Old/New Testament
Job Curses the Day of His Birth
3 Afterward Job opened his mouth and cursed [a]the day of his birth. 2 And Job answered and said,
3 “(A)Let the day perish on which I was to be born,
And the night which said, ‘A man is conceived.’
4 May that day be darkness;
Let not God seek it from above,
Nor light shine on it.
5 Let (B)darkness and shadow of death redeem it;
Let a cloud dwell upon it;
Let the blackness of the day terrify it.
6 As for that night, let thick darkness take it;
Let it not rejoice among the days of the year;
Let it not come into the number of the months.
7 Behold, let that night be barren;
Let no joyful shout enter it.
8 Let those curse it who curse the day,
Who are [b]ready to (C)rouse Leviathan.
9 Let the stars of its twilight be darkened;
Let it hope for light but have none,
And let it not see the [c]breaking dawn,
10 Because it did not shut the opening of my mother’s [d]body,
Or hide trouble from my eyes.
11 “(D)Why did I not die from the womb,
Come forth from the womb and breathe my last?
12 Why did the knees receive me,
And why the breasts, that I should suck?
13 For now I (E)would have lain down and been quiet;
I would have slept then; it would have been rest to me,
14 With (F)kings and with (G)counselors of the earth,
Who rebuilt (H)waste places for themselves,
15 Or with (I)princes (J)who had gold,
Who were filling their houses with silver.
16 Or why was I not like a miscarriage hidden away,
As infants that never saw light?
17 There the wicked cease from raging,
And there the weary of strength are at (K)rest.
18 The prisoners are at ease together;
They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.
19 The small and the great are there,
And the slave is free from his master.
20 “Why is (L)light given to him who is troubled,
And life to the bitter of soul,
21 Who [e](M)long for death, but there is none,
And dig for it more than for (N)hidden treasures,
22 Who are glad with joy,
And rejoice when they find the grave?
23 Why is light given to a man (O)whose way is hidden,
And whom (P)God has hedged in?
24 For (Q)my groaning comes at the sight of my food,
And (R)my roaring pours out like water.
25 For (S)the dread that I dread comes upon me,
And what I am afraid of befalls me.
26 I (T)am not complacent, nor am I quiet,
And I am not at rest, and raging comes.”
Eliphaz Says the Innocent Do Not Suffer
4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,
2 “If one tries a word with you, will you become weary?
But (U)who can hold back [f]from speaking?
3 Behold, (V)you have disciplined many,
And you have strengthened limp hands.
4 Your words have [g]helped the stumbling to stand,
And you have encouraged [h]feeble knees.
5 But now it has come to you, and you (W)are impatient;
It (X)touches you, and you are dismayed.
6 Is not your [i](Y)fear of God (Z)your confidence,
And the integrity of your ways your hope?
7 “Remember now, (AA)who ever perished being innocent?
Or where were the upright wiped out?
8 According to what I have seen, (AB)those who plow wickedness
And those who sow trouble harvest it.
9 By (AC)the breath of God they perish,
And (AD)by the wind of His anger they come to an end.
10 The (AE)roaring of the lion and the voice of the fierce lion,
And the teeth of the young lions are broken.
11 The (AF)lion perishes for lack of prey,
And the (AG)whelps of the lioness are scattered.
12 “Now a word (AH)was brought to me stealthily,
And my ear received a (AI)whisper of it.
13 Amid disquieting (AJ)thoughts from the visions of the night,
When deep sleep falls on men,
14 Dread came upon me, and trembling,
And made the multitude of my bones shake in dread.
15 Then a [j]spirit swept by my face;
The hair of my flesh bristled up.
16 It stood still, but I could not recognize its appearance;
A form was before my eyes;
There was silence, then I heard a voice:
17 ‘Can (AK)mankind be right [k]before God?
Can a man be pure [l]before his (AL)Maker?
18 (AM)He puts no trust even in His slaves;
And against His angels He charges error.
19 How much more those who dwell in (AN)houses of clay,
Whose (AO)foundation is in the dust,
Who are crushed before the moth!
20 (AP)Between morning and evening they are broken in pieces;
[m]Unobserved, they (AQ)perish forever.
21 Is not their (AR)tent-cord pulled up within them?
They die, yet (AS)without wisdom.’
44 “Our fathers had (A)the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He, who spoke to Moses, directed him to make it (B)according to the pattern which he had seen. 45 And having received it in their turn, our fathers (C)brought it in with [a]Joshua when they dispossessed the [b]nations whom God drove out before our fathers, until the time of David. 46 (D)David found favor in the sight of God, and (E)asked that he might find a dwelling place for the [c]God of Jacob. 47 But (F)Solomon built a house for Him. 48 However, (G)the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands, as the prophet says:
49 ‘(H)Heaven is My throne,
And earth is the footstool of My feet.
What kind of house will you build for Me?’ says the Lord,
‘Or what place is there for My rest?
50 (I)Was it not My hand which made all these things?’
51 “You men—(J)stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears—are always resisting the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 (K)And which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of (L)the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers (M)you have now become; 53 you who received the Law as (N)ordained by angels, and yet did not observe it.”
Stephen Is Stoned to Death
54 Now when they heard this, they became (O)furious in their hearts, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. 55 But being (P)full of the Holy Spirit, he (Q)gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing (R)at the right hand of God; 56 and he said, “Behold, I see the (S)heavens opened up and (T)the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But crying out with a loud voice, they covered their ears and rushed at him with one accord. 58 And when they had (U)driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and (V)the witnesses (W)laid aside their garments at the feet of (X)a young man named Saul. 59 They went on stoning Stephen as he (Y)was calling out and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” 60 Then (Z)falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, (AA)do not hold this sin against them!” And having said this, he [d](AB)fell asleep.
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.