Job 4–5

CHAPTER 4

Eliphaz Says the Innocent Do Not Suffer

¹Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,

²“If one tries a word with you, will you become weary?

But ^awho can hold back ¹from speaking?

³“Behold, ^ayou have disciplined many,

And you have strengthened limp hands.

⁴“Your words have ¹helped the stumbling to stand,

And you have encouraged ²feeble knees.

⁵“But now it has come to you, and you ^aare impatient;

It ^btouches you, and you are dismayed.

⁶“Is not your ^1afear of God ^byour confidence,

And the integrity of your ways your hope?

⁷“Remember now, ^awho ever perished being innocent?

Or where were the upright wiped out?

⁸“According to what I have seen, ^athose who plow wickedness

And those who sow trouble harvest it.

⁹“By ^athe breath of God they perish,

And ^bby the wind of His anger they come to an end.

¹⁰“The ^aroaring of the lion and the voice of the fierce lion,

And the teeth of the young lions are broken.

¹¹“The ^alion perishes for lack of prey,

And the ^bwhelps of the lioness are scattered.

¹²“Now a word ^awas brought to me stealthily,

And my ear received a ^bwhisper of it.

¹³“Amid disquieting ^athoughts from the visions of the night,

When deep sleep falls on men,

¹⁴Dread came upon me, and trembling,

And made the multitude of my bones shake in dread.

¹⁵“Then a ¹spirit 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 ^amankind be right ¹before God?

Can a man be pure ²before his ^bMaker?

¹⁸‘^aHe puts no trust even in His slaves;

And against His angels He charges error.

¹⁹‘How much more those who dwell in ^ahouses of clay,

Whose ^bfoundation is in the dust,

Who are crushed before the moth!

²⁰‘^aBetween morning and evening they are broken in pieces;

¹Unobserved, they ^bperish forever.

²¹‘Is not their ^atent-cord pulled up within them?

They die, yet ^bwithout wisdom.’

CHAPTER 5

The Discipline of the Almighty

¹“Call now, is there anyone who will answer you?

And to which of the ^aholy ones will you turn?

²“For ^avexation kills the ignorant fool,

And jealousy puts to death the simple.

³“I have seen the ^aignorant fool taking root,

And I ^bcursed his abode suddenly.

⁴“His ^asons are far from salvation,

They are even crushed in the gate,

And there is no deliverer.

⁵“¹His harvest the hungry devour

And take it to a place of thorns,

And the ^2aschemer pants after their wealth.

⁶“For ^awickedness does not come out from the dust,

Nor does trouble sprout from the ground,

⁷For ^aman is born for trouble,

As ¹sparks fly upward.

⁸“But as for me, I would ^aseek God,

And I would set my cause before God,

⁹Who ^adoes great and unsearchable things,

¹Wonders without number.

¹⁰“He ^agives rain on the earth

And sends water on the fields outside,

¹¹So that ^aHe sets on high those who are lowly,

And those who mourn are lifted to salvation.

¹²“He ^afrustrates the thoughts of the crafty,

So that their hands cannot attain success of sound wisdom.

¹³“He ^acatches the wise by their own craftiness,

And the counsel of the twisted is quickly thwarted.

¹⁴“By day they ^ameet with darkness

And grope at noon as in the night.

¹⁵“But He saves from ^athe sword of their mouth,

And ^bthe needy from the hand of the strong.

¹⁶“So the poor has hope,

And ^aunrighteousness must shut its mouth.

¹⁷“Behold, how ^ablessed is the man whom God reproves,

So do not reject the ^bdiscipline of the ¹Almighty.

¹⁸“For ^aHe inflicts pain and ¹gives relief;

He ²wounds, and His hands also heal.

¹⁹“¹From six distresses ^aHe will deliver you,

Even in seven ^bevil will not touch you.

²⁰“In ^afamine He will redeem you from death,

And ^bin war from hands with swords.

²¹“You will be ^ahidden from the scourge of the tongue,

^bAnd you will not be afraid of devastation when it comes.

²²“You will ^alaugh at devastation and starvation,

^bAnd you will not be afraid of the beasts of the earth.

²³“For your covenant will be with the stones of the field,

And ^athe beasts of the field will be at peace with you.

²⁴“You will know that your ^atent is at peace,

For you will visit your abode and fear no loss.

²⁵“You will know also that your ^aseed will be many,

And ^byour offspring as the vegetation of the land.

²⁶“You will ^acome to the grave in full vigor,

Like the stacking of grain in its season.

²⁷“Behold this; we have investigated it, and so it is.

Hear it, and know for yourself.”