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
- Job 6:1 Hebrew “And”
- Job 6:6 Hebrew “from without”
- Job 6:7 Literally “My soul/throat refuses”
- Job 6:7 Literally “the illness of my bread/food”
- Job 6:8 Literally “Who would give”
- Job 6:9 Hebrew “and”
- Job 6:9 Hebrew “and”
- Job 6:9 Literally “he would cut me off”
- Job 6:10 Hebrew “And”
- Job 6:10 Literally “he/it does not have compassion,” or “he/it does not have pity,” or “he/it does not spare”
- Job 6:11 Literally “I should make my self long,” or “I should lengthen my self”
- Job 6:13 An interrogative marker plus “if”
- Job 6:14 Or “Kindness”
- Job 6:14 Hebrew “and”
- Job 6:15 A seasonal stream that is often dry
- Job 6:20 Literally “up to it”
- Job 6:21 Plural throughout the rest of this chapter
- Job 6:21 Literally “to it,” or “for it”
- Job 6:22 Hebrew “and”
- Job 6:23 Hebrew “and”
- Job 6:23 Hebrew “And”
- Job 6:24 Emphatic personal pronoun
- Job 6:25 Literally “words of uprightness”
- Job 6:25 Hebrew “And”
- Job 6:25 Literally “reproving from you”
- Job 6:26 Or “Do you intend to reprove with words”
- Job 6:28 Literally “And now,” or “And so then”
- Job 6:28 Hebrew “faces”
- Job 6:29 Hebrew “and”
- Job 6:29 Literally “still my righteousness is in it”
- Job 6:30 Or “calamities”
- Job 7:1 Or a collective singular, “human beings”
- Job 7:1 Literally “hard service for a human being”
- Job 7:1 Or a collective singular, “their”
- Job 7:3 Literally “I am allotted to me”
- Job 7:4 Hebrew “and I say”
- Job 7:4 Hebrew “And”
- Job 7:5 Hebrew “and”
- Job 7:6 Literally “with nothing hope”
- Job 7:8 Hebrew “and”
- Job 7:8 Literally “there is not me,” or “I am not”
- Job 7:11 Or “I on my part”
- Job 7:11 Or “soul’s”
- Job 7:13 Or “bed”
- Job 7:14 Hebrew “and”
- Job 7:14 Or “the dreams”
- Job 7:14 Or “dishearten,” or “frighten”
- Job 7:15 Or “And”
- Job 7:15 Or “soul”
- Job 7:15 Or “I will choose”
- Job 7:15 Literally “bones”
- Job 7:17 Literally “you set on him your heart”
- Job 7:18 Hebrew “and”
- Job 7:18 Literally “for mornings,” or “at mornings”
- Job 7:18 Literally “for moments,” or “at moments”
- Job 7:19 Literally “Like what”
- Job 7:19 Or “my swallowing”
- Job 7:20 Hebrew “and”
- Job 7:20 Some translations translate as “you” (e.g., ESV, NRSV, NIV, NET)
- Job 7:21 Hebrew “and”
- Job 7:21 Literally “there is not me,” or “I am not”
Job 6-7
New King James Version
Job: My Complaint Is Just
6 Then Job answered and said:
2 “Oh, that my grief were fully weighed,
And my calamity laid with it on the scales!
3 For then it would be heavier than the sand of the sea—
Therefore my words have been rash.
4 (A)For the arrows of the Almighty are within me;
My spirit drinks in their poison;
(B)The terrors of God are arrayed (C)against me.
5 Does the (D)wild donkey bray when it has grass,
Or does the ox low over its fodder?
6 Can flavorless food be eaten without salt?
Or is there any taste in the white of an egg?
7 My soul refuses to touch them;
They are as loathsome food to me.
8 “Oh, that I might have my request,
That God would grant me the thing that I long for!
9 That it would please God to crush me,
That He would loose His hand and (E)cut me off!
10 Then I would still have comfort;
Though in anguish I would exult,
He will not spare;
For (F)I have not concealed the words of (G)the Holy One.
11 “What strength do I have, that I should hope?
And what is my end, that I should prolong my life?
12 Is my strength the strength of stones?
Or is my flesh bronze?
13 Is my help not within me?
And is success driven from me?
14 “To(H) him who is [a]afflicted, kindness should be shown by his friend,
Even though he forsakes the fear of the Almighty.
15 (I)My brothers have dealt deceitfully like a brook,
(J)Like the streams of the brooks that pass away,
16 Which are dark because of the ice,
And into which the snow vanishes.
17 When it is warm, they cease to flow;
When it is hot, they vanish from their place.
18 The paths of their way turn aside,
They go nowhere and perish.
19 The caravans of (K)Tema look,
The travelers of (L)Sheba hope for them.
20 They are (M)disappointed[b] because they were confident;
They come there and are confused.
21 For now (N)you are nothing,
You see terror and (O)are afraid.
22 Did I ever say, ‘Bring something to me’?
Or, ‘Offer a bribe for me from your wealth’?
23 Or, ‘Deliver me from the enemy’s hand’?
Or, ‘Redeem me from the hand of oppressors’?
24 “Teach me, and I will hold my tongue;
Cause me to understand wherein I have erred.
25 How forceful are right words!
But what does your arguing prove?
26 Do you intend to rebuke my words,
And the speeches of a desperate one, which are as wind?
27 Yes, you overwhelm the fatherless,
And you (P)undermine your friend.
28 Now therefore, be pleased to look at me;
For I would never lie to your face.
29 (Q)Yield now, let there be no injustice!
Yes, concede, my (R)righteousness [c]still stands!
30 Is there injustice on my tongue?
Cannot my [d]taste discern the unsavory?
Job: My Suffering Is Comfortless
7 “Is there not (S)a time of hard service for man on earth?
Are not his days also like the days of a hired man?
2 Like a servant who [e]earnestly desires the shade,
And like a hired man who eagerly looks for his wages,
3 So I have been allotted (T)months of futility,
And wearisome nights have been appointed to me.
4 (U)When I lie down, I say, ‘When shall I arise,
And the night be ended?’
For I have had my fill of tossing till dawn.
5 My flesh is (V)caked with worms and dust,
My skin is cracked and breaks out afresh.
6 “My(W) days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
And are spent without hope.
7 Oh, remember that (X)my life is a breath!
My eye will never again see good.
8 (Y)The eye of him who sees me will see me no more;
While your eyes are upon me, I shall no longer be.
9 As the cloud disappears and vanishes away,
So (Z)he who goes down to the grave does not come up.
10 He shall never return to his house,
(AA)Nor shall his place know him anymore.
11 “Therefore I will (AB)not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
I will (AC)complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I a sea, or a sea serpent,
That You set a guard over me?
13 (AD)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 my soul chooses strangling
And death rather than [f]my body.
16 (AE)I loathe my life;
I would not live forever.
(AF)Let me alone,
For (AG)my days are but [g]a breath.
17 “What(AH) is man, that You should exalt him,
That You should set Your heart on him,
18 That You should [h]visit him every morning,
And test him every moment?
19 How long?
Will You not look away from me,
And let me alone till I swallow my saliva?
20 Have I sinned?
What have I done to You, (AI)O watcher of men?
Why (AJ)have You set me as Your target,
So that I am a burden [i]to myself?
21 Why then do You not pardon my transgression,
And take away my iniquity?
For now I will lie down in the dust,
And You will seek me diligently,
But I will no longer be.”
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
