Job 4:12–5:7

¹²“Now a word was brought to me stealthily;

my ear received ⁱthe whisper of it.

¹³Amid ^jthoughts from ^kvisions of the night,

when ^kdeep sleep falls on men,

¹⁴dread came upon me, and trembling,

which made all my bones shake.

¹⁵A spirit glided past my face;

the hair of my flesh stood up.

¹⁶It stood still,

but I could not discern its appearance.

^lA form was before my eyes;

there was silence, then I heard ^ma voice:

¹⁷ⁿ‘Can mortal man be in the right before² God?

Can a man be pure before his Maker?

¹⁸Even in his servants ^ohe puts no trust,

and his angels he charges with error;

¹⁹how much more those who dwell in houses of ^pclay,

whose foundation is in ^qthe dust,

who are crushed like^{3 r}the moth.

²⁰Between ^smorning and evening they are beaten to pieces;

they perish forever ^twithout anyone regarding it.

²¹Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them,

^udo they not die, and that without wisdom?’

5“Call now; is there anyone who will answer you?

To which of ^vthe holy ones will you turn?

²Surely vexation kills the fool,

and jealousy slays the simple.

^3wI have seen the fool taking root,

but suddenly I cursed his dwelling.

⁴His children are ^xfar from safety;

they are crushed in ^ythe gate,

and there is no one to deliver them.

⁵The hungry eat his harvest,

and he takes it even out of thorns,¹

and the thirsty pant² after his³ wealth.

⁶For affliction does not come from the dust,

nor does trouble sprout from the ground,

⁷but man is ^zborn to trouble

as the sparks fly upward.