Old/New Testament
Elihu Vindicates God’s Justice
34 Elihu continued his discourse and said,
2
“Hear my words, you wise men,
And listen to me, you who have [so much] knowledge.
3
“For the ear puts words to the test
As the palate tastes food.
4
“Let us choose for ourselves that which is right;
Let us know among ourselves what is good.
5
“For Job has said, ‘I am righteous [and innocent],
But God has taken away my right;(A)
6
Although I am right, I am accounted a liar.
My wound is incurable, though I am without transgression.’
7
“What man is like Job,
Who drinks up derision like water,
8
Who goes in company with those who do evil
And walks with wicked men?
9
“For he has said, ‘It profits a man nothing
When he takes delight and is pleased with God and obeys Him.’
10
“Therefore hear me, you men of understanding.
Far be it from God that He would do wickedness,
And from the Almighty to do wrong.
11
“For God pays a man according to his work,
And He will make every man find [appropriate] compensation according to his way.
12
“Surely God will not act wickedly,
Nor will the Almighty pervert justice.
13
“Who put God in charge over the earth?
And who has laid on Him the whole world?
14
“If God should determine to do so,
If He should gather to Himself [that is, withdraw from man] His [life-giving] spirit and His breath,
15
All flesh would perish together,
And man would return to dust.(B)
16
“If you now have understanding, hear this;
Listen to the sound of my words.
17
“Shall one who hates justice [and is an enemy of right] govern?
And will you condemn Him who is just and mighty?
18
“God who says to a king, ‘You are worthless and vile,’
Or to princes and nobles, ‘You are wicked and evil’?
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“Who is not partial to princes,
Nor does He regard the rich above the poor,
For they all are the work of His hands.
20
“In a moment they die, even at midnight
The people are shaken and pass away,
And the powerful are taken away without a [human] hand.
21
“For God’s eyes are on the ways of a man,
And He sees all his steps.(C)
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“There is no darkness nor deep shadow
Where the evildoers may hide themselves.
23
“For He sets no appointed time for a man,
That he should appear before Him in judgment.
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“He breaks mighty men without inquiry,
And sets others in their place.(D)
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“Therefore He knows of their works,
And He overthrows them in the night,
So that they are crushed and destroyed.
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“He strikes them like the wicked
In a public place,
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Because they turned aside from following Him
And would not consider or show regard for any of His ways,(E)
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So that they caused the cry of the poor to come to Him,
And He heard the cry of the afflicted.(F)
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“When He keeps quiet, who then can condemn?
When He hides His face [withdrawing His favor and help], who then can behold Him [and make supplication to Him],
Whether it be a nation or a man by himself?—
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So that godless men would not rule
Nor be snares for the people.
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“For has anyone said to God,
‘I have endured my chastisement;
I will not offend anymore;
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Teach me what I do not see [in regard to how I have sinned];
If I have done wrong (injustice, unrighteousness),
I will not do it again’?
33
“Shall God’s retribution [for your sins] be on your terms, because you refuse to accept it?
For you must do the choosing, and not I;
Therefore say what you [truthfully] know.
34
“Men of understanding will tell me,
Indeed, every wise man who hears me [will agree],
35
‘Job speaks without knowledge,
And his words are without wisdom and insight.
36
‘Job ought to be tried [a]to the limit
Because he answers like wicked men!
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‘For he adds rebellion [in his unsubmissive, defiant attitude toward God] to his [unacknowledged] sin;
He claps his hands among us [in open mockery and contempt of God],
And he multiplies his words [of accusation] against God.’”
Elihu Sharply Reproves Job
35 Elihu continued speaking [to Job] and said,
2
“Do you think this is according to [your] justice?
Do you say, ‘My righteousness is more than God’s’?
3
“For you say, ‘What advantage have you [by living a righteous life]?
What profit will I have, more [by being righteous] than if I had sinned?’
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“I will answer you,
And your companions with you.
5
“Look to the heavens and see;
And behold the skies which are [much] higher than you.
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“If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against Him?
And if your transgressions are multiplied, what have you done to Him?
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“If you are righteous, what do you give God,
Or what does He receive from your hand?
8
“Your wickedness affects only a man such as you,
And your righteousness affects only [b]a son of man [but it cannot affect God, who is sovereign].
9
“Because of the multitudes of oppressions the people cry out;
They cry for help because of the [violent] arm of the mighty.
10
“But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker,
Who gives songs [of rejoicing] in the night,(G)
11
Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth
And makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?’
12
“The people cry out, but He does not answer
Because of the pride of evil men.
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“Surely God will not listen to an empty cry [which lacks trust],
Nor will the Almighty regard it.
14
“Even though you say that you do not see Him [when missing His righteous judgment on earth],
Yet your case is before Him, and you must wait for Him!
15
“And now, because He has not [quickly] punished in His anger,
Nor has He acknowledged transgression and arrogance well [and seems unaware of the wrong of which a person is guilty],
16
Job uselessly opens his mouth
And multiplies words without knowledge [drawing the worthless conclusion that the righteous have no more advantage than the wicked].”
The Council at Jerusalem
15 Some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised in accordance with the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”(A) 2 Paul and Barnabas disagreed greatly and debated with them, so it was determined that Paul and Barnabas and some of the others from their group would go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders [and confer with them] concerning this issue. 3 So, after being supplied and sent on their way by the church, they went through both Phoenicia and Samaria telling in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and they brought great joy to all the [a]believers. 4 When they arrived in Jerusalem, they were received warmly by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported to them all the things that God had accomplished through them. 5 But some from the sect of the Pharisees who had believed [in Jesus as the Messiah] stood up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise the Gentile converts and to direct them to observe the Law of Moses.”
6 The apostles and the elders came together to consider this matter. 7 After a long debate, Peter got up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the message of the gospel and believe. 8 And God, who knows and understands the heart, testified to them, giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; 9 and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith [in Jesus]. 10 Now then, why are you testing God by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we have been able to endure? 11 But we believe that we are saved through the [precious, undeserved] grace of the Lord Jesus [which makes us free of the guilt of sin and grants us eternal life], in just the same way as they are.”
12 All the people remained silent, and they listened [attentively] to Barnabas and Paul as they described all the signs and wonders (attesting miracles) that God had done through them among the Gentiles.
James’ Judgment
13 When they had finished speaking, [b]James replied, “Brothers, listen to me. 14 [c]Simeon (Simon Peter) has described how God first concerned Himself about taking from among the Gentiles a people for His name [to honor Him and be identified with Him]. 15 The words of the Prophets agree with this, just as it is written [in Scripture],
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‘After these things I will return,
And I will rebuild the tent of David which has fallen;
I will rebuild its ruins,
And I will restore it,
17
So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
And all the Gentiles upon whom My name has been invoked,’
18
Says the Lord,
Who has been making these things known from long ago.(B)
19 Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble and make it difficult for those who are turning to God among the Gentiles [by putting obstacles in their way], 20 but that we write to them that they are to abstain from [d]anything that has been contaminated by [being offered to] idols and from sexual impurity and from [eating the meat of] what has been strangled and from [the consumption of] [e]blood. 21 For from ancient generations [the writing of] Moses has been preached in every city, since [f]he is read aloud in the synagogues every Sabbath.”
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