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Job 6-7
Lexham English Bible

Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

6 Then[a] Job answered and said,

2 “If only my vexation could be well weighed,
and my calamity could be lifted up together with it in the balances,
3 for then it would be heavier than the sand of the seas;
therefore my words have been rash,
4 for the arrows of Shaddai are in me;
my spirit drinks their poison;
the terrors of God are arrayed against me.
5 Does the wild ass bray over grass,
or the ox bellow over its fodder?
6 Can tasteless food be eaten without[b] salt,
or is there taste in the white of a marshmallow plant?
7 I refused[c] to touch them;
they are like food that will make me ill.[d]
8 “O that[e] my request may come,
and that God may grant my hope,
9 that[f] God would decide that[g] he would crush me,
that he would let loose his hand and kill me.[h]
10 But[i] it will still be my consolation,
and I would recoil in unrelenting[j] pain,
for I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
11 What is my strength, that I should wait?
And what is my end, that I should hold out?[k]
12 Or is my strength like the strength of stones?
Or is my flesh bronze?
13 Indeed,[l] my help is not in me,
and any success is driven from me.
14 “Loyal love[m] should come for the afflicted from his friend,
even if[n] he forsakes the fear of Shaddai.
15 My companions are treacherous like a torrent-bed;
like a streambed of wadis[o] they flow away,
16 which are growing dark because of ice upon them,
it will pile up snow.
17 In time they dry up, they disappear;
when it is hot, they vanish from their place.
18 The paths of their way wind around;
they go up into the wasteland, and they perish.
19 The caravans of Tema looked;
the traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them.
20 They are disappointed, because they trusted;
they came here[p] and they are confounded.
21 “For now you[q] have become such;[r]
you see terrors, and you fear.
22 Is it because I have said, ‘Give to me,’
or,[s] ‘Offer a bribe for me from your wealth’?
23 or,[t] ‘Save me from the foe’s hand,’
or,[u] ‘Ransom me from the tyrants’ hand’?
24 Teach me, and I myself[v] will be silent;
and make me understand how I have gone astray.
25 How painful are upright words![w]
But[x] what does your reproof[y] reprove?
26 Do you intend to reprove my words[z]
and consider the words of a desperate man as wind?
27 Even over the orphan you would cast the lot,
and you would bargain over your friend.
28 “Therefore[aa] be prepared, turn to me,
and I surely will not lie to your face.[ab]
29 Please turn, let no injustice happen;
indeed,[ac] turn, my righteousness is still intact.[ad]
30 Is there injustice on my tongue?
Or can my palate not discern calamity?[ae]

Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

7 “Does not a human being[af] have hard service[ag] on earth?
And are not his[ah] days like the days of a laborer?
2 Like a slave he longs for the shadow,
and like a laborer he waits for his wages.
3 So I had to inherit[ai] months of worthlessness,
and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
4 When I lie down, I say,[aj] ‘When shall I rise?’
But[ak] the night is long,
and I have my fill of tossing until dawn.
5 My body is clothed with maggots and clods of dust;
my skin hardens, then[al] it gives way again.
6 “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
and they come to an end without hope.[am]
7 Remember that my life is a breath;
my eye will not return to see good.
8 The eye of the one seeing me will not see me;
your eyes are upon me, but[an] I will be gone.[ao]
9 A cloud vanishes, and it goes away,
so he who goes down to Sheol will not come up.
10 He does not return again to his house,
and his place does not recognize him again.
11 “Even[ap] I will not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in my spirit’s anguish;
I will complain in my inner self’s[aq] bitterness.
12 Am I the sea, or a sea monster,
that you set a guard over me?
13 When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
and my couch[ar] will ease my complaint,’
14 then[as] you terrify me with dreams,[at]
and with visions you terrify[au] me.
15 So[av] my inner self[aw] will choose[ax] strangling—
death more than my existence.[ay]
16 I loathe my life; I would not live forever;
depart from me, for my days are a breath.
17 “What is a human being that you make him great
and that you fix your mind on him,[az]
18 so that[ba] you visit him every morning,[bb]
you test him every moment?[bc]
19 How long[bd] will you not turn away from me?
Or not leave me alone until I swallow[be] my spit?
20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you, watcher of humanity?
Why have you made me as a target for yourself,
so that[bf] I have become a burden to myself?[bg]
21 And why do you not pardon my transgression
and take away my guilt?
For now I shall lie in the dust,
and you will seek me, but[bh] I will be no more.”[bi]

Footnotes

  1. Job 6:1 Hebrew “And”
  2. Job 6:6 Hebrew “from without”
  3. Job 6:7 Literally “My soul/throat refuses”
  4. Job 6:7 Literally “the illness of my bread/food”
  5. Job 6:8 Literally “Who would give”
  6. Job 6:9 Hebrew “and”
  7. Job 6:9 Hebrew “and”
  8. Job 6:9 Literally “he would cut me off”
  9. Job 6:10 Hebrew “And”
  10. Job 6:10 Literally “he/it does not have compassion,” or “he/it does not have pity,” or “he/it does not spare”
  11. Job 6:11 Literally “I should make my self long,” or “I should lengthen my self”
  12. Job 6:13 An interrogative marker plus “if”
  13. Job 6:14 Or “Kindness”
  14. Job 6:14 Hebrew “and”
  15. Job 6:15 A seasonal stream that is often dry
  16. Job 6:20 Literally “up to it”
  17. Job 6:21 Plural throughout the rest of this chapter
  18. Job 6:21 Literally “to it,” or “for it”
  19. Job 6:22 Hebrew “and”
  20. Job 6:23 Hebrew “and”
  21. Job 6:23 Hebrew “And”
  22. Job 6:24 Emphatic personal pronoun
  23. Job 6:25 Literally “words of uprightness”
  24. Job 6:25 Hebrew “And”
  25. Job 6:25 Literally “reproving from you”
  26. Job 6:26 Or “Do you intend to reprove with words”
  27. Job 6:28 Literally “And now,” or “And so then”
  28. Job 6:28 Hebrew “faces”
  29. Job 6:29 Hebrew “and”
  30. Job 6:29 Literally “still my righteousness is in it”
  31. Job 6:30 Or “calamities”
  32. Job 7:1 Or a collective singular, “human beings”
  33. Job 7:1 Literally “hard service for a human being”
  34. Job 7:1 Or a collective singular, “their”
  35. Job 7:3 Literally “I am allotted to me”
  36. Job 7:4 Hebrew “and I say”
  37. Job 7:4 Hebrew “And”
  38. Job 7:5 Hebrew “and”
  39. Job 7:6 Literally “with nothing hope”
  40. Job 7:8 Hebrew “and”
  41. Job 7:8 Literally “there is not me,” or “I am not”
  42. Job 7:11 Or “I on my part”
  43. Job 7:11 Or “soul’s”
  44. Job 7:13 Or “bed”
  45. Job 7:14 Hebrew “and”
  46. Job 7:14 Or “the dreams”
  47. Job 7:14 Or “dishearten,” or “frighten”
  48. Job 7:15 Or “And”
  49. Job 7:15 Or “soul”
  50. Job 7:15 Or “I will choose”
  51. Job 7:15 Literally “bones”
  52. Job 7:17 Literally “you set on him your heart”
  53. Job 7:18 Hebrew “and”
  54. Job 7:18 Literally “for mornings,” or “at mornings”
  55. Job 7:18 Literally “for moments,” or “at moments”
  56. Job 7:19 Literally “Like what”
  57. Job 7:19 Or “my swallowing”
  58. Job 7:20 Hebrew “and”
  59. Job 7:20 Some translations translate as “you” (e.g., ESV, NRSV, NIV, NET)
  60. Job 7:21 Hebrew “and”
  61. Job 7:21 Literally “there is not me,” or “I am not”
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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

  1. 6:4 Lit Almighty are in
  2. 6:6 Hb obscure
  3. 6:10 Lit hidden
  4. 6:14 Lit To the despairing his friend loyalty
  5. 6:16 Or turbid
  6. 6:21 Alt Hb tradition reads So you have now become nothing
  7. 7:5 Or and dirty scabs
  8. 7:5 Lit skin hardens
  9. 7:10 Lit know
  10. 7:12 Or the sea god
  11. 7:15 Or suffocation
  12. 7:15 Lit than my bones
  13. 7:16 Or are futile
  14. 7:19 Lit swallow my saliva?
  15. 7:20 Alt Hb tradition, LXX; MT, Vg read myself
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