Job 22
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Eliphaz Speaks: Job’s Wickedness Is Great
22 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:
2 “Can a mortal be of use to God?
Can even the wisest be of service to him?(A)
3 Is it any pleasure to the Almighty[a] if you are righteous,
or is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless?
4 Is it for your piety that he reproves you
and enters into judgment with you?(B)
5 Is not your wickedness great?
There is no end to your iniquities.(C)
6 For you have exacted pledges from your family for no reason
and stripped the naked of their clothing.(D)
7 You have given no water to the weary to drink,
and you have withheld bread from the hungry.(E)
8 The powerful possess the land,
and the favored live in it.
9 You have sent widows away empty-handed,
and the arms of the orphans you have crushed.[b](F)
10 Therefore snares are around you,
and sudden terror overwhelms you,
11 or darkness so that you cannot see;
a flood of water covers you.(G)
12 “Is not God high in the heavens?
See the highest stars, how lofty they are!
13 Therefore you say, ‘What does God know?
Can he judge through the deep darkness?(H)
14 Thick clouds enwrap him, so that he does not see,
and he walks on the dome of heaven.’
15 Will you keep to the old way
that the wicked have trod?
16 They were snatched away before their time;
their foundation was washed away by a flood.(I)
17 They said to God, ‘Leave us alone,’
and ‘What can the Almighty[c] do to us?’[d]
18 Yet he filled their houses with good things—
but the plans of the wicked are repugnant to me.(J)
19 The righteous see it and are glad;
the innocent laugh them to scorn,(K)
20 saying, ‘Surely our adversaries are cut off,
and what they left, the fire has consumed.’(L)
21 “Agree with God,[e] and be at peace;
in this way good will come to you.(M)
22 Receive instruction from his mouth,
and lay up his words in your heart.(N)
23 If you return to the Almighty,[f] you will be restored,
if you remove unrighteousness from your tents,(O)
24 if you treat gold like dust
and gold of Ophir like the stones of the torrent bed,(P)
25 and if the Almighty[g] is your gold
and your precious silver,(Q)
26 then you will delight yourself in the Almighty[h]
and lift up your face to God.(R)
27 You will pray to him, and he will hear you,
and you will pay your vows.(S)
28 You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you,
and light will shine on your ways.(T)
29 When others are humiliated, you say it is pride,
for he saves the humble.(U)
30 He will deliver even those who are guilty;
they will escape because of the cleanness of your hands.”[i](V)
Footnotes
- 22.3 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
- 22.9 Gk Syr Tg Vg: Heb were crushed
- 22.17 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
- 22.17 Gk Syr: Heb them
- 22.21 Heb him
- 22.23 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
- 22.25 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
- 22.26 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
- 22.30 Meaning of Heb uncertain
Job 22
Contemporary English Version
Eliphaz's Third Speech
What Use Are We Humans to God?
22 Eliphaz from Teman[a] said:
2 (A) What use are we humans
to God,
even the wisest of us?
3 If you were completely sinless,
that would still mean nothing
to God All-Powerful.
4 Is he correcting you
for worshiping him?
5 No! It's because of
your terrible and endless sins.
6 To guarantee payment of a debt,
you have taken clothes
from innocent people.
7 And you refused bread and water
to the hungry and thirsty,
8 although you were rich,
respected, and powerful.
9 You have turned away widows
and have broken the arms
of orphans.
10 That's why you were suddenly
trapped by terror,
11 blinded by darkness,
and drowned in a flood.
God Lives in the Heavens
12 God lives in the heavens
above the highest stars,
where he sees everything.
13 Do you think the deep darkness
hides you from God?
14 Do thick clouds cover his eyes,
as he walks around heaven's dome
high above the earth?
15 Give up those ancient ideas
believed by sinners,
16 who were swept away
without warning.
17 They rejected God All-Powerful,
feeling he was helpless,
18 although he had been kind
to their families.
The beliefs of these sinners
are truly disgusting.
19 When God's people see
the godless swept away,
they celebrate, 20 saying,
“Our enemies are gone,
and fire has destroyed
their possessions.”
Surrender to God All-Powerful
21 Surrender to God All-Powerful!
You will find peace
and prosperity.
22 Listen to his teachings
and take them to heart.
23 If you return to God
and turn from sin,
all will go well for you.
24 So get rid of your finest gold,
as though it were sand.
25 Let God All-Powerful
be your silver and gold,
26 and you will find happiness
by worshiping him.
27 God will answer your prayers,
and you will keep the promises
you made to him.
28 He will do whatever you ask,
and life will be bright.
29 When others are disgraced,
God will clear their names
in answer to your prayers.
30 Even those who are guilty
will be forgiven,
because you obey God.[b]
Job 22
21st Century King James Version
22 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:
2 “Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself?
3 Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that thou art righteous? Or is it gain to Him that thou makest thy ways perfect?
4 Will He reprove thee for fear of thee? Will He enter with thee into judgment?
5 Is not thy wickedness great, and thine iniquities infinite?
6 For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their clothing.
7 Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withheld bread from the hungry.
8 But as for the mighty man, he had the earth, and the honorable man dwelt in it.
9 Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
10 Therefore snares are round about thee, and sudden fear troubleth thee,
11 or darkness, that thou canst not see, and abundance of waters cover thee.
12 “Is not God in the height of heaven? And behold the height of the stars, how high they are!
13 And thou sayest, ‘How doth God know? Can He judge through the dark cloud?
14 Thick clouds are a covering to Him, that He seeth not; and He walketh in the circuit of heaven.’
15 Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have trodden,
16 who were cut down before their time, whose foundation was overflown with a flood,
17 who said unto God, ‘Depart from us. And what can the Almighty do to them?’
18 Yet He filled their houses with good things; but the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
19 The righteous see it and are glad, and the innocent laugh them to scorn;
20 whereas our substance is not cut down, but the remnant of them the fire consumeth.
21 “Acquaint now thyself with Him, and be at peace; thereby good shall come unto thee.
22 Receive, I pray thee, the law from His mouth, and lay up His words in thine heart.
23 If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up; thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacles.
24 Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks.
25 Yea, the Almighty shall be thy gold, and thou shalt have plenty of silver.
26 For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God.
27 Thou shalt make thy prayer unto Him, and He shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows.
28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee; and the light shall shine upon thy ways.
29 When men are cast down, then thou shalt say, ‘There is lifting up!’ And He shall save the humble person.
30 He shall deliver the island of the innocent; and it is delivered by the pureness of thine hands.”
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.
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