Job 22

Eliphaz Accuses Job of Wickedness

22Then ^aEliphaz the Temanite answered and said:

²“Can ^ba man be profitable to God,

Though he who is wise may be profitable to himself?

³Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that you are righteous?

Or is it gain to Him that you make your ways blameless?

⁴“Is it because of your fear of Him that He corrects you,

And enters into judgment with you?

⁵Is not your wickedness great,

And your iniquity without end?

⁶For you have ^ctaken pledges from your brother for no reason,

And stripped the naked of their clothing.

⁷You have not given the weary water to drink,

And you ^dhave withheld bread from the hungry.

⁸But the ¹mighty man possessed the land,

And the honorable man dwelt in it.

⁹You have sent widows away empty,

And the ²strength of the fatherless was crushed.

¹⁰Therefore snares are all around you,

And sudden fear troubles you,

¹¹Or darkness so that you cannot see;

And an abundance of ^ewater covers you.

¹²“Is not God in the height of heaven?

And see the highest stars, how lofty they are!

¹³And you say, ^f‘What does God know?

Can He judge through the deep darkness?

^14gThick clouds cover Him, so that He cannot see,

And He walks above the circle of heaven.’

¹⁵Will you keep to the old way

Which wicked men have trod,

¹⁶Who ^hwere cut down before their time,

Whose foundations were swept away by a flood?

¹⁷ⁱThey said to God, ‘Depart from us!

What can the Almighty do to ³them?’

¹⁸Yet He filled their houses with good things;

But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

¹⁹“The ^jrighteous see it and are glad,

And the innocent laugh at them:

²⁰‘Surely our ⁴adversaries are cut down,

And the fire consumes their remnant.’

²¹“Now acquaint yourself with Him, and ^kbe at peace;

Thereby good will come to you.

²²Receive, please, ^linstruction from His mouth,

And ^mlay up His words in your heart.

²³If you return to the Almighty, you will be built up;

You will remove iniquity far from your tents.

²⁴Then you will ⁿlay your gold in the dust,

And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks.

²⁵Yes, the Almighty will be your ⁵gold

And your precious silver;

²⁶For then you will have your ^odelight in the Almighty,

And lift up your face to God.

^27pYou will make your prayer to Him,

He will hear you,

And you will pay your vows.

²⁸You will also declare a thing,

And it will be established for you;

So light will shine on your ways.

²⁹When they cast you down, and you say, ‘Exaltation will come!’

Then ^qHe will save the humble person.

³⁰He will even deliver one who is not innocent;

Yes, he will be delivered by the purity of your hands.”