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Job 29-31
English Standard Version
Job 29-31
English Standard Version
Job's Summary Defense
29 And Job again (A)took up his discourse, and said:
2 “Oh, that I were as in the months of old,
as in the days when God watched over me,
3 when his (B)lamp shone upon my head,
and by his light I walked through darkness,
4 as I was in my prime,[a]
when the (C)friendship of God was upon my tent,
5 when the Almighty was yet with me,
when my (D)children were all around me,
6 when my steps were (E)washed with (F)butter,
and (G)the rock poured out for me streams of (H)oil!
7 When I went out to (I)the gate of the city,
when I prepared my seat in the square,
8 the young men saw me and withdrew,
and the aged rose and stood;
9 the princes refrained from talking
and (J)laid their hand on their mouth;
10 the voice of the nobles was hushed,
and their (K)tongue stuck to the roof of their mouth.
11 When the ear heard, it called me blessed,
and when the eye saw, it approved,
12 because I (L)delivered the poor who cried for help,
and the fatherless who had none to help him.
13 (M)The blessing of him who was (N)about to perish came upon me,
and I caused (O)the widow's heart to sing for joy.
14 I (P)put on righteousness, and it clothed me;
my justice was like a robe and (Q)a turban.
15 I was (R)eyes to the blind
and feet to the lame.
16 I was a father to the needy,
and I searched out (S)the cause of him whom I did not know.
17 I (T)broke (U)the fangs of the unrighteous
and made him drop his prey from his teeth.
18 (V)Then I thought, ‘I shall die in my (W)nest,
and I shall multiply my days as (X)the sand,
19 my (Y)roots spread out to (Z)the waters,
with the dew all night on my (AA)branches,
20 my glory fresh with me,
and my (AB)bow ever (AC)new in my hand.’
21 “Men listened to me and waited
and kept silence for my counsel.
22 After I spoke they did not speak again,
and my word (AD)dropped upon them.
23 They waited for me as for the rain,
and they (AE)opened their mouths as for the (AF)spring rain.
24 I smiled on them when they had no confidence,
and (AG)the light of my (AH)face they did not cast down.
25 I chose their way and sat as chief,
and I lived like (AI)a king among his troops,
like one who comforts mourners.
30 “But now they (AJ)laugh at me,
men who are (AK)younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to set with the dogs of my flock.
2 What could I gain from the strength of their hands,
(AL)men whose (AM)vigor is gone?
3 Through want and hard hunger
they (AN)gnaw (AO)the dry ground by night in (AP)waste and desolation;
4 they pick saltwort and the leaves of bushes,
and the roots of the broom tree for their food.[b]
5 (AQ)They are driven out from human company;
they shout after them as after a thief.
6 In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell,
in holes of the earth and of (AR)the rocks.
7 Among the bushes they (AS)bray;
under (AT)the nettles they huddle together.
8 A senseless, a nameless brood,
they have been whipped out of the land.
9 “And now I have become their (AU)song;
I am (AV)a byword to them.
10 They (AW)abhor me; they keep aloof from me;
they do not hesitate to (AX)spit at the sight of me.
11 Because God has loosed my cord and humbled me,
they have cast off restraint[c] in my presence.
12 On my (AY)right hand the rabble rise;
they push away my feet;
they (AZ)cast up against me their ways of destruction.
13 They break up my path;
they promote my (BA)calamity;
they need no one to help them.
14 As through a wide (BB)breach they come;
amid the crash they roll on.
15 (BC)Terrors are turned upon me;
my honor is pursued as by the wind,
and my prosperity has passed away like (BD)a cloud.
16 “And now my soul is (BE)poured out within me;
days of affliction have taken hold of me.
17 (BF)The night (BG)racks my bones,
and the pain that (BH)gnaws me takes no rest.
18 With great force my garment is (BI)disfigured;
it binds me about like the collar of my tunic.
19 God[d] has cast me into the mire,
and I have become like (BJ)dust and ashes.
20 I cry to you for help and you do not answer me;
I stand, and you only look at me.
21 You have (BK)turned cruel to me;
with the might of your hand you (BL)persecute me.
22 (BM)You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it,
and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.
23 (BN)For I know that you will bring me to death
and to the house appointed for (BO)all living.
24 “Yet does not one in a (BP)heap of ruins stretch out his hand,
and in his disaster cry for help?[e]
25 Did not I (BQ)weep for him whose day was hard?
Was not my soul grieved for the needy?
26 But (BR)when I hoped for good, evil came,
and when I waited for light, (BS)darkness came.
27 My inward parts are in turmoil and never still;
days of affliction (BT)come to meet me.
28 I (BU)go about darkened, but not by the sun;
I stand up in (BV)the assembly and cry for help.
29 I am a brother of (BW)jackals
and a companion of (BX)ostriches.
30 My (BY)skin turns black and falls from me,
and my (BZ)bones burn with heat.
31 My (CA)lyre is (CB)turned to mourning,
and my (CC)pipe to the voice of those who weep.
Job's Final Appeal
31 “I have made a covenant with my (CD)eyes;
how then could I gaze at a virgin?
2 What would be (CE)my portion from God above
and (CF)my heritage from the Almighty on high?
3 Is not calamity for the unrighteous,
and disaster for the workers of iniquity?
4 (CG)Does not he see my ways
and (CH)number all my steps?
5 “If I have walked with falsehood
and my foot has hastened to deceit;
6 (Let me be (CI)weighed in a just balance,
and let God know my integrity!)
7 if my step has turned aside from the way
and (CJ)my heart has gone after my eyes,
and if any (CK)spot has stuck to my hands,
8 then let me (CL)sow, and another eat,
and let what grows for me[f] be rooted out.
9 “If my heart has been enticed toward a woman,
and I have (CM)lain in wait at my neighbor's door,
10 then let my wife (CN)grind for another,
and let others (CO)bow down on her.
11 For that would be a heinous crime;
that would be an iniquity (CP)to be punished by the judges;
12 for that would be a fire (CQ)that consumes as far as Abaddon,
and it would burn to the root all my increase.
13 “If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or my maidservant,
when they brought a complaint against me,
14 what then shall I do when God rises up?
When he (CR)makes inquiry, what shall I answer him?
15 Did (CS)not he who made me in the womb make him?
And did not one fashion us in the womb?
16 “If I have (CT)withheld anything that the poor desired,
or have (CU)caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17 or have eaten my morsel alone,
and the fatherless has not eaten of it
18 (for from my youth the fatherless[g] grew up with me as with a father,
and from my mother's womb I guided the widow[h]),
19 if I have seen anyone (CV)perish for (CW)lack of clothing,
or the needy without (CX)covering,
20 if his body has not (CY)blessed me,[i]
and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against (CZ)the fatherless,
because I saw my help in (DA)the gate,
22 then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder,
and let my arm be broken from its socket.
23 For I was (DB)in terror of calamity from God,
and I could not have faced his (DC)majesty.
24 (DD)“If I have made gold my (DE)trust
or called (DF)fine gold my confidence,
25 if I have (DG)rejoiced because my wealth was abundant
or because (DH)my hand had found much,
26 (DI)if I have looked at the sun[j] when it shone,
or (DJ)the moon moving in splendor,
27 and my heart has been secretly enticed,
and my mouth has kissed my hand,
28 this also would be (DK)an iniquity to be punished by the judges,
for I would have been false to God above.
29 “If I have (DL)rejoiced at the ruin of him who hated me,
or exulted when evil overtook him
30 ((DM)I have not let my mouth sin
by asking for his life with a curse),
31 if the men of my tent have not said,
‘Who is there that has not been filled with his (DN)meat?’
32 ((DO)the sojourner has not lodged in the street;
I have opened my doors to the traveler),
33 if I (DP)have concealed my transgressions (DQ)as others do[k]
by hiding my iniquity in my heart,
34 because I stood in great fear of (DR)the multitude,
and the contempt of families terrified me,
so that I kept silence, and did not go out of doors—
35 Oh, that I had one to hear me!
(Here is my signature! Let the Almighty (DS)answer me!)
Oh, that I had (DT)the indictment written by my adversary!
36 Surely I would carry it on my (DU)shoulder;
I would (DV)bind it on me as (DW)a crown;
37 I would give him an account of all my steps;
like a prince I would approach him.
38 “If my land has cried out against me
and its furrows have wept together,
39 (DX)if I have eaten its yield without payment
and made its owners (DY)breathe their last,
40 let (DZ)thorns grow instead of wheat,
and foul weeds instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.
Footnotes
- Job 29:4 Hebrew my autumn days
- Job 30:4 Or warmth
- Job 30:11 Hebrew the bridle
- Job 30:19 Hebrew He
- Job 30:24 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
- Job 31:8 Or let my descendants
- Job 31:18 Hebrew he
- Job 31:18 Hebrew her
- Job 31:20 Hebrew if his loins have not blessed me
- Job 31:26 Hebrew the light
- Job 31:33 Or as Adam did
Job 29-31
New International Version
Job 29-31
New International Version
Job’s Final Defense
29 Job continued his discourse:(A)
2 “How I long for the months gone by,(B)
for the days when God watched over me,(C)
3 when his lamp shone on my head
and by his light I walked through darkness!(D)
4 Oh, for the days when I was in my prime,
when God’s intimate friendship(E) blessed my house,(F)
5 when the Almighty was still with me
and my children(G) were around me,(H)
6 when my path was drenched with cream(I)
and the rock(J) poured out for me streams of olive oil.(K)
7 “When I went to the gate(L) of the city
and took my seat in the public square,
8 the young men saw me and stepped aside(M)
and the old men rose to their feet;(N)
9 the chief men refrained from speaking(O)
and covered their mouths with their hands;(P)
10 the voices of the nobles were hushed,(Q)
and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.(R)
11 Whoever heard me spoke well of me,
and those who saw me commended me,(S)
12 because I rescued the poor(T) who cried for help,
and the fatherless(U) who had none to assist them.(V)
13 The one who was dying blessed me;(W)
I made the widow’s(X) heart sing.
14 I put on righteousness(Y) as my clothing;
justice was my robe and my turban.(Z)
15 I was eyes(AA) to the blind
and feet to the lame.(AB)
16 I was a father to the needy;(AC)
I took up the case(AD) of the stranger.(AE)
17 I broke the fangs of the wicked
and snatched the victims(AF) from their teeth.(AG)
18 “I thought, ‘I will die in my own house,
my days as numerous as the grains of sand.(AH)
19 My roots will reach to the water,(AI)
and the dew will lie all night on my branches.(AJ)
20 My glory will not fade;(AK)
the bow(AL) will be ever new in my hand.’(AM)
21 “People listened to me expectantly,
waiting in silence for my counsel.(AN)
22 After I had spoken, they spoke no more;(AO)
my words fell gently on their ears.(AP)
23 They waited for me as for showers
and drank in my words as the spring rain.(AQ)
24 When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it;
the light of my face(AR) was precious to them.[a](AS)
25 I chose the way for them and sat as their chief;(AT)
I dwelt as a king(AU) among his troops;
I was like one who comforts mourners.(AV)
30 “But now they mock me,(AW)
men younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to put with my sheep dogs.(AX)
2 Of what use was the strength of their hands to me,
since their vigor had gone from them?
3 Haggard from want and hunger,
they roamed[b] the parched land(AY)
in desolate wastelands(AZ) at night.(BA)
4 In the brush they gathered salt herbs,(BB)
and their food[c] was the root of the broom bush.(BC)
5 They were banished from human society,
shouted at as if they were thieves.
6 They were forced to live in the dry stream beds,
among the rocks and in holes in the ground.(BD)
7 They brayed(BE) among the bushes(BF)
and huddled in the undergrowth.
8 A base and nameless brood,(BG)
they were driven out of the land.(BH)
9 “And now those young men mock me(BI) in song;(BJ)
I have become a byword(BK) among them.
10 They detest me(BL) and keep their distance;
they do not hesitate to spit in my face.(BM)
11 Now that God has unstrung my bow(BN) and afflicted me,(BO)
they throw off restraint(BP) in my presence.
12 On my right(BQ) the tribe[d] attacks;
they lay snares(BR) for my feet,(BS)
they build their siege ramps against me.(BT)
13 They break up my road;(BU)
they succeed in destroying me.(BV)
‘No one can help him,’ they say.
14 They advance as through a gaping breach;(BW)
amid the ruins they come rolling in.
15 Terrors(BX) overwhelm me;(BY)
my dignity is driven away as by the wind,
my safety vanishes like a cloud.(BZ)
16 “And now my life ebbs away;(CA)
days of suffering grip me.(CB)
17 Night pierces my bones;
my gnawing pains never rest.(CC)
18 In his great power(CD) God becomes like clothing to me[e];
he binds me like the neck of my garment.
19 He throws me into the mud,(CE)
and I am reduced to dust and ashes.(CF)
20 “I cry out to you,(CG) God, but you do not answer;(CH)
I stand up, but you merely look at me.
21 You turn on me ruthlessly;(CI)
with the might of your hand(CJ) you attack me.(CK)
22 You snatch me up and drive me before the wind;(CL)
you toss me about in the storm.(CM)
23 I know you will bring me down to death,(CN)
to the place appointed for all the living.(CO)
24 “Surely no one lays a hand on a broken man(CP)
when he cries for help in his distress.(CQ)
25 Have I not wept for those in trouble?(CR)
Has not my soul grieved for the poor?(CS)
26 Yet when I hoped for good, evil came;
when I looked for light, then came darkness.(CT)
27 The churning inside me never stops;(CU)
days of suffering confront me.(CV)
28 I go about blackened,(CW) but not by the sun;
I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.(CX)
29 I have become a brother of jackals,(CY)
a companion of owls.(CZ)
30 My skin grows black(DA) and peels;(DB)
my body burns with fever.(DC)
31 My lyre is tuned to mourning,(DD)
and my pipe(DE) to the sound of wailing.
31 “I made a covenant with my eyes(DF)
not to look lustfully at a young woman.(DG)
2 For what is our lot(DH) from God above,
our heritage from the Almighty on high?(DI)
3 Is it not ruin(DJ) for the wicked,
disaster(DK) for those who do wrong?(DL)
4 Does he not see my ways(DM)
and count my every step?(DN)
5 “If I have walked with falsehood
or my foot has hurried after deceit(DO)—
6 let God weigh me(DP) in honest scales(DQ)
and he will know that I am blameless(DR)—
7 if my steps have turned from the path,(DS)
if my heart has been led by my eyes,
or if my hands(DT) have been defiled,(DU)
8 then may others eat what I have sown,(DV)
and may my crops be uprooted.(DW)
9 “If my heart has been enticed(DX) by a woman,(DY)
or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 then may my wife grind(DZ) another man’s grain,
and may other men sleep with her.(EA)
11 For that would have been wicked,(EB)
a sin to be judged.(EC)
12 It is a fire(ED) that burns to Destruction[f];(EE)
it would have uprooted my harvest.(EF)
13 “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,(EG)
whether male or female,
when they had a grievance against me,(EH)
14 what will I do when God confronts me?(EI)
What will I answer when called to account?(EJ)
15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them?(EK)
Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?(EL)
16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor(EM)
or let the eyes of the widow(EN) grow weary,(EO)
17 if I have kept my bread to myself,
not sharing it with the fatherless(EP)—
18 but from my youth I reared them as a father would,
and from my birth I guided the widow(EQ)—
19 if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,(ER)
or the needy(ES) without garments,
20 and their hearts did not bless me(ET)
for warming them with the fleece(EU) from my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,(EV)
knowing that I had influence in court,(EW)
22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder,
let it be broken off at the joint.(EX)
23 For I dreaded destruction from God,(EY)
and for fear of his splendor(EZ) I could not do such things.(FA)
24 “If I have put my trust in gold(FB)
or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’(FC)
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,(FD)
the fortune my hands had gained,(FE)
26 if I have regarded the sun(FF) in its radiance
or the moon(FG) moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed(FH)
and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,(FI)
28 then these also would be sins to be judged,(FJ)
for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.(FK)
29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune(FL)
or gloated over the trouble that came to him(FM)—
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
by invoking a curse against their life(FN)—
31 if those of my household have never said,
‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’(FO)—
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
for my door was always open to the traveler(FP)—
33 if I have concealed(FQ) my sin as people do,[g]
by hiding(FR) my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd(FS)
and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
that I kept silent(FT) and would not go outside—
35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!(FU)
I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
let my accuser(FV) put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,(FW)
I would put it on like a crown.(FX)
37 I would give him an account of my every step;(FY)
I would present it to him as to a ruler.(FZ))—
38 “if my land cries out against me(GA)
and all its furrows are wet(GB) with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment(GC)
or broken the spirit of its tenants,(GD)
40 then let briers(GE) come up instead of wheat
and stinkweed(GF) instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.(GG)
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.