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New Living Translation
Rich and poor are both there, and the slave is free from his master.
The Message
What a Blessing When God Corrects You!
“If I were in your shoes, I’d go straight to God, I’d throw myself on the mercy of God. After all, he’s famous for great and unexpected acts; there’s no end to his surprises. He gives rain, for instance, across the wide earth, sends water to irrigate the fields. He raises up the down-and-out, gives firm footing to those sinking in grief. He aborts the schemes of conniving crooks, so that none of their plots come to term. He catches the know-it-alls in their conspiracies— all that intricate intrigue swept out with the trash! Suddenly they’re disoriented, plunged into darkness; they can’t see to put one foot in front of the other. But the downtrodden are saved by God, saved from the murderous plots, saved from the iron fist. And so the poor continue to hope, while injustice is bound and gagged.
New Living Translation
He gives prosperity to the poor and protects those who suffer.
New Living Translation
He rescues the poor from the cutting words of the strong, and rescues them from the clutches of the powerful.King James Version
But he saveth the poor from the sword, from their mouth, and from the hand of the mighty.
The Message
“They savor evil as a delicacy, roll it around on their tongues, Prolong the flavor, a dalliance in decadence— real gourmets of evil! But then they get stomach cramps, a bad case of food poisoning. They gag on all that rich food; God makes them vomit it up. They gorge on evil, make a diet of that poison— a deadly diet—and it kills them. No quiet picnics for them beside gentle streams with fresh-baked bread and cheese, and tall, cool drinks. They spit out their food half-chewed, unable to relax and enjoy anything they’ve worked for. And why? Because they exploited the poor, took what never belonged to them.
The Message
Eliphaz Attacks Job—The Third Round
Come to Terms with God
Once again Eliphaz the Temanite took up his theme: “Are any of us strong enough to give God a hand, or smart enough to give him advice? So what if you were righteous—would God Almighty even notice? Even if you gave a perfect performance, do you think he’d applaud? Do you think it’s because he cares about your purity that he’s disciplining you, putting you on the spot? Hardly! It’s because you’re a first-class moral failure, because there’s no end to your sins. When people came to you for help, you took the shirts off their backs, exploited their helplessness. You wouldn’t so much as give a drink to the thirsty, or food, not even a scrap, to the hungry. And there you sat, strong and honored by everyone, surrounded by immense wealth! You turned poor widows away from your door; heartless, you crushed orphans. Now you’re the one trapped in terror, paralyzed by fear. Suddenly the tables have turned! How do you like living in the dark, sightless, up to your neck in flood waters?
The Message
An Illusion of Security
“But if Judgment Day isn’t hidden from the Almighty, why are we kept in the dark? There are people out there getting by with murder— stealing and lying and cheating. They rip off the poor and exploit the unfortunate, Push the helpless into the ditch, bully the weak so that they fear for their lives. The poor, like stray dogs and cats, scavenge for food in back alleys. They sort through the garbage of the rich, eke out survival on handouts. Homeless, they shiver through cold nights on the street; they’ve no place to lay their heads. Exposed to the weather, wet and frozen, they huddle in makeshift shelters. Nursing mothers have their babies snatched from them; the infants of the poor are kidnapped and sold. They go about patched and threadbare; even the hard workers go hungry. No matter how backbreaking their labor, they can never make ends meet. People are dying right and left, groaning in torment. The wretched cry out for help and God does nothing, acts like nothing’s wrong!
New Living Translation
The poor must go about naked, without any clothing. They harvest food for others while they themselves are starving.
The Message
“Then there are those who avoid light at all costs, who scorn the light-filled path. When the sun goes down, the murderer gets up— kills the poor and robs the defenseless. Sexual predators can’t wait for nightfall, thinking, ‘No one can see us now.’ Burglars do their work at night, but keep well out of sight through the day. They want nothing to do with light. Deep darkness is morning for that bunch; they make the terrors of darkness their companions in crime.
The Message
“I’ll quote your own words back to you: “‘This is how God treats the wicked, this is what evil people can expect from God Almighty: Their children—all of them—will die violent deaths; they’ll never have enough bread to put on the table. They’ll be wiped out by the plague, and none of the widows will shed a tear when they’re gone. Even if they make a lot of money and are resplendent in the latest fashions, It’s the good who will end up wearing the clothes and the decent who will divide up the money. They build elaborate houses that won’t survive a single winter. They go to bed wealthy and wake up poor. Terrors pour in on them like flash floods— a tornado snatches them away in the middle of the night, A cyclone sweeps them up—gone! Not a trace of them left, not even a footprint. Catastrophes relentlessly pursue them; they run this way and that, but there’s no place to hide— Pummeled by the weather, blown to smithereens by the storm.’”
New Living Translation
I was a father to the poor and assisted strangers who needed help.King James Version
I was a father to the poor: and the cause which I knew not I searched out.
The Message
“What did I do to deserve this? Did I ever hit anyone who was calling for help? Haven’t I wept for those who live a hard life, been heartsick over the lot of the poor? But where did it get me? I expected good but evil showed up. I looked for light but darkness fell. My stomach’s in a constant churning, never settles down. Each day confronts me with more suffering. I walk under a black cloud. The sun is gone. I stand in the congregation and protest. I howl with the jackals, I hoot with the owls. I’m black-and-blue all over, burning up with fever. My fiddle plays nothing but the blues; my mouth harp wails laments.”
The Message
God Is Working Behind the Scenes
“So, Job, use your head; this is all pretty obvious. Can someone who hates order, keep order? Do you dare condemn the righteous, mighty God? Doesn’t God always tell it like it is, exposing corrupt rulers as scoundrels and criminals? Does he play favorites with the rich and famous and slight the poor? Isn’t he equally responsible to everybody? Don’t people who deserve it die without notice? Don’t wicked rulers tumble to their doom? When the so-called great ones are wiped out, we know God is working behind the scenes.
