Job 4-7

New American Standard Bible

Eliphaz Says the Innocent Do Not Suffer

4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded,

²“If one ventures a word with you, will you become impatient?
But ^(A)who can refrain ^[a]from speaking?
³Behold, ^(B)you have taught many,
And you have strengthened weak hands.
⁴Your words have helped the stumbling to stand,
And you have strengthened ^[b]feeble knees.
⁵But now it comes to you, and you ^(C)are impatient;
It ^(D)touches you, and you are horrified.
⁶Is your ^[c]^(E)fear of God not ^(F)your confidence,
And the integrity of your ways your hope?

⁷“Remember now, ^(G)who ever perished being innocent?
Or where were the upright destroyed?
⁸According to what I have seen, ^(H)those who ^[d]plow wrongdoing
And those who sow trouble harvest it.
⁹By ^(I)the breath of God they perish,
And ^(J)by the ^[e]blast of His anger they come to an end.
¹⁰The ^(K)roaring of the lion and the voice of the fierce lion,
And the teeth of the young lions are broken out.
¹¹The ^(L)lion perishes for lack of prey,
And the ^(M)cubs of the lioness are scattered.

¹²“Now a word ^(N)was brought to me secretly,
And my ear received a ^(O)whisper of it.
¹³Amid disquieting ^(P)thoughts from visions of the night,
When deep sleep falls on people,
¹⁴Dread came upon me, and trembling,
And made ^[f]all my bones shake.
¹⁵Then a ^[g]spirit passed by my face;
The hair of my flesh stood up.
¹⁶Something was standing still, but I could not recognize its appearance;
A form was before my eyes;
There was silence, then I heard a voice:
¹⁷‘Can ^(Q)mankind be righteous ^[h]before God?
Can a man be pure ^[i]before his ^(R)Maker?
¹⁸^(S)He puts no trust even in His servants;
And He accuses His angels of error.
¹⁹How much more those who live in ^(T)houses of clay,
Whose ^(U)foundation is in the dust,
Who are crushed before the moth!
²⁰^(V)Between morning and evening they are broken in pieces;
Unregarded, they ^(W)perish forever.
²¹Is their ^(X)tent-cord not pulled out within them?
They die, yet ^(Y)without wisdom.’

God Is Just

5 “Call now, is there anyone who will answer you?
And to which of the ^(Z)holy ones will you turn?
²For ^(AA)irritation kills the fool,
And jealousy brings death to the simple.
³I have seen the ^(AB)fool taking root,
And I ^(AC)cursed his home immediately.
⁴His ^(AD)sons are far from safety,
They are also ^[j]oppressed at the gate,
And there is no one to save them.
⁵^[k]The hungry devour his harvest
And take it to a place of thorns,
And the ^[l]^(AE)schemer is eager for their wealth.
⁶For ^(AF)disaster does not come from the dust,
Nor does trouble sprout from the ground,
⁷For ^(AG)man is born for trouble,
As sparks fly upward.

⁸“But as for me, I would ^(AH)seek God,
And I would make my plea before God,
⁹Who ^(AI)does great and unsearchable things,
^[m]Wonders without number.
¹⁰He ^(AJ)gives rain on the earth,
And sends water on the fields,
¹¹So that ^(AK)He sets on high those who are lowly,
And those who mourn are lifted to safety.
¹²He ^(AL)frustrates the schemes of the shrewd,
So that their hands cannot attain success.
¹³He ^(AM)captures the wise by their own cleverness,
And the advice of the cunning is quickly thwarted.
¹⁴By day they ^(AN)meet with darkness,
And grope at noon as in the night.
¹⁵But He saves from ^(AO)the sword of their mouth,
And ^(AP)the poor from the hand of the strong.
¹⁶So the helpless has hope,
And ^(AQ)injustice has shut its mouth.

¹⁷“Behold, ^(AR)happy is the person whom God disciplines,
So do not reject the ^(AS)discipline of ^[n]the Almighty.
¹⁸For ^(AT)He inflicts pain, and ^[o]gives relief;
He wounds, but His hands also heal.
¹⁹In six troubles ^(AU)He will save you;
Even in seven, ^(AV)evil will not touch you.
²⁰In ^(AW)famine He will redeem you from death,
And ^(AX)in war, from the power of the sword.
²¹You will be ^(AY)hidden ^[p]from the scourge of the tongue,
^(AZ)And you will not be afraid of violence when it comes.
²²You will ^(BA)laugh at violence and hunger,
^(BB)And you will not be afraid of ^[q]wild animals.
²³For you will be in league with the stones of the field,
And ^(BC)the animals of the field will be at peace with you.
²⁴You will know that your ^(BD)tent is secure,
For you will visit your home and ^[r]have nothing missing.
²⁵You will also know that your ^[s]^(BE)descendants will be many,
And ^(BF)your offspring as the grass of the earth.
²⁶You will ^(BG)come to the grave at a ripe age,
Like the stacking of grain in its season.
²⁷Behold this; we have investigated it, and so it is.
Hear it, and know for yourself.”

Job’s Friends Are No Help

6 Then Job responded,

²“^(BH)Oh if only my grief were actually weighed
And laid in the balances together with my disaster!
³For then it would be ^(BI)heavier than the sand of the seas;
For that reason my words have been rash.
⁴For the ^(BJ)arrows of the Almighty are within me,
^[t]My spirit drinks their ^(BK)poison;
The ^(BL)terrors of God line up against me.
⁵Does the ^(BM)wild donkey bray over his grass,
Or does the ox low over his feed?
⁶Can something tasteless be eaten without salt,
Or is there any taste in the ^[u]juice of an alkanet plant?
⁷My soul ^(BN)refuses to touch them;
They are like loathsome food to me.

⁸“Oh, that my request might come to pass,
And that God would grant my hope!
⁹Oh, that God would ^(BO)decide to crush me,
That He would let loose His hand and cut me off!
¹⁰But it is still my comfort,
And I rejoice in unsparing pain,
That I ^(BP)have not ^[v]denied the words of the Holy One.
¹¹What is my strength, that I should wait?
And what is my end, that I should ^[w]^(BQ)endure?
¹²Is my strength the strength of stones,
Or is my flesh bronze?
¹³Is it that my ^(BR)help is not within me,
And that a ^(BS)good outcome is driven away from me?

¹⁴“For the ^(BT)despairing man there should be kindness from his friend;
So that he does not ^(BU)abandon the ^[x]fear of the Almighty.
¹⁵My brothers have acted ^(BV)deceitfully like a ^[y]wadi,
Like the torrents of ^[z]wadis which drain away,
¹⁶Which are darkened because of ice,
And into which the snow ^[aa]melts.
¹⁷When ^(BW)they dry up, they vanish;
When it is hot, they disappear from their place.
¹⁸The ^[ab]paths of their course wind along,
They go up into wasteland and perish.
¹⁹The caravans of ^(BX)Tema looked,
The travelers of ^(BY)Sheba hoped for them.
²⁰They ^(BZ)were put to shame, for they had trusted,
They came there and were humiliated.
²¹Indeed, you have now become such,
^(CA)You see terrors and are afraid.
²²Have I said, ‘Give me something,’
Or, ‘Offer a bribe for me from your wealth,’
²³Or, ‘Save me from the hand of the enemy,’
Or, ‘Redeem me from the hand of the tyrants’?

²⁴“Teach me, and ^(CB)I will be silent;
And show me how I have done wrong.
²⁵How painful are honest words!
But what does your argument prove?
²⁶Do you intend to rebuke my words,
When the ^(CC)words of one in despair belong to the wind?
²⁷You would even ^(CD)cast lots for ^(CE)the orphans,
And ^(CF)barter over your friend.
²⁸Now please look at me,
And see if I am ^(CG)lying to your face.
²⁹Please turn away, let there be no injustice;
Turn away, ^(CH)my righteousness is still in it.
³⁰Is there injustice on my tongue?
Does ^(CI)my palate not discern disasters?

Job’s Life Seems Futile

7 “^[ac]Is a person not ^(CJ)forced to labor on earth,
And are his days not like the days of ^(CK)a hired worker?
²As a slave pants for the shade,
And as a hired worker who eagerly waits for his wages,
³So I am allotted worthless months,
And ^(CL)nights of trouble are apportioned to me.
⁴When I ^(CM)lie down, I say,
‘When shall I arise?’
But the night continues,
And I am continually tossing until dawn.
⁵My ^(CN)flesh is clothed with maggots and a crust of dirt,
My skin hardens and ^[ad]oozes.
⁶My days are ^(CO)swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
And they come to an end ^(CP)without hope.

⁷“Remember that my life ^(CQ)is a mere breath;
My eye will ^(CR)not see goodness again.
⁸The ^(CS)eye of him who sees me will no longer look at me;
Your eyes will be on me, but ^(CT)I will not exist.
⁹When a ^(CU)cloud vanishes, it is gone;
In the same way ^(CV)one who goes down to ^[ae]^(CW)Sheol does not come up.
¹⁰He will not return to his house again,
Nor will ^(CX)his place know about him anymore.

¹¹“Therefore ^(CY)I will not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit,
I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
¹²Am I the sea, or ^(CZ)the sea monster,
That You set a guard over me?
¹³If I say, ‘^(DA)My couch will comfort me,
My bed will ^[af]ease my complaint,’
¹⁴Then You frighten me with dreams,
And terrify me by visions,
¹⁵So that my soul would choose suffocation,
Death rather than my ^[ag]pains.
¹⁶I ^[ah]^(DB)waste away; I will not live forever.
Leave me alone, ^(DC)for my days are only a breath.
¹⁷^(DD)What is man that You exalt him,
And that You ^[ai]are concerned about him,
¹⁸That ^(DE)You examine him every morning
And put him to the test every moment?
¹⁹^[aj]^(DF)Will You never turn Your gaze away from me,
Nor leave me alone until I swallow my spittle?
²⁰^(DG)Have I sinned? What have I done to You,
^(DH)Watcher of mankind?
Why have You made me Your target,
So that I am a burden to myself?
²¹Why then ^(DI)do You not forgive my wrongdoing
And take away my ^[ak]guilt?
For now I will ^(DJ)lie down in the dust;
And You will search for me, ^(DK)but I will no longer exist.”

Footnotes

Job 4:2 Lit in words
Job 4:4 Lit knees giving way
Job 4:6 Or reverence for
Job 4:8 I.e., devise
Job 4:9 Lit wind
Job 4:14 Lit the multitude of
Job 4:15 Or wind passed over
Job 4:17 Lit from
Job 4:17 Lit from
Job 5:4 Lit crushed
Job 5:5 Lit Whose harvest the hungry devour
Job 5:5 Ancient versions thirsty
Job 5:9 Or Miracles
Job 5:17 Heb Shaddai, and so throughout ch 6
Job 5:18 Lit binds
Job 5:21 Lit at
Job 5:22 Lit animals of the earth
Job 5:24 Lit not miss
Job 5:25 Lit seed
Job 6:4 Lit Whose poison my spirit drinks
Job 6:6 Heb hallamuth, meaning uncertain
Job 6:10 Lit hidden
Job 6:11 Lit prolong my soul
Job 6:14 Or reverence for
Job 6:15 I.e., dry stream bed(s), except in the rainy season
Job 6:15 I.e., dry stream bed(s), except in the rainy season
Job 6:16 Lit hides itself
Job 6:18 Or caravans turn from their course, they go up into the waste and perish
Job 7:1 Lit Has not man compulsory labor
Job 7:5 Lit melts
Job 7:9 I.e., the netherworld
Job 7:13 Lit bear
Job 7:15 Lit bones
Job 7:16 Or loathe
Job 7:17 Lit set Your heart on
Job 7:19 Lit How long will You not
Job 7:21 Or unjust deed

Psalm 99

New American Standard Bible

Praise to the Lord for His Faithfulness to Israel.

99 ^(A)The Lord reigns, ^[a]the peoples tremble!
He ^(B)sits enthroned above the cherubim, ^[b]the earth quakes!
²The Lord ^[c]is ^(C)great in Zion,
And He is ^(D)exalted above all the peoples.
³May they praise Your ^(E)great and awesome name;
^(F)Holy is ^[d]He.
⁴The ^[e]strength of the King ^(G)loves ^[f]justice;
You have established ^[g]^(H)order;
You have ^(I)executed ^[h]justice and righteousness in Jacob.
⁵^[i]^(J)Exalt the Lord our God
And ^(K)worship at His footstool;
^(L)Holy is He.

⁶^(M)Moses and Aaron were among His ^(N)priests,
And ^(O)Samuel was among those who ^(P)called on His name;
They ^(Q)called upon the Lord and He answered them.
⁷He ^(R)spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
They ^(S)kept His testimonies
And the statute that He gave them.
⁸Lord our God, You ^(T)answered them;
You were a ^(U)forgiving God to them,
And yet an ^(V)avenger of their evil deeds.
⁹Exalt the Lord our God
And worship at His holy hill,
For the Lord our God is holy.

Footnotes

Psalm 99:1 Or let the
Psalm 99:1 Or let the...quake
Psalm 99:2 Or in Zion is great
Psalm 99:3 Or it
Psalm 99:4 Or You have established in equity the strength of the King who loves justice
Psalm 99:4 Or judgment
Psalm 99:4 Or uprightness
Psalm 99:4 Or judgment
Psalm 99:5 The verb is plural

Revelation 11

New American Standard Bible

The Two Witnesses

11 Then there was given to me a ^[a]^(A)measuring rod like a staff; ^[b]and ^(B)someone said, “Get up and measure the ^[c]temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. ²^[d]Leave out the ^(C)courtyard which is outside the ^[e]temple and do not measure it, because ^(D)it has been given to the nations; and they will ^(E)trample ^(F)the holy city for ^(G)forty-two months. ³And I will grant authority to my two ^(H)witnesses, and they will prophesy for ^(I)1,260 days, clothed in ^(J)sackcloth.” ⁴These are the ^(K)two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. ⁵And if anyone wants to harm them, ^(L)fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; and so if anyone wants to harm them, ^(M)he must be killed in this way. ⁶These have the power to ^(N)shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during ^(O)the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to ^(P)turn them into blood, and ^(Q)to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.

⁷When they have finished their testimony, ^(R)the beast that comes up out of the ^(S)abyss will ^(T)make war with them, and overcome them and kill them. ⁸And their dead bodies will lie on the street of the ^(U)great city which ^[f]spiritually is called ^(V)Sodom and ^(W)Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. ⁹Those from ^(X)the peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will look at their dead ^[g]bodies for three and a half days, and ^[h]^(Y)will not allow their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. ¹⁰And ^(Z)those who live on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will ^(AA)send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented ^(AB)those who live on the earth.

¹¹And after the three and a half days, ^(AC)the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them. ¹²And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “^(AD)Come up here.” And they ^(AE)went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them. ¹³And ^[i]at that time there was a great ^(AF)earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; ^[j]seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and ^(AG)gave glory to the ^(AH)God of heaven.

¹⁴The second ^(AI)woe has passed; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

The Seventh Trumpet: Christ’s Reign Foreseen

¹⁵Then the ^(AJ)seventh angel sounded; and there were ^(AK)loud voices in heaven, saying,

“^(AL)The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of ^(AM)His ^[k]Christ; and ^(AN)He will reign forever and ever.” ¹⁶And the twenty-four elders, who ^(AO)sit on their thrones before God, ^(AP)fell on their faces and worshiped God, ¹⁷saying,

“We give You thanks, ^(AQ)Lord God, the Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to ^(AR)reign. ¹⁸And ^(AS)the nations were enraged, and ^(AT)Your wrath came, and ^(AU)the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to ^[l]reward Your ^(AV)bond-servants the prophets and the ^[m]saints and those who fear Your name, ^(AW)the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”

¹⁹And ^(AX)the ^[n]temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and ^(AY)the ark of His covenant appeared in His ^[o]temple, and there were flashes of ^(AZ)lightning and sounds and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a ^(BA)great ^[p]hailstorm.