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Eliphaz Speaks

Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:

“If someone tried to speak with you, would you be ·upset [or discouraged]?
    I cannot keep from speaking.
Think about the many people you have taught
    and the weak hands you have made strong.
Your words have ·comforted [L lifted up] those who ·fell [stumbled],
    and you have strengthened those ·who could not stand [L with weak knees].
But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged;
    ·trouble hits [L it touches] you, and you are ·terrified [disturbed].
·You should have [Shouldn’t you have…?] confidence because you ·respect [fear; have awe for] God;
    ·you should [should you not…?] have hope because ·you are innocent [L of your innocent ways].

“Remember ·that the innocent will not die [L who being innocent/blameless has perished…?];
    ·honest people will never be [L when were the honest/virtuous…? ] destroyed.
I have ·noticed [seen] that people who plow ·evil [wickedness]
    and plant trouble, harvest it.
God’s breath destroys them,
    and a blast of his anger ·kills [finishes] them.
10 Lions may roar and lion cubs growl,
    but when the teeth of a strong lion are broken,
11 that lion dies ·of hunger [L without prey].
    The cubs of the mother lion are scattered [C the wicked may briefly prosper but will ultimately perish].

12 “A word ·was brought to me in secret [L stole over me],
    and my ears heard a whisper of it [C Eliphaz claims a supernatural revelation that supports his teaching].
13 It was during ·a nightmare [L anxious thoughts of a night vision]
    when people are in deep sleep.
14 I was trembling with fear;
    all my bones were shaking.
15 A spirit glided past my face,
    and the hair on my ·body [L skin] stood on end.
16 The spirit stopped,
    but I could not see what it was.
A shape stood before my eyes,
    and I heard a quiet voice.
17 It said, ‘Can a human be more right than God?
    Can a person be pure before his maker? [C the implied answer is no]
18 God does not trust his ·angels [L servants];
    he blames ·them [L angels] for mistakes.
19 So ·he puts even more blame on [L what about…?] people who live in clay houses [C physical bodies],
    whose foundations are made of dust [Gen. 2:7],
    who can be crushed like a moth.
20 Between ·dawn and sunset [L morning and evening] many people are broken to pieces;
    without being noticed, they die and are gone forever.
21 The ropes of their tents are pulled up,
    and they die without wisdom.’

First Series of Speeches

Eliphaz Speaks

Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

Should anyone try to speak with you
when you are exhausted?
Yet who can keep from speaking?
Indeed, you have instructed many
and have strengthened(A) weak hands.
Your words have steadied the one who was stumbling
and braced the knees that were buckling.(B)
But now that this has happened to you,
you have become exhausted.
It strikes(C) you, and you are dismayed.
Isn’t your piety your confidence,
and the integrity of your life[a] your hope?(D)
Consider: who has perished when he was innocent?
Where have the honest been destroyed?(E)
In my experience, those who plow injustice
and those who sow trouble(F) reap the same.(G)
They perish at a single blast(H) from God
and come to an end by the breath of His nostrils.(I)
10 The lion may roar and the fierce lion(J) growl,
but the fangs of young lions are broken.(K)
11 The strong lion dies if it catches no prey,
and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.(L)

12 A word was brought to me in secret;
my ears caught a whisper of it.(M)
13 Among unsettling thoughts from visions in the night,(N)
when deep sleep(O) descends on men,
14 fear and trembling came over me(P)
and made all my bones shake.
15 A wind[b] passed by me,
and I shuddered with fear.[c]
16 A figure stood there,
but I could not recognize its appearance;
a form loomed before my eyes.
I heard a quiet voice:
17 “Can a person be more righteous than God,
or a man more pure than his Maker?”(Q)
18 If God puts no trust in His servants
and He charges His angels with foolishness,[d](R)
19 how much more those who dwell in clay houses,(S)
whose foundation is in the dust,
who are crushed like a moth!
20 They are smashed to pieces from dawn to dusk;
they perish forever while no one notices.(T)
21 Are their tent cords not pulled up?
They die without wisdom.(U)

Footnotes

  1. Job 4:6 Lit ways
  2. Job 4:15 Or A spirit
  3. Job 4:15 Or and the hair on my body stood up
  4. Job 4:18 Or error; Hb obscure

Eliphaz

Then Eliphaz the Temanite(A) replied:

“If someone ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?
    But who can keep from speaking?(B)
Think how you have instructed many,(C)
    how you have strengthened feeble hands.(D)
Your words have supported those who stumbled;(E)
    you have strengthened faltering knees.(F)
But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged;(G)
    it strikes(H) you, and you are dismayed.(I)
Should not your piety be your confidence(J)
    and your blameless(K) ways your hope?

“Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished?(L)
    Where were the upright ever destroyed?(M)
As I have observed,(N) those who plow evil(O)
    and those who sow trouble reap it.(P)
At the breath of God(Q) they perish;
    at the blast of his anger they are no more.(R)
10 The lions may roar(S) and growl,
    yet the teeth of the great lions(T) are broken.(U)
11 The lion perishes for lack of prey,(V)
    and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.(W)

12 “A word(X) was secretly brought to me,
    my ears caught a whisper(Y) of it.(Z)
13 Amid disquieting dreams in the night,
    when deep sleep falls on people,(AA)
14 fear and trembling(AB) seized me
    and made all my bones shake.(AC)
15 A spirit glided past my face,
    and the hair on my body stood on end.(AD)
16 It stopped,
    but I could not tell what it was.
A form stood before my eyes,
    and I heard a hushed voice:(AE)
17 ‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God?(AF)
    Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker?(AG)
18 If God places no trust in his servants,(AH)
    if he charges his angels with error,(AI)
19 how much more those who live in houses of clay,(AJ)
    whose foundations(AK) are in the dust,(AL)
    who are crushed(AM) more readily than a moth!(AN)
20 Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces;
    unnoticed, they perish forever.(AO)
21 Are not the cords of their tent pulled up,(AP)
    so that they die(AQ) without wisdom?’(AR)