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Eliphaz’s Response Continues

“Cry for help, but will anyone answer you?
    Which of the angels[a] will help you?
Surely resentment destroys the fool,
    and jealousy kills the simple.
I have seen that fools may be successful for the moment,
    but then comes sudden disaster.
Their children are abandoned far from help;
    they are crushed in court with no one to defend them.
The hungry devour their harvest,
    even when it is guarded by brambles.[b]
    The thirsty pant after their wealth.[c]
But evil does not spring from the soil,
    and trouble does not sprout from the earth.
People are born for trouble
    as readily as sparks fly up from a fire.

“If I were you, I would go to God
    and present my case to him.
He does great things too marvelous to understand.
    He performs countless miracles.
10 He gives rain for the earth
    and water for the fields.
11 He gives prosperity to the poor
    and protects those who suffer.
12 He frustrates the plans of schemers
    so the work of their hands will not succeed.
13 He traps the wise in their own cleverness
    so their cunning schemes are thwarted.
14 They find it is dark in the daytime,
    and they grope at noon as if it were night.
15 He rescues the poor from the cutting words of the strong,
    and rescues them from the clutches of the powerful.
16 And so at last the poor have hope,
    and the snapping jaws of the wicked are shut.

17 “But consider the joy of those corrected by God!
    Do not despise the discipline of the Almighty when you sin.
18 For though he wounds, he also bandages.
    He strikes, but his hands also heal.
19 From six disasters he will rescue you;
    even in the seventh, he will keep you from evil.
20 He will save you from death in time of famine,
    from the power of the sword in time of war.
21 You will be safe from slander
    and have no fear when destruction comes.
22 You will laugh at destruction and famine;
    wild animals will not terrify you.
23 You will be at peace with the stones of the field,
    and its wild animals will be at peace with you.
24 You will know that your home is safe.
    When you survey your possessions, nothing will be missing.
25 You will have many children;
    your descendants will be as plentiful as grass!
26 You will go to the grave at a ripe old age,
    like a sheaf of grain harvested at the proper time!

27 “We have studied life and found all this to be true.
    Listen to my counsel, and apply it to yourself.”

Footnotes

  1. 5:1 Hebrew the holy ones.
  2. 5:5a The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  3. 5:5b As in Greek and Syriac versions; Hebrew reads A snare snatches their wealth.

Eliphaz: God Blesses those who Seek Him

“Cry out, won’t you!
    Is there anyone who will answer you?
        To whom will you turn among the holy ones?
For wrath will slay a fool;
    zealous anger will kill the naïve.

“I myself saw a fool becoming established,
    but I suddenly cursed where he lived.[a]
His children are far from deliverance;
    they’ll be maltreated before they leave home,[b]
        with no one to rescue them.
Then the hungry will devour his harvest,
    snatching it even from the midst of thorns,
        while the thirsty covet their wealth.
For wickedness doesn’t crop up from dust,
    nor does trouble sprout out of the ground;
But mankind is born headed for trouble,
    just as sparks soar skyward.”

God Can be Trusted in Adversity

“Now as for me, I would seek God if I were you;[c]
    I would commit my case to God.
He is always doing great things that cannot be explained,
    countless awesome deeds.
10 He sends rain on the surface of the earth,
    and waters the surface of the open country.
11 He sets the lowly on high,
    and lifts those who mourn to safety.[d]
12 He frustrates the plans of the crafty;
    so that what they work for never succeeds.
13 He captures the wise in their own craftiness,
    bringing a quick end to their cunning advice.
14 They meet with darkness in broad daylight;
    at noonday they grope around as if it were night.
15 So he delivers from the sword of their mouth—
    the poor from the power[e] of the mighty.
16 Therefore there is hope for those who are poor,
    and iniquity shuts its mouth.

17 “Indeed, how blessed is the person whom God reproves!
    So never disrespect the discipline of the Almighty,
18 because though he wounds, but then applies bandages;
    though he strikes, his hands still heal.

19 “He will deliver you through six calamities;
    and calamity won’t touch you throughout the seventh.
20 He will deliver you from death by famine;
    in war from the power[f] of the sword.
21 You’ll be protected from the accusing[g] tongue;
    you need not fear destruction when it heads your way.
22 You’ll laugh at destruction and famine;
    and you need not fear the beasts of the earth.
23 For you’ll have a pact[h] with the stones in the field;
    and the beasts of the field will be at peace with you.
24 You’ll know that your home[i] is secure;
    when you search your possessions, and nothing will be missing.
25 You’ll know that you’ll have many children;
    and that your offspring will be like the grass of the earth.
26 You’ll go to your grave at a ripe old age;
    like a stack of grain that’s harvested at just the right time.

27 “Look! We have thought all this through,
    and what we’ve said is true;[j]
        So please listen and learn for your own good!”

Footnotes

  1. Job 5:3 Or dwelling place
  2. Job 5:4 Lit. be crushed in the gate
  3. Job 5:8 The Heb. lacks if I were you
  4. Job 5:11 Or deliverance
  5. Job 5:15 Lit. hand
  6. Job 5:20 Lit. mouth
  7. Job 5:21 Lit. lash of the
  8. Job 5:23 Or be in league
  9. Job 5:24 Lit. tent
  10. Job 5:27 Lit. and thus it is so