13 (A)“With God[a] are wisdom and might;
    he has counsel and understanding.
14 If he tears down, none can rebuild;
    if he (B)shuts a man in, none can open.
15 If he (C)withholds the waters, they dry up;
    if he (D)sends them out, they overwhelm the land.
16 With him are strength and (E)sound wisdom;
    the deceived and the deceiver are his.
17 He leads (F)counselors away stripped,
    and (G)judges he makes fools.
18 He (H)looses the bonds of kings
    and binds a waistcloth on their hips.
19 He leads priests away stripped
    and overthrows the mighty.
20 He deprives of speech those who are trusted
    (I)and takes away the discernment of the elders.
21 He (J)pours contempt on princes
    and loosens the belt of the strong.
22 He (K)uncovers the deeps out of darkness
    and brings (L)deep darkness to light.
23 He (M)makes nations great, and he destroys them;
    he enlarges nations, and (N)leads them away.
24 He takes away understanding from the chiefs of the people of the earth
    and (O)makes them wander in a trackless waste.
25 They (P)grope in the dark without light,
    and he makes them (Q)stagger like a drunken man.

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Footnotes

  1. Job 12:13 Hebrew him

13 Wisdom and strength belong to God;
counsel and understanding are His.(A)
14 Whatever He tears down cannot be rebuilt;
whoever He imprisons cannot be released.(B)
15 When He withholds the waters, everything dries up,
and when He releases them, they destroy the land.(C)
16 True wisdom and power belong to Him.
The deceived and the deceiver are His.
17 He leads counselors away barefoot
and makes judges go mad.(D)
18 He releases the bonds[a] put on by kings(E)
and fastens a belt around their waists.
19 He leads priests away barefoot
and overthrows established leaders.(F)
20 He deprives trusted advisers of speech
and takes away the elders’ good judgment.
21 He pours out contempt on nobles
and disarms[b] the strong.
22 He reveals mysteries from the darkness
and brings the deepest darkness into the light.(G)
23 He makes nations great, then destroys them;
He enlarges nations,(H) then leads them away.
24 He deprives the world’s leaders of reason,
and makes them wander in a trackless wasteland.(I)
25 They grope around in darkness without light;
He makes them stagger like drunken men.(J)

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Footnotes

  1. Job 12:18 Text emended; MT reads discipline
  2. Job 12:21 Lit and loosens the belt of