Job 1-5

New International Version

Prologue

1 In the land of Uz^(A) there lived a man whose name was Job.^(B) This man was blameless^(C) and upright;^(D) he feared God^(E) and shunned evil.^(F) ²He had seven sons^(G) and three daughters,^(H) ³and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys,^(I) and had a large number of servants.^(J) He was the greatest man^(K) among all the people of the East.^(L)

⁴His sons used to hold feasts^(M) in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. ⁵When a period of feasting had run its course, Job would make arrangements for them to be purified.^(N) Early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering^(O) for each of them, thinking, “Perhaps my children have sinned^(P) and cursed God^(Q) in their hearts.” This was Job’s regular custom.

⁶One day the angels^[a]^(R) came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan^[b]^(S) also came with them.^(T) ⁷The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”

Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”^(U)

⁸Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job?^(V) There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God^(W) and shuns evil.”^(X)

⁹“Does Job fear God for nothing?”^(Y) Satan replied. ¹⁰“Have you not put a hedge^(Z) around him and his household and everything he has?^(AA) You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land.^(AB) ¹¹But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has,^(AC) and he will surely curse you to your face.”^(AD)

¹²The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has^(AE) is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”^(AF)

Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

¹³One day when Job’s sons and daughters^(AG) were feasting^(AH) and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, ¹⁴a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing^(AI) nearby, ¹⁵and the Sabeans^(AJ) attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

¹⁶While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens^(AK) and burned up the sheep and the servants,^(AL) and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

¹⁷While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans^(AM) formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

¹⁸While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters^(AN) were feasting^(AO) and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, ¹⁹when suddenly a mighty wind^(AP) swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead,^(AQ) and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!^(AR)”

²⁰At this, Job got up and tore his robe^(AS) and shaved his head.^(AT) Then he fell to the ground in worship^(AU) ²¹and said:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
and naked I will depart.^[c]^(AV)
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;^(AW)
may the name of the Lord be praised.”^(AX)

²²In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.^(AY)

2 On another day the angels^[d]^(AZ) came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them^(BA) to present himself before him. ²And the Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”

Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”^(BB)

³Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.^(BC) And he still maintains his integrity,^(BD) though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.”^(BE)

⁴“Skin for skin!” Satan replied. “A man will give all he has^(BF) for his own life. ⁵But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones,^(BG) and he will surely curse you to your face.”^(BH)

⁶The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, he is in your hands;^(BI) but you must spare his life.”^(BJ)

⁷So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.^(BK) ⁸Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.^(BL)

⁹His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity?^(BM) Curse God and die!”^(BN)

¹⁰He replied, “You are talking like a foolish^[e] woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”^(BO)

In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.^(BP)

¹¹When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite,^(BQ) Bildad the Shuhite^(BR) and Zophar the Naamathite,^(BS) heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him.^(BT) ¹²When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him;^(BU) they began to weep aloud,^(BV) and they tore their robes^(BW) and sprinkled dust on their heads.^(BX) ¹³Then they sat on the ground^(BY) with him for seven days and seven nights.^(BZ) No one said a word to him,^(CA) because they saw how great his suffering was.

Job Speaks

3 After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth.^(CB) ²He said:

³“May the day of my birth perish,
    and the night that said, ‘A boy is conceived!’^(CC)
⁴That day—may it turn to darkness;
    may God above not care about it;
    may no light shine on it.
⁵May gloom and utter darkness^(CD) claim it once more;
    may a cloud settle over it;
    may blackness overwhelm it.
⁶That night—may thick darkness^(CE) seize it;
    may it not be included among the days of the year
    nor be entered in any of the months.
⁷May that night be barren;
    may no shout of joy^(CF) be heard in it.
⁸May those who curse days^[f] curse that day,^(CG)
    those who are ready to rouse Leviathan.^(CH)
⁹May its morning stars become dark;
    may it wait for daylight in vain
    and not see the first rays of dawn,^(CI)
¹⁰for it did not shut the doors of the womb on me
    to hide trouble from my eyes.

¹¹“Why did I not perish at birth,
    and die as I came from the womb?^(CJ)
¹²Why were there knees to receive me^(CK)
    and breasts that I might be nursed?
¹³For now I would be lying down^(CL) in peace;
    I would be asleep and at rest^(CM)
¹⁴with kings and rulers of the earth,^(CN)
    who built for themselves places now lying in ruins,^(CO)
¹⁵with princes^(CP) who had gold,
    who filled their houses with silver.^(CQ)
¹⁶Or why was I not hidden away in the ground like a stillborn child,^(CR)
    like an infant who never saw the light of day?^(CS)
¹⁷There the wicked cease from turmoil,^(CT)
    and there the weary are at rest.^(CU)
¹⁸Captives^(CV) also enjoy their ease;
    they no longer hear the slave driver’s^(CW) shout.^(CX)
¹⁹The small and the great are there,^(CY)
    and the slaves are freed from their owners.

²⁰“Why is light given to those in misery,
    and life to the bitter of soul,^(CZ)
²¹to those who long for death that does not come,^(DA)
    who search for it more than for hidden treasure,^(DB)
²²who are filled with gladness
    and rejoice when they reach the grave?^(DC)
²³Why is life given to a man
    whose way is hidden,^(DD)
    whom God has hedged in?^(DE)
²⁴For sighing^(DF) has become my daily food;^(DG)
    my groans^(DH) pour out like water.^(DI)
²⁵What I feared has come upon me;
    what I dreaded^(DJ) has happened to me.^(DK)
²⁶I have no peace,^(DL) no quietness;
    I have no rest,^(DM) but only turmoil.”^(DN)

Eliphaz

4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite^(DO) replied:

²“If someone ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?
    But who can keep from speaking?^(DP)
³Think how you have instructed many,^(DQ)
    how you have strengthened feeble hands.^(DR)
⁴Your words have supported those who stumbled;^(DS)
    you have strengthened faltering knees.^(DT)
⁵But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged;^(DU)
    it strikes^(DV) you, and you are dismayed.^(DW)
⁶Should not your piety be your confidence^(DX)
    and your blameless^(DY) ways your hope?

⁷“Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished?^(DZ)
    Where were the upright ever destroyed?^(EA)
⁸As I have observed,^(EB) those who plow evil^(EC)
    and those who sow trouble reap it.^(ED)
⁹At the breath of God^(EE) they perish;
    at the blast of his anger they are no more.^(EF)
¹⁰The lions may roar^(EG) and growl,
    yet the teeth of the great lions^(EH) are broken.^(EI)
¹¹The lion perishes for lack of prey,^(EJ)
    and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.^(EK)

¹²“A word^(EL) was secretly brought to me,
    my ears caught a whisper^(EM) of it.^(EN)
¹³Amid disquieting dreams in the night,
    when deep sleep falls on people,^(EO)
¹⁴fear and trembling^(EP) seized me
    and made all my bones shake.^(EQ)
¹⁵A spirit glided past my face,
    and the hair on my body stood on end.^(ER)
¹⁶It stopped,
    but I could not tell what it was.
A form stood before my eyes,
    and I heard a hushed voice:^(ES)
¹⁷‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God?^(ET)
    Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker?^(EU)
¹⁸If God places no trust in his servants,^(EV)
    if he charges his angels with error,^(EW)
¹⁹how much more those who live in houses of clay,^(EX)
    whose foundations^(EY) are in the dust,^(EZ)
    who are crushed^(FA) more readily than a moth!^(FB)
²⁰Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces;
    unnoticed, they perish forever.^(FC)
²¹Are not the cords of their tent pulled up,^(FD)
    so that they die^(FE) without wisdom?’^(FF)

5 “Call if you will, but who will answer you?^(FG)
    To which of the holy ones^(FH) will you turn?
²Resentment^(FI) kills a fool,
    and envy slays the simple.^(FJ)
³I myself have seen^(FK) a fool taking root,^(FL)
    but suddenly^(FM) his house was cursed.^(FN)
⁴His children^(FO) are far from safety,^(FP)
    crushed in court^(FQ) without a defender.^(FR)
⁵The hungry consume his harvest,^(FS)
    taking it even from among thorns,
    and the thirsty pant after his wealth.
⁶For hardship does not spring from the soil,
    nor does trouble sprout from the ground.^(FT)
⁷Yet man is born to trouble^(FU)
    as surely as sparks fly upward.

⁸“But if I were you, I would appeal to God;
    I would lay my cause before him.^(FV)
⁹He performs wonders^(FW) that cannot be fathomed,^(FX)
    miracles that cannot be counted.^(FY)
¹⁰He provides rain for the earth;^(FZ)
    he sends water on the countryside.^(GA)
¹¹The lowly he sets on high,^(GB)
    and those who mourn^(GC) are lifted^(GD) to safety.
¹²He thwarts the plans^(GE) of the crafty,
    so that their hands achieve no success.^(GF)
¹³He catches the wise^(GG) in their craftiness,^(GH)
    and the schemes of the wily are swept away.^(GI)
¹⁴Darkness^(GJ) comes upon them in the daytime;
    at noon they grope as in the night.^(GK)
¹⁵He saves the needy^(GL) from the sword in their mouth;
    he saves them from the clutches of the powerful.^(GM)
¹⁶So the poor^(GN) have hope,
    and injustice shuts its mouth.^(GO)

¹⁷“Blessed is the one whom God corrects;^(GP)
    so do not despise the discipline^(GQ) of the Almighty.^[g]^(GR)
¹⁸For he wounds, but he also binds up;^(GS)
    he injures, but his hands also heal.^(GT)
¹⁹From six calamities he will rescue^(GU) you;
    in seven no harm will touch you.^(GV)
²⁰In famine^(GW) he will deliver you from death,
    and in battle from the stroke of the sword.^(GX)
²¹You will be protected from the lash of the tongue,^(GY)
    and need not fear^(GZ) when destruction comes.^(HA)
²²You will laugh^(HB) at destruction and famine,^(HC)
    and need not fear the wild animals.^(HD)
²³For you will have a covenant^(HE) with the stones^(HF) of the field,
    and the wild animals will be at peace with you.^(HG)
²⁴You will know that your tent is secure;^(HH)
    you will take stock of your property and find nothing missing.^(HI)
²⁵You will know that your children will be many,^(HJ)
    and your descendants like the grass of the earth.^(HK)
²⁶You will come to the grave in full vigor,^(HL)
    like sheaves gathered in season.^(HM)

²⁷“We have examined this, and it is true.
So hear it^(HN) and apply it to yourself.”^(HO)

Footnotes

Job 1:6 Hebrew the sons of God
Job 1:6 Hebrew satan means adversary.
Job 1:21 Or will return there
Job 2:1 Hebrew the sons of God
Job 2:10 The Hebrew word rendered foolish denotes moral deficiency.
Job 3:8 Or curse the sea
Job 5:17 Hebrew Shaddai; here and throughout Job

2 Corinthians 2-3

New International Version

2 ¹So I made up my mind that I would not make another painful visit to you.^(A) ²For if I grieve you,^(B) who is left to make me glad but you whom I have grieved? ³I wrote as I did,^(C) so that when I came I would not be distressed^(D) by those who should have made me rejoice. I had confidence^(E) in all of you, that you would all share my joy. ⁴For I wrote you^(F) out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.

Forgiveness for the Offender

⁵If anyone has caused grief,^(G) he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you to some extent—not to put it too severely. ⁶The punishment^(H) inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient. ⁷Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him,^(I) so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. ⁸I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. ⁹Another reason I wrote you^(J) was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything.^(K) ¹⁰Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, ¹¹in order that Satan^(L) might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.^(M)

Ministers of the New Covenant

¹²Now when I went to Troas^(N) to preach the gospel of Christ^(O) and found that the Lord had opened a door^(P) for me, ¹³I still had no peace of mind,^(Q) because I did not find my brother Titus^(R) there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.^(S)

¹⁴But thanks be to God,^(T) who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma^(U) of the knowledge^(V) of him everywhere. ¹⁵For we are to God the pleasing aroma^(W) of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.^(X) ¹⁶To the one we are an aroma that brings death;^(Y) to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task?^(Z) ¹⁷Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit.^(AA) On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity,^(AB) as those sent from God.^(AC)

3 Are we beginning to commend ourselves^(AD) again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation^(AE) to you or from you? ²You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone.^(AF) ³You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God,^(AG) not on tablets of stone^(AH) but on tablets of human hearts.^(AI)

⁴Such confidence^(AJ) we have through Christ before God. ⁵Not that we are competent in ourselves^(AK) to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.^(AL) ⁶He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant^(AM)—not of the letter^(AN) but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.^(AO)

The Greater Glory of the New Covenant

⁷Now if the ministry that brought death,^(AP) which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory,^(AQ) transitory though it was, ⁸will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? ⁹If the ministry that brought condemnation^(AR) was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness!^(AS) ¹⁰For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. ¹¹And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!

¹²Therefore, since we have such a hope,^(AT) we are very bold.^(AU) ¹³We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face^(AV) to prevent the Israelites from seeing the end of what was passing away. ¹⁴But their minds were made dull,^(AW) for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant^(AX) is read.^(AY) It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. ¹⁵Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. ¹⁶But whenever anyone turns to the Lord,^(AZ) the veil is taken away.^(BA) ¹⁷Now the Lord is the Spirit,^(BB) and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.^(BC) ¹⁸And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate^[a]^(BD) the Lord’s glory,^(BE) are being transformed into his image^(BF) with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.