Job 4
Christian Standard Bible
First Series of Speeches
Eliphaz Speaks
4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:
2 Should anyone try to speak with you
when you are exhausted?
Yet who can keep from speaking?
3 Indeed, you have instructed many
and have strengthened(A) weak hands.
4 Your words have steadied the one who was stumbling
and braced the knees that were buckling.(B)
5 But now that this has happened to you,
you have become exhausted.
It strikes(C) you, and you are dismayed.
6 Isn’t your piety your confidence,
and the integrity of your life[a] your hope?(D)
7 Consider: Who has perished when he was innocent?
Where have the honest[b] been destroyed?(E)
8 In my experience, those who plow injustice
and those who sow trouble(F) reap the same.(G)
9 They perish at a single blast(H) from God
and come to an end by the breath of his nostrils.(I)
10 The lion may roar and the fierce lion(J) growl,
but the teeth of young lions are broken.(K)
11 The strong lion dies if it catches no prey,
and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.(L)
12 A word was brought to me in secret;
my ears caught a whisper of it.(M)
13 Among unsettling thoughts from visions in the night,(N)
when deep sleep(O) comes over men,
14 fear and trembling came over me(P)
and made all my bones shake.
15 I felt a draft[c] on my face,
and the hair on my body stood up.
16 A figure stood there,
but I could not recognize its appearance;
a form loomed before my eyes.
I heard a whispering voice:
17 “Can a mortal be righteous before God?
Can a man be more pure than his Maker?” (Q)
18 If God puts no trust in his servants
and he charges his angels with foolishness,[d](R)
19 how much more those who dwell in clay houses,(S)
whose foundation is in the dust,
who are crushed like a moth!
20 They are smashed to pieces from dawn to dusk;
they perish forever while no one notices.(T)
21 Are their tent cords not pulled up?
They die without wisdom.(U)
Job 4
Common English Bible
Eliphaz tries to comfort Job
4 Then Eliphaz, a native of Teman, responded:
2 If one tries to answer you, will you be annoyed?
But who can hold words back?
3 Look, you’ve instructed many
and given strength to drooping hands.
4 Your words have raised up the falling;
you’ve steadied failing knees.
5 But now it comes to you, and you are dismayed;
it has struck you, and you are frightened.
6 Isn’t your religion the source of[a] your confidence;
the integrity of your conduct, the source of your hope?
Sinners don’t live long
7 Think! What innocent person has ever perished?
When have those who do the right thing been destroyed?
8 As I’ve observed, those who plow sin
and sow trouble will harvest it.
9 When God breathes deeply, they perish;
by a breath of his nostril they are annihilated.
10 The roar of a lion and snarl of the king of beasts—
yet the teeth of lions are shattered;
11 the lion perishes without prey,
and its cubs are scattered.
A frightening dream
12 But a word sneaked up on me;
my ears caught a hint of it.
13 In profound thoughts, visions of night,
when deep sleep falls on people,
14 fear and dread struck me;
all of my bones shook.
15 A breeze swept by my face;
the hair of my skin bristled.
16 It stopped. I didn’t recognize its visible form,
although a figure was in front of my eyes.
Silence! Then I heard a voice:
17 “Can a human be more righteous than God,
a person purer than their maker?”
Its interpretation
18 If he doesn’t trust his servants
and levels a charge against his messengers,
19 how much less those who dwell in houses of clay,
whose foundations are in dust,
and who are crushed like a moth?
20 They are smashed between morning and evening;
they perish forever without anyone knowing.
21 Isn’t their tent cord pulled up?
They die without wisdom.[b]
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