Job 33:14–28

¹⁴God does speak—sometimes one way and sometimes another—

even though people may not understand it.

¹⁵He speaks in a dream or a vision of the night

when people are in a deep sleep,

lying on their beds.

¹⁶He speaks in their ears

and frightens them with warnings

¹⁷to turn them away from doing wrong

and to keep them from being proud.

¹⁸God does this to save people from death,

to keep them from dying.

¹⁹People may be corrected while in bed in great pain;

they may have continual pain in their very bones.

²⁰They may be in such pain that they even hate food,

even the very best meal.

²¹Their body becomes so thin there is almost nothing left of it,

and their bones that were hidden now stick out.

²²They are near death,

and their life is almost over.

²³“But there may be an angel to speak for him,

one out of a thousand, who will tell him what to do.

²⁴The angel will beg for mercy and say:

‘Save him from death.

I have found a way to pay for his life.’

²⁵Then his body is made new like a child’s.

It will return to the way it was when he was young.

²⁶That person will pray to God, and God will listen to him.

He will see God’s face and will shout with happiness.

And God will set things right for him again.

²⁷Then he will say to others,

‘I sinned and twisted what was right,

but I did not receive the punishment I should have received.

²⁸God bought my life back from death,

and I will continue to enjoy life.’