Bible in 90 Days
Bildad speaks a third time[a]
25 Then Bildad, the man from Shuah, replied. This is what he said:
2 ‘God rules everything
and we should be afraid of his great power.
In heaven above he causes there to be peace.
3 The number of angels in his armies are too many to count.
His light shines over everyone.
4 No human is righteous when he stands in front of God.
He cannot be pure.
5 When God looks at the moon and the stars,
they do not seem to be pure and bright.
6 So when God looks at us humans,
we do not seem important to him.
To him, we are as useless as worms.’
Job replies to Bildad[b]
26 Then Job replied. This is what he said:
2 ‘Do not think that you have helped me,
a weak and helpless man.
Nothing that you have said makes me feel stronger.
3 What good advice have you given me
to make me wise?
You have not really shown me how clever you are!
4 Someone must have helped you to say these wise words.
Who has put all these thoughts in your minds?
5 Dead people shake with fear.
They are under the deep waters.
6 God sees everything that happens
in the place of dead people.
Nothing can hide that terrible place from him.
7 He puts the skies in their place in the north,
so that they cover empty space.
He hangs the earth in the skies
and it stays there.
8 He fills the clouds with water.
They become heavy but they do not break.
9 When the moon is big and round, he hides it.
He causes clouds to cover it.
10 He marks the border between the sea and the sky.
It is the place where the night finishes and the day begins.
11 When God is angry,
he shouts at the pillars under the sky.
When they hear his command,
they shake with fear.
12 He used his power to control the sea.
He used his wisdom to destroy Rahab,
the great sea monster.
13 He used his breath to make the sky become bright.
With his hand he cut the great sea snake
as it ran away.
14 These are only a few of the things that God does.
We only know about a few small things.
If he used all of his power,
we could never understand.’
Job continues to speak
27 Job continued to speak. This is what he said:
2 ‘Almighty God has not been fair to me.
He has caused my life to be very sad.
As surely as he lives, I promise this:
3 As long as God's Spirit gives me life,
4 I will never speak any lies.
I will always be honest.
5 I will never agree that you, my three friends, are right.
Until the day of my death,
I will continue to say what I know is right.
6 I will never agree that I am guilty.
During all of my life,
my thoughts do not say that I am doing anything wrong.
7 I pray that God will punish my enemies
as he punishes all wicked people.
They do bad things to me,
so they deserve punishment.
8 When God chooses to remove wicked people,
they cannot hope for any good thing.
God will cause them to die.
9 When they are in trouble and they pray for help,
God will not listen to them.
10 People like that are not happy that Almighty God is their friend.
They do not like to pray to him all the time.
11 I will teach you about the power of Almighty God.
I will explain to you what he is thinking.
12 You yourselves have all seen what God has done.
So you should stop saying all these useless things!
13 I will tell you what Almighty God does to wicked people.
He punishes cruel people as they deserve.
14 Wicked people may have many children,
but they will die in war.
Their children will never have enough food to eat.
15 Illness will kill any children who continue to live.
Their widows will not weep when they are dead.
16 Wicked people may have lots of money.
They may have silver like heaps of sand.
They may have more clothes than they could ever wear.
17 But one day righteous people will wear those clothes.
Honest people will share the silver among themselves.
18 The houses that wicked people build are not strong.
They are as weak as a spider's web,[c]
or a shepherd's hut,
19 Their riches quickly disappear.
They are rich when they go to sleep,
but poor when they wake up.
20 Troubles come to them like a flood of water,
and they are very afraid.
A storm comes in the night to carry them away.
21 The east wind picks them up and takes then far away.[d]
It removes them from their homes.
22 It is a strong wind that hits wicked people
and it never stops.
It continues to beat them as they try to escape.
23 The cruel wind laughs at them
as they run away in fear.’
Wisdom only comes from God
28 ‘If people want to find silver,
they can dig it out of the ground.
They also have places where they can make gold pure.
2 They know how to take iron from under the ground.
They can also use heat to get copper from rocks.
3 People take light into dark places under the ground.
They look carefully for valuable metals.
4 They dig deep holes in the ground
far away from places where people live.
Other people do not know about those places.
People hang on ropes as they go deep down into the earth.
5 We grow our food on the earth above.
But deep under the ground, people use fire to break the rocks.
6 Sapphires come from the rocks in those places.[e]
The dust there contains gold.
7 Even eagles or other birds with good eyes
do not see those places.
8 Lions and other wild animals do not walk there.
9 People break into the hard rocks.
They turn over rocks under the mountains.
10 They cut holes through the rocks.
They discover stones that are very valuable.
11 They look carefully in the springs of water
where rivers start.
They bring into the light things that were hidden away.
12 But as for wisdom,
people do not know where to find it.
They cannot learn how to understand things properly.
13 Humans do not understand the value of wisdom.
They cannot find it in this world where people live.
14 Wisdom is not in the sea.
Even in the deepest sea, no one will find it.
15 Nobody can buy wisdom.
You may have lots of gold and silver,
but you can never buy wisdom.
16 All the pure gold from Ophir will not be enough to buy it.
It is worth more than valuable onyx or sapphires.
17 Neither gold nor beautiful glass is as valuable as wisdom.
A whole pot full of gold could not buy it.
18 As for coral and jasper,
they are not nearly as valuable as wisdom.[f]
Its price is more than the price of rubies.
19 Topaz from Ethiopia is not as valuable as wisdom.
No one can buy it,
not even with pure gold.[g]
20 So where can we find wisdom?
Where can we learn to understand things properly?
21 We cannot see where it is.
No person or animal can see it.
No bird that flies in the sky can see it.
22 In the place of death, they say,
“We have heard only a little about wisdom,
and where to find it.”
23 Only God knows the way to find wisdom.
Only he knows where it is.
24 He can see to the ends of the earth.
He knows what happens everywhere in the world.
25 He decided how strong the wind must be.
He decided the size of the seas.
26 He made a command for the rain
to decide where it should fall.
He chose where storms should go and make thunder.
27 Then he thought about wisdom and its value.
He prepared it and he tested it.
28 God said this to us humans:
“If you want to be wise,
learn to respect the Lord with fear.
If you want to understand things properly,
turn away from evil acts.” ’
Job speaks about his life[h]
29 Job continued to speak. This is what he said:
2 ‘I would like my life to be as it was before,
many months ago.
At that time, God took care of me.
3 He was my guide,
as if he had a lamp to show me the way.
His light kept me safe
as I walked in dark places.
4 I was strong and well.
God was my friend
and he protected my home.
5 At that time, Almighty God was still with me.
My children were near me.
6 I got plenty of milk from my cows,
so that my life was easy.
My olive trees gave me lots of oil.
7 I would go to the gate of the city,
and sit there as one of the leaders.
8 When young men saw me,
they would move to the side.
Even the old men would stand up to respect me.
9 The city's rulers would stop speaking.
They would cover their mouths with their hands.
10 The important leaders would be quiet.
They would not want to say anything.
11 Everyone was very pleased
to listen to the things that I said.
They respected me
when they saw the things that I did.
12 When poor people cried for help,
I rescued them.
I helped children
who had no family that could help them.
13 People who were near to death praised me for my help.
Widows were happy when I helped them.
14 I always did what was right,
like good clothes that I wore.
I was fair and honest,
like my coat and my hat.[i]
15 If people were blind,
I would be their guide.
If people could not walk,
I would fetch things for them.
16 If poor people needed help,
I helped them like their father would do.
I spoke on behalf of strangers
to help them get justice.
17 I destroyed the power of wicked people.
I rescued the people that they had attacked.
18 At that time, I thought,
“I will live to be an old man.
After a long life, I will die in my own home.
19 My body is strong and well,
like a tree that always has plenty of water.
20 People will continue to give me honour.
Each day I will have new strength.”
21 People waited patiently to hear to my advice.
They listened carefully to what I said.
22 After I had spoken,
they did not say any more.
They listened to every word
and they thought about it.
23 They would wait for me to speak to them,
like people who wait for rain to fall.
My words would make them happy,
like rain in spring that makes a farmer happy.
24 They were surprised when I smiled at them.
My smile made them happy.
25 As their leader,
I told them what they should do.
I was like a king who leads his soldiers.
When they were sad,
I would comfort them.’
Job continues to speak[j]
30 ‘But now it is different.
Men who are younger than I am laugh at me.
I would not even trust their fathers
to take care of my sheep.
2 The work that those old men could do was no help to me.
They no longer were strong.
3 They were weak and thin because they were hungry.
They had to look for food in the desert at night.
They found roots to eat in dry places.
4 They pulled up plants in the desert
as their food.
They burned the roots of bushes
to keep themselves warm.
5 People chased them away from their towns,
as if they were shouting at robbers.
6 They had to live in dry valleys,
among the rocks, or in caves.
7 They cried aloud like animals among the bushes.
They hid together under the thorn bushes.
8 They were foolish people that nobody respected.
People chased them away from their land.
9 But now their sons sing songs that insult me.
They tell jokes about me.[k]
10 They hate me
and they do not come near me.
When they see me,
they spit at my face.
11 God has made me weak and helpless.
People do to me anything that they want to do.
12 From one side, the crowd attacks me.
They make me run away.
They are like an army that builds a road
to come and attack me.
13 They stop me from escaping.
They are ready to destroy me.
They do not need anyone to help them.
14 I cannot stop them when they attack me.
They rush forward to knock me down.
15 So I am always afraid.
My honour has disappeared
as if a strong wind has blown it away.
My riches have also gone,
like a cloud that passes across the sky.
16 Now I know that my life will soon end.
Every day I continue to suffer.
17 At night, my bones are painful.
The pain is always there in my body.
18 God has used his power to take hold of me.
He has held my shirt around my neck.
19 He has thrown me down into the mud.
I am no better than dust and ashes on the ground.
20 I call aloud to you, God,
but you do not answer me.
When I stand to pray,
you only look at me.
21 You have become cruel to me.
You have used your strength to attack me.
22 You take hold of me and you carry me away,
like a strong wind that blows.
You use a storm to destroy me.
23 I know that you are already taking me to my death.
Everyone who lives has to go to that place.
24 When someone is weak and in trouble,
people do not usually try to hurt him.
When someone calls aloud for help,
they do not refuse to help him.
25 When other people were in trouble,
I wept for them.
When I saw poor people
it made me very upset.
26 But when I hoped for good things to happen,
trouble came instead.
When I looked for light to shine on me,
everything became dark.
27 I hurt inside me all the time.
Every day I suffer from pain.
28 Illness has caused my skin to become black.
It is not the sun that has made that happen.
I stand up in the public meeting place
and I call aloud for help.
29 I have become like the jackals and the ostriches.
My sad voice sounds like them.
30 My skin has become black,
and bits of skin fall off.
My body is hot with fever.[l]
31 Now, when I make music with my harp,
I only sing funeral songs.
When I make music with my flute,
I do it for people who are weeping.’
Job continues to speak[m]
31 ‘I have made a promise with myself
about how I look at young women.
I will never think that I want to have sex with them.
2 Anyone who does that should expect God to punish them.
Almighty God in heaven above punishes people who do wrong things.
3 He sends trouble to people who do wicked things.
He punishes those people who do evil things.
4 God sees all the things that I do.
He carefully watches how I live my life.
5 He must know that I am an honest man.
I have never tried to deceive people.
6 So he should judge me in a fair way.
He should realize that I am not guilty.
7 God seems to think that I have not lived in the right way.
He may think that I have wanted bad things
when they looked nice to me.
Or perhaps I have done something else that was wrong.
8 If am really guilty of these things,
someone else should eat the crops that I have planted.
They should destroy all the crops in my fields.
9 I have not wanted to love any woman
except my wife.
I have not hidden outside my friend's house
to wait for his wife to be alone.
10 If I had done those things,
my wife should prepare food for another man.
It would be right for other men to have sex with her.
11 I would not have been faithful to my wife.
I would have done a wicked thing
and I would deserve punishment.
12 If I loved another woman,
it would be like a dangerous fire.
It would destroy everything that I have worked hard to get.
13 When my servants complain against me,
I have always been fair to them.
14 If I had been cruel to them,
God would be right to punish me.
When God judges me,
I would have no answer to excuse myself.
15 God made me and he made my servants too.
God brought us all to birth.
16 I have never refused to help people who are poor.
I have always helped widows
to hope for good things.
17 I have never kept all my food for myself.
I have always shared it with children who have no family.
18 Since I was a young man,
I have helped those children like a father.
All my life I have helped widows too.
19 I have seen people without enough clothes to keep them warm,
or without a coat to wear.
20 Then I would give them clothes.
The wool from my sheep would keep them warm.
And they all thanked me.
21 I have not turned against children who have no family,
even when the city judges agreed with me.
22 God should punish me if these things are not true.
I would accept the punishment that I deserve.
23 I was afraid of the trouble that God might bring to me.
So I could not do these bad things,
because God is so great and powerful.
24 I have not trusted in money or in gold.
I have never thought that they would make me strong.
25 When I was very rich,
I was not proud about it.
I did not think that I had worked hard to deserve it.
26 I have looked at the sun when it shines brightly.
And I have seen the moon when it is very beautiful.
27 But I have never wanted to worship them
or to give them honour.
28 If I had done that,
I would not have been faithful to God in heaven.
I would have deserved punishment for that sin.
29 I do not laugh at my enemies
when they suffer.
If my enemy has troubles,
it does not make me happy.
30 I have not cursed my enemies,
to ask God to kill them.
That would have caused a sin to come from my mouth!
31 None of the people who work in my house have ever said,
“Job has not welcomed strangers into his house.
He has not shared his food with them.”
32 Travellers may come to sleep in my house.
They do not have to sleep outside in the street.
33 I do not try to hide my sins,
as some people do.
34 I am not afraid of what people think about me.
Even if a great crowd of people speak against me,
I do not stay inside my house and keep quiet.
35 I want someone to listen to me!
All the things that I say are true.
Almighty God should give me an answer!
I need to know what I have done that is wrong.
He should write down the reason why I am guilty!
36 Then I would show that paper clearly on my shoulders.
I would be proud to wear it like a crown on my head.
37 I would explain to God everything that I have done.
I would stand in front of him without fear, like a ruler.
38 I have not grown crops on land that does not belong to me.
The land itself would accuse me if that were true.
39 I have always paid for the food
that other people have worked to grow.
I have never cheated the farmers
so that they suffered.
40 If I have ever done any of those things,
then may thorn bushes grow in my fields instead of wheat.
May weeds grow in my fields instead of barley.’
That is the end of the things that Job said.
Elihu now speaks to Job[n]
32 Job would not agree that he had done anything that was wrong. So his three friends refused to argue with him any more. 2 Another man was also there. His name was Elihu, Barakel's son. Barakel was a descendant of Buz. He belonged to Ram's clan.
Elihu became very angry with Job. He was angry because Job continued to say that he was not guilty. Job said that God was wrong to punish him. 3 Elihu was also angry with Job's three friends. They had not been able to find an answer to Job's problem. But they still said that Job was guilty. 4 Elihu had waited for Job's three friends to speak before he spoke to Job himself. He waited because he was younger than them. 5 But he became angry when Job's three friends had nothing more to say. So he finally decided to speak.
6 Barakel's son, Elihu, said this:
‘I am young and you are old.
So I was afraid to tell you what I was thinking.
7 I thought, “Older men should speak.
They have lived for many years and they should share their wisdom.”
8 But it is a person's spirit that helps them to understand things.
Almighty God has to put his breath into them.
9 Not all old people are wise.
Old people do not always understand what is right.
10 So I say, “Listen to me.
I too will explain what I know.”
11 Yes, I waited for you all to speak.
I listened to your wise thoughts,
as you tried to find the right words to say.
12 I listened carefully to you,
as you argued with Job.
But none of you could show Job that he was wrong.
None of you was able to answer his problems.
13 So do not say, “We are wise.”
Do not say, “God must show Job that he is wrong.
People cannot do that.”
14 Job was not speaking to me about his problems.
So I will not answer him in the way that you did.
15 Now they are upset!
They have no more answers to give.
There is nothing more that they can say.
16 I have waited for them,
and now they say nothing.
They stand there and they have no more answers.
17 So now I will say what I think.
I, too, will tell you what I know.
18 There are many things that I want to say.
The spirit inside me causes me to speak.
19 I cannot keep quiet any longer!
I am like a bag that is full of new wine.
I am ready to break so that everything pours out!
20 So I have to speak or I will become ill.
I must open my mouth and reply to you.
21 I will be fair in what I say.
I will not give honour to anyone to get their help.
22 I am too honest to do that.
If I am not fair,
God, my Maker, would quickly remove me.’
Elihu continues to speak
33 ‘But now, Job, listen to the things that I will tell you.
Listen carefully to everything that I will say.
2 I will speak to you now.
I am ready to tell you what I think.
3 I am an honest man, so you can believe what I say.
I will tell you what I know is true.
4 The Spirit of Almighty God has made me.
His breath gives me life.
5 Answer me now, Job, if you can.
Prepare yourself.
Be ready to explain your problem to me.
6 Listen! When God looks at us,
we are the same as each other.
God used clay to make both of us.
7 So you should not be afraid of me.
I will not do anything to hurt you.
8 I have heard the things that you have said, Job.
This is what I heard you say:
9 “I am not guilty. I have not done anything that is wrong.
I am pure and clean.
10 But God has decided to punish me!
He attacks me as if I am his enemy.
11 He has tied my feet with chains.
He always watches me to see where I go.”
12 But now I tell you this, Job: You are not right!
God is greater than any human.
13 So you should not argue against him.
You should not say,
“God does not answer any of my questions.”
14 God does speak to people.
He speaks to them in many different ways.
But often people do not recognize his voice.
15 Sometimes God speaks to people in dreams and visions.
He speaks to them at night, while they sleep in bed.
16 He tells them about things that will happen.
He warns them about terrible things,
so that they are afraid.
17 He tells them to turn away from their sins.
He tells them not to be proud.
18 He keeps people safe from death,
so that they do not go to their graves.
19 Or God may warn people with a painful illness.
He may make their bodies hurt all the time.
20 Then they do not want to eat anything.
They cannot eat even the best food.
21 Their bodies become very thin.
People can even see their bones.
22 They will soon die and go to their graves.
Death is waiting to take them away.
23 But perhaps an angel may come
to help one of those people.
He may speak on behalf of God,
as a special angel among the many thousands of God's angels.
The angel may tell that person
how to live in a way that is right.
24 Then God will be kind to that person.
God will say, “Save that person,
so that he does not go to his grave.
I have found someone to pay the price for his life.
So keep him alive.”
25 Then that person's body will become healthy again.
He will be strong, like a young man.
26 When he prays to God,
God will be happy to answer him.
He will again worship God with joy.
And God will give him a good way of life again.
27 That person will say clearly to everyone,
“I did things that were not right.
I did wrong things,
but God did not punish me as I deserved.
28 God rescued me from death,
so that I did not go to my grave.
Now I will enjoy life in the light.”
29 God does all these things for people.
He does them many times.
30 He saves a person from death,
so that he does not go to his grave.
He gives light to that person,
so that he may enjoy his life.
31 Job, listen carefully to me.
Be quiet, and I will speak to you.
32 After that, you may answer me,
if you have something to say.
If I could say that you have not done anything wrong,
that would make me happy.
33 But if you have nothing to say,
then listen to me.
Be quiet and I will teach you how to be wise.’
Elihu continues to speak[o]
34 Elihu continued speaking and he said this:
2 ‘You men who are so wise and who know so much,
listen to me.
Hear what I have to say.
3 You recognize nice food when you eat it.
So you should recognize the value of my words.
4 We should decide among ourselves what is right.
We should agree together what is good.
5 Job has said, “I am not guilty.
But God refuses to judge me in a fair way.
6 I am right,
but nobody believes me.
I have not done anything wrong,
but I am suffering
and I am near to death.”
7 There has never been a man like Job!
He laughs at God as easily as he drinks water.
8 He is a friend of wicked people,
and people who do evil things.
9 Job says, “If anyone tries to please God,
it does not help them at all.”
10 So listen to me, you men who understand so much.
Almighty God can never do anything that is wrong or wicked!
11 He judges people fairly
as he sees the things that they do.
He gives people what they deserve.
12 It is true! Almighty God does not do wicked things.
He never refuses to judge people in a fair way.
13 God's great power did not come from anyone else!
He himself has authority over the whole world.
14 God could decide to remove life from the world.
He could take back his spirit and his breath.
15 If he did that, everyone that is alive would die.
As humans, we would become dirt again.[p]
16 If you really understand things, Job, listen to me.
Hear what I have to say.
17 If God refused to do what is right,
he could not rule the world.
He is the powerful Judge who knows what is right.
But you say that he is guilty!
18 It is God who may say to a king, “You are useless!”
He may say to rulers, “You are wicked!”
19 God created everyone.
He is not more kind to important people
than he is to other people.
He does not help rich people
more than he helps poor people.
20 Anyone may die suddenly,
in the middle of the night.
God may shake them, so that they die.
He easily removes even the most powerful people.
21 He watches the way that each person lives.
He sees what they do every day.
22 People who do wicked things cannot hide themselves.
There is no place dark enough for them to hide from God.
23 God does not have to tell people when they must come to him,
so that he can judge them.
24 He destroys powerful people,
and he chooses other people to take their place.
He does not have to ask them anything.
25 He already knows the things that they have done.
In the night, he removes their power,
and he destroys them.
26 He punishes them
because they have done wicked things.
He does that where everyone can see.
27 Those powerful people have turned away from God.
They have not respected his commands.
28 They were cruel to poor people,
so that God saw what was happening.
God heard those poor people
when they called to him for help.
29 But if God decides to do nothing,
no one can say that he is wrong.
If he hides himself, no one can see him.
But he still rules over people and over nations.
30 God does not let men rule,
if they do not respect his ways.
He stops them from causing trouble to the people.
31 Someone could say to God, “I am guilty,
and I have received my punishment.
But I will not do any more wrong things.
32 Show me the sins that I have done
when I did not know about them.
If I have done wrong things,
I will not do them again.”
33 But you, Job, refuse to accept God's justice.
Do you expect God to do what you think is right?
But you must choose what you will say.
I cannot decide for you.
So tell us what you are thinking now.
34 Wise people will agree with me.
When they hear my words, they will say,
35 “Job speaks like a fool who knows nothing.
He only says useless things.”
36 Yes Job, you speak to us like a wicked person.
So you should continue to suffer for ever!
37 You have not only done wrong things,
you have also turned against God.
You have shown that you do not respect us.
You have said many things that insult God.’
Elihu continues to speak[q]
35 Elihu continued to speak to Job. This is what he said:
2 ‘The things that you say cannot be true.
You say, “I am more right than God is.”
3 But you also say, “If I do nothing wrong,
God does not bless me.
No good thing comes to me.”
4 Now I will give you an answer.
I will also speak to the friends who are with you.
5 Look up at the sky to see what is there.
Look at the clouds that are so high above you.
6 If you do something that is wrong,
it does not hurt God.
Even if you do many wrong things,
it does nothing to him.
7 If you are righteous,
that does nothing to help God.
He does not receive anything that he needs from you.
8 If you do wicked things,
it is other people who suffer, not God.
And if you do good things,
you are only helping other people.
9 When people suffer,
they call aloud for help.
They cry for help
when powerful people attack them.
10 But none of them says, “I want God to help me.
He made me. He gives me songs to sing in dark nights.
11 God teaches us more things than he teaches to the animals.
He makes us wiser than the birds.”
12 Finally, they call for help.
But God does not answer them,
because they are proud and wicked people.
13 Their prayers mean nothing.
Almighty God does not even listen to them.
14 So God will certainly not listen to you, Job,
when you say that you cannot see him.
You say that you have explained your problem to him.
You are waiting for him to give you an answer.
15 You also say that God does not become angry
with people who do wrong things.
You say that he does not punish bad people.
16 So, Job, you do not understand what you are saying.
You speak a lot of words
but they do not mean anything.’
Elihu continues to speak[r]
36 Elihu continued to speak to Job. This is what he said:
2 ‘Be patient a little bit longer,
so that I can teach you some more.
I still have more to say
to show you that God is right.
3 I will tell you the many different things that I know.
I will show you that God, my Maker, is completely fair.
4 Everything that I say to you is true.
I am speaking to you as someone who knows everything.
5 God is very powerful
but he does not turn anyone away.
When he decides to do something,
he surely does it.
6 He does not allow wicked people to continue to live.
But he is always fair to those who are poor and weak.
7 He takes care of righteous people.
He gives them authority to rule like kings.
He gives them honour for ever.
8 People who do wrong things may suffer in prison.
Chains may hold their legs so that they cannot move.
9 When that happens,
God shows them what they have done.
He shows them their sins.
They have done wrong things because they are proud.
10 He tells them this to warn them.
They must turn away from wicked things.
11 They must obey him and agree to serve him.
If they do that, they will have everything that they need.
They will enjoy all the days that they live.
12 But if they refuse to listen to God,
they will go to their graves.
They will die
and they still will not understand what is right.
13 People who turn away from God are always angry.
Even when God punishes them,
they do not pray for help.
14 They die while they are still young.
Their lives finish in shame.
They live among the male prostitutes who serve false gods.
15 But God rescues people who suffer.
He uses their troubles to teach them about himself.
16 God has called you out of your troubles, Job.
He wants you to live in a safe place
where you have no problems.
He wants you to have a comfortable life
with plenty of good food to eat.
17 But now you have a lot of trouble,
because God is punishing you as wicked people deserve.
God is right and fair to judge you like that.
18 Be very careful!
Do not let anyone use their riches to deceive you.
Do not let them pay you a lot of money
to do something that is wrong.
19 Even if you become rich,
that would not keep you safe.
Even if you were strong and powerful,
that would not keep trouble away from you.
20 Do not wait for the night to hide what you want to do.
That is the time when people disappear from their homes.
21 Be careful! Do not try to do wicked things.
God has sent these troubles to test you.
He wants to stop you doing evil things.
22 Yes, God is very powerful.
There is no teacher as good as he is.
23 Nobody can tell him what he should do.
No one can say to him, “You have done things that are wrong.”
24 People sing songs to praise God
for the things that he has done.
You also should remember to praise him.
25 People everywhere have seen the things that God has done.
But we look at them from far away.
26 Yes, God is very great!
We cannot know him completely.
Nobody can count the number of his years!
27 It is God who pulls up water from the earth
to make the clouds.
Then he causes it to become rain.
28 The rain pours down from the clouds.
There is plenty for the people on the earth.
29 Who understands how the clouds move across the sky?
How does the noise of thunder come from God's home?
30 Look at the lightning that God sends all over the sky!
But he causes the bottom of the sea to remain dark.
31 This is the way that God rules the people of the world.
He sends the rain to give them plenty of food.
32 He sends his lightning like an arrow.
He commands it to hit the right place.
33 He sends thunder to show that a storm is coming.
Even the cows know what is happening.’
Elihu continues to speak
37 ‘When I hear the noise of a storm like that,
I shake with fear.
2 Listen carefully to the sound of God's voice,
when he speaks like thunder.
3 He sends lightning across the whole sky.
Its light reaches everywhere on the earth.
4 After the lightning comes the sound of his voice.
He roars like the great sound of thunder.
When he speaks like that,
the storm never stops.
5 When God's voice speaks,
he causes wonderful things to happen.
He does great things that we cannot understand.
6 He tells the snow to fall to the earth.
He tells the rain to pour down
and make the ground wet.
7 He does that to show people what he can do.
He causes everyone to stop their own work.
8 The wild animals have to hide in a safe place.
They have to stay in their homes.
9 The strong wind of a storm comes from the place where it starts.
Cold winds blow strongly from the north.
10 The cold wind is like God's breath.
He causes ice to cover the rivers and the lakes.
11 He fills the clouds with lots of water.
He sends the lightning through the clouds.
12 The clouds move around across the whole earth.
They go wherever God sends them.
He tells them what they must do.
13 He may send a storm as punishment for his land.
Or he may send it to show his love for his people.
14 Listen carefully to what I am telling you, Job.
Stop and think about the wonderful things that God does.
15 Do you know how God commands the storms?
Do you know how he sends the bright lightning from the clouds?
16 Can you explain how the clouds hang in the sky?
God knows everything perfectly
and he does these wonderful things.
17 When the hot wind blows from the south,
nothing moves on the earth.
Your body is too hot in the clothes that you wear.
18 God puts the clouds across the whole sky,
like a metal mirror that shines brightly.
Can you also do that? No!
19 Tell us, Job, what things we should say to God.
We cannot argue with him,
because our minds are in a dark place.
20 Should I tell God that I want to speak to him?
That would be the end of me!
21 Now the wind has blown all the clouds away.
The sun shines brightly in the sky.
It is too bright for us to look at.
22 God comes with his bright glory from the north!
His glory is all around him.
It makes us afraid.
23 Almighty God is so great that we cannot come near to him.
He is very powerful.
But he always does what is right and fair.
He is not cruel to people.
24 So people respect God with fear.
He does not listen to those who think that they are wise.’
The Lord asks Job some questions[s]
38 The Lord spoke to Job from the middle of the storm. This is what he said:
2 ‘Who do you think you are?
Why do you ask questions about my wisdom?
You speak many words,
but you do not understand anything.
3 Prepare yourself for a difficult job!
I will ask you some questions and you must answer them.
4 Were you with me when I made the world?
If you think you are so clever,
tell me all about it!
5 It was me who decided the size of the world.
You surely must know that!
I measured it as I made it.
6 Tell me how I fixed the foundations of the earth.
Who made it stay in its right place? I did!
7 At the dawn of that day, the stars sang together.
They sang for joy with all the angels.
8 When the sea poured out of the ground,
I decided where its borders should be.
I kept the water in its right place.
9 I caused the clouds to come over the sea.
I covered it with complete darkness.
10 I put a border around the sea.
I locked it in its place.
11 I said to the sea, “This is as far as you can come.
You may come no further.
Your powerful waves must stop there!”
12 But you, Job, did you ever command the morning to begin?
No! You have never in your whole life told the sun when it should rise.
13 You have not told the light of day to cover the earth.
You have not told it to chase away the wicked things that happen in the night.
14 When the light of day comes,
people see the land clearly.
Its shape and colours show like bright clothes.
15 The light of day is too bright for wicked people.
It destroys their power to do cruel things.
16 You have not gone to the springs
that fill the seas with water.
You have not walked on the bottom of the deep seas.
17 Nobody has showed you the gates of death.
People go through them to that very dark place.
18 You do not understand the great size of the earth.
If you know all about that, tell me!
19 You do not know where light comes from.
You do not know where darkness has its home.
20 Can you take them to the places where they belong?
Do you know the roads that go there?
21 Surely you must know all this,
because you have lived for so long!
It seems that you were already born
when I created these things![t]
22 Have you visited the place where I keep all the snow?
Or the place where I keep the hail?
23 I keep the snow and the hail ready to use.
I use them in times of trouble and wars.
24 You do not know where lightning comes from.
Or where the east wind starts
when it blows across the earth.
25 I make a path for the storms to travel along.
I tell the thunder and the strong rain which way to go.
26 I cause rain to fall in places where no person lives.
It makes even a desert become a wet place.
27 The rain falls on dry ground where nothing grows.
It causes grass to grow there again.
28 Do you know if the rain has a father?
Who is a father to the dew?
29 Who is a mother to the ice?
Who gives birth to the frost that makes the air so cold?
30 It causes the water to become as hard as stone.
The water of the sea also becomes ice.
31 You cannot make the stars of the Pleiades stay in their places.
You cannot change the shape of Orion.
32 You bring out the groups of stars
for people to see at different times of the year.
You cannot put the stars of the Great Bear and the Little Bear
in their right places in the sky.[u]
33 You do not know the rules that the stars above obey.
You cannot make the earth obey those rules.
34 You cannot shout commands to the clouds.
You cannot tell them to pour down their rain,
so that a flood of water covers you.
35 You cannot send the lightning
to hit the place that you want it to go.
The lightning does not say to you,
“We are ready to go wherever you want.”
36 Who has given people wisdom,
so that they understand things with their minds?
37 Is anyone wise enough to count the clouds?
Can anyone cause the clouds to pour down rain from above?
38 The rain causes the dust of the dry ground to become hard.
The dry soil becomes pieces of mud.
39 When the lions become hungry,
can you find food for the young lions to eat?
40 You cannot do that for them
when they sit in their caves.
You cannot help them as they hide in the bushes,
ready to attack other animals.
41 You cannot find food for the ravens to eat.
You cannot help them when their babies cry to me
because they are weak and hungry.’
God continues to ask Job questions[v]
39 ‘Job, do you know that time when the goats on the mountains give birth?
Do you watch the wild deer when their babies are born?
2 Can you count the number of months that these animals are pregnant?
How long must they wait until they give birth?
3 They bend down low to the ground.
They give birth to the babies that they have carried inside them.
4 The young animals grow
and they become strong in the fields.
Then they leave their parents
and they do not return to them.
5 Did you send out the wild donkeys
to go wherever they want?
6 No! It was me who gave them the desert as their home.
I let them live in places where the ground has salt.
7 They stay far away from the busy cities.
They do not allow anyone to make them work.
8 Instead, they live on the hills,
where they find fresh plants to eat.
9 Can you tell a wild ox to work for you?
No! At night, it will not stay to feed at your farm.
10 It will not let you tie it to a plough.
It will not agree to prepare your fields in the valleys.
11 A wild ox is very strong.
But you cannot trust it to help you with your difficult work.
12 It will not help you to bring in your harvest of grain.
It will not take the grain to your threshing floor.
13 When an ostrich is happy,
it waves its wings.
But it cannot use its wings to fly,
as a stork can do.
14 A mother ostrich leaves her eggs on the ground.
She lets the sand cause them to be warm.
15 She does not realize that people or wild animals
might break the eggs with their feet.
16 She does not take care of her babies,
as if they did not belong to her.
She does not worry that all her work might be useless.
17 This is because I did not give wisdom to ostriches.
I did not give them minds that understand things.
18 But when an ostrich begins to run,
it can run very fast.
It can run faster than a horse
and someone who rides on it.
19 Did you, Job, give horses their strength?
Did you give them the long hair that they have on their necks?
20 You did not make horses able to jump like locusts.
They frighten people when they blow air out through their noses.
21 They stamp their feet on the ground,
as they prepare to go to a battle.
They are ready to go and attack the enemy.
22 A horse is brave and it is not afraid of anything.
It does not run away from the enemy's weapons.
23 The soldier who is riding it
has his arrows ready at the horse's side.
Swords and spears shine brightly in the sun.
24 The horse shakes with joy
as it runs to the battle.
When the battle trumpet makes its noise,
the horse wants to run even faster![w]
25 When it hears the sound of the trumpet,
it makes a happy noise.
From far away, it recognizes the smell of the battle.
It hears the army officers as they shout their commands.
26 Was it your wisdom, Job, that taught hawks how to fly?
No! You could not teach them to fly towards the south in winter.
27 Do eagles wait for your command
to fly high into the sky?
No! You could not teach them how to build their nests
high up in the mountains.
28 They live among the highest rocks.
That is where they stay at night.
They are safe on the sharp rocks.
29 From the high rocks,
eagles look for their food.
They see small animals far away,
that they can catch and eat.
30 They come together around the bodies of dead animals.
The young eagles drink the blood.’
God continues to speak to Job
40 The Lord said to Job,
2 ‘Do you still want to argue with me, the Almighty God?
You say that I have not been fair.
Now you must explain what you mean.’
Job replies to God
3 Then Job answered the Lord. This is what he said:
4 ‘I am only a foolish man.
I cannot answer your questions.
I cover my mouth with my hand
so that I say nothing.
5 I have already spoken too many times.
I will say no more.’
God speaks to Job again
6 Then the Lord spoke to Job from inside the storm. This is what he said:
7 ‘Prepare yourself for a difficult job!
I will ask you some more questions and you must answer them.
8 Do you say that I am not a fair judge?
Do you want to show that I am guilty, not you?
Then you could say that you are right.
9 Do you have the same power to do great things as I have?
Can you speak with a voice as loud as thunder?
I can!
10 If you think that you can do all this,
show how great you are!
Show everyone your power and your glory!
11 Show everyone your great anger!
Look at all the people who like to boast
and bring them down low!
12 Yes, cause all the proud people to be humble.
Knock down wicked people to the ground.
13 Bury them all together in the dust of the ground.
Cover their faces and put them in their graves.
14 If you can do these things, Job,
I will praise you.
I will agree that you have the power to save yourself.
15 Listen! I created the monsters called Behemoth.[x]
I made you and I made them too.
They eat grass, as cows do.
16 But look at the strength of their legs and their body!
17 Their tails are like the branches of a cedar tree.
Their legs are thick and very strong.
18 Their bones are like sticks made of bronze.
Their legs are as strong as iron.
19 These monsters are some of the greatest animals that I have made.
But I who made them can take my sword
and go near to them.
20 They eat the grass that grows on the hills.
That is where the wild animals play.
21 They lie down under the thorn trees.
They hide among the reeds at the edge of the water.
22 They rest in the shadow of the thorn trees,
and among the willow trees beside the water.
23 Even when the river is deep and dangerous,
these monsters are not afraid.
The water of the Jordan River may cover their mouths,
but they still feel safe.
24 There is no way that anyone can catch one of them.
No one can make its eyes blind.
No one can put a ring in its nose and lead it away.’
God continues to ask Job questions
41 ‘It is the same with the sea monsters called Leviathan.[y]
Can you catch them with a hook?
Can you use a rope to keep their mouths shut?
2 Can you tie a rope through their noses?
Can you put a hook into their mouths.
3 No! They will not ask you nicely to be kind
and let them go free.
4 They will not make any agreement with you.
You cannot make them your slaves
to work for you as long as they live.
5 Leviathan is not something to enjoy at home, like a bird.
You cannot tie it with a rope,
so that your girls can play with it.
6 Traders do not buy it at the market.
They do not cut it up to sell it.
7 Job, can you throw spears into Leviathan's body to kill it?
Can you shoot arrows into its head?
8 If you try to take hold of it,
you will never forget the fight!
You will never try to do that again!
9 If anyone hopes to catch it,
he is deceiving himself.
As soon as he sees it,
he no longer feels so brave!
10 No one is brave enough to wake it.
So is anyone brave enough to argue against me?
11 Nobody has ever won against me
to make me pay them anything.
Everything in the whole world belongs to me.
12 I must tell you how strong Leviathan's legs are.
Their bodies are very strong
and they have a wonderful shape.
13 Nobody is able to remove their thick skin.
It is like armour that nobody can cut through.
14 Nobody is strong enough to open its mouth.
Its teeth make everyone afraid.
15 Its back is like rows of shields.
They are as hard as stone with no spaces between them.
16 Each shield is very near the next one.
Not even air can pass between them.
17 They are strongly joined together,
and nothing can pull them apart.
18 When Leviathan breathes out loudly,
bright light shines from its nose.
Its eyes shine like the red sun at dawn.
19 Fire comes out from its mouth.
Bright flames shoot out!
20 Smoke pours out from its nose,
like reeds that burn under a pot.
21 Its breath is hot enough to light a fire!
Flames pour out of its mouth.
22 Its neck is very strong.
Wherever it goes,
people shake with fear.
23 There are no weak places in its skin.
Its skin is as hard as iron.
24 It is cruel and it has no fear.
Its heart is as hard as stone.
25 Even the bravest people are afraid
when Leviathan appears.
They run away when it starts to move.
26 If you hit it with a sword,
you will not hurt it.
Spears, arrows and knives will be useless.
27 It can easily break iron or bronze weapons.
It breaks them as easily as grass or soft wood.
28 If you shoot arrows at it,
it will not run away.
If you use a sling to throw stones at it,
the stones will hurt it no more than bits of chaff.
29 If you hit it with a heavy stick,
that hurts it no more than a piece of straw.
If you throw a spear at it,
it laughs!
30 Its stomach has sharp pieces,
like bits of a pot that someone has broken.
When it moves along,
it ploughs the soil under it.
31 When it swims in the deep water of the sea,
the water seems to boil.
It makes big waves,
like oil that is boiling in a pot.
32 As it swims, the water behind it shines.
It makes waves that look like white hair on the sea.
33 There is no other animal like it in the whole world.
It is not afraid of anything.
34 It does not respect any other great animal.
It rules as king over all the proud animals.’
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