² “Shall ^(B)the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him?
He who ^(C)rebukes God, let him answer it.”

⁴ “Behold,^(D) I am vile;
What shall I answer You?
^(E)I lay my hand over my mouth.
⁵ Once I have spoken, but I will not answer;
Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.”

⁷ “Now^{(G) [a]}prepare yourself like a man;
^(H)I will question you, and you shall answer Me:

⁸ “Would^(I) you indeed ^[b]annul My judgment?
Would you condemn Me that you may be justified?
⁹ Have you an arm like God?
Or can you thunder with ^(J)a voice like His?
^10 (K)Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor,
And array yourself with glory and beauty.
¹¹ Disperse the rage of your wrath;
Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him.
¹² Look on everyone who is ^(L)proud, and bring him low;
Tread down the wicked in their place.
¹³ Hide them in the dust together,
Bind their faces in hidden darkness.
¹⁴ Then I will also confess to you
That your own right hand can save you.

¹⁵ “Look now at the ^[c]behemoth, which I made along with you;
He eats grass like an ox.
¹⁶ See now, his strength is in his hips,
And his power is in his stomach muscles.
¹⁷ He moves his tail like a cedar;
The sinews of his thighs are tightly knit.
¹⁸ His bones are like beams of bronze,
His ribs like bars of iron.
¹⁹ He is the first of the ^(M)ways of God;
Only He who made him can bring near His sword.
²⁰ Surely the mountains ^(N)yield food for him,
And all the beasts of the field play there.
²¹ He lies under the lotus trees,
In a covert of reeds and marsh.
²² The lotus trees cover him with their shade;
The willows by the brook surround him.
²³ Indeed the river may rage,
Yet he is not disturbed;
He is confident, though the Jordan gushes into his mouth,
²⁴ Though he takes it in his eyes,
Or one pierces his nose with a snare.

¹² “I will not ^[d]conceal his limbs,
His mighty power, or his graceful proportions.
¹³ Who can ^[e]remove his outer coat?
Who can approach him with a double bridle?
¹⁴ Who can open the doors of his face,
With his terrible teeth all around?
¹⁵ His rows of ^[f]scales are his pride,
Shut up tightly as with a seal;
¹⁶ One is so near another
That no air can come between them;
¹⁷ They are joined one to another,
They stick together and cannot be parted.
¹⁸ His sneezings flash forth light,
And his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.
¹⁹ Out of his mouth go burning lights;
Sparks of fire shoot out.
²⁰ Smoke goes out of his nostrils,
As from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
²¹ His breath kindles coals,
And a flame goes out of his mouth.
²² Strength dwells in his neck,
And ^[g]sorrow dances before him.
²³ The folds of his flesh are joined together;
They are firm on him and cannot be moved.
²⁴ His heart is as hard as stone,
Even as hard as the lower millstone.
²⁵ When he raises himself up, the mighty are afraid;
Because of his crashings they ^[h]are beside themselves.
²⁶ Though the sword reaches him, it cannot avail;
Nor does spear, dart, or javelin.
²⁷ He regards iron as straw,
And bronze as rotten wood.
²⁸ The arrow cannot make him flee;
Slingstones become like stubble to him.
²⁹ Darts are regarded as straw;
He laughs at the threat of javelins.
³⁰ His undersides are like sharp potsherds;
He spreads pointed marks in the mire.
³¹ He makes the deep boil like a pot;
He makes the sea like a pot of ointment.
³² He leaves a shining wake behind him;
One would think the deep had white hair.
³³ On earth there is nothing like him,
Which is made without fear.
³⁴ He beholds every high thing;
He is king over all the children of pride.”

² “I know that You ^(A)can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
³ You asked, ^(B)‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
^(C)Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
⁴ Listen, please, and let me speak;
You said, ^(D)‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’

⁵ “I have ^(E)heard of You by the hearing of the ear,
But now my eye sees You.
⁶ Therefore I ^(F)abhor^[a] myself,
And repent in dust and ashes.”