Old/New Testament
Eliphaz’s Response Continues
5 “Call now, is there anyone answering you?
And to which of the holy ones will you turn?
2 For vexation will slay the fool,
and jealousy will kill the simple.
3 I have seen a fool taking root,
but[a] suddenly I cursed his dwelling.
4 His children are far from deliverance,
and they are crushed in the gate,
and there is no deliverer—
5 whose harvest the hungry eats,
and he takes it from behind[b] the thorns;
and the thirsty pants after their wealth.
6 Indeed,[c] mischief does not come from the dust,
and trouble does not sprout from the earth.
7 But a human being is born to trouble,
and they soar aloft[d] like sparks.[e]
8 “But I myself[f] will seek God,
and to God I would commit my cause.
9 He is doing great and unsearchable[g] things,
marvelous things without number[h]—
10 the one who is giving rain on the surface of[i] the earth
and is sending water on the surface of[j] the fields,
11 to set the lowly on high,
and those mourning are lifted to safety.
12 He is frustrating the devices of the crafty,
and their hands do not achieve success.
13 He is capturing the wise in their craftiness,
and the schemes of the wily are rushed.
14 In the daytime they meet with darkness,
and they grope at noon[k] as in the night.
15 And[l] he saves from the sword of[m] their mouth,
even[n] the poor from the hand of the strong.
16 So[o] there is hope[p] for the powerless,
and wickedness shuts its mouth.
17 “Look, happy is the human being whom God reproves;
and you must not despise the discipline of Shaddai,
18 for he himself[q] wounds, but[r] he binds up;
he strikes, but[s] his hands heal.
19 From[t] six troubles he will deliver you,
and in seven evil shall not touch you.
20 In famine he will redeem you from death,
and in war from the power of[u] the sword.
21 From the scourge of the tongue you shall be hidden,
and you shall not be afraid of[v] destruction when it comes.
22 At destruction and famine[w] you shall laugh,
and you shall not fear the wild animals of the earth.
23 For your covenant will be with the stones of the field,
and the wild animals[x] of the field will be at peace with you.
24 And you shall know that your tent is safe,
and you will inspect your fold, and you shall not be missing anything.
25 And you shall know that your offspring are many,
and your descendants like the vegetation of the earth.
26 You shall come in maturity to the grave,
as the raising up of a stack of sheaves in its season.
27 “Look, we have searched this out—it is true;
hear it and know it yourself.”[y]
Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz
6 Then[z] Job answered and said,
2 “If only my vexation could be well weighed,
and my calamity could be lifted up together with it in the balances,
3 for then it would be heavier than the sand of the seas;
therefore my words have been rash,
4 for the arrows of Shaddai are in me;
my spirit drinks their poison;
the terrors of God are arrayed against me.
5 Does the wild ass bray over grass,
or the ox bellow over its fodder?
6 Can tasteless food be eaten without[aa] salt,
or is there taste in the white of a marshmallow plant?
7 I refused[ab] to touch them;
they are like food that will make me ill.[ac]
8 “O that[ad] my request may come,
and that God may grant my hope,
9 that[ae] God would decide that[af] he would crush me,
that he would let loose his hand and kill me.[ag]
10 But[ah] it will still be my consolation,
and I would recoil in unrelenting[ai] pain,
for I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
11 What is my strength, that I should wait?
And what is my end, that I should hold out?[aj]
12 Or is my strength like the strength of stones?
Or is my flesh bronze?
13 Indeed,[ak] my help is not in me,
and any success is driven from me.
14 “Loyal love[al] should come for the afflicted from his friend,
even if[am] he forsakes the fear of Shaddai.
15 My companions are treacherous like a torrent-bed;
like a streambed of wadis[an] they flow away,
16 which are growing dark because of ice upon them,
it will pile up snow.
17 In time they dry up, they disappear;
when it is hot, they vanish from their place.
18 The paths of their way wind around;
they go up into the wasteland, and they perish.
19 The caravans of Tema looked;
the traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them.
20 They are disappointed, because they trusted;
they came here[ao] and they are confounded.
21 “For now you[ap] have become such;[aq]
you see terrors, and you fear.
22 Is it because I have said, ‘Give to me,’
or,[ar] ‘Offer a bribe for me from your wealth’?
23 or,[as] ‘Save me from the foe’s hand,’
or,[at] ‘Ransom me from the tyrants’ hand’?
24 Teach me, and I myself[au] will be silent;
and make me understand how I have gone astray.
25 How painful are upright words![av]
But[aw] what does your reproof[ax] reprove?
26 Do you intend to reprove my words[ay]
and consider the words of a desperate man as wind?
27 Even over the orphan you would cast the lot,
and you would bargain over your friend.
28 “Therefore[az] be prepared, turn to me,
and I surely will not lie to your face.[ba]
29 Please turn, let no injustice happen;
indeed,[bb] turn, my righteousness is still intact.[bc]
30 Is there injustice on my tongue?
Or can my palate not discern calamity?[bd]
Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz
7 “Does not a human being[be] have hard service[bf] on earth?
And are not his[bg] days like the days of a laborer?
2 Like a slave he longs for the shadow,
and like a laborer he waits for his wages.
3 So I had to inherit[bh] months of worthlessness,
and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
4 When I lie down, I say,[bi] ‘When shall I rise?’
But[bj] the night is long,
and I have my fill of tossing until dawn.
5 My body is clothed with maggots and clods of dust;
my skin hardens, then[bk] it gives way again.
6 “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
and they come to an end without hope.[bl]
7 Remember that my life is a breath;
my eye will not return to see good.
8 The eye of the one seeing me will not see me;
your eyes are upon me, but[bm] I will be gone.[bn]
9 A cloud vanishes, and it goes away,
so he who goes down to Sheol will not come up.
10 He does not return again to his house,
and his place does not recognize him again.
11 “Even[bo] I will not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in my spirit’s anguish;
I will complain in my inner self’s[bp] bitterness.
12 Am I the sea, or a sea monster,
that you set a guard over me?
13 When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
and my couch[bq] will ease my complaint,’
14 then[br] you terrify me with dreams,[bs]
and with visions you terrify[bt] me.
15 So[bu] my inner self[bv] will choose[bw] strangling—
death more than my existence.[bx]
16 I loathe my life; I would not live forever;
depart from me, for my days are a breath.
17 “What is a human being that you make him great
and that you fix your mind on him,[by]
18 so that[bz] you visit him every morning,[ca]
you test him every moment?[cb]
19 How long[cc] will you not turn away from me?
Or not leave me alone until I swallow[cd] my spit?
20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you, watcher of humanity?
Why have you made me as a target for yourself,
so that[ce] I have become a burden to myself?[cf]
21 And why do you not pardon my transgression
and take away my guilt?
For now I shall lie in the dust,
and you will seek me, but[cg] I will be no more.”[ch]
Saul Attempts to Destroy the Church
8 And Saul was agreeing with his murder. Now there happened on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. 2 And devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him. 3 But Saul was attempting to destroy the church. Entering house after house,[a] he dragged off both men and women and[b] delivered them[c] to prison.
Philip Proclaims Christ in Samaria
4 Now those who had been scattered went about proclaiming the good news of the word. 5 And Philip came down to the city of Samaria and[d] began proclaiming[e] the Christ[f] to them. 6 And the crowds with one mind were paying attention to what was being said by Philip, as they heard him[g] and saw the signs that he was performing. 7 For many of those who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them,[h] crying out with a loud voice, and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. 8 And there was great joy in that city.
Simon the Magician
9 Now a certain man named[i] Simon had been in the city practicing magic and astonishing the people of Samaria, saying he was someone great. 10 They were all paying attention to him,[j] from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called ‘Great.’” 11 And they were paying attention to him because for a long time he had astonished them with his[k] magic. 12 But when they believed Philip as he[l] was proclaiming the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were being baptized. 13 And Simon himself also believed, and after he[m] was baptized he was keeping close company with[n] Philip. And when he[o] saw the signs and great miracles that were taking place, he was astonished.
14 Now when[p] the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, 15 who went down and[q] prayed for them so that they would receive the Holy Spirit. 16 (For he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized[r] in the name of the Lord Jesus.) 17 Then they placed their[s] hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.
18 Now Simon, when he[t] saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, offered them money, 19 saying, “Give to me also this power, so that whomever I place my[u] hands on may receive the Holy Spirit!” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver be destroyed along with you,[v] because you thought you could acquire[w] the gift of God by means of money! 21 You have no[x] part or share in this matter, because your heart is not right before God. 22 Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and ask the Lord if perhaps the intent of your heart may be forgiven you!” 23 For I see you are in a state of bitter envy[y] and bound by unrighteousness.”[z] 24 But Simon answered and[aa] said, “You pray to the Lord for me so that nothing of what you have said will come upon me.” 25 So when[ab] they had solemnly testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they turned back toward Jerusalem, and were proclaiming the good news to many villages of the Samaritans.
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