Job 5-7

1“Call out if you please, but who will answer? To which of the holy ones will you turn?

2For resentment kills a fool, and envy slays the simple.

3I have seen a fool taking root, but suddenly his house was cursed.

4His sons are far from safety, crushed in court without a defender.

5The hungry consume his harvest, taking it even from the thorns, and the thirsty pant after his wealth.

6For distress does not spring from the dust, and trouble does not sprout from the ground.

7Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward.

8However, if I were you, I would appeal to God and lay my cause before Him—

9the One who does great and unsearchable things, wonders without number.

10He gives rain to the earth and sends water upon the fields.

11He sets the lowly on high, so that mourners are lifted to safety.

12He thwarts the schemes of the crafty, so that their hands find no success.

13He catches the wise in their craftiness, and sweeps away the plans of the cunning.

14They encounter darkness by day and grope at noon as in the night.

15He saves the needy from the sword in their mouth and from the clutches of the powerful.

16So the poor have hope, and injustice shuts its mouth.

17Blessed indeed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.

18For He wounds, but He also binds; He strikes, but His hands also heal.

19He will rescue you from six calamities; no harm will touch you in seven.

20In famine He will redeem you from death, and in battle from the stroke of the sword.

21You will be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, and will not fear havoc when it comes.

22You will laugh at destruction and famine, and need not fear the beasts of the earth.

23For you will have a covenant with the stones of the field, and the wild animals will be at peace with you.

24You will know that your tent is secure, and find nothing amiss when inspecting your home.

25You will know that your offspring will be many, your descendants like the grass of the earth.

26You will come to the grave in full vigor, like a sheaf of grain gathered in season.

27Indeed, we have investigated, and it is true! So hear it and know for yourself.”

1Then Job replied:

2“If only my grief could be weighed and placed with my calamity on the scales.

3For then it would outweigh the sand of the seas— no wonder my words have been rash.

4For the arrows of the Almighty have pierced me; my spirit drinks in their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me.

5Does a wild donkey bray over fresh grass, or an ox low over its fodder?

6Is tasteless food eaten without salt, or is there flavor in the white of an egg?

7My soul refuses to touch them; they are loathsome food to me.

8If only my request were granted and God would fulfill my hope:

9that God would be willing to crush me, to unleash His hand and cut me off!

10It still brings me comfort, and joy through unrelenting pain, that I have not denied the words of the Holy One.

11What strength do I have, that I should still hope? What is my future, that I should be patient?

12Is my strength like that of stone, or my flesh made of bronze?

13Is there any help within me now that success is driven from me?

14A despairing man should have the kindness of his friend, even if he forsakes the fear of the Almighty.

15But my brothers are as faithless as wadis, as seasonal streams that overflow,

16darkened because of the ice and the inflow of melting snow,

17but ceasing in the dry season and vanishing from their channels in the heat.

18Caravans turn aside from their routes; they go into the wasteland and perish.

19The caravans of Tema look for water; the travelers of Sheba hope to find it.

20They are confounded because they had hoped; their arrival brings disappointment.

21For now you are of no help; you see terror, and you are afraid.

22Have I ever said, ‘Give me something; offer me a bribe from your wealth;

23deliver me from the hand of the enemy; redeem me from the grasp of the ruthless’?

24Teach me, and I will be silent. Help me understand how I have erred.

25How painful are honest words! But what does your argument prove?

26Do you intend to correct my words, and treat as wind my cry of despair?

27You would even cast lots for an orphan and barter away your friend.

28But now, please look at me. Would I lie to your face?

29Reconsider; do not be unjust. Reconsider, for my righteousness is at stake.

30Is there iniquity on my tongue? Can my mouth not discern malice?

1“Is not man consigned to labor on earth? Are not his days like those of a hired hand?

2Like a slave he longs for shade; like a hireling he waits for his wages.

3So I am allotted months of futility, and nights of misery are appointed to me.

4When I lie down I think: ‘When will I get up?’ But the night drags on, and I toss and turn until dawn.

5My flesh is clothed with worms and encrusted with dirt; my skin is cracked and festering.

6My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle; they come to an end without hope.

7Remember that my life is but a breath. My eyes will never again see happiness.

8The eye that beholds me will no longer see me. You will look for me, but I will be no more.

9As a cloud vanishes and is gone, so he who goes down to Sheol does not come back up.

10He never returns to his house; his place remembers him no more.

11Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.

12Am I the sea, or the monster of the deep, that You must keep me under guard?

13When I think my bed will comfort me and my couch will ease my complaint,

14then You frighten me with dreams and terrify me with visions,

15so that I would prefer strangling and death over my life in this body.

16I loathe my life! I would not live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath.

17What is man that You should exalt him, that You should set Your heart upon him,

18that You attend to him every morning, and test him every moment?

19Will You never look away from me, or leave me alone to swallow my spittle?

20If I have sinned, what have I done to You, O watcher of mankind? Why have You made me Your target, so that I am a burden to You?

21Why do You not pardon my transgression and take away my iniquity? For soon I will lie down in the dust; You will seek me, but I will be no more.”