Job 15
Christian Standard Bible
Second Series of Speeches
Eliphaz Speaks
15 Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:
2 Does a wise man answer with empty[a] counsel(A)
or fill himself[b] with the hot east wind?
3 Should he argue(B) with useless talk
or with words that serve no good purpose?
4 But you even undermine the fear of God
and hinder meditation before him.
5 Your iniquity(C) teaches you what to say,
and you choose the language of the crafty.
6 Your own mouth condemns you, not I;
your own lips testify against you.(D)
7 Were you the first human ever born,
or were you brought forth before the hills?(E)
8 Do you listen in on the council of God,
or have a monopoly on wisdom?(F)
9 What do you know that we don’t?
What do you understand that is not clear to us?
10 Both the gray-haired and the elderly are with us—
older than your father.
11 Are God’s consolations not enough for you,
even the words that deal gently with you?
12 Why has your heart misled you,
and why do your eyes flash
13 as you turn your anger[c] against God
and allow such words to leave your mouth?
14 What is a mere human, that he should be pure,(G)
or one born of a woman, that he should be righteous?
15 If God puts no trust in his holy ones(H)
and the heavens are not pure in his sight,(I)
16 how much less one who is revolting and corrupt,(J)
who drinks injustice(K) like water?
17 Listen to me and I will inform you.
I will describe what I have seen,
18 what the wise have declared and not concealed,
that came from their ancestors,(L)
19 to whom alone the land was given
when no foreigner passed among them.
20 A wicked person writhes in pain all his days,
throughout the number of years reserved for the ruthless.
21 Dreadful sounds fill his ears;
when he is at peace, a robber attacks him.
22 He doesn’t believe he will return from darkness;
he is destined for the sword.(M)
23 He wanders about for food, asking, “Where is it?”
He knows the day of darkness is at hand.
24 Trouble(N) and distress terrify him,
overwhelming him like a king prepared for battle.
25 For he has stretched out his hand(O) against God
and has arrogantly opposed the Almighty.
26 He rushes headlong at him
with his thick, studded shields.
27 Though his face is covered with fat[d]
and his waistline bulges with it,
28 he will dwell in ruined cities,
in abandoned houses destined to become piles of rubble.(P)
29 He will no longer be rich; his wealth will not endure.
His possessions[e] will not increase in the land.
30 He will not escape from the darkness;
flames will wither his shoots,
and by the breath of God’s mouth, he will depart.(Q)
31 Let him not put trust in worthless things, being led astray,
for what he gets in exchange will prove worthless.
32 It will be accomplished before his time,
and his branch will not flourish.
33 He will be like a vine that drops its unripe grapes(R)
and like an olive tree that sheds its blossoms.
34 For the company of the godless(S) will have no children,
and fire will consume the tents of those who offer bribes.
35 They conceive trouble(T) and give birth to evil;
their womb(U) prepares deception.(V)
Job 15
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Eliphaz Speaks: Job Undermines Religion
15 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:
2 “Should the wise answer with windy knowledge
and fill themselves with the east wind?(A)
3 Should they argue in unprofitable talk
or in words that can do no good?
4 But you are doing away with the fear of God
and hindering meditation before God.
5 For your iniquity teaches your mouth,
and you choose the tongue of the crafty.(B)
6 Your own mouth condemns you, not I;
your own lips testify against you.(C)
7 “Are you the firstborn of the human race?
Were you brought forth before the hills?(D)
8 Have you listened in the council of God?
And do you limit wisdom to yourself?(E)
9 What do you know that we do not know?
What do you understand that is not clear to us?(F)
10 The gray-haired and the aged are on our side,
those older than your father.(G)
11 Are the consolations of God too small for you
or the word that deals gently with you?(H)
12 Why does your heart carry you away,
and why do your eyes flash,[a]
13 so that you turn your spirit against God,
and let such words go out of your mouth?(I)
14 What are mortals, that they can be clean?
Or those born of woman, that they can be righteous?(J)
15 God puts no trust even in his holy ones,
and the heavens are not clean in his sight;(K)
16 how much less one who is abominable and corrupt,
one who drinks iniquity like water!(L)
17 “I will show you; listen to me;
what I have seen I will declare—
18 what sages have told
and their ancestors have not hidden,(M)
19 to whom alone the land was given,
and no stranger passed among them.
20 The wicked writhe in pain all their days,
through all the years that are laid up for the ruthless.(N)
21 Terrifying sounds are in their ears;
in prosperity the destroyer will come upon them.(O)
22 They despair of returning from darkness,
and they are destined for the sword.(P)
23 They wander abroad for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’
They know that a day of darkness is ready at hand;(Q)
24 distress and anguish terrify them;
they prevail against them like a king prepared for battle.
25 Because they stretched out their hands against God
and bid defiance to the Almighty,[b](R)
26 running stubbornly against him
with a thickly bossed shield;
27 because they have covered their faces with their fat
and gathered fat upon their loins,(S)
28 they will live in desolate cities,
in houses that no one should inhabit,
houses destined to become heaps of ruins;
29 they will not be rich, and their wealth will not endure,
nor will they strike root in the earth;[c](T)
30 they will not escape from darkness;
the flame will dry up their shoots,
and their blossom[d] will be swept away by the wind.(U)
31 Let them not trust in emptiness, deceiving themselves,
for emptiness will be their recompense.(V)
32 It will be paid in full before their time,
and their branch will not be green.(W)
33 They will shake off their unripe grape, like the vine,
and cast off their blossoms, like the olive tree.(X)
34 For the company of the godless is barren,
and fire consumes the tents of bribery.(Y)
35 They conceive mischief and bring forth evil,
and their belly prepares deceit.”(Z)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.