Who does great things, unfathomable,
And wondrous works without number.

“Were He to pass by me, I would not see Him;
Were He to move past me, I would not perceive Him.

“Were He to snatch away, who could restrain Him?
Who could say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’

“For though I were right, I could not answer;
I would have to implore the mercy of my judge.

“God will not turn back His anger;
Beneath Him crouch the helpers of Rahab.

“For He bruises me with a tempest
And multiplies my wounds without cause.

“Though I am righteous, my mouth will condemn me;
Though I am guiltless, He will declare me guilty.

“If I called and He answered me,
I could not believe that He was listening to my voice.

“How then can I answer Him,
And choose my words before Him?

“If it is a matter of power, behold, He is the strong one!
And if it is a matter of justice, who can summon Him?

“I am guiltless;
I do not take notice of myself;
I despise my life.

“Now my days are swifter than a runner;
They flee away, they see no good.

“He will not allow me to get my breath,
But saturates me with bitterness.

“In truth I know that this is so;
But how can a man be in the right before God?

Then Job answered,

Who shakes the earth out of its place,
And its pillars tremble;

“The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;
He covers the faces of its judges.
If it is not He, then who is it?

Who commands the sun not to shine,
And sets a seal upon the stars;

“Wise in heart and mighty in strength,
Who has defied Him without harm?

“It is God who removes the mountains, they know not how,
When He overturns them in His anger;

“It is all one; therefore I say,
‘He destroys the guiltless and the wicked.’

“If the scourge kills suddenly,
He mocks the despair of the innocent.

“They slip by like reed boats,
Like an eagle that swoops on its prey.

“If one wished to dispute with Him,
He could not answer Him once in a thousand times.

“If I should wash myself with snow
And cleanse my hands with lye,

I am afraid of all my pains,
I know that You will not acquit me.

“I am accounted wicked,
Why then should I toil in vain?

“Though I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,
I will leave off my sad countenance and be cheerful,’

Who alone stretches out the heavens
And tramples down the waves of the sea;

“There is no umpire between us,
Who may lay his hand upon us both.

Who makes the Bear, Orion and the Pleiades,
And the chambers of the south;

“For He is not a man as I am that I may answer Him,
That we may go to court together.

“Let Him remove His rod from me,
And let not dread of Him terrify me.

Yet You would plunge me into the pit,
And my own clothes would abhor me.

“Then I would speak and not fear Him;
But I am not like that in myself.