Job 9
International Children’s Bible
Job Answers Bildad
9 Then Job answered:
2 “Yes, I know that this is true.
But how can man be right in the presence of God?
3 A person might want to argue with God.
But he could not answer God one time out of a thousand.
4 God’s wisdom is deep, and his power is great.
No one can fight God without being hurt.
5 God moves mountains without anyone knowing it.
He turns mountains over when he is angry.
6 God shakes the earth out of its place.
And he makes the earth’s foundations shake.
7 God commands the sun not to shine.
He shuts off the light of the stars.
8 God alone stretches out the skies.
And he walks on the waves of the sea.
9 It is God who made the Bear, Orion and the Pleiades[a]
and the groups of stars in the southern sky.
10 God does wonderful things that people cannot understand.
He does so many miracles they cannot be counted.
11 When he passes me, I cannot see him.
When he goes by me, I cannot recognize him.
12 If God snatches something away, no one can stop him.
No one can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’
13 God will not hold back his anger.
Even the helpers of the monster Rahab lie at God’s feet in fear.
14 So how can I argue with God?
I cannot find words to argue with him.
15 Even if I was right, I could not answer him.
I could only beg God, my Judge, for mercy.
16 I might call to him. But even if he answered,
I still would not believe he would listen to me.
17 God would crush me with a storm.
He would multiply my hurts for no reason.
18 He would not let me catch my breath.
He would overwhelm me with misery.
19 When it comes to strength, God is stronger than I.
And when it comes to justice, no one can accuse him!
20 Even if I were right, my own mouth would say I was wrong.
If I were innocent, my mouth would say I was guilty.
21 “I am innocent.
But I don’t think about myself.
I hate my own life.
22 It is all the same. That is why I say,
‘God destroys both the innocent and the evil people.’
23 A whip may bring sudden death.
And God will laugh when good people suffer.
24 When land falls into the hands of evil people,
God covers the judges’ faces so they can’t see it.
If it is not God who does this, then who is it?
25 “My days go by faster than a runner.
They fly away without my seeing even a little joy.
26 They glide past like boats made of papyrus plants.
My days are like eagles that swoop down on animals they attack.
27 I might say, ‘I will forget my complaint.
I will change the look on my face, and smile.’
28 But I will still dread all my suffering.
I know you will hold me guilty.
29 I have already been found guilty.
So why should I struggle for no reason?
30 I might wash myself with soap.
And I might even wash my hands with strong soap.
31 But you would push me into a dirty pit.
And even my clothes would hate me.
32 “God is not a man like me. So I cannot answer him.
We cannot meet each other in court.
33 I wish there was someone to make peace between us.
I wish someone could decide our case.
34 I wish someone could remove God’s punishment from me.
Then his terror would not frighten me anymore.
35 Then I could speak up without being afraid of God.
But I am not able to do that.
Footnotes
- 9:9 Bear . . . Pleiades Names of well-known groups of stars.
Job 9
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Job Replies: There Is No Mediator
9 Then Job answered:
2 “Indeed, I know that this is so,
but how can a mortal be just before God?(A)
3 If one wished to contend with him,
one could not answer him once in a thousand.(B)
4 He is wise in heart and mighty in strength;
who has resisted him and succeeded?(C)
5 He removes mountains, and they do not know it
when he overturns them in his anger;
6 he shakes the earth out of its place,
and its pillars tremble;(D)
7 he commands the sun, and it does not rise;
he seals up the stars;
8 he alone stretched out the heavens
and trampled the waves of the Sea;[a](E)
9 he made the Bear and Orion,
the Pleiades and the chambers of the south;(F)
10 he does great things beyond understanding
and marvelous things without number.(G)
11 Look, he passes by me, and I do not see him;
he moves on, but I do not perceive him.(H)
12 He snatches away; who can stop him?
Who will say to him, ‘What are you doing?’(I)
13 “God will not turn back his anger;
the helpers of Rahab bowed beneath him.(J)
14 How then can I answer him,
choosing my words with him?
15 Though I am innocent, I cannot answer him;
I must appeal to my accuser for my right.(K)
16 If I summoned him and he answered me,
I do not believe that he would listen to my voice.
17 For he crushes me with a tempest
and multiplies my wounds without cause;(L)
18 he will not let me get my breath
but fills me with bitterness.(M)
19 If it is a contest of strength, he is the strong one!
If it is a matter of justice, who can summon him?[b]
20 Though I am innocent, my own mouth would condemn me;
though I am blameless, he would prove me perverse.
21 I am blameless; I do not know myself;
I loathe my life.(N)
22 It is all one; therefore I say,
‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’(O)
23 When disaster brings sudden death,
he mocks at the calamity[c] of the innocent.(P)
24 The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;
he covers the eyes of its judges—
if it is not he, who then is it?(Q)
25 “My days are swifter than a runner;
they flee away; they see no good.
26 They go by like skiffs of reed,
like an eagle swooping on the prey.(R)
27 If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint;
I will put off my sad countenance and be of good cheer,’
28 I become afraid of all my suffering,
for I know you will not hold me innocent.
29 I shall be condemned;
why then do I labor in vain?(S)
30 If I wash myself with soap
and cleanse my hands with lye,(T)
31 yet you will plunge me into filth,
and my own clothes will abhor me.
32 For he is not a mortal, as I am, that I might answer him,
that we should come to trial together.(U)
33 There is no mediator[d] between us,
who might lay his hand on us both.(V)
34 If he would take his rod away from me
and not let dread of him terrify me,(W)
35 then I would speak without fear of him,
for I know I am not what I am thought to be.[e]
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.