Job 23
Contemporary English Version
Job's Reply to Eliphaz
Today I Complain Bitterly
23 Job said:
2 Today I complain bitterly,
because God has been cruel
and made me suffer.
3 If I knew where to find God,
I would go there
4 and argue my case.
5 Then I would discover
what he wanted to say.
6 Would he overwhelm me
with his greatness?
No! He would listen
7 because I am innocent,
and he would say,
“I now set you free!”
8 I cannot find God anywhere—
in front or back of me,
9 to my left or my right.
God is always at work,
though I never see him.
10 But he knows what I am doing,
and when he tests me,
I will be pure as gold.
* 11 I have never refused to follow
any of his commands,
12 and I have always treasured
his teachings.[a]
13 But he alone is God,
and who can oppose him?
God does as he pleases,
14 and he will do exactly
what he intends with me.
* 15 Merely the thought
of God All-Powerful
16 makes me tremble with fear.
17 God has covered me
with darkness,
but I refuse to be silent.[b]
Job 23
New American Standard Bible
Job Says He Longs for God
23 Then Job responded,
2 “Even today my (A)complaint is rebellion;
[a]His hand is (B)heavy despite my groaning.
3 Oh that I knew how to find Him,
That I might come to His home!
4 I would (C)present my case before Him
And fill my mouth with arguments.
5 I would learn the words which He would [b]answer,
And perceive what He would tell me.
6 Would He contend with me by (D)the greatness of His power?
No, surely He would pay attention to me.
7 There the upright would (E)argue with Him;
And I [c]would be (F)free of my Judge forever.
8 “Behold, I go forward but He is not there,
And backward, but I (G)cannot perceive Him;
9 When He acts on the left, I cannot see Him;
He turns to the right, but I cannot see Him.
10 But He knows the [d]way I take;
When He has (H)put me to the test, I will come out as gold.
11 My foot has (I)held on to His path;
I have kept His way and not turned aside.
12 I have not [e]failed the command of His lips;
I have treasured the (J)words of His mouth [f]more than my [g]necessary food.
13 But He is unique, and who can [h]make Him turn?
Whatever His soul desires, He does it.
14 For He carries out what is destined for me,
And many such destinies are with Him.
15 Therefore, I would be terrified at His presence;
When I consider this, I am frightened of Him.
16 It is God who has made my (K)heart faint,
And the Almighty who has terrified me,
17 But I (L)am not destroyed by darkness,
Nor by (M)deep gloom which covers me.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
