Job 24-26
New American Standard Bible 1995
Job Says God Seems to Ignore Wrongs
24 “(A)Why are [a]times not stored up by the Almighty,
And why do those who know Him not see (B)His days?
2 “[b]Some (C)remove the landmarks;
They seize and [c]devour flocks.
3 “They drive away the donkeys of the (D)orphans;
They take the (E)widow’s ox for a pledge.
4 “They push (F)the needy aside from the road;
The (G)poor of the land are made to hide themselves altogether.
5 “Behold, as (H)wild donkeys in the wilderness
They (I)go forth seeking food in their activity,
As [d]bread for their children in the desert.
6 “They harvest their fodder in the field
And glean the vineyard of the wicked.
7 “(J)They spend the night naked, without clothing,
And have no covering against the cold.
8 “They are wet with the mountain rains
And hug the rock for want of a shelter.
9 “[e]Others snatch the (K)orphan from the breast,
And against the poor they take a pledge.
10 “They cause the poor to go about naked without clothing,
And they take away the sheaves from the hungry.
11 “Within the walls they produce oil;
They tread wine presses but thirst.
12 “From the city men groan,
And the souls of the wounded cry out;
Yet God (L)does not pay attention to folly.
13 “[f]Others have been with those who rebel against the light;
They do not want to know its ways
Nor abide in its paths.
14 “The murderer (M)arises at dawn;
He (N)kills the poor and the needy,
And at night he is as a thief.
15 “The eye of the (O)adulterer waits for the twilight,
Saying, ‘No eye will see me.’
And he [g]disguises his face.
16 “In the dark they (P)dig into houses,
They (Q)shut themselves up by day;
They do not know the light.
17 “For the morning is the same to him as thick darkness,
For he is familiar with the (R)terrors of thick darkness.
18 “They are [h](S)insignificant on the surface of the water;
Their portion is (T)cursed on the earth.
They do not turn [i]toward the (U)vineyards.
19 “Drought and heat [j](V)consume the snow waters,
So does [k](W)Sheol those who have sinned.
20 “A [l](X)mother will forget him;
The (Y)worm feeds sweetly till he is (Z)no longer remembered.
And wickedness will be broken (AA)like a tree.
21 “He wrongs the [m]barren woman
And does no good for (AB)the widow.
22 “But He drags off the valiant by (AC)His power;
He rises, but (AD)no one has assurance of life.
23 “He provides them (AE)with security, and they are supported;
And His (AF)eyes are on their ways.
24 “They are exalted a (AG)little while, then they are gone;
Moreover, they are (AH)brought low and like everything gathered up;
Even like the heads of grain they are cut off.
25 “Now if it is not so, (AI)who can prove me a liar,
And make my speech worthless?”
Bildad Says Man Is Inferior
25 Then Bildad the Shuhite [n]answered,
2 “(AJ)Dominion and awe [o]belong to Him
Who establishes peace in (AK)His heights.
3 “Is there any number to (AL)His troops?
And upon whom does His light not rise?
4 “How then can a man be (AM)just with God?
Or how can he be (AN)clean who is born of woman?
5 “If even (AO)the moon has no brightness
And the (AP)stars are not pure in His sight,
6 How much less (AQ)man, that (AR)maggot,
And the son of man, that worm!”
Job Rebukes Bildad
26 Then Job [p]responded,
2 “What a help you are to [q](AS)the weak!
How you have saved the arm (AT)without strength!
3 “What counsel you have given to one without wisdom!
What helpful insight you have abundantly [r]provided!
4 “To whom have you uttered words?
And whose [s]spirit was expressed through you?
The Greatness of God
5 “The [t](AU)departed spirits tremble
Under the waters and their inhabitants.
6 “Naked is [u](AV)Sheol before Him,
And [v](AW)Abaddon has no covering.
7 “He (AX)stretches out the north over empty space
And hangs the earth on nothing.
8 “He (AY)wraps up the waters in His clouds,
And the cloud does not burst under them.
9 “He [w](AZ)obscures the face of the [x]full moon
And spreads His cloud over it.
10 “He has inscribed a (BA)circle on the surface of the waters
At the (BB)boundary of light and darkness.
11 “The pillars of heaven tremble
And are amazed at His rebuke.
12 “He (BC)quieted the sea with His power,
And by His (BD)understanding He shattered (BE)Rahab.
13 “By His breath the (BF)heavens are [y]cleared;
His hand has pierced (BG)the fleeing serpent.
14 “Behold, these are the fringes of His ways;
And how faint (BH)a word we hear of Him!
But His mighty (BI)thunder, who can understand?”
Footnotes
- Job 24:1 I.e. times of judgment
- Job 24:2 Lit They
- Job 24:2 Or pasture
- Job 24:5 Lit his bread
- Job 24:9 Lit They
- Job 24:13 Lit They
- Job 24:15 Or puts a covering on his face
- Job 24:18 Or light or swift
- Job 24:18 Lit to the path of
- Job 24:19 Lit seize
- Job 24:19 I.e. nether world
- Job 24:20 Lit womb
- Job 24:21 Lit barren who does not bear
- Job 25:1 Lit answered and said
- Job 25:2 Lit are with Him
- Job 26:1 Lit responded and said
- Job 26:2 Lit no power
- Job 26:3 Lit made known
- Job 26:4 Lit breath has gone forth
- Job 26:5 Or shades; Heb Rephaim
- Job 26:6 I.e. the nether world
- Job 26:6 I.e. place of destruction
- Job 26:9 Lit covers
- Job 26:9 Or throne
- Job 26:13 Lit made beautiful
2 Corinthians 5
New American Standard Bible 1995
The Temporal and Eternal
5 For we know that if [a]the (A)earthly (B)tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house (C)not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For indeed in this house we (D)groan, longing to be (E)clothed with our dwelling from heaven, 3 inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. 4 For indeed while we are in this tent, we (F)groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be (G)clothed, so that what is (H)mortal will be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who (I)gave to us the Spirit as a [b]pledge.
6 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that (J)while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— 7 for (K)we walk by faith, not by [c]sight— 8 we are of good courage, I say, and (L)prefer rather to be absent from the body and (M)to be at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be (N)pleasing to Him. 10 For we must all appear before (O)the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for [d]his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
11 Therefore, knowing the (P)fear of the Lord, we persuade men, but we are made manifest to God; and I hope that we are (Q)made manifest also in your consciences. 12 We are not (R)again commending ourselves to you but are giving you an (S)occasion to be proud of us, so that you will have an answer for those who take pride in appearance and not in heart. 13 For if we [e]are (T)beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are of sound mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ (U)controls us, having concluded this, that (V)one died for all, therefore all died; 15 and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer (W)live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.
16 Therefore from now on we recognize no one [f](X)according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ [g]according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. 17 Therefore if anyone is (Y)in Christ, [h]he is (Z)a new creature; (AA)the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 18 Now (AB)all these things are from God, (AC)who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the (AD)ministry of reconciliation, 19 namely, that (AE)God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, (AF)not counting their trespasses against them, and [i]He has [j]committed to us the word of reconciliation.
20 Therefore, we are (AG)ambassadors for Christ, (AH)as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be (AI)reconciled to God. 21 He made Him who (AJ)knew no sin to be (AK)sin on our behalf, so that we might become the (AL)righteousness of God in Him.
Footnotes
- 2 Corinthians 5:1 Lit our earthly house of the tent
- 2 Corinthians 5:5 Or down payment
- 2 Corinthians 5:7 Or appearance
- 2 Corinthians 5:10 Lit the things through the body
- 2 Corinthians 5:13 Lit were
- 2 Corinthians 5:16 I.e. by what he is in the flesh
- 2 Corinthians 5:16 I.e. by what he is in the flesh
- 2 Corinthians 5:17 Or there is a new creation
- 2 Corinthians 5:19 Lit having
- 2 Corinthians 5:19 Lit placed in us
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
