Job 11
Young's Literal Translation
11 And Zophar the Naamathite answereth and saith: --
2 Is a multitude of words not answered? And is a man of lips justified?
3 Thy devices make men keep silent, Thou scornest, and none is causing blushing!
4 And thou sayest, `Pure [is] my discourse, And clean I have been in Thine eyes.'
5 And yet, O that God had spoken! And doth open His lips with thee.
6 And declare to thee secrets of wisdom, For counsel hath foldings. And know thou that God forgetteth for thee, [Some] of thine iniquity.
7 By searching dost thou find out God? Unto perfection find out the Mighty One?
8 Heights of the heavens! -- what dost thou? Deeper than Sheol! -- what knowest thou?
9 Longer than earth [is] its measure, And broader than the sea.
10 If He pass on, and shut up, and assemble, Who then dost reverse it?
11 For he hath known men of vanity, And He seeth iniquity, And one doth not consider [it]!
12 And empty man is bold, And the colt of a wild ass man is born.
13 If thou -- thou hast prepared thy heart, And hast spread out unto Him thy hands,
14 If iniquity [is] in thy hand, put it far off, And let not perverseness dwell in thy tents.
15 For then thou liftest up thy face from blemish, And thou hast been firm, and fearest not.
16 For thou dost forget misery, As waters passed away thou rememberest.
17 And above the noon doth age rise, Thou fliest -- as the morning thou art.
18 And thou hast trusted because their is hope, And searched -- in confidence thou liest down,
19 And thou hast rested, And none is causing trembling, And many have entreated thy face;
20 And the eyes of the wicked are consumed, And refuge hath perished from them, And their hope [is] a breathing out of soul!
Job 11
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Zophar Speaks
11 Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
2 Should this stream of words(A) go unanswered
and such a talker[a] be acquitted?
3 Should your babbling put others to silence,
so that you can keep on ridiculing
with no one to humiliate you?
4 You have said, “My teaching(B) is sound,
and I am pure in Your sight.”
5 But if only God would speak
and declare His case[b] against you,
6 He would show you the secrets of wisdom,(C)
for true wisdom has two sides.
Know then that God has chosen to overlook some of your sin.(D)
7 Can you fathom the depths of God
or discover the limits of the Almighty?(E)
8 They are higher than the heavens—what can you do?
They are deeper than Sheol—what can you know?(F)
9 Their measure is longer than the earth
and wider than the sea.
10 If He passes by and throws someone in prison
or convenes a court, who can stop Him?(G)
11 Surely He knows which people are worthless.
If He sees iniquity, will He not take note of it?(H)
12 But a stupid man will gain understanding
as soon as a wild donkey is born a man!
13 As for you, if you redirect your heart
and lift up your hands to Him in prayer—
14 if there is iniquity in your hand, remove it,
and don’t allow injustice to dwell in your tents—
15 then you will hold your head high, free from fault.
You will be firmly established and unafraid.(I)
16 For you will forget your suffering,
recalling it only as waters that have flowed by.
17 Your life will be brighter than noonday;
its darkness[c] will be like the morning.(J)
18 You will be confident, because there is hope.(K)
You will look carefully about and lie down in safety.(L)
Job 11
Darby Translation
11 And Zophar the Naamathite answered and said,
2 Should not the multitude of words be answered? and should a man of much talk be justified?
3 Should thy fictions make men hold their peace? and shouldest thou mock, and no one make [thee] ashamed?
4 For thou sayest, My doctrine is pure, and I am clean in thine eyes.
5 But oh that +God would speak, and open his lips against thee;
6 And that he would shew thee the secrets of wisdom, how that they are the double of what is realised; and know that +God passeth by [much] of thine iniquity!
7 Canst thou by searching find out +God? canst thou find out the Almighty to perfection?
8 [It is as] the heights of heaven; what wilt thou do? deeper than Sheol; what canst thou know?
9 The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea.
10 If he pass by, and shut up, and call to judgment, who can hinder him?
11 For he knoweth vain men, and seeth wickedness when [man] doth not consider it;
12 Yet a senseless man will make bold, though man be born [like] the foal of a wild ass.
13 If thou prepare thy heart and stretch out thy hands toward him,
14 If thou put far away the iniquity which is in thy hand, and let not wrong dwell in thy tents;
15 Surely then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot, and thou shalt be stedfast and shalt not fear:
16 For thou shalt forget misery; as waters that are passed away shalt thou remember it;
17 And life shall arise brighter than noonday; though thou be enshrouded in darkness, thou shalt be as the morning,
18 And thou shalt have confidence, because there shall be hope; and having searched about [thee], thou shalt take rest in safety.
19 Yea, thou shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid; and many shall seek thy favour.
20 But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and [all] refuge shall vanish from them, and their hope [shall be] the breathing out of life.
Job 11
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 11
Zophar’s First Speech. 1 And Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
2 Should not many words be answered,
or must the garrulous man necessarily be right?
3 Shall your babblings keep others silent,
and shall you deride and no one give rebuke?
4 Shall you say: “My teaching is pure,
and I am clean in your sight”?
5 But oh, that God would speak,[a]
and open his lips against you,
6 And tell you the secrets of wisdom,
for good sense has two sides;
So you might learn that God
overlooks some of your sinfulness.
7 Can you find out the depths of God?(A)
or find out the perfection of the Almighty?
8 It is higher than the heavens; what can you do?
It is deeper than Sheol; what can you know?
9 It is longer than the earth in measure,
and broader than the sea.
10 If he should seize and imprison
or call to judgment, who then could turn him back?
11 For he knows the worthless
and sees iniquity; will he then ignore it?
12 An empty head will gain understanding,
when a colt of a wild jackass(B) is born human.[b]
13 If you set your heart aright
and stretch out your hands toward him,
14 If iniquity is in your hand, remove it,
and do not let injustice dwell in your tent,
15 Surely then you may lift up your face in innocence;
you may stand firm and unafraid.
16 For then you shall forget your misery,
like water that has ebbed away you shall regard it.
17 Then your life shall be brighter than the noonday;
its gloom shall become like the morning,
18 And you shall be secure, because there is hope;
you shall look round you and lie down in safety;(C)
19 you shall lie down and no one will disturb you.
Many shall entreat your favor,
20 but the wicked, looking on, shall be consumed with envy.
Escape shall be cut off from them,
their only hope their last breath.
Footnotes
- 11:5 This is another of many ironies (e.g., cf. 11:16–19) that occur throughout the book. Zophar does not know that God will speak (chaps. 38–42), but contrary to what he thinks.
- 11:12 A colt…is born human: the Hebrew is obscure. As translated, it seems to be a proverb referring to an impossible event.
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