The Daily Audio Bible
Today's audio is from the NLT. Switch to the NLT to read along with the audio.
Job Says Friends Are Miserable Comforters
16 Then Job responded,
2 “I have heard many things like these;
[a](A)Miserable comforters are you all!
3 Is there no end to (B)windy words?
Or what provokes you that you answer?
4 I too could speak like you,
If only [b]I were in your place.
I could compose words against you
And (C)shake my head at you.
5 Or I could strengthen you with my mouth,
And the condolence of my lips could lessen your pain.
Job Says God Shattered Him
6 “If I speak, (D)my pain is not lessened,
And if I refrain, what pain leaves me?
7 But now He has (E)exhausted me;
You have laid (F)waste all my group of loved ones.
8 And you have shriveled me up,
[c](G)It has become a witness;
And my (H)infirmity rises up against me,
It testifies to my face.
9 His anger has (I)torn me and [d]hunted me down,
He has (J)gnashed at me with His teeth;
My (K)enemy [e]glares at me.
10 They have (L)gaped at me with their mouths,
They have [f](M)slapped me on the cheek with contempt;
They have (N)massed themselves against me.
11 God hands me over to criminals,
And tosses me into the hands of the wicked.
12 I was at ease, but (O)He shattered me,
And He has grasped me by my neck and shaken me to pieces;
He has also set me up as His (P)target.
13 His (Q)arrows surround me.
He splits my kidneys open without mercy;
He pours out (R)my bile on the ground.
14 He (S)breaks through me with breach after breach;
He (T)runs at me like a warrior.
15 I have sewed (U)sackcloth over my skin,
And (V)thrust my horn in the dust.
16 My face is flushed from (W)weeping,
(X)And deep darkness is on my eyelids,
17 Although there is no (Y)violence in my hands,
And (Z)my prayer is pure.
18 “Earth, do not cover my blood,
And may there be no resting place for my cry.
19 Even now, behold, (AA)my witness is in heaven,
And my [g]advocate is (AB)on high.
20 My friends are my scoffers;
(AC)My eye weeps to God,
21 That one might plead for a man with God
As a son of man with his neighbor!
22 For when a few years are past,
I shall go the way (AD)of no return.
Job Says He Has Become a Proverb
17 “My spirit is broken, my days are extinguished,
The [h](AE)grave is ready for me.
2 (AF)Mockers are certainly with me,
And my eye [i]gazes on their provocation.
3 “Make a pledge (AG)for me with Yourself;
Who is there that will [j]be my guarantor?
4 For You have [k](AH)kept their hearts away from understanding;
Therefore You will not exalt them.
5 He who (AI)informs against friends for a share of the spoils,
The (AJ)eyes of his children also will perish.
6 “But He has made me a (AK)proverb among the people,
And I am [l]one at whom people (AL)spit.
7 My eye has also become (AM)inexpressive because of grief,
And all my (AN)body parts are like a shadow.
8 The upright will be appalled at this,
And the (AO)innocent will stir himself up against the godless.
9 Nevertheless (AP)the righteous will hold to his way,
And (AQ)the one who has clean hands will grow stronger and stronger.
10 But come again all of [m]you now,
For I (AR)do not find a wise man among you.
11 My (AS)days are past, my plans are torn apart,
The wishes of my heart.
12 They make night into day, saying,
‘The light is near,’ in the presence of darkness.
13 If I hope for [n](AT)Sheol as my home,
I [o]make my bed in the darkness;
14 If I call to the (AU)grave, ‘You are my father’;
To the (AV)maggot, ‘my mother and my sister’;
15 Where then is (AW)my hope?
And who looks at my hope?
16 [p]Will it go down with me to Sheol?
Shall we together (AX)go down into the dust?”
Bildad Speaks of the Wicked
18 Then Bildad the Shuhite responded,
2 “How long will you hunt for words?
Show understanding, and then we can talk.
3 Why are we (AY)regarded as animals,
As stupid in your eyes?
4 [q]You who tear yourself in your anger—
Should the earth be abandoned for your sake,
Or the rock moved from its place?
5 “Indeed, the (AZ)light of the wicked goes out,
And the spark from his fire does not shine.
6 The light in his tent is (BA)darkened,
And his lamp goes out above him.
7 His [r]vigorous stride is shortened,
And his (BB)own plan brings him down.
8 For he is (BC)thrown into the net by his own feet,
And he steps on the webbing.
9 A snare seizes him by the heel,
And a trap snaps shut on him.
10 A noose for him is hidden in the ground,
And a trap for him on the pathway.
11 All around (BD)sudden terrors frighten him,
And (BE)harass him at every step.
12 His strength is (BF)famished,
And disaster is ready at his side.
13 [s]It devours parts of his skin,
The firstborn of death (BG)devours his [t]limbs.
14 He is (BH)torn from [u]the security of his tent,
And [v]they march him before the king of (BI)terrors.
15 [w]Nothing of his dwells in his tent;
(BJ)Brimstone is scattered on his home.
16 His (BK)roots are dried below,
And his (BL)branch withers above.
17 (BM)The memory of him perishes from the earth,
And he has no name abroad.
18 [x]He is driven from light (BN)into darkness,
And (BO)chased from the inhabited world.
19 He has no (BP)offspring or descendants among his people,
Nor any survivor where he resided.
20 Those in the west are appalled at (BQ)his [y]fate,
And those in the east are seized with horror.
21 Certainly these are the (BR)dwellings of the wicked,
And this is the place of him who does not know God.”
Job Feels Insulted
19 Then Job responded,
2 “How long will you torment [z]me
And crush me with words?
3 These ten times you have insulted me;
You are not ashamed to wrong me.
4 Even if I have truly done wrong,
My error stays with me.
5 If indeed you (BS)exalt yourselves against me
And prove my disgrace to me,
6 Know then that (BT)God has wronged me
And has surrounded me with (BU)His net.
Everything Is Against Him
7 “Behold, (BV)I cry, ‘Violence!’ but I get no answer;
I shout for help, but there is no justice.
8 He has (BW)blocked my way so that I cannot pass,
And He has put (BX)darkness on my paths.
9 He has (BY)stripped my honor from me
And removed the (BZ)crown from my head.
10 He (CA)breaks me down on every side, and I am gone;
And He has uprooted my (CB)hope (CC)like a tree.
11 He has also (CD)kindled His anger against me
And (CE)considered me as His enemy.
12 His (CF)troops come together
And (CG)build up their [aa]way against me
And camp around my tent.
13 “He has (CH)removed my brothers far from me,
And my (CI)acquaintances have completely turned away from me.
14 My relatives have failed,
And my (CJ)close friends have forgotten me.
15 Those who live in my house and my servant women consider me a stranger.
I am a foreigner in their sight.
16 I call to my servant, but he does not answer;
I have to implore his favor with my mouth.
17 My breath is offensive to my wife,
And I am loathsome to my own brothers.
18 Even young children despise me;
I stand up and they speak against me.
19 All [ab]my (CK)associates loathe me,
And those I love have turned against me.
20 My (CL)bone clings to my skin and my flesh,
And I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.
21 Pity me, pity me, you friends of mine,
For the (CM)hand of God has struck me.
22 Why do you (CN)persecute me as God does,
And are not satisfied with my flesh?
Job Says My Redeemer Lives
23 “Oh that my words were written!
Oh that they were (CO)recorded in a book!
24 That with an iron stylus and lead
They were engraved in the rock forever!
25 Yet as for me, I know that (CP)my Redeemer lives,
And at the last, He will take His stand on the [ac]earth.
26 Even after my skin [ad]is destroyed,
Yet from my flesh I will (CQ)see God,
27 Whom I, on my part, shall behold for myself,
And whom my eyes will see, and not another.
My [ae]heart (CR)faints [af]within me!
28 If you say, ‘How shall we (CS)persecute him?’
And ‘[ag]What pretext for a case against him can we find?’
29 Then be afraid of (CT)the sword for yourselves,
For wrath brings the punishment of the sword,
So that you may know (CU)there is judgment.”
Instructions and Greetings
16 Now concerning (A)the collection for [a](B)the saints, as (C)I directed the churches of (D)Galatia, so you are to do as well. 2 On (E)the first day of every week, each of you is to [b]put aside and save as he may prosper, so that (F)no collections need to be made when I come. 3 When I arrive, (G)whomever you approve, I will send them with letters to take your gift to Jerusalem; 4 and if it is appropriate for me to go also, they will go with me.
5 But I (H)will come to you after I go through (I)Macedonia; for I (J)am going through Macedonia, 6 and perhaps I will stay with you or even spend the winter, so that you may (K)send me on my way wherever I go. 7 For I do not want to see you now (L)just in passing; for I hope to remain with you for some time, (M)if the Lord permits. 8 But I will remain in (N)Ephesus until (O)Pentecost; 9 for a (P)wide door [c]for effective service has opened to me, and (Q)there are many adversaries.
10 Now if (R)Timothy comes, see that he [d]has no reason to be afraid while among you, for he is doing (S)the Lord’s work, as I also am. 11 (T)So do not look down on him, anyone. But (U)send him on his way (V)in peace, so that he may come to me; for I expect him with the brothers.
12 Now concerning our brother (W)Apollos, I strongly encouraged him to come to you with the brothers; and it was not at all his desire to come now, but he will come when he has the opportunity.
13 (X)Be on the alert, (Y)stand firm in the faith, (Z)act like men, (AA)be strong. 14 All that you do must be done (AB)in love.
15 Now I urge you, brothers and sisters: you know the (AC)household of Stephanas, that [e]they are the (AD)first fruits of (AE)Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves to (AF)ministry to (AG)the [f]saints; 16 I urge that (AH)you also be subject to such as these and to everyone who helps in the work and labors. 17 I rejoice over the [g](AI)coming of Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, because they have [h]supplied (AJ)what was lacking on your part. 18 For they (AK)have refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore (AL)acknowledge such men.
19 The churches of [i](AM)Asia greet you. (AN)Aquila and Prisca greet you heartily in the Lord, with (AO)the church that is in their house. 20 All the brothers and sisters greet you. (AP)Greet one another with a holy kiss.
21 The greeting is in (AQ)my own hand—that of Paul. 22 If anyone does not love the Lord, he is to be [j](AR)accursed. [k](AS)Maranatha! 23 (AT)The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. 24 My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.
God Sustains His Servant.
For the music director. A Psalm of David.
40 I (A)waited [a]patiently for the Lord;
And He reached down to me and (B)heard my cry.
2 He brought me up out of the (C)pit of [b]destruction, out of the mud;
And (D)He set my feet on a rock, (E)making my footsteps firm.
3 He put a (F)new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;
Many will (G)see and fear
And will trust in the Lord.
4 How (H)blessed is the man who has made the Lord his trust,
And (I)has not turned to the [c]proud, nor to those who (J)become involved in falsehood.
5 Many, Lord my God, are (K)the wonders which You have done,
And Your (L)thoughts toward us;
There is no one to compare with You.
If I would declare and speak of them,
They (M)would be too numerous to count.
6 (N)You have not desired [d]sacrifice and meal offering;
You have [e]opened my ears;
You have not required burnt offering and sin offering.
7 Then I said, “Behold, I have come;
It is [f]written of me in the scroll of the book.
8 (O)I delight to do Your will, my God;
(P)Your Law is within my [g]heart.”
9 I have (Q)proclaimed good news of righteousness in the great congregation;
Behold, I will (R)not restrain my lips,
Lord, (S)You know.
10 I have (T)not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have (U)spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your mercy and Your truth from the great congregation.
On Life and Conduct
22 A (A)good name is to be more desired than great wealth;
Favor is better than silver and gold.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.