² “Be patient with me a little longer, and I will show you
    that there is more to be said in Eloah’s defense.
³ I will get my knowledge from far away
    and prove that my Creator is fair.
⁴ Certainly, my words are not lies.
    The one who knows everything is speaking with you.

¹¹ “If righteous people listen and serve him,
    they will live out their days in prosperity
        and their years in comfort.
¹² But if they don’t listen,
    they will cross the River of Death
        and die like those who have no knowledge.
¹³ But those who have godless hearts remain angry.
    They don’t even call for help when he chains them up.
¹⁴ They die while they’re young,
    or they live on as male prostitutes in the temples of idols.
¹⁵ He rescues suffering people through their suffering,
    and he opens their ears through distress.

¹⁶ “Yes, he lured you away from the jaws of trouble
    into an open area where you were not restrained,
        and your table was covered with rich foods.
¹⁷ But you are given the judgment evil people deserve.
    A fair judgment will be upheld.
¹⁸ Be careful that you are not led astray with riches.
    Don’t let a large bribe turn you to evil ways.
¹⁹ Will your riches save you from having to suffer?
    Will all your mighty strength help you?
²⁰ Don’t look forward to the night,
    when people disappear from their places.
²¹ Be careful! Don’t turn to evil,
    because you have chosen evil instead of suffering.^[a]

²² “El does great things by his power.
    Is there any teacher like him?
²³ Who can tell him which way he should go?
    Who can say to him, ‘You did wrong’?
²⁴ Remember that you should praise his work.
    People have sung about it.
²⁵ Every person has seen it.
    Mortals have looked at it from a distance.

²⁶ “Certainly, El is so great
    that he is beyond our understanding.
        The number of his years cannot be counted.
²⁷ He collects drops of water.
    He distills rain from his mist,
²⁸ which then drips from the clouds.
    It pours down on many people.
²⁹ Can anyone really understand how clouds spread out
    or how he thunders from his dwelling place?
³⁰ Look, he scatters his flashes of lightning around him
    and covers the depths of the sea.
³¹ This is how he uses the rains to provide for people
    and to give them more than enough food.
³² He fills his hands with lightning
    and orders it to hit the target.
³³ The thunder announces his coming.
    The storm announces his angry wrath.