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Job 30-31
American Standard Version
Job 30-31
American Standard Version
30 But now they that are younger than I have me in derision,
Whose fathers I disdained to set with the dogs of my flock.
2 Yea, the strength of their hands, whereto should it profit me?
Men in whom [a]ripe age is perished.
3 They are gaunt with want and famine;
[b]They gnaw the dry ground, [c]in the gloom of wasteness and desolation.
4 They pluck salt-wort by the bushes;
And the roots of the broom are [d]their food.
5 They are driven forth from the midst of men;
They cry after them as after a thief;
6 So that they dwell in frightful valleys,
In holes of the earth and of the rocks.
7 Among the bushes they bray;
Under the [e]nettles they [f]are gathered together.
8 They are children of fools, yea, children of [g]base men;
They [h]were scourged out of the land.
9 And now I am become their song,
Yea, I am a byword unto them.
10 They abhor me, they stand aloof from me,
And spare not to spit [i]in my face.
11 For he hath loosed [j]his cord, and afflicted me;
And they have cast off the bridle before me.
12 Upon my right hand rise the [k]rabble;
They thrust aside my feet,
And they cast up against me their ways of destruction.
13 They [l]mar my path,
They set forward my calamity,
Even men that have no helper.
14 [m]As through a wide breach they come:
In the midst of the ruin they roll themselves upon me.
15 Terrors are turned upon me;
[n]They chase [o]mine honor as the wind;
And my welfare is passed away as a cloud.
16 And now my soul is poured out [p]within me;
Days of affliction have taken hold upon me.
17 In the night season my bones are [q]pierced [r]in me,
And [s]the pains that gnaw me take no rest.
18 By God’s great force is my garment disfigured;
It bindeth me about as the collar of my coat.
19 He hath cast me into the mire,
And I am become like dust and ashes.
20 I cry unto thee, and thou dost not answer me:
I stand up, and thou gazest at me.
21 Thou art turned to be cruel to me;
With the might of thy hand thou persecutest me.
22 Thou liftest me up to the wind, thou causest me to ride upon it;
And thou dissolvest me in the storm.
23 For I know that thou wilt bring me to death,
And to [t]the house appointed for all living.
24 Howbeit doth not one stretch out the hand in his fall?
Or in his calamity therefore cry for help?
25 Did not I weep for him that was in trouble?
Was not my soul grieved for the needy?
26 When I looked for good, then evil came;
And when I waited for light, there came darkness.
27 My heart is troubled, and resteth not;
Days of affliction are come upon me.
28 I go [u]mourning without the sun:
I stand up in the assembly, and cry for help.
29 I am a brother to jackals,
And a companion to ostriches.
30 My skin is black, and falleth from me,
And my bones are burned with heat.
31 Therefore is my harp turned to mourning,
And my pipe into the voice of them that weep.
31 I made a covenant with mine eyes;
How then should I look upon a virgin?
2 [v]For what is the portion from God above,
And the heritage from the Almighty on high?
3 Is it not calamity to the unrighteous,
And disaster to the workers of iniquity?
4 Doth not he see my ways,
And number all my steps?
5 If I have walked with falsehood,
And my foot hath hasted to deceit
6 (Let me be weighed in an even balance,
That God may know mine integrity);
7 If my step hath turned out of the way,
And my heart walked after mine eyes,
And if any spot hath cleaved to my hands:
8 Then let me sow, and let another eat;
Yea, let [w]the produce of my field be rooted out.
9 If my heart hath been enticed unto a woman,
And I have laid wait at my neighbor’s door;
10 Then let my wife grind unto another,
And let others bow down upon her.
11 For that were a heinous crime;
Yea, it were an iniquity to be punished by the judges:
12 For it is a fire that consumeth unto [x]Destruction,
And would root out all mine increase.
13 If I have despised the cause of my man-servant or of my maid-servant,
When they contended with me;
14 What then shall I do when God riseth up?
And when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?
15 Did not he that made me in the womb make him?
And did not one fashion us in the womb?
16 If I have withheld [y]the poor from their desire,
Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17 Or have eaten my morsel alone,
And the fatherless hath not eaten thereof
18 (Nay, from my youth he grew up with me as with a father,
And her have I guided from my mother’s womb);
19 If I have seen any perish for want of clothing,
Or that the needy had no covering;
20 If his loins have not blessed me,
And if he hath not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
21 If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless,
Because I saw my help in the gate:
22 Then let my shoulder fall from the shoulder-blade,
And mine arm be broken from the bone.
23 For calamity from God is a terror to me,
And by reason of his majesty I can do nothing.
24 If I have made gold my hope,
And have said to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence;
25 If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great,
And because my hand had gotten much;
26 If I have beheld [z]the sun when it shined,
Or the moon walking in brightness,
27 And my heart hath been secretly enticed,
And [aa]my mouth hath kissed my hand:
28 This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judges;
For I should have denied the God that is above.
29 If I have rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me,
Or lifted up myself when evil found him
30 (Yea, I have not suffered my [ab]mouth to sin
By asking his life with a curse);
31 If the men of my tent have not said,
Who can find one that hath not been filled with his meat?
32 (The sojourner hath not lodged in the street;
But I have opened my doors to [ac]the traveller);
33 If [ad]like Adam I have covered my transgressions,
By hiding mine iniquity in my bosom,
34 Because I feared the great multitude,
And the contempt of families terrified me,
So that I kept silence, and went not out of the door—
35 Oh that I had one to hear me!
(Lo, here is my [ae]signature, let the Almighty answer me)
And that I had the [af]indictment which mine adversary hath written!
36 Surely I would carry it upon my shoulder;
I would bind it unto me as a crown:
37 I would declare unto him the number of my steps;
As a prince would I [ag]go near unto him.
38 If my land crieth out against me,
And the furrows thereof weep together;
39 If I have eaten the [ah]fruits thereof without money,
Or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:
40 Let [ai]thistles grow instead of wheat,
And [aj]cockle instead of barley.
The words of Job are ended.
Footnotes
- Job 30:2 Or, vigor
- Job 30:3 Or, They flee into the wilderness, into etc.
- Job 30:3 Or, which yesternight was. Or, on the eve of
- Job 30:4 Or, to warm them
- Job 30:7 Or, wild vetches
- Job 30:7 Or, stretch themselves
- Job 30:8 Hebrew men of no name.
- Job 30:8 Or, are outcasts from the land
- Job 30:10 Or, at the sight of me
- Job 30:11 According to another reading, my cord (or, bowstring).
- Job 30:12 Or, brood
- Job 30:13 Or, break up
- Job 30:14 Or, As a wide breaking in of waters
- Job 30:15 Or, Thou chasest
- Job 30:15 Or, my nobility
- Job 30:16 Hebrew upon.
- Job 30:17 Or, corroded and drop away from me
- Job 30:17 Hebrew from off.
- Job 30:17 Or, my sinews take etc.
- Job 30:23 Or, the house of meeting for etc.
- Job 30:28 Or, blackened, but not by the sun
- Job 31:2 Or, For what portion should I have of God . . . And what heritage etc.? Is there not calamity etc.?
- Job 31:8 Or, my offspring. Hebrew my produce.
- Job 31:12 Hebrew Abaddon. See 26:6.
- Job 31:16 Or, aught that the poor desired
- Job 31:26 Hebrew the light.
- Job 31:27 Hebrew my hand hath kissed my mouth.
- Job 31:30 Hebrew palate.
- Job 31:32 Hebrew the way.
- Job 31:33 Or, after the manner of men
- Job 31:35 Hebrew mark.
- Job 31:35 Hebrew book.
- Job 31:37 Or, present it to him
- Job 31:39 Hebrew strength.
- Job 31:40 Or, thorns
- Job 31:40 Or, noisome weeds
Job 30-31
New International Version
Job 30-31
New International Version
30 “But now they mock me,(A)
men younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to put with my sheep dogs.(B)
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[a] the parched land(C)
in desolate wastelands(D) at night.(E)
4 In the brush they gathered salt herbs,(F)
and their food[b] was the root of the broom bush.(G)
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.(H)
7 They brayed(I) among the bushes(J)
and huddled in the undergrowth.
8 A base and nameless brood,(K)
they were driven out of the land.(L)
9 “And now those young men mock me(M) in song;(N)
I have become a byword(O) among them.
10 They detest me(P) and keep their distance;
they do not hesitate to spit in my face.(Q)
11 Now that God has unstrung my bow(R) and afflicted me,(S)
they throw off restraint(T) in my presence.
12 On my right(U) the tribe[c] attacks;
they lay snares(V) for my feet,(W)
they build their siege ramps against me.(X)
13 They break up my road;(Y)
they succeed in destroying me.(Z)
‘No one can help him,’ they say.
14 They advance as through a gaping breach;(AA)
amid the ruins they come rolling in.
15 Terrors(AB) overwhelm me;(AC)
my dignity is driven away as by the wind,
my safety vanishes like a cloud.(AD)
16 “And now my life ebbs away;(AE)
days of suffering grip me.(AF)
17 Night pierces my bones;
my gnawing pains never rest.(AG)
18 In his great power(AH) God becomes like clothing to me[d];
he binds me like the neck of my garment.
19 He throws me into the mud,(AI)
and I am reduced to dust and ashes.(AJ)
20 “I cry out to you,(AK) God, but you do not answer;(AL)
I stand up, but you merely look at me.
21 You turn on me ruthlessly;(AM)
with the might of your hand(AN) you attack me.(AO)
22 You snatch me up and drive me before the wind;(AP)
you toss me about in the storm.(AQ)
23 I know you will bring me down to death,(AR)
to the place appointed for all the living.(AS)
24 “Surely no one lays a hand on a broken man(AT)
when he cries for help in his distress.(AU)
25 Have I not wept for those in trouble?(AV)
Has not my soul grieved for the poor?(AW)
26 Yet when I hoped for good, evil came;
when I looked for light, then came darkness.(AX)
27 The churning inside me never stops;(AY)
days of suffering confront me.(AZ)
28 I go about blackened,(BA) but not by the sun;
I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.(BB)
29 I have become a brother of jackals,(BC)
a companion of owls.(BD)
30 My skin grows black(BE) and peels;(BF)
my body burns with fever.(BG)
31 My lyre is tuned to mourning,(BH)
and my pipe(BI) to the sound of wailing.
31 “I made a covenant with my eyes(BJ)
not to look lustfully at a young woman.(BK)
2 For what is our lot(BL) from God above,
our heritage from the Almighty on high?(BM)
3 Is it not ruin(BN) for the wicked,
disaster(BO) for those who do wrong?(BP)
4 Does he not see my ways(BQ)
and count my every step?(BR)
5 “If I have walked with falsehood
or my foot has hurried after deceit(BS)—
6 let God weigh me(BT) in honest scales(BU)
and he will know that I am blameless(BV)—
7 if my steps have turned from the path,(BW)
if my heart has been led by my eyes,
or if my hands(BX) have been defiled,(BY)
8 then may others eat what I have sown,(BZ)
and may my crops be uprooted.(CA)
9 “If my heart has been enticed(CB) by a woman,(CC)
or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 then may my wife grind(CD) another man’s grain,
and may other men sleep with her.(CE)
11 For that would have been wicked,(CF)
a sin to be judged.(CG)
12 It is a fire(CH) that burns to Destruction[e];(CI)
it would have uprooted my harvest.(CJ)
13 “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,(CK)
whether male or female,
when they had a grievance against me,(CL)
14 what will I do when God confronts me?(CM)
What will I answer when called to account?(CN)
15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them?(CO)
Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?(CP)
16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor(CQ)
or let the eyes of the widow(CR) grow weary,(CS)
17 if I have kept my bread to myself,
not sharing it with the fatherless(CT)—
18 but from my youth I reared them as a father would,
and from my birth I guided the widow(CU)—
19 if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,(CV)
or the needy(CW) without garments,
20 and their hearts did not bless me(CX)
for warming them with the fleece(CY) from my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,(CZ)
knowing that I had influence in court,(DA)
22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder,
let it be broken off at the joint.(DB)
23 For I dreaded destruction from God,(DC)
and for fear of his splendor(DD) I could not do such things.(DE)
24 “If I have put my trust in gold(DF)
or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’(DG)
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,(DH)
the fortune my hands had gained,(DI)
26 if I have regarded the sun(DJ) in its radiance
or the moon(DK) moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed(DL)
and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,(DM)
28 then these also would be sins to be judged,(DN)
for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.(DO)
29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune(DP)
or gloated over the trouble that came to him(DQ)—
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
by invoking a curse against their life(DR)—
31 if those of my household have never said,
‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’(DS)—
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
for my door was always open to the traveler(DT)—
33 if I have concealed(DU) my sin as people do,[f]
by hiding(DV) my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd(DW)
and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
that I kept silent(DX) and would not go outside—
35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!(DY)
I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
let my accuser(DZ) put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,(EA)
I would put it on like a crown.(EB)
37 I would give him an account of my every step;(EC)
I would present it to him as to a ruler.(ED))—
38 “if my land cries out against me(EE)
and all its furrows are wet(EF) with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment(EG)
or broken the spirit of its tenants,(EH)
40 then let briers(EI) come up instead of wheat
and stinkweed(EJ) instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.(EK)
American Standard Version (ASV)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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