Job 33-35

Jubilee Bible 2000

33 ¶ Therefore, Job, hear now my reasons, and hearken to all my words.

² Behold, now I shall open my mouth, my tongue shall speak in my mouth.

³ My reasons declare the uprightness of my heart; and my lips shall utter pure knowledge.

⁴ The Spirit of God made me, and the breath of the Almighty gave me life.

⁵ If thou canst answer me, set thy words in order before me, stand up.

⁶ Behold, I am according to thy wish in God’s stead; I also am formed out of the clay.

⁷ Behold, my terror shall not make thee afraid, neither shall my hand be heavy upon thee.

⁸ ¶ Surely thou hast spoken in my hearing, and I have heard the voice of thy words, saying,

⁹ I am clean without rebellion, I am innocent; neither is there iniquity in me.

¹⁰ Behold, God sought occasions against me, he counts me for his enemy,

¹¹ he put my feet in the stocks, he guards all my paths.

¹² Behold, in this thou art not just; I will answer thee, that God is greater than man.

¹³ Why dost thou strive against him? For he will not answer all of thy words.

¹⁴ ¶ Nevertheless, in one or two manners God speaks to the one who does not see.

¹⁵ In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls upon men, in slumberings upon the bed;

¹⁶ then he opens the ears of men and seals their instruction,

¹⁷ that he may withdraw the man from his own work and cover the man from pride.

¹⁸ Thus he keeps back his soul from the pit and his life from perishing by the sword.

¹⁹ ¶ He is chastened also upon his bed with strong pain in all his bones,

²⁰ so that his life abhors bread and his soul dainty food.

²¹ His flesh is consumed away, that it cannot be seen; and his bones that were not seen stick out.

²² His soul shall draw near to the grave, and his life to those that would bury him.

²³ If there is a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to show unto man his uprightness;

²⁴ to tell him that God had mercy on him, that he delivered him from going down to the pit; that he found a ransom;

²⁵ his flesh shall become more tender than a child’s; and he shall return to the days of his youth.

²⁶ He shall pray unto God, and he will love him; and he shall see his face with shouts of joy; for he will render unto the man the recompense of his righteousness.

²⁷ He looks upon men, and if any say, I have sinned and perverted that which was right, and it did not profit me;

²⁸ God will ransom his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light.

²⁹ ¶ Behold, God does all these things two and three times with man,

³⁰ to turn back his soul from the pit, to be enlightened with the light of the living.

³¹ Hear me, O Job, hearken unto me; be silent, and I will speak.

³² If thou hast anything to say, answer me; speak, for I desire to justify thee.

³³ If not, hearken unto me; be silent, and I shall teach thee wisdom.

34 ¶ Furthermore, Elihu answered and said,

² Hear my words, O ye wise men; and give ear unto me, ye that have knowledge.

³ For the ear tries words, as the mouth tastes food.

⁴ Let us choose our judgment; let us know among ourselves what is good.

⁵ For Job has said, I am righteous; and God has taken away my right.

⁶ In my judgment he was a liar, my arrow wound is grievous without my having committed a transgression.

⁷ What man is like Job, who drinks up the scorn like water?

⁸ Who goes in company with the workers of iniquity, and walks with wicked men.

⁹ For he said, It shall profit a man nothing that he should conform his will with God.

¹⁰ ¶ Therefore, hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.

¹¹ For he shall pay man according to his work and cause every man to find according to his ways.

¹² Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment.

¹³ Who visited the earth for him? And who set the whole world in order?

¹⁴ If he were to set his heart upon man and gather unto himself his spirit and his breath,

¹⁵ all flesh would perish together, and man would turn again unto dust.

¹⁶ ¶ If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words.

¹⁷ Shall even he that hates judgment govern? And wilt thou condemn the Mighty One that is righteous?

¹⁸ Is it fit to say to the king, Thou art of Belial and to the princes, Ye are ungodly?

¹⁹ How much less to him who is not a respecter of the persons of princes, nor respects the rich more than the poor; for they all are the work of his hands.

²⁰ In a moment they shall die, and the peoples shall be troubled at midnight and shall pass away; and the mighty shall be taken away without hand.

²¹ For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he sees all his steps.

²² There is no darkness nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.

²³ For he will not lay upon man more than that which is just; that he should enter into judgment with God.

²⁴ He shall break in pieces mighty men without number and set others in their stead.

²⁵ Therefore, he shall cause their works to be notorious, when he shall overturn them in the night, so that they are destroyed.

²⁶ He shall strike them as wicked men in the open sight of others

²⁷ because thus they turned back from him and would not consider any of his ways

²⁸ so that they cause the cry of the poor to come unto him, and he hears the cry of the afflicted.

²⁹ When he gives rest, who then can make trouble? If he hides his face, who then can behold him? This applies to a nation and the same to a man,

³⁰ that the hypocrite not reign, lest the people be ensnared.

³¹ ¶ For it is of God to say, I have forgiven, I will no longer destroy.

³² Teach me that which I do not see; if I have done iniquity, I will do it no more.

³³ Will he perchance finish his work by thee; whether thou refuse, or whether thou choose, or by me? Speak what thou knowest.

³⁴ The men of understanding will say as I say, and the wise man will hearken unto me.

³⁵ Job has spoken without knowledge, and his words were without prudence.

³⁶ My desire is that Job may be tried unto the end, that there may be answers against wicked men.

³⁷ For he added rebellion unto his sin, he claps his hands among us and multiplies his words against God.

35 ¶ Elihu proceeded in his reasoning and said,

² Dost thou think this to be right, when thou didst say, I am more righteous than God?

³ For thou didst say, What advantage will it be unto thee? And, What profit shall I have, if I am cleansed from my sin?

⁴ I will answer thee and thy companions with thee.

⁵ Look unto the heavens and see; and behold the heavens which are higher than thou.

⁶ If thou dost sin, what hast thou done against him? Or if thy rebellion is multiplied, what doest thou unto him?

⁷ If thou art righteous, what shalt thou give him? Or what shall he receive of thine hand?

⁸ Thy wickedness shall hurt a man as thou art; and thy righteousness shall profit the son of man.

⁹ ¶ By reason of the great violence they shall call out; they cry out because of the strength of the many.

¹⁰ But no one shall say, Where is God my maker, who gives songs in the night;

¹¹ who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the fowls of heaven?

¹² There they shall cry, but he shall give no answer because of the pride of those that are evil.

¹³ Surely God will not hear vanity, neither will the Almighty look upon it.

¹⁴ ¶ For much that thou dost say, he will not look upon it, submit to judgment before him, and trust thou in him.

¹⁵ But now, because he has not visited in wrath; nor is it known in great extremity;

¹⁶ therefore, Job opened his mouth in vain and multiplied words without knowledge.