Old/New Testament
30 But now they mock(A) me,
men younger than I am,
whose fathers I would have refused to put
with my sheep dogs.
2 What use to me was the strength of their hands?
Their vigor had left them.
3 Emaciated from poverty and hunger,
they gnawed the dry land,
the desolate wasteland by night.
4 They plucked mallow[a](B) among the shrubs,
and the roots of the broom tree were their food.
5 They were banished from human society;
people shouted at them as if they were thieves.
6 They are living on the slopes of the wadis,
among the rocks and in holes in the ground.
7 They bray among the shrubs;
they huddle beneath the thistles.
8 Foolish(C) men, without even a name.
They were forced to leave the land.
9 Now I am mocked by their songs;(D)
I have become an object of scorn to them.
10 They despise me and keep their distance from me;(E)
they do not hesitate to spit(F) in my face.
11 Because God has loosened my[b] bowstring and oppressed me,
they have cast off restraint in my presence.(G)
12 The rabble[c] rise up at my right;
they trap[d] my feet
and construct their siege ramp[e] against me.(H)
13 They tear up my path;
they contribute to my destruction,(I)
without anyone to help them.
14 They advance as through a gaping breach;
they keep rolling in through the ruins.(J)
15 Terrors(K) are turned loose against me;
they chase my dignity away like the wind,
and my prosperity has passed by like a cloud.
16 Now my life is poured out before me,
and days of suffering(L) have seized me.
17 Night pierces my bones,
but my gnawing pains never rest.(M)
18 My clothing is distorted with great force;
he chokes me by the neck of my garment.[f]
19 He throws me into the mud,
and I have become like dust and ashes.(N)
20 I cry out to you for help, but you do not answer me;(O)
when I stand up, you merely look at me.
21 You have turned against me with cruelty;
you harass(P) me with your strong hand.
22 You lift me up on the wind and make me ride it;
you scatter me in the storm.(Q)
23 Yes, I know that you will lead me to death—
the place(R) appointed for all who live.
24 Yet no one would stretch out his hand
against a ruined person[g]
when he cries out to him for help
because of his distress.(S)
25 Have I not wept for those who have fallen on hard times?
Has my soul not grieved for the needy?(T)
26 But when I hoped for good, evil came;
when I looked for light, darkness(U) came.
27 I am churning within[h] and cannot rest;
days of suffering confront me.
28 I walk about blackened, but not by the sun.[i]
I stood in the assembly and cried out for help.
29 I have become a brother to jackals
and a companion of ostriches.
30 My skin blackens and flakes off,[j]
and my bones burn with fever.(V)
31 My lyre is used for mourning
and my flute for the sound of weeping.(W)
31 I have made a covenant with my eyes.(X)
How then could I look at a young woman?[k](Y)
2 For what portion(Z) would I have from God above,
or what inheritance from the Almighty on high?
3 Doesn’t disaster come to the unjust
and misfortune to evildoers?
4 Does he not see my ways
and number all my steps?(AA)
5 If I have walked in falsehood
or my foot has rushed to deceit,
6 let God weigh me on accurate scales,(AB)
and he will recognize my integrity.(AC)
7 If my step has turned from the way,
my heart has followed my eyes,
or impurity has stained my hands,(AD)
8 let someone else eat what I have sown,
and let my crops be uprooted.(AE)
9 If my heart has gone astray over a woman
or I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 let my own wife grind grain for another man,
and let other men sleep with[l] her.
11 For that would be a disgrace;
it would be an iniquity deserving punishment.(AF)
12 For it is a fire that consumes down to Abaddon;
it would destroy my entire harvest.(AG)
13 If I have dismissed the case of my male or female servants
when they made a complaint against me,
14 what could I do when God stands up to judge?
How should I answer him when he calls me to account?
15 Did not the one who made me in the womb also make them?
Did not the same God form us both in the womb?(AH)
16 If I have refused the wishes of the poor
or let the widow’s(AI) eyes go blind,
17 if I have eaten my few crumbs alone
without letting the fatherless eat any of it—
18 for from my youth, I raised him as his father,
and since the day I was born[m] I guided the widow—
19 if I have seen anyone dying for lack of clothing
or a needy person without a cloak,(AJ)
20 if he[n] did not bless me
while warming himself with the fleece from my sheep,
21 if I ever cast my vote[o] against a fatherless child
when I saw that I had support in the city gate,(AK)
22 then let my shoulder blade fall from my back,
and my arm be pulled from its socket.
23 For disaster from God terrifies me,
and because of his majesty I could not do these things.(AL)
24 If I placed my confidence in gold
or called fine gold my trust,(AM)
25 if I have rejoiced because my wealth is great
or because my own hand has acquired so much,
26 if I have gazed at the sun when it was shining
or at the moon moving in splendor,(AN)
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed
and I threw them a kiss,[p]
28 this would also be an iniquity deserving punishment,
for I would have denied God above.
29 Have I rejoiced over my enemy’s distress,
or become excited when trouble came his way?
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
by asking for his life with a curse.
31 Haven’t the members of my household said,
“Who is there who has not had enough to eat at Job’s table?”
32 No stranger had to spend the night on the street,
for I opened my door to the traveler.
33 Have I covered my transgressions(AO) as others do[q]
by hiding my iniquity in my heart(AP)
34 because I greatly feared the crowds
and because the contempt of the clans terrified me,
so I grew silent and would not go outside?
35 If only I had someone to hear my case!(AQ)
Here is my signature; let the Almighty answer me.
Let my Opponent compose his indictment.
36 I would surely carry it on my shoulder
and wear it like a crown.(AR)
37 I would give him an account of all my steps;
I would approach him like a prince.
38 If my land cries out against me
and its furrows join in weeping,
39 if I have consumed its produce without payment
or shown contempt for its tenants,[r]
40 then let thorns(AS) grow instead of wheat
and stinkweed(AT) instead of barley.
The words of Job are concluded.
26 “Brothers and sisters, children of Abraham’s race, and those among you who fear God, it is to us that the word of this salvation has been sent.(A) 27 Since the residents of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize him or the sayings of the prophets that are read every Sabbath, they have fulfilled their words by condemning him.(B) 28 Though they found no grounds for the death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him killed.(C) 29 When they had carried out all that had been written about him, they took him down from the tree and put him in a tomb.(D) 30 But God raised him from the dead,(E) 31 and he appeared for many days to those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people.(F) 32 And we ourselves proclaim to you the good news of the promise that was made to our ancestors.(G) 33 God has fulfilled this for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second Psalm:
34 As to his raising him from the dead, never to return to decay, he has spoken in this way, I will give you the holy and sure promises of David.[c](I) 35 Therefore he also says in another passage, You will not let your Holy One see decay.[d](J) 36 For David, after serving God’s purpose in his own generation, fell asleep,(K) was buried with his fathers, and decayed,(L) 37 but the one God raised up did not decay. 38 Therefore, let it be known to you, brothers and sisters, that through this man forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you.(M) 39 Everyone who believes is justified[e] through him from everything that you could not be justified from through the law of Moses.(N) 40 So beware that what is said in the prophets does not happen to you:
41 Look, you scoffers,
marvel and vanish away,
because I am doing a work in your days,
a work that you will never believe,
even if someone were to explain it to you.”[f](O)
Paul and Barnabas in Antioch
42 As they were leaving, the people[g] urged them to speak about these matters the following Sabbath. 43 After the synagogue had been dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who were speaking with them and urging them to continue in the grace of God.(P)
44 The following Sabbath almost the whole town assembled to hear the word of the Lord.[h] 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what Paul was saying, insulting him.(Q)
46 Paul and Barnabas boldly replied, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first. Since you reject it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we are turning to the Gentiles.(R) 47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us:
48 When the Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and honored the word of the Lord, and all who had been appointed to eternal life believed. 49 The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50 But the Jews incited the prominent God-fearing women and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and expelled them from their district.(T) 51 But Paul and Barnabas shook the dust off their feet(U) against them(V) and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.(W)
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