Job 32-42
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Elihu’s Angry Response
32 So these three men quit answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.(A) 2 Then Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite(B) from the family of Ram became angry. He was angry at Job because he had justified(C) himself rather than God. 3 He was also angry at Job’s three friends because they had failed to refute him and yet had condemned him.[a]
4 Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job because they were all older than he. 5 But when he saw that the three men could not answer Job, he became angry.
6 So Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite replied:
I am young in years,
while you are old;
therefore I was timid and afraid
to tell(D) you what I know.
7 I thought that age should speak
and maturity should teach wisdom.
8 But it is a spirit in man[b]
and the breath(E) of the Almighty
that give him understanding.
9 It is not only the old who are wise
or the elderly who understand how to judge.
10 Therefore I say, “Listen to me.
I too will declare what I know.”
11 Look, I waited for your conclusions;
I listened to your insights
as you sought for words.
12 I paid close attention to you.
Yet no one proved Job wrong;
not one of you refuted his arguments.
13 So do not claim, “We have found wisdom;
let God deal with him, not man.”
14 But Job has not directed his argument to me,
and I will not respond to him with your arguments.
15 Job’s friends are dismayed and can no longer answer;
words have left them.
16 Should I continue to wait now that they are silent,
now that they stand there and no longer answer?
17 I too will answer;[c]
yes, I will tell what I know.
18 For I am full of words,
and my spirit[d] compels me to speak.(F)
19 My heart[e] is like unvented wine;
it is about to burst like new wineskins.(G)
20 I must speak so that I can find relief;
I must open my lips and respond.
21 I will be partial to no one,(H)
and I will not give anyone an undeserved title.
22 For I do not know how to give such titles;
otherwise, my Maker would remove me in an instant.
Elihu Confronts Job
33 But now, Job, pay attention to my speech,
and listen to all my words.
2 I am going to open my mouth;
my tongue will form words on my palate.
3 My words come from my upright(I) heart,
and my lips speak with sincerity what they know.
4 The Spirit of God has made me,
and the breath of the Almighty(J) gives me life.(K)
5 Refute me if you can.
Prepare(L) your case against me; take your stand.(M)
6 I am just like you before God;
I was also pinched off from a piece of clay.(N)
7 Fear(O) of me should not terrify you;
the pressure I exert[f] against you will be light.
8 Surely you have spoken in my hearing,
and I have heard these very[g] words:
9 “I am pure, without transgression;
I am clean and have no guilt.(P)
10 But He finds reasons to oppose me;
He regards me as His enemy.(Q)
11 He puts my feet in the stocks;
He stands watch(R) over all my paths.”
12 But I tell you that you are wrong in this matter,
since God is greater than man.(S)
13 Why do you take(T) Him to court
for not answering anything a person asks?[h]
14 For God speaks time and again,
but a person may not notice it.
15 In a dream, a vision(U) in the night,
when deep sleep falls on people(V)
as they slumber on their beds,
16 He uncovers their ears(W) at that time
and terrifies them[i] with warnings,
17 in order to turn a person from his actions
and suppress his pride.[j]
18 God spares his soul from the Pit,(X)
his life from crossing the river of death.[k]
19 A person may be disciplined on his bed(Y) with pain
and constant distress in his bones,(Z)
20 so that he detests bread,
and his soul despises his favorite food.(AA)
21 His flesh wastes away to nothing,[l]
and his unseen bones stick out.
22 He draws near to the Pit,
and his life to the executioners.
23 If there is an angel(AB) on his side,
one mediator out of a thousand,
to tell a person what is right for him[m]
24 and to be gracious to him and say,
“Spare him from going down to the Pit;
I have found a ransom,”(AC)
25 then his flesh will be healthier[n] than in his youth,
and he will return to the days of his youthful vigor.(AD)
26 He will pray to God, and God will delight in him.
That man will see His face(AE) with a shout of joy,
and God will restore his righteousness to him.(AF)
27 He will look at men and say,
“I have sinned and perverted what was right;
yet I did not get what I deserved.[o]
28 He redeemed my soul from going down to the Pit,
and I will continue to see the light.”
29 God certainly does all these things
two or three times to a man
30 in order to turn him back from the Pit,
so he may shine with the light of life.(AG)
31 Pay attention, Job, and listen to me.
Be quiet, and I will speak.
32 But if you have something to say,[p] answer me;
speak, for I would like to justify you.
33 If not, then listen to me;
be quiet, and I will teach you wisdom.
34 Then Elihu continued,[q] saying:
2 Hear my words, you wise men,
and listen to me, you knowledgeable ones.
3 Doesn’t the ear test words
as the palate tastes food?
4 Let us judge for ourselves what is right;
let us decide together what is good.
5 For Job has declared, “I am righteous,
yet God has deprived me of justice.(AH)
6 Would I lie about my case?(AI)
My wound[r] is incurable,
though I am without transgression.”
7 What man is like Job?
He drinks derision(AJ) like water.
8 He keeps company with evildoers
and walks with wicked men.
9 For he has said, “A man gains nothing
when he becomes God’s friend.”(AK)
10 Therefore listen to me, you men of understanding.
It is impossible for God to do wrong,
and for the Almighty to act unjustly.(AL)
11 For He repays(AM) a person according to his deeds,
and He brings his ways on him.
12 Indeed, it is true that God does not act wickedly
and the Almighty does not pervert justice.(AN)
13 Who gave Him authority over the earth?
Who put Him in charge of the entire world?(AO)
14 If He put His mind to it
and withdrew the spirit(AP) and breath He gave,
15 every living thing would perish together
and mankind would return to the dust.(AQ)
16 If you have understanding, hear this;
listen to what I have to say.
17 Could one who hates justice govern the world?
Will you condemn the mighty Righteous One,(AR)
18 who says to a king, “Worthless man!”
and to nobles, “Wicked men!”?(AS)
19 God is not partial(AT) to princes
and does not favor the rich over the poor,
for they are all the work of His hands.
20 They die suddenly in the middle of the night;
people shudder, then pass away.
Even the mighty are removed without effort.
21 For His eyes watch over a man’s ways,
and He observes all his steps.(AU)
22 There is no darkness, no deep darkness,
where evildoers can hide themselves.(AV)
23 God does not need to examine a person further,
that one should[s] approach Him in court.
24 He shatters the mighty without an investigation
and sets others in their place.(AW)
25 Therefore, He recognizes their deeds(AX)
and overthrows them by night, and they are crushed.
26 In full view of the public,[t]
He strikes them for their wickedness,
27 because they turned aside from following Him
and did not understand any of His ways
28 but caused the poor to cry out to Him,
and He heard the outcry of the afflicted.(AY)
29 But when God is silent, who can declare Him guilty?
When He hides His face, who can see Him?
Yet He watches over both individuals and nations,
30 so that godless men should not rule
or ensnare the people.
31 Suppose someone says to God,
“I have endured my punishment;
I will no longer act wickedly.
32 Teach me what I cannot see;
if I have done wrong, I won’t do it again.”
33 Should God repay you on your terms
when you have rejected His?
You must choose, not I!
So declare what you know.
34 Reasonable men will say to me,
along with the wise men who hear me,
35 “Job speaks without knowledge;(AZ)
his words are without insight.”
36 If only Job were tested to the limit,
because his answers are like those of wicked men.
37 For he adds rebellion to his sin;
he scornfully claps(BA) in our presence,
while multiplying(BB) his words against God.
35 Then Elihu continued, saying:
2 Do you think it is just when you say,
“I am righteous before God”?
3 For you ask, “What does it profit You,[u]
and what benefit comes to me, if I do not sin?”(BC)
4 I will answer you
and your friends with you.
5 Look at the heavens and see;
gaze at the clouds high above you.
6 If you sin, how does it affect God?
If you multiply your transgressions, what does it do to Him?
7 If you are righteous, what do you give Him,
or what does He receive from your hand?(BD)
8 Your wickedness affects a person like yourself,
and your righteousness another human being.
9 People cry out because of severe oppression;
they shout for help because of the arm of the mighty.(BE)
10 But no one asks, “Where is God my Maker,(BF)
who provides us with songs in the night,(BG)
11 who gives us more understanding than the animals of the earth
and makes us wiser than the birds of the sky?”(BH)
12 There they cry out, but He does not answer,
because of the pride of evil men.(BI)
13 Indeed, God does not listen to empty cries,
and the Almighty does not take note of it—
14 how much less when[v] you complain[w]
that you do not see Him,
that your case(BJ) is before Him
and you are waiting(BK) for Him.
15 But now, because God’s anger does not punish
and He does not pay attention to transgression,[x]
16 Job opens his mouth in vain
and multiplies words without knowledge.(BL)
36 Then Elihu continued, saying:
2 Be patient with me a little longer, and I will inform you,
for there is still more to be said on God’s behalf.
3 I will get my knowledge from a distant place
and ascribe justice to my Maker.
4 For my arguments are without flaw;[y]
one who has perfect knowledge is with you.
5 Yes, God is mighty, but He despises no one;
He understands all things.[z](BM)
6 He does not keep the wicked alive,(BN)
but He gives justice to the afflicted.
7 He does not remove His gaze from the righteous,
but He seats them forever with enthroned kings,
and they are exalted.
8 If people are bound with chains
and trapped by the cords of affliction,
9 God tells them what they have done
and how arrogantly they have transgressed.
10 He opens their ears(BO) to correction
and insists they repent from iniquity.
11 If they serve Him obediently,
they will end their days in prosperity
and their years in happiness.(BP)
12 But if they do not obey,
they will cross the river of death[aa]
and die without knowledge.(BQ)
13 Those who have a godless heart harbor anger;
even when God binds them, they do not cry for help.
14 They die in their youth;
their life ends among male cult prostitutes.(BR)
15 God rescues the afflicted by their affliction;
He instructs them by their torment.
16 Indeed, He lured you from the jaws[ab] of distress
to a spacious and unconfined place.
Your table was spread with choice food.
17 Yet now you are obsessed with the judgment due the wicked;
judgment and justice have seized you.
18 Be careful that no one lures you with riches;[ac]
do not let a large ransom[ad] lead you astray.(BS)
19 Can your wealth[ae] or all your physical exertion
keep you from distress?(BT)
20 Do not long for the night
when nations will disappear from their places.
21 Be careful that you do not turn to iniquity,
for that is why you have been tested by[af] affliction.
22 Look, God shows Himself exalted by His power.
Who is a teacher like Him?
23 Who has appointed His way for Him,
and who has declared, “You have done wrong”?(BU)
24 Remember that you should praise His work,
which people have sung about.(BV)
25 All mankind has seen it;
people have looked at it from a distance.(BW)
26 Yes, God is exalted beyond our knowledge;(BX)
the number of His years cannot be counted.(BY)
27 For He makes waterdrops evaporate;[ag]
they distill the rain into its[ah] mist,(BZ)
28 which the clouds pour out
and shower abundantly on mankind.
29 Can anyone understand how the clouds spread out
or how the thunder roars from God’s pavilion?(CA)
30 See how He spreads His lightning(CB) around Him
and covers the depths of the sea.
31 For He judges the nations with these;
He gives food in abundance.(CC)
32 He covers His hands with lightning
and commands it to hit its mark.
33 The[ai] thunder declares His presence;[aj]
the cattle also, the approaching storm.
37 My heart(CD) pounds at this
and leaps from my chest.[ak]
2 Just listen to His thunderous voice
and the rumbling that comes from His mouth.
3 He lets it loose beneath the entire sky;
His lightning to the ends(CE) of the earth.
4 Then there comes a roaring sound;
God thunders(CF) with His majestic voice.
He does not restrain the lightning
when His rumbling voice is heard.
5 God thunders marvelously with His voice;
He does great things that we cannot comprehend.
6 For He says to the snow,(CG) “Fall to the earth,”
and the torrential rains, His mighty torrential rains,
7 serve as His sign to all mankind,
so that all men may know His work.
8 The wild animals enter their lairs
and stay in their dens.(CH)
9 The windstorm comes from its chamber,
and the cold from the driving north winds.
10 Ice is formed by the breath of God,(CI)
and watery expanses are frozen.
11 He saturates clouds with moisture;(CJ)
He scatters His lightning through them.
12 They swirl about,
turning round and round at His direction,
accomplishing everything He commands them
over the surface of the inhabited world.
13 He causes this to happen for punishment,
for His land, or for His faithful love.
14 Listen to this, Job.
Stop and consider God’s wonders.
15 Do you know how God directs His clouds
or makes their lightning flash?
16 Do you understand how the clouds float,
those wonderful works of Him who has perfect knowledge?
17 You whose clothes get hot
when the south wind brings calm to the land,
18 can you help God spread out the skies
as hard as a cast metal mirror?
19 Teach us what we should say to Him;(CK)
we cannot prepare our case because of our darkness.
20 Should He be told that I want to speak?
Can a man speak when he is confused?
21 Now men cannot even look at the sun
when it is in the skies,
after a wind has swept through and cleared them away.
22 Yet out of the north He comes, shrouded in a golden glow;
awesome(CL) majesty surrounds Him.
23 The Almighty—we cannot reach Him—
He is exalted in power!
He will not oppress justice and abundant righteousness,
24 Therefore, men fear Him.
He does not look favorably on any who are wise(CM) in heart.
The Lord Speaks
38 Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind.(CN) He said:
2 Who is this who obscures My counsel
with ignorant words?(CO)
3 Get ready to answer Me like a man;
when I question(CP) you, you will inform Me.
4 Where were you when I established(CQ) the earth?
Tell Me, if you have[al] understanding.
5 Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?
6 What supports its foundations?
Or who laid its cornerstone
7 while the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God(CR) shouted for joy?
8 Who enclosed the sea behind doors
when it burst from the womb,
9 when I made the clouds its garment
and thick darkness its blanket,[am](CS)
10 when I determined its boundaries[an]
and put its bars and doors in place,
11 when I declared: “You may come this far, but no farther;
your proud waves stop here”?
12 Have you ever in your life commanded the morning
or assigned the dawn its place,
13 so it may seize the edges of the earth
and shake the wicked out of it?
14 The earth is changed as clay is by a seal;
its hills stand out like the folds of a garment.
15 Light[ao] is withheld from the wicked,
and the arm raised in violence is broken.
16 Have you traveled to the sources of the sea
or walked in the depths of the oceans?
17 Have the gates(CT) of death been revealed to you?
Have you seen the gates of deep darkness?
18 Have you comprehended the extent of the earth?
Tell Me, if you know all this.
19 Where is the road to the home of light?
Do you know where darkness lives,
20 so you can lead it back to its border?
Are you familiar with the paths to its home?
21 Don’t you know? You were already born;(CU)
you have lived so long![ap]
22 Have you entered the place where the snow is stored?
Or have you seen the storehouses of hail,(CV)
23 which I hold in reserve for times of trouble,
for the day of warfare and battle?(CW)
24 What road leads to the place where light is dispersed?[aq]
Where is the source of the east wind that spreads across the earth?
25 Who cuts a channel for the flooding rain
or clears the way for lightning,
26 to bring rain on an uninhabited land,
on a desert with no human life,[ar]
27 to satisfy the parched wasteland
and cause the grass to sprout?(CX)
28 Does the rain have a father?
Who fathered the drops of dew?(CY)
29 Whose womb did the ice come from?
Who gave birth to the frost of heaven
30 when water becomes as hard as stone,[as]
and the surface of the watery depths is frozen?(CZ)
31 Can you fasten the chains of the Pleiades
or loosen the belt of Orion?
32 Can you bring out the constellations[at] in their season
and lead the Bear[au] and her cubs?(DA)
33 Do you know the laws(DB) of heaven?
Can you impose its[av] authority on earth?
34 Can you command[aw] the clouds
so that a flood of water covers you?(DC)
35 Can you send out lightning(DD) bolts, and they go?
Do they report to you: “Here we are”?
36 Who put wisdom(DE) in the heart[ax]
or gave the mind understanding?
37 Who has the wisdom to number the clouds?
Or who can tilt the water jars of heaven
38 when the dust hardens like cast metal
and the clods of dirt stick together?
39 Can you hunt prey for a lioness
or satisfy the appetite of young lions(DF)
40 when they crouch in their dens
and lie in wait within their lairs?
41 Who provides the raven’s food(DG)
when its young cry out to God
and wander about for lack of food?
39 Do you know when mountain goats give birth?
Have you watched the deer in labor?
2 Can you count the months they are pregnant[ay]
so you can know the time they give birth?
3 They crouch down to give birth to their young;
they deliver their newborn.[az]
4 Their offspring are healthy and grow up in the open field.
They leave and do not return.[ba]
5 Who set the wild donkey free?
Who released the swift donkey from its harness?
6 I made the wilderness(DH) its home,
and the salty(DI) wasteland its dwelling.
7 It scoffs at the noise of the village
and never hears the shouts of a driver.(DJ)
8 It roams the mountains for its pastureland,
searching for anything green.
9 Would the wild ox be willing to serve you?
Would it spend the night by your feeding trough?
10 Can you hold the wild ox(DK) to a furrow by its harness?
Will it plow the valleys behind you?
11 Can you depend on it because its strength is great?
Would you leave it to do your hard work?
12 Can you trust the wild ox to harvest your grain
and bring it to your threshing floor?
13 The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully,
but are her feathers and plumage like the stork’s?[bb](DL)
14 She abandons her eggs on the ground
and lets them be warmed in the sand.
15 She forgets that a foot may crush them
or that some wild animal may trample them.
16 She treats her young harshly, as if they were not her own,
with no fear that her labor may have been in vain.
17 For God has deprived her of wisdom;
He has not endowed her with understanding.(DM)
18 When she proudly[bc] spreads her wings,
she laughs at the horse and its rider.
19 Do you give strength to the horse?
Do you adorn his neck with a mane?[bd]
20 Do you make him leap like a locust?
His proud snorting fills one with terror.
21 He paws[be] in the valley and rejoices in his strength;
He charges into battle.[bf]
22 He laughs at fear, since he is afraid of nothing;
he does not run from the sword.
23 A quiver rattles at his side,
along with a flashing spear and a lance.[bg]
24 He charges ahead[bh] with trembling rage;
he cannot stand still at the trumpet’s sound.
25 When the trumpet blasts, he snorts defiantly.[bi]
He smells the battle from a distance;
he hears the officers’ shouts and the battle cry.
26 Does the hawk take flight by your understanding
and spread its wings to the south?
27 Does the eagle soar at your command
and make its nest(DN) on high?
28 It lives on a cliff where it spends the night;
its stronghold is on a rocky crag.
29 From there it searches for prey;(DO)
its eyes penetrate the distance.
30 Its brood gulps down blood,
and where the slain are, it is there.(DP)
40 The Lord answered Job:
2 Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him?
Let him who argues with God give an answer.[bj]
3 Then Job answered the Lord:
4 I am so insignificant. How can I answer You?(DQ)
I place my hand over my mouth.
5 I have spoken once, and I will not reply;
twice, but now I can add nothing.(DR)
6 Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind:(DS)
7 Get ready to answer Me like a man;
When I question(DT) you, you will inform Me.
8 Would you really challenge My justice?
Would you declare Me guilty(DU) to justify yourself?(DV)
9 Do you have an arm like God’s?
Can you thunder with a voice like His?
10 Adorn yourself with majesty(DW) and splendor,
and clothe yourself with honor and glory.
11 Unleash your raging anger;(DX)
look on every proud person and humiliate him.(DY)
12 Look on every proud person and humble him;(DZ)
trample the wicked where they stand.[bk]
13 Hide them together in the dust;
imprison them in the grave.[bl]
14 Then I will confess to you
that your own right hand(EA) can deliver you.(EB)
15 Look at Behemoth,
which I made along with you.
He eats grass like an ox.
16 Look at the strength of his loins
and the power in the muscles of his belly.
17 He stiffens his tail like a cedar tree;
the tendons of his thighs are woven firmly together.
18 His bones are bronze tubes;
his limbs are like iron rods.
19 He is the foremost of God’s works;(EC)
only his Maker can draw the sword against him.
20 The hills yield food for him,
while all sorts of wild animals play there.
21 He lies under the lotus plants,
hiding in the protection[bm] of marshy reeds.
22 Lotus plants cover him with their shade;
the willows by the brook surround him.
23 Though the river rages, Behemoth is unafraid;
he remains confident, even if the Jordan surges up to his mouth.
24 Can anyone capture him while he looks on,[bn]
or pierce his nose with snares?
41 [bo]Can you pull in Leviathan(ED) with a hook(EE)
or tie his tongue down with a rope?
2 Can you put a cord[bp] through his nose
or pierce his jaw with a hook?(EF)
3 Will he beg you for mercy
or speak softly to you?
4 Will he make a covenant with you
so that you can take him as a slave forever?(EG)
5 Can you play with him like a bird
or put him on a leash[bq] for your girls?
6 Will traders bargain for him
or divide him among the merchants?
7 Can you fill his hide with harpoons
or his head with fishing spears?
8 Lay a[br] hand on him.
You will remember the battle
and never repeat it!
9 [bs]Any hope of capturing him proves false.
Does a person not collapse at the very sight of him?
10 No one is ferocious enough to rouse Leviathan;(EH)
who then can stand against Me?
11 Who confronted Me, that I should repay him?
Everything under heaven belongs to Me.(EI)
12 I cannot be silent about his limbs,
his power, and his graceful proportions.
13 Who can strip off his outer covering?
Who can penetrate his double layer of armor?[bt](EJ)
14 Who can open his jaws,[bu]
surrounded by those terrifying teeth?
15 His pride is in his rows of scales,
closely sealed together.
16 One scale is so close to another[bv]
that no air can pass between them.
17 They are joined to one another,
so closely connected[bw] they cannot be separated.
18 His snorting[bx] flashes with light,
while his eyes are like the rays[by] of dawn.
19 Flaming torches shoot from his mouth;
fiery sparks fly out!
20 Smoke billows from his nostrils(EK)
as from a boiling pot or burning reeds.
21 His breath sets coals ablaze,
and flames pour out of his mouth.
22 Strength resides in his neck,
and dismay dances before him.
23 The folds of his flesh are joined together,
solid as metal[bz] and immovable.
24 His heart is as hard as a rock,
as hard as a lower millstone!
25 When Leviathan rises, the mighty[ca] are terrified;
they withdraw because of his thrashing.
26 The sword that reaches him will have no effect,
nor will a spear, dart, or arrow.
27 He regards iron as straw,
and bronze as rotten wood.
28 No arrow can make him flee;
slingstones become like stubble to him.
29 A club is regarded as stubble,
and he laughs(EL) at the sound of a javelin.
30 His undersides are jagged potsherds,
spreading the mud like a threshing sledge.(EM)
31 He makes the depths seethe like a cauldron;
he makes the sea like an ointment jar.
32 He leaves a shining wake behind him;[cb]
one would think the deep had gray hair!
33 He has no equal on earth—
a creature devoid of fear!
34 He surveys everything that is haughty;
he is king over all the proud beasts.[cc]
Job Replies to the Lord
42 Then Job replied to the Lord:
2 I[cd] know that You can do anything
and no plan of Yours can be thwarted.(EN)
3 You asked, “Who is this who conceals My counsel with ignorance?”(EO)
Surely I spoke about things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to[ce] know.(EP)
4 You said, “Listen now, and I will speak.
When I question(EQ) you, you will inform Me.”
5 I had heard rumors about You,
but now my eyes(ER) have seen You.
6 Therefore I take back my words
and repent in dust and ashes.[cf]
7 After the Lord had finished speaking[cg] to Job, He said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “I am angry with you and your two friends, for you have not spoken the truth about Me, as My servant Job has. 8 Now take seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and offer a burnt offering for yourselves. Then My servant Job will pray for you.(ES) I will surely accept his prayer and not deal with you as your folly deserves. For you have not spoken the truth about Me, as My servant Job has.” 9 Then Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the Lord had told them, and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer.
God Restores Job
10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his prosperity and doubled his previous possessions.(ET) 11 All his brothers, sisters, and former acquaintances(EU) came to his house and dined with him in his house. They sympathized with him and comforted him concerning all the adversity the Lord had brought on him. Each one gave him a qesitah[ch](EV) and a gold earring.(EW)
12 So the Lord blessed the last part of Job’s life more than the first. He owned 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. 13 He also had seven sons and three daughters. 14 He named his first daughter Jemimah, his second Keziah, and his third Keren-happuch.(EX) 15 No women as beautiful as Job’s daughters could be found in all the land, and their father granted them an inheritance with their brothers.
16 Job lived 140 years after this and saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. 17 Then Job died, old and full of days.(EY)
Footnotes
- Job 32:3 Ancient Jewish tradition reads condemned God
- Job 32:8 Or is the Spirit in a person
- Job 32:17 Lit answer my part
- Job 32:18 Lit and the spirit of my belly
- Job 32:19 Lit belly
- Job 33:7 Lit you; my pressure
- Job 33:8 Lit heard a sound of
- Job 33:13 Lit court, for He does not answer all his words
- Job 33:16 LXX; MT reads and seals
- Job 33:17 Lit and cover pride within a man
- Job 33:18 Or from perishing by the sword
- Job 33:21 Lit away from sight
- Job 33:23 Or to vouch for a person’s uprightness
- Job 33:25 Hb obscure
- Job 33:27 Lit and the same was not to me
- Job 33:32 Lit If there are words
- Job 34:1 Lit answered
- Job 34:6 Lit arrow
- Job 34:23 Some emend to God has not appointed a time for man to
- Job 34:26 Lit In a place of spectators
- Job 35:3 Some emend to me
- Job 35:14 Or How then can
- Job 35:14 Lit say
- Job 35:15 LXX, Vg; MT reads folly, or arrogance; Hb obscure
- Job 36:4 Lit my words are not false
- Job 36:5 Lit He is mighty in strength of heart
- Job 36:12 Or will perish by the sword
- Job 36:16 Lit from a mouth of narrowness
- Job 36:18 Or you into mockery
- Job 36:18 Or bribe
- Job 36:19 Or cry for help
- Job 36:21 Or for you have preferred this to
- Job 36:27 Lit He draws in waterdrops
- Job 36:27 Or His
- Job 36:33 Lit His, or Its
- Job 36:33 Lit thunder announces concerning Him or it
- Job 37:1 Lit from its place
- Job 38:4 Lit know
- Job 38:9 Lit swaddling clothes
- Job 38:10 Lit I broke My statute on it
- Job 38:15 Lit Their light
- Job 38:21 Lit born; the number of your days is great
- Job 38:24 Or where lightning is distributed
- Job 38:26 Lit life in it
- Job 38:30 Lit water hides itself as the stone
- Job 38:32 Or Mazzaroth; Hb obscure
- Job 38:32 Or lead Aldebaran
- Job 38:33 Or God’s
- Job 38:34 Lit lift up your voice to
- Job 38:36 Or the inner self; Ps 51:6
- Job 39:2 Lit months they fulfill
- Job 39:3 Or they send away their labor pains
- Job 39:4 Lit return to them
- Job 39:13 Hb obscure
- Job 39:18 Hb obscure
- Job 39:19 Hb obscure
- Job 39:21 LXX, Syr; MT reads digs
- Job 39:21 Lit He goes out to meet the weapon
- Job 39:23 Or scimitar
- Job 39:24 Lit He swallows the ground
- Job 39:25 Lit he says, “Aha!”
- Job 40:2 Lit God respond to it
- Job 40:12 Lit wicked in their place
- Job 40:13 Lit together; bind their faces in the hidden place
- Job 40:21 Lit plants, in the hiding place
- Job 40:24 Lit capture it in its eyes
- Job 41:1 Jb 40:25 in Hb
- Job 41:2 Lit reed
- Job 41:5 Lit or bind him
- Job 41:8 Lit your
- Job 41:9 Jb 41:1 in Hb
- Job 41:13 LXX; MT reads double bridle
- Job 41:14 Lit open the doors of his face
- Job 41:16 Lit One by one they approach
- Job 41:17 Lit another; they cling together and
- Job 41:18 Or sneezing
- Job 41:18 Lit eyelids
- Job 41:23 Lit together, hard on him
- Job 41:25 Or the divine beings
- Job 41:32 Lit a path
- Job 41:34 Lit the children of pride
- Job 42:2 Alt Hb tradition reads You
- Job 42:3 Lit me, and I did not
- Job 42:6 LXX reads I despise myself and melt; I consider myself dust and ashes
- Job 42:7 Lit speaking these words
- Job 42:11 The value of the currency is unknown.
Genesis 12-14
Holman Christian Standard Bible
The Call of Abram
12 The Lord said to Abram:
Go out from your land,
your relatives,
and your father’s house
to the land that I will show you.(A)
2 I will make you into a great nation,(B)
I will bless you,(C)
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.[a](D)
3 I will bless those who bless you,
I will curse those who treat you with contempt,(E)
and all the peoples[b] on earth
will be blessed[c] through you.[d](F)
4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran.(G) 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated, and the people he had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, 6 Abram passed through the land to the site of Shechem,(H) at the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.”(I) So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him. 8 From there he moved on to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. He built an altar to Yahweh there, and he called on the name of Yahweh.(J) 9 Then Abram journeyed by stages to the Negev.
Abram in Egypt
10 There was a famine in the land,(K) so Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine in the land was severe. 11 When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “Look, I know what a beautiful woman you are. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ They will kill me but let you live.(L) 13 Please say you’re my sister so it will go well for me because of you, and my life will be spared on your account.” 14 When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 Pharaoh’s officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh, so the woman was taken to Pharaoh’s household. 16 He treated Abram well because of her, and Abram acquired flocks and herds, male and female donkeys, male and female slaves, and camels.
17 But the Lord struck Pharaoh and his household with severe plagues because of Abram’s wife Sarai.(M) 18 So Pharaoh sent for Abram and said, “What have you done to me? Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She’s my sister,’ so that I took her as my wife? Now, here is your wife. Take her and go!” 20 Then Pharaoh gave his men orders about him, and they sent him away with his wife and all he had.
Abram and Lot Separate
13 Then Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev(N)—he, his wife, and all he had, and Lot with him. 2 Abram was very rich[e] in livestock, silver, and gold. 3 He went by stages from the Negev to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been, 4 to the site where he had built the altar. And Abram called on the name of Yahweh there.(O)
5 Now Lot, who was traveling with Abram, also had flocks, herds, and tents. 6 But the land was unable to support them as long as they stayed together, for they had so many possessions that they could not stay together,(P) 7 and there was quarreling between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock.(Q) At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.(R)
8 Then Abram said to Lot, “Please, let’s not have quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, since we are relatives.[f] 9 Isn’t the whole land before you? Separate from me: if you go to the left, I will go to the right; if you go to the right, I will go to the left.”
10 Lot looked out and saw that the entire Jordan Valley(S) as far as[g] Zoar(T) was well watered everywhere like the Lord’s garden(U) and the land of Egypt. This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.(V) 11 So Lot chose the entire Jordan Valley for himself. Then Lot journeyed eastward, and they separated from each other. 12 Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot lived in the cities of the valley and set up his tent near Sodom. 13 Now the men of Sodom were evil, sinning greatly[h] against the Lord.(W)
14 After Lot had separated from him, the Lord said to Abram, “Look from the place where you are. Look north and south, east and west,(X) 15 for I will give you and your offspring forever all the land that you see.(Y) 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth,(Z) so that if anyone could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted. 17 Get up and walk around the land, through its length and width, for I will give it to you.”
18 So Abram moved his tent and went to live near the oaks of Mamre at Hebron,(AA) where he built an altar to the Lord.
Abram Rescues Lot
14 In those days Amraphel king of Shinar,(AB) Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam,[i](AC) and Tidal[j] king of Goiim[k] 2 waged war against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim,(AD) as well as the king of Bela (that is, Zoar(AE)). 3 All of these came as allies to the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Dead Sea(AF)). 4 They were subject to Chedorlaomer for 12 years, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. 5 In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and defeated the Rephaim(AG) in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham,(AH) the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the Horites(AI) in the mountains of Seir, as far as El-paran(AJ) by the wilderness. 7 Then they came back to invade En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh(AK)), and they defeated all the territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.(AL)
8 Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out and lined up for battle in the Valley of Siddim 9 against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. 10 Now the Valley of Siddim contained many asphalt pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them,[l] but the rest fled to the mountains.(AM) 11 The four kings took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food and went on. 12 They also took Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, for he was living in Sodom,(AN) and they went on.
13 One of the survivors came and told Abram the Hebrew,(AO) who lived near the oaks belonging to Mamre the Amorite, the brother of Eshcol and the brother of Aner. They were bound by a treaty with[m] Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken prisoner, he assembled[n] his 318 trained men, born in his household,(AP) and they went in pursuit as far as Dan.(AQ) 15 And he and his servants deployed against them by night, attacked them, and pursued them as far as Hobah to the north of Damascus. 16 He brought back all the goods and also his relative Lot and his goods, as well as the women and the other people.
Melchizedek’s Blessing
17 After Abram returned from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley(AR)). 18 Then Melchizedek, king of Salem,[o](AS) brought out bread and wine; he was a priest to God Most High.(AT) 19 He blessed him and said:
Abram is blessed by God Most High,
Creator[p] of heaven and earth,
20 and I give praise to[q] God Most High
who has handed over your enemies to you.
And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.(AU)
21 Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people, but take the possessions for yourself.”
22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand in an oath to Yahweh, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, 23 that I will not take a thread or sandal strap or anything that belongs to you, so you can never say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24 I will take nothing[r] except what the servants have eaten. But as for the share of the men who came with me—Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre—they can take their share.”
Footnotes
- Genesis 12:2 Or great. Be a blessing!
- Genesis 12:3 Lit clans
- Genesis 12:3 Or will find blessing
- Genesis 12:3 Or will bless themselves by you
- Genesis 13:2 Lit heavy
- Genesis 13:8 Lit brothers
- Genesis 13:10 Lit Valley as you go to
- Genesis 13:13 Lit evil and sinful
- Genesis 14:1 A region in southwest Iran
- Genesis 14:1 The name Tidal may be related to the Hittite royal name Tudhaliya.
- Genesis 14:1 Or nations
- Genesis 14:10 Sam, LXX; MT reads fell there
- Genesis 14:13 Lit were possessors of a covenant of
- Genesis 14:14 Sam; MT reads poured out
- Genesis 14:18 = Jerusalem
- Genesis 14:19 Or Possessor
- Genesis 14:20 Or and blessed be
- Genesis 14:24 Lit Nothing to me
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