Job 6-7
Christian Standard Bible
Job’s Reply to Eliphaz
6 Then Job answered:
2 If only my grief could be weighed
and my devastation(A) placed with it on the scales.(B)
3 For then it would outweigh the sand of the seas!
That is why my words are rash.
4 Surely the arrows of the Almighty have pierced[a] me;
my spirit drinks their poison.
God’s terrors are arrayed against me.(C)
5 Does a wild donkey bray over fresh grass
or an ox low over its fodder?
6 Is bland food eaten without salt?
Is there flavor in an egg white?[b]
7 I refuse to touch them;
they are like contaminated food.(D)
8 If only my request would be granted
and God would provide what I hope for:
9 that he would decide to crush me,
to unleash his power and cut me off!
10 It would still bring me comfort,
and I would leap for joy in unrelenting pain
that I have not denied[c] the words of the Holy One.(E)
11 What strength do I have, that I should continue to hope?
What is my future, that I should be patient?
12 Is my strength that of stone,
or my flesh made of bronze?
13 Since I cannot help myself,
the hope for success has been banished from me.
14 A despairing man should receive loyalty from his friends,[d](F)
even if he abandons the fear of the Almighty.
15 My brothers are as treacherous as a wadi,
as seasonal streams that overflow
16 and become darkened[e] because of ice,
and the snow melts into them.
17 The wadis evaporate in warm weather;
they disappear from their channels in hot weather.
18 Caravans turn away from their routes,
go up into the desert, and perish.
19 The caravans of Tema look for these streams.
The traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them.
20 They are ashamed because they had been confident of finding water.
When they arrive there, they are disappointed.(G)
21 So this is what you have now become to me.[f]
When you see something dreadful, you are afraid.
22 Have I ever said, “Give me something”
or “Pay a bribe for me from your wealth”
23 or “Deliver me from the enemy’s hand”
or “Redeem me from the hand of the ruthless”?
24 Teach me, and I will be silent.
Help me understand what I did wrong.
25 How painful honest words can be!
But what does your rebuke prove?
26 Do you think that you can disprove my words
or that a despairing man’s words are mere wind?(H)
27 No doubt you would cast lots for a fatherless child
and negotiate a price to sell your friend.(I)
28 But now, please look at me;
I will not lie to your face.(J)
29 Reconsider; don’t be unjust.
Reconsider; my righteousness(K) is still the issue.
30 Is there injustice on my tongue
or can my palate not taste disaster?(L)
7 Isn’t each person consigned to forced labor(M) on earth?
Are not his days like those of a hired worker?
2 Like a slave he longs for shade;
like a hired worker he waits for his pay.
3 So I have been made to inherit months of futility,
and troubled nights have been assigned to me.(N)
4 When I lie down I think,
“When will I get up?”
But the evening drags on endlessly,
and I toss and turn until dawn.
5 My flesh is clothed with maggots and encrusted with dirt.[g]
My skin forms scabs[h] and then oozes.(O)
6 My days pass more swiftly than a weaver’s shuttle;
they come to an end without hope.(P)
7 Remember that my life is but a breath.
My eye will never again see anything good.(Q)
8 The eye of anyone who looks on me
will no longer see me.
Your eyes will look for me, but I will be gone.(R)
9 As a cloud fades away and vanishes,
so the one who goes down to Sheol(S) will never rise again.
10 He will never return to his house;
his hometown will no longer remember[i] him.(T)
11 Therefore I will not restrain my mouth.
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I the sea[j](U) or a sea monster,(V)
that you keep me under guard?
13 When I say, “My bed will comfort me,
and my couch will ease my complaint,”
14 then you frighten me with dreams,
and terrify me with visions,(W)
15 so that I prefer strangling[k]—
death rather than life in this body.[l](X)
16 I give up! I will not live forever.
Leave me alone,(Y) for my days are a breath.[m]
17 What is a mere human, that you think so highly of him
and pay so much attention to him?(Z)
18 You inspect him every morning,
and put him to the test every moment.(AA)
19 Will you ever look away from me,
or leave me alone long enough to swallow?[n]
20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you,
Watcher of humanity?
Why have you made me your target,(AB)
so that I have become a burden to you?[o]
21 Why not forgive my sin
and pardon my iniquity?(AC)
For soon I will lie down in the grave.(AD)
You will eagerly seek me, but I will be gone.(AE)
Footnotes
- 6:4 Lit Almighty are in
- 6:6 Hb obscure
- 6:10 Lit hidden
- 6:14 Lit To the despairing his friend loyalty
- 6:16 Or turbid
- 6:21 Alt Hb tradition reads So you have now become nothing
- 7:5 Or and dirty scabs
- 7:5 Lit skin hardens
- 7:10 Lit know
- 7:12 Or the sea god
- 7:15 Or suffocation
- 7:15 Lit than my bones
- 7:16 Or are futile
- 7:19 Lit swallow my saliva?
- 7:20 Alt Hb tradition, LXX; MT, Vg read myself
Job 6-7
English Standard Version
Job Replies: My Complaint Is Just
6 Then Job answered and said:
2 “Oh that my vexation were weighed,
and all my calamity laid in the balances!
3 For then it would be heavier than (A)the sand of the sea;
therefore my words have been rash.
4 For (B)the arrows of the Almighty are in me;
my spirit drinks their poison;
the terrors of God are arrayed against me.
5 Does the wild donkey bray when he has grass,
or the ox low over his fodder?
6 Can that which is tasteless be eaten without salt,
or is there any taste in the juice of the mallow?[a]
7 My appetite refuses to touch them;
they are as food that is loathsome to me.[b]
8 “Oh that I might have my request,
and that God would fulfill my hope,
9 that it would (C)please God to crush me,
that he would let loose his hand and cut me off!
10 This would be my comfort;
I would even exult[c] in pain (D)unsparing,
for I have not denied the words of (E)the Holy One.
11 What is my strength, that I should wait?
And what is my end, that I should be patient?
12 Is my strength the strength of stones, or is my flesh bronze?
13 Have I any help in me,
when resource is driven from me?
14 “He who (F)withholds[d] kindness from a (G)friend
forsakes the fear of the Almighty.
15 My (H)brothers are (I)treacherous as a torrent-bed,
as torrential (J)streams that pass away,
16 which are dark with ice,
and where the snow hides itself.
17 When they melt, they disappear;
when it is hot, they vanish from their place.
18 The caravans turn aside from their course;
they go up into (K)the waste and perish.
19 The caravans of (L)Tema look,
the travelers of (M)Sheba hope.
20 They are (N)ashamed because they were confident;
they come there and are (O)disappointed.
21 For you have now become nothing;
you see my calamity and are afraid.
22 Have I said, ‘Make me a gift’?
Or, ‘From your wealth offer a bribe for me’?
23 Or, ‘Deliver me from the adversary's hand’?
Or, ‘Redeem me from the hand of (P)the ruthless’?
24 “Teach me, and I will be silent;
make me understand how I have gone astray.
25 How forceful are upright words!
But what does reproof from you reprove?
26 Do you think that you can reprove words,
when the speech of a despairing man is (Q)wind?
27 You would even (R)cast lots over the fatherless,
and bargain over your friend.
28 “But now, be pleased to look at me,
for I will not lie to your face.
29 (S)Please turn; let no injustice be done.
Turn now; my vindication is at stake.
30 Is there any injustice on my tongue?
Cannot my palate discern the cause of calamity?
Job Continues: My Life Has No Hope
7 “Has not man (T)a hard service on earth,
and are not his (U)days like the days of a hired hand?
2 Like a slave who longs for (V)the shadow,
and like (W)a hired hand who looks for his (X)wages,
3 so I am allotted months of (Y)emptiness,
(Z)and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
4 (AA)When I lie down I say, ‘When shall I arise?’
But the night is long,
and I am full of tossing till the dawn.
5 My flesh is clothed with (AB)worms and (AC)dirt;
my skin hardens, then (AD)breaks out afresh.
6 My days are (AE)swifter than (AF)a weaver's shuttle
and come to their end without hope.
7 “Remember that my life is a (AG)breath;
my eye will never again see good.
8 (AH)The eye of him who sees me will behold me no more;
while your eyes are on me, (AI)I shall be gone.
9 As (AJ)the cloud fades and vanishes,
so he who (AK)goes down to Sheol does not come up;
10 he (AL)returns no more to his house,
nor does his (AM)place know him anymore.
11 “Therefore I will not (AN)restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
I will (AO)complain in (AP)the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I the sea, or (AQ)a sea monster,
that you set a guard over me?
13 (AR)When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
my couch will ease my complaint,’
14 then you scare me with dreams
and terrify me with visions,
15 so that I would choose strangling
and death rather than my (AS)bones.
16 I (AT)loathe my life; I would not live forever.
(AU)Leave me alone, for my days are (AV)a breath.
17 (AW)What is man, that you make so much of him,
and that you set your heart on him,
18 (AX)visit him every morning
and (AY)test him every moment?
19 How long will you not (AZ)look away from me,
nor leave me alone till I swallow my spit?
20 If I sin, what do I do to you, you watcher of mankind?
Why have you made me (BA)your mark?
Why have I become a burden to you?
21 Why do you not pardon my transgression
and take away my iniquity?
For now I shall lie in (BB)the earth;
you will (BC)seek me, (BD)but I shall not be.”
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
