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Job 21-24
New International Reader's Version
Job 21-24
New International Reader's Version
Job’s Reply
21 Job replied,
2 “Listen carefully to what I’m saying.
Let that be the comfort you people give me.
3 Put up with me while I speak.
After I’ve spoken, you can make fun of me!
4 “I’m not arguing with mere human beings.
So why shouldn’t I be angry and uneasy?
5 Look at me and be shocked.
Put your hand over your mouth and stop talking!
6 When I think about these things, I’m terrified.
My whole body trembles.
7 Why do sinful people keep on living?
The older they grow, the richer they get.
8 They see their children grow up around them.
They watch their family grow larger.
9 Their homes are safe.
They don’t have to be afraid.
God isn’t punishing them.
10 Every time their bulls mate, their cows become pregnant.
And the calves don’t die before they are born.
11 Sinful people send their children out like a flock of lambs.
Their little ones dance around.
12 They sing to the music of tambourines and lyres.
They have a good time while flutes are being played.
13 Those who are evil spend their years living well.
They go down to their graves in peace.
14 But they say to God, ‘Leave us alone!
We don’t want to know how you want us to live.
15 Who is the Mighty One? Why should we serve him?
What would we get if we prayed to him?’
16 But they aren’t in control of their own success.
So I don’t pay any attention to their plans.
17 “How often are their lamps blown out?
How often does trouble come on them?
How often does God punish them when he’s angry?
18 How often are they like straw blowing in the wind?
How often are they like tumbleweeds swept away by a storm?
19 People say, ‘God stores up the punishment of evil people for their children.’
But let God punish the evil people themselves.
Then they’ll learn a lesson from it.
20 Let their own eyes see how they are destroyed.
Let them drink the wine of the Mighty One’s anger.
21 What do they care about the families they leave behind?
What do they care about them
when their lives come to an end?
22 “Can anyone teach God anything?
After all, he judges even the angels in heaven.
23 Some people die while they are still very strong.
They are completely secure. They have an easy life.
24 They are well fed.
Their bodies are healthy.
25 Others die while their spirits are bitter.
They’ve never enjoyed anything good.
26 Side by side they lie in the dust of death.
The worms in their graves cover all of them.
27 “I know exactly what you people are thinking.
I know you are planning to do bad things to me.
28 You are saying to yourselves,
‘Where is the great man’s house now?
Where are the tents where his evil family lived?’
29 Haven’t you ever asked questions of those who travel?
Haven’t you paid any attention to their stories?
30 They’ll tell you that sinful people
are spared from the day of trouble.
They’ll say that those people
are saved from the day when God will judge.
31 Who speaks against them for the way they act?
Who pays them back for what they’ve done?
32 Their bodies will be carried to their graves.
Guards will watch over their tombs.
33 The soil in the valley will be pleasant
to those who have died.
Many people will walk along behind their bodies.
Many others will walk in front of them.
34 “So how can you comfort me with your speeches?
They don’t make any sense at all.
Your answers are nothing but lies!”
The Third Speech of Eliphaz
22 Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied,
2 “Can any person be of benefit to God?
Can even a wise person be of any help to him?
3 Job, what pleasure would it give the Mighty One if you were right?
What would he get if you were completely honest?
4 “You say you have respect for him.
Is that why he corrects you?
Is that why he brings charges against you?
5 Haven’t you done many evil things?
Don’t you sin again and again?
6 You took clothes away from your relatives
just because they owed you some money.
You left them naked for no reason at all.
7 You didn’t give any water to people who were tired.
You held food back from those who were hungry.
8 You did it even though you were honored and powerful.
You owned land and lived on it.
9 But you sent widows away without anything.
You mistreated children whose fathers had died.
10 That’s why traps have been set all around you.
That’s why sudden danger terrifies you.
11 That’s why it’s so dark you can’t even see.
That’s why a flood covers you up.
12 “Isn’t God in the highest parts of heaven?
See how high the highest stars are!
13 But you still say, ‘What does God know?
Can he see through the darkest clouds to judge us?
14 He goes around in the highest heavens.
Thick clouds keep him from seeing us.’
15 Will you stay on the old path
that sinful people have walked on?
16 They were carried off even before they died.
Their foundations were washed away by a flood.
17 They said to God, ‘Leave us alone!
What can you do to us, you Mighty One?’
18 But he was the one who filled their houses with good things.
So I don’t pay any attention to the plans of evil people.
19 “Those who do what is right are joyful
when they see sinners destroyed.
Those who haven’t done anything wrong make fun of them.
20 They say, ‘Our enemies are completely destroyed.
Fire has burned up their wealth.’
21 “Job, obey God and be at peace with him.
Then he will help you succeed.
22 Do what he teaches you to do.
Keep his words in your heart.
23 If you return to the Mighty One,
you will have what you had before.
But first you must remove
everything that is evil far from your tent.
24 You must throw your gold nuggets away.
You must toss your gold from Ophir into a valley.
25 Then the Mighty One himself will be your gold.
He’ll be like the finest silver to you.
26 You will find delight in the Mighty One.
You will honor God and trust in him.
27 You will pray to him, and he will hear you.
You will keep the promises you made to him.
28 What you decide to do will be done.
Light will shine on the path you take.
29 When people are brought low you will say, ‘Lift them up!’
Then God will help them.
30 He’ll even save those who are guilty.
He’ll save them because your hands are clean.”
Job’s Reply
23 Job replied,
2 “Even today my problems are more than I can handle.
In spite of my groans, God’s hand is heavy on me.
3 I wish I knew where I could find him!
I wish I could go to the place where he lives!
4 I would state my case to him.
I’d give him all my arguments.
5 I’d find out what his answers would be.
I’d think about what he would say to me.
6 Would he strongly oppose me?
No. He wouldn’t bring charges against me.
7 There honest people can prove to him they’re not guilty.
There my Judge would tell me once and for all that I’m not guilty.
8 “But if I go to the east, God isn’t there.
If I go to the west, I don’t find him.
9 When he’s working in the north, I don’t see him there.
When he turns to the south, I don’t see him there either.
10 But he knows every step I take.
When he has tested me,
I’ll come out as pure as gold.
11 My feet have closely followed his steps.
I’ve stayed on his path without turning away.
12 I haven’t disobeyed his commands.
I’ve treasured his words more than my daily bread.
13 “But he’s the only God. Who can oppose him?
He does anything he wants to do.
14 He carries out his plans against me.
And he still has many other plans just like them.
15 That’s why I’m so terrified.
When I think about all of this, I’m afraid of him.
16 God has made my heart weak.
The Mighty One has filled me with terror.
17 But even the darkness of death won’t make me silent.
When the darkness of the grave covers my face, I won’t be quiet.
24 “Why doesn’t the Mighty One set a time for judging sinful people?
Why do those who know him have to keep waiting for that day?
2 People move their neighbor’s boundary stones.
They steal their neighbor’s flocks.
3 They take away the donkeys
that belong to children whose fathers have died.
They take a widow’s ox until she has paid what she owes.
4 They push those who are needy out of their way.
They force all the poor people in the land to go into hiding.
5 The poor are like wild donkeys in the desert.
They have to go around looking for food.
The dry and empty land provides the only food for their children.
6 The poor go to the fields and get a little grain.
They gather up what is left in the vineyards of sinners.
7 The poor don’t have any clothes. So they spend the night naked.
They don’t have anything to cover themselves in the cold.
8 They are soaked by mountain rains.
They hug the rocks because they don’t have anything to keep them warm.
9 Children whose fathers have died
are torn away from their mothers.
A poor person’s baby is taken away to pay back what is owed.
10 The poor don’t have any clothes. They go around naked.
They carry bundles of grain, but they still go hungry.
11 They work very hard as they crush olives.
They stomp on grapes in winepresses,
but they are still thirsty.
12 The groans of those who are dying are heard from the city.
Those who are wounded cry out for help.
But God doesn’t charge anyone with doing what is wrong.
13 “Some people hate it when daylight comes.
In the daytime they never walk outside.
14 When daylight is gone, murderers get up.
They kill poor people and those who are in need.
In the night they sneak around like robbers.
15 Those who commit adultery wait until the sun goes down.
They think, ‘No one will see us.’
They keep their faces hidden.
16 In the dark, thieves break into houses.
But by day they shut themselves in.
They don’t want anything to do with the light.
17 Midnight is like morning to them.
The terrors of darkness are their friends.
18 “But sinners are like bubbles on the surface of water.
Their share of the land is under God’s curse.
So no one goes to their vineyards.
19 Melted snow disappears when the air is hot and dry.
And sinners disappear when they go down into their graves.
20 Even their mothers forget them.
The worms in their graves eat them up.
No one remembers sinful people anymore.
They are cut down like trees.
21 They mistreat women who aren’t able to have children.
They aren’t kind to widows.
22 But God is powerful.
He even drags away people who are strong.
When he rises up against them,
they can never be sure they are safe.
23 God might let them rest and feel secure.
But his eyes see how they live.
24 For a little while they are honored.
Then they are gone.
They are brought low.
And they die like everyone else.
They are cut off like heads of grain.
25 “Who can prove that what I’m saying is wrong?
Who can prove that my words aren’t true?”
Job 21-24
New International Version
Job 21-24
New International Version
Job
21 Then Job replied:
2 “Listen carefully to my words;(A)
let this be the consolation you give me.(B)
3 Bear with me while I speak,
and after I have spoken, mock on.(C)
4 “Is my complaint(D) directed to a human being?
Why should I not be impatient?(E)
5 Look at me and be appalled;
clap your hand over your mouth.(F)
6 When I think about this, I am terrified;(G)
trembling seizes my body.(H)
7 Why do the wicked live on,
growing old and increasing in power?(I)
8 They see their children established around them,
their offspring before their eyes.(J)
9 Their homes are safe and free from fear;(K)
the rod of God is not on them.(L)
10 Their bulls never fail to breed;
their cows calve and do not miscarry.(M)
11 They send forth their children as a flock;(N)
their little ones dance about.
12 They sing to the music of timbrel and lyre;(O)
they make merry to the sound of the pipe.(P)
13 They spend their years in prosperity(Q)
and go down to the grave(R) in peace.[a](S)
14 Yet they say to God, ‘Leave us alone!(T)
We have no desire to know your ways.(U)
15 Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him?
What would we gain by praying to him?’(V)
16 But their prosperity is not in their own hands,
so I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.(W)
17 “Yet how often is the lamp of the wicked snuffed out?(X)
How often does calamity(Y) come upon them,
the fate God allots in his anger?(Z)
18 How often are they like straw before the wind,
like chaff(AA) swept away(AB) by a gale?(AC)
19 It is said, ‘God stores up the punishment of the wicked for their children.’(AD)
Let him repay the wicked, so that they themselves will experience it!(AE)
20 Let their own eyes see their destruction;(AF)
let them drink(AG) the cup of the wrath of the Almighty.(AH)
21 For what do they care about the families they leave behind(AI)
when their allotted months(AJ) come to an end?(AK)
22 “Can anyone teach knowledge to God,(AL)
since he judges even the highest?(AM)
23 One person dies in full vigor,(AN)
completely secure and at ease,(AO)
24 well nourished(AP) in body,[b]
bones(AQ) rich with marrow.(AR)
25 Another dies in bitterness of soul,(AS)
never having enjoyed anything good.
26 Side by side they lie in the dust,(AT)
and worms(AU) cover them both.(AV)
27 “I know full well what you are thinking,
the schemes by which you would wrong me.
28 You say, ‘Where now is the house of the great,(AW)
the tents where the wicked lived?’(AX)
29 Have you never questioned those who travel?
Have you paid no regard to their accounts—
30 that the wicked are spared from the day of calamity,(AY)
that they are delivered from[c] the day of wrath?(AZ)
31 Who denounces their conduct to their face?
Who repays them for what they have done?(BA)
32 They are carried to the grave,
and watch is kept over their tombs.(BB)
33 The soil in the valley is sweet to them;(BC)
everyone follows after them,
and a countless throng goes[d] before them.(BD)
34 “So how can you console me(BE) with your nonsense?
Nothing is left of your answers but falsehood!”(BF)
Eliphaz
22 Then Eliphaz the Temanite(BG) replied:
2 “Can a man be of benefit to God?(BH)
Can even a wise person benefit him?(BI)
3 What pleasure(BJ) would it give the Almighty if you were righteous?(BK)
What would he gain if your ways were blameless?(BL)
4 “Is it for your piety that he rebukes you
and brings charges against you?(BM)
5 Is not your wickedness great?
Are not your sins(BN) endless?(BO)
6 You demanded security(BP) from your relatives for no reason;(BQ)
you stripped people of their clothing, leaving them naked.(BR)
7 You gave no water(BS) to the weary
and you withheld food from the hungry,(BT)
8 though you were a powerful man, owning land(BU)—
an honored man,(BV) living on it.(BW)
9 And you sent widows(BX) away empty-handed(BY)
and broke the strength of the fatherless.(BZ)
10 That is why snares(CA) are all around you,(CB)
why sudden peril terrifies you,(CC)
11 why it is so dark(CD) you cannot see,
and why a flood of water covers you.(CE)
12 “Is not God in the heights of heaven?(CF)
And see how lofty are the highest stars!
13 Yet you say, ‘What does God know?(CG)
Does he judge through such darkness?(CH)
14 Thick clouds(CI) veil him, so he does not see us(CJ)
as he goes about in the vaulted heavens.’(CK)
15 Will you keep to the old path
that the wicked(CL) have trod?(CM)
16 They were carried off before their time,(CN)
their foundations(CO) washed away by a flood.(CP)
17 They said to God, ‘Leave us alone!
What can the Almighty do to us?’(CQ)
18 Yet it was he who filled their houses with good things,(CR)
so I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.(CS)
19 The righteous see their ruin and rejoice;(CT)
the innocent mock(CU) them, saying,
20 ‘Surely our foes are destroyed,(CV)
and fire(CW) devours their wealth.’
21 “Submit to God and be at peace(CX) with him;(CY)
in this way prosperity will come to you.(CZ)
22 Accept instruction from his mouth(DA)
and lay up his words(DB) in your heart.(DC)
23 If you return(DD) to the Almighty, you will be restored:(DE)
If you remove wickedness far from your tent(DF)
24 and assign your nuggets(DG) to the dust,
your gold(DH) of Ophir(DI) to the rocks in the ravines,(DJ)
25 then the Almighty will be your gold,(DK)
the choicest silver for you.(DL)
26 Surely then you will find delight in the Almighty(DM)
and will lift up your face(DN) to God.(DO)
27 You will pray to him,(DP) and he will hear you,(DQ)
and you will fulfill your vows.(DR)
28 What you decide on will be done,(DS)
and light(DT) will shine on your ways.(DU)
29 When people are brought low(DV) and you say, ‘Lift them up!’
then he will save the downcast.(DW)
30 He will deliver even one who is not innocent,(DX)
who will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.”(DY)
Job
23 Then Job replied:
2 “Even today my complaint(DZ) is bitter;(EA)
his hand[e] is heavy in spite of[f] my groaning.(EB)
3 If only I knew where to find him;
if only I could go to his dwelling!(EC)
4 I would state my case(ED) before him
and fill my mouth with arguments.(EE)
5 I would find out what he would answer me,(EF)
and consider what he would say to me.
6 Would he vigorously oppose me?(EG)
No, he would not press charges against me.(EH)
7 There the upright(EI) can establish their innocence before him,(EJ)
and there I would be delivered forever from my judge.(EK)
8 “But if I go to the east, he is not there;
if I go to the west, I do not find him.
9 When he is at work in the north, I do not see him;
when he turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of him.(EL)
10 But he knows the way that I take;(EM)
when he has tested me,(EN) I will come forth as gold.(EO)
11 My feet have closely followed his steps;(EP)
I have kept to his way without turning aside.(EQ)
12 I have not departed from the commands of his lips;(ER)
I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread.(ES)
13 “But he stands alone, and who can oppose him?(ET)
He does whatever he pleases.(EU)
14 He carries out his decree against me,
and many such plans he still has in store.(EV)
15 That is why I am terrified before him;(EW)
when I think of all this, I fear him.(EX)
16 God has made my heart faint;(EY)
the Almighty(EZ) has terrified me.(FA)
17 Yet I am not silenced by the darkness,(FB)
by the thick darkness that covers my face.
24 “Why does the Almighty not set times(FC) for judgment?(FD)
Why must those who know him look in vain for such days?(FE)
2 There are those who move boundary stones;(FF)
they pasture flocks they have stolen.(FG)
3 They drive away the orphan’s donkey
and take the widow’s ox in pledge.(FH)
4 They thrust the needy(FI) from the path
and force all the poor(FJ) of the land into hiding.(FK)
5 Like wild donkeys(FL) in the desert,
the poor go about their labor(FM) of foraging food;
the wasteland(FN) provides food for their children.
6 They gather fodder(FO) in the fields
and glean in the vineyards(FP) of the wicked.(FQ)
7 Lacking clothes, they spend the night naked;
they have nothing to cover themselves in the cold.(FR)
8 They are drenched(FS) by mountain rains
and hug(FT) the rocks for lack of shelter.(FU)
9 The fatherless(FV) child is snatched(FW) from the breast;
the infant of the poor is seized(FX) for a debt.(FY)
10 Lacking clothes, they go about naked;(FZ)
they carry the sheaves,(GA) but still go hungry.
11 They crush olives among the terraces[g];
they tread the winepresses,(GB) yet suffer thirst.(GC)
12 The groans of the dying rise from the city,
and the souls of the wounded cry out for help.(GD)
But God charges no one with wrongdoing.(GE)
13 “There are those who rebel against the light,(GF)
who do not know its ways
or stay in its paths.(GG)
14 When daylight is gone, the murderer rises up,
kills(GH) the poor and needy,(GI)
and in the night steals forth like a thief.(GJ)
15 The eye of the adulterer(GK) watches for dusk;(GL)
he thinks, ‘No eye will see me,’(GM)
and he keeps his face concealed.
16 In the dark, thieves break into houses,(GN)
but by day they shut themselves in;
they want nothing to do with the light.(GO)
17 For all of them, midnight is their morning;
they make friends with the terrors(GP) of darkness.(GQ)
18 “Yet they are foam(GR) on the surface of the water;(GS)
their portion of the land is cursed,(GT)
so that no one goes to the vineyards.(GU)
19 As heat and drought snatch away the melted snow,(GV)
so the grave(GW) snatches away those who have sinned.
20 The womb forgets them,
the worm(GX) feasts on them;(GY)
the wicked are no longer remembered(GZ)
but are broken like a tree.(HA)
21 They prey on the barren and childless woman,
and to the widow they show no kindness.(HB)
22 But God drags away the mighty by his power;(HC)
though they become established,(HD) they have no assurance of life.(HE)
23 He may let them rest in a feeling of security,(HF)
but his eyes(HG) are on their ways.(HH)
24 For a little while they are exalted, and then they are gone;(HI)
they are brought low and gathered up like all others;(HJ)
they are cut off like heads of grain.(HK)
25 “If this is not so, who can prove me false
and reduce my words to nothing?”(HL)
Footnotes
- Job 21:13 Or in an instant
- Job 21:24 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Job 21:30 Or wicked are reserved for the day of calamity, / that they are brought forth to
- Job 21:33 Or them, / as a countless throng went
- Job 23:2 Septuagint and Syriac; Hebrew / the hand on me
- Job 23:2 Or heavy on me in
- Job 24:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
New International Reader's Version (NIRV) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.