Job Proclaims God’s Righteous Judgments

23 Then Job answered and said:

“Even today my (A)complaint is bitter;
[a]My hand is listless because of my groaning.
(B)Oh, that I knew where I might find Him,
That I might come to His seat!
I would present my case before Him,
And fill my mouth with arguments.
I would know the words which He would answer me,
And understand what He would say to me.
(C)Would He contend with me in His great power?
No! But He would take note of me.
There the upright could reason with Him,
And I would be delivered forever from my Judge.

“Look,(D) I go forward, but He is not there,
And backward, but I cannot perceive Him;
When He works on the left hand, I cannot behold Him;
When He turns to the right hand, I cannot see Him.
10 But (E)He knows the way that I take;
When (F)He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.
11 (G)My foot has held fast to His steps;
I have kept His way and not turned aside.
12 I have not departed from the (H)commandment of His lips;
(I)I have treasured the words of His mouth
More than my [b]necessary food.

13 “But He is unique, and who can make Him change?
And whatever (J)His soul desires, that He does.
14 For He performs what is (K)appointed for me,
And many such things are with Him.
15 Therefore I am terrified at His presence;
When I consider this, I am afraid of Him.
16 For God (L)made my heart weak,
And the Almighty terrifies me;
17 Because I was not (M)cut off [c]from the presence of darkness,
And He did not hide deep darkness from my face.

Footnotes

  1. Job 23:2 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX, Syr. His
  2. Job 23:12 Lit. appointed portion
  3. Job 23:17 Or by or before
'Job 23 ' not found for the version: New Testament for Everyone.

Job replies to Eliphaz[a]

23 Then Job replied. This is what he said:

‘I continue to complain against God
    because I am still angry today.
God continues to punish me
    even when I cry in pain.
I would like to know where to find him.
    Then I could go to the place where he lives.
I would tell him why I am not guilty.
    I would say many things to explain this to him.
Then I would know how he would answer me.
    I would understand what he would say to me.
Would God use his great power to argue against me?
    No! He would listen carefully to me.
Honest people can explain things to him.
    So he would judge me in a fair way.
    He would let me go free.

I look for God in the east, but he is not there.
    I do not find him in the west either.
When he does his work in the north,
    I do not see him.
When he moves to the south,
    I still cannot find him anywhere.
10 But he knows the way that I live.
When he has finished testing me,
    he will see that I am pure.
    I will be as pure as gold.
11 I have always lived in the way that God showed me.
    I have obeyed him faithfully.
    I have not turned away from his teaching.
12 I have been careful to obey his commands.
    His words are more important to me than my food.
13 But he is always true to himself.
    Nobody can change him.
Whatever he wants to do, he does.
14 He will do to me everything that he has decided to do.
    He has plans to do many things like this.
15 Because of that,
    I am afraid of him.
When I think about all these things,
    I am very afraid.
16 God has made me become weak with fear.
    Almighty God has frightened me.
17 Because of all my troubles,
    I seem to be in a very dark place.
The darkness seems to cover me.
    But I will not be afraid to speak.

Footnotes

  1. 23:1 In chapter 23, Job says that he wants to find God. God seems to be very far away. But God sees everything that Job does. Job knows that. And Job has tried to obey God and to live in the right way. But still he is afraid of God.