible
Job Rebukes Bildad
26 But Job answered and said,
2
“What a help you are to the weak (powerless)!
How you have saved the arm that is without strength!
3
“How you have counseled the one who has no wisdom!
And how abundantly you have provided sound wisdom and helpful insight!
4
“To whom have you uttered [these] words?
And whose spirit [inspired what] came forth from you?
The Greatness of God
5
“The spirits of the dead tremble
Underneath the waters and their inhabitants.
6
“Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) is naked before God,
And Abaddon (the place of destruction) has no covering [from His eyes].
7
“It is He who spreads out the north over emptiness
And [a]hangs the earth on nothing.
8
“He wraps the waters in His clouds [which otherwise would spill on earth all at once],
And the cloud does not burst under them.
9
“He covers the face of the [b]full moon
And spreads His cloud over it.
10
“He has inscribed a circular limit (the horizon) on the face of the waters
At the boundary between light and darkness.
11
“The pillars of the heavens tremble
And are terrified at His rebuke.
12
“He stirred up the sea by His power,
And by His understanding He smashed [proud] [c]Rahab.
13
“By His breath the heavens are cleared;
His hand has pierced the [swiftly] fleeing serpent.(A)
14
“Yet these are just the fringes of His ways [mere samples of His power],
The faintest whisper of His voice!
Who can contemplate the thunder of His [full] mighty power?”
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
