Job 9
Lexham English Bible
Job’s Third Speech: A Response to Bildad
9 Then[a] Job answered and said,
2 “Truly I know that it is so,
but[b] how can a human being be just before God?
3 If he wants to contend with him,
he cannot answer him one time in a thousand.
4 He is wise in[c] heart and mighty in[d] strength;
who has resisted him and succeeded?[e]
5 “He is the one who moves mountains, and they do not know how,
who overturns them in his anger.
6 He is the one who shakes the earth from its place,
and its pillars tremble.
7 He is the one who commands the sun, and it does not rise,
and he seals up the stars.[f]
8 He is the one who alone stretches out the heavens
and who tramples on the waves of the sea.
9 He is the one who made the Bear and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.
10 He is the one who does great things beyond understanding[g]
and marvelous things beyond number.[h]
11 “If[i] he passes by me, I would not see him;[j]
and if he should move on, I would not recognize him.[k]
12 If[l] he would snatch away, who could turn him?
Who could say to him, ‘What are you doing?’
13 God will not turn back his anger;
beneath him the helpers of Rahab bow.
14 How much less[m] can I myself[n] answer him?
How can I choose my words with him,
15 whom I cannot answer, even though I am righteous?
From[o] my judge I must implore grace.
16 If I summon him, and he should answer me,
I do not believe that he will listen to my voice—
17 who crushes me with a tempest
and multiplies[p] my wounds without cause.
18 He will not allow me to catch[q] my breath;
rather, he will fill me with bitterness.
19 If it is a matter of[r] strength, look, he is mighty.
But[s] if it is a matter of[t] justice, who can summon me?[u]
20 Even though I am righteous, my mouth will condemn me;
even though I am blameless, yet[v] it would pronounce me guilty.
21 “I am blameless; I do not care about myself;[w]
I loathe my life.
22 It is all one; therefore I say,
‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’
23 When the whip[x] kills suddenly,
he mocks at the despair of the innocent.
24 The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;
he covers the face of its judge—
if it is not he, then who is it?
25 “And my days are swifter than a runner;
they flee away; they do not see good.
26 They go by like papyrus skiffs,
like an eagle swoops down on its prey.
27 Though[y] I say,[z] ‘I will forget my complaint;
I will change my expression, and I will rejoice,’
28 I become afraid of all my sufferings;
I know that you do not consider me innocent.
29 If I shall be declared guilty,
why then should I labor in vain?
30 If I wash myself with soap,[aa]
and I cleanse my hands with lye,
31 then you plunge me into the slime pit,
and my clothes abhor me.
32 “For[ab] he is not a mortal like me that I can answer him,
that we can come to trial together.[ac]
33 There is no arbiter between us
that he might lay his hand on both of us.
34 May he remove his rod from me,
and let his dread not terrify me;
35 then I would speak and not fear him,[ad]
for in myself I am not fearful.[ae]
Footnotes
- Job 9:1 Hebrew “And”
- Job 9:2 Hebrew “and”
- Job 9:4 Hebrew “of”
- Job 9:4 Hebrew “of”
- Job 9:4 Literally “he succeeded”
- Job 9:7 Literally “and behind the stars he seals up”
- Job 9:10 Literally “until there is not understanding”
- Job 9:10 Literally “until there is not number”
- Job 9:11 Literally “Look”
- Job 9:11 Literally “and I would not see”
- Job 9:11 Literally “and I would not recognize him”
- Job 9:12 Literally “Look”
- Job 9:14 Literally “Also for”
- Job 9:14 Emphatic personal pronoun
- Job 9:15 Hebrew “To”
- Job 9:17 Hebrew “he multiplies”
- Job 9:18 Literally “return,” or “regain”
- Job 9:19 Literally “for”; see NASB, NIV, NET
- Job 9:19 Hebrew “And”
- Job 9:19 Literally “for”; NASB, NIV, NET, NRSV
- Job 9:19 Or “arraign me”
- Job 9:20 Hebrew “and”
- Job 9:21 Perhaps the meaning is “but it makes no difference to me” (NLT)
- Job 9:23 Or “scourge”
- Job 9:27 Or “If”
- Job 9:27 Literally “my saying”
- Job 9:30 Or “with snow,” or “in snow”
- Job 9:32 Or the emphatic “Indeed”
- Job 9:32 Literally “we come together in the justice,” or “we come together in the judgment”
- Job 9:35 Hebrew “and I will not fear him”
- Job 9:35 Literally “not so I with me”
Job 9
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Job’s Reply to Bildad
9 Then Job answered:
2 Yes, I know what you’ve said is true,
but how can a person be justified before God?(A)
3 If one wanted to take(B) Him to court,
he could not answer God[a] once in a thousand times.(C)
4 God is wise(D) and all-powerful.
Who has opposed Him and come out unharmed?
5 He removes mountains without their knowledge,
overturning them in His anger.(E)
6 He shakes the earth from its place
so that its pillars tremble.
7 He commands the sun not to shine
and seals off the stars.(F)
8 He alone stretches out the heavens(G)
and treads on the waves of the sea.[b]
9 He makes the stars: the Bear,[c] Orion,
the Pleiades,(H) and the constellations[d] of the southern sky.
10 He does great and unsearchable things,
wonders without number.(I)
11 If He passes by me, I wouldn’t see Him;(J)
if He goes right by, I wouldn’t recognize Him.
12 If He snatches something, who can stop[e] Him?
Who can ask Him, “What are You doing?”(K)
13 God does not hold back His anger;
Rahab’s(L) assistants cringe in fear beneath Him!
14 How then can I answer Him
or choose my arguments against Him?
15 Even if I were in the right, I could not answer.
I could only beg my Judge for mercy.(M)
16 If I summoned Him and He answered me,
I do not believe He would pay attention to what I said.
17 He batters me with a whirlwind(N)
and multiplies my wounds without cause.
18 He doesn’t let me catch my breath
but soaks me with bitter experiences.
19 If it is a matter of strength, look, He is the Mighty One!(O)
If it is a matter of justice, who can summon(P) Him?[f]
20 Even if I were in the right, my own mouth would condemn me;(Q)
if I were blameless, my mouth would declare me guilty.
21 Though I am blameless,
I no longer care about myself;
I renounce my life.(R)
22 It is all the same. Therefore I say,
“He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.”(S)
23 When disaster brings sudden death,
He mocks the despair of the innocent.
24 The earth[g] is handed over to the wicked;
He blindfolds[h] its judges.(T)
If it isn’t He, then who is it?
25 My days fly by faster than a runner;[i](U)
they flee without seeing any good.(V)
26 They sweep by like boats made of papyrus,
like an eagle swooping down on its prey.(W)
27 If I said, “I will forget my complaint,
change my expression, and smile,”
28 I would still live in terror of all my pains.(X)
I know You will not acquit me.(Y)
29 Since I will be found guilty,(Z)
why should I labor in vain?
30 If I wash myself with snow,
and cleanse my hands with lye,
31 then You dip me in a pit of mud,
and my own clothes despise me!
32 For He is not a man like me, that I can answer Him,(AA)
that we can take each other to court.
33 There is no one to judge between us,
to lay his hand on both of us.
34 Let Him take His rod away from me
so His terror will no longer frighten me.(AB)
35 Then I would speak and not fear Him.
But that is not the case; I am on my own.
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