And there was a day when the sons of the gods came together before the Lord, and the Satan came with them.

But I am certain that he who will take up my cause is living, and that in time to come he will take his place on the dust;

There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job. He was without sin and upright, fearing God and keeping himself far from evil.

With nothing I came out of my mother's body, and with nothing I will go back there; the Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; let the Lord's name be praised.

Where were you when I put the earth on its base? Say, if you have knowledge.

By his hand the north is stretched out in space, and the earth is hanging on nothing.

And the Lord made answer to Job out of the storm-wind, and said,

But now, put out your hand against all he has, and he will be cursing you to your face.

Have you yourself not put a wall round him and his house and all he has on every side, blessing the work of his hands, and increasing his cattle in the land?

When the morning stars made songs together, and all the sons of the gods gave cries of joy?

And he had seven sons and three daughters.

And he said to man, Truly the fear of the Lord is wisdom, and to keep from evil is the way to knowledge.

And there was a day when his sons and daughters were feasting in the house of their oldest brother,

The spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Ruler of all gives me life.

For evil does not come out of the dust, or trouble out of the earth;

I made an agreement with my eyes; how then might my eyes be looking on a virgin?

And a man came to Job, and said, The oxen were ploughing, and the asses were taking their food by their side:

As for man, the son of woman, his days are short and full of trouble.

Truly, he will put an end to me; I have no hope; but I will not give way in argument before him;

See now the Great Beast, whom I made, even as I made you; he takes grass for food, like the ox.

Who gives in the evening the meat he is searching for, when his young ones are crying to God; when the young lions with loud noise go wandering after their food?

By his wind the heavens become bright: by his hand the quickly moving snake was cut through.

Then Job got up, and after parting his clothing and cutting off his hair, he went down on his face to the earth, and gave worship, and said,

And the Lord said to the Satan, Have you taken note of my servant Job, for there is no one like him on the earth, a man without sin and upright, fearing God and keeping himself far from evil?

And the men of Sheba came against them and took them away, putting the young men to the sword, and I was the only one who got away safe to give you the news.

And this one was still talking when another came, and said, Your sons and your daughters were feasting together in their oldest brother's house,

And this one was still talking when another came, and said, The Chaldaeans made themselves into three bands, and came down on the camels and took them away, putting the young men to the sword, and I was the only one who got away safe to give you the news.

Who does great things not to be searched out; yes, wonders without number.

Word of you had come to my ears, but now my eye has seen you.

For he has knowledge of the way I take; after I have been tested I will come out like gold.

That day--let it be dark; let not God take note of it from on high, and let not the light be shining on it;

And this one was still talking when another came, and said, The fire of God came down from heaven, burning up the sheep and the goats and the young men completely, and I was the only one who got away safe to give you the news.

I see that you are able to do every thing, and to give effect to all your designs.

In all this Job did no sin, and did not say that God's acts were foolish.

When a great wind came rushing from the waste land against the four sides of the house, and it came down on the young men, and they are dead; and I was the only one who got away safe to give you the news.

But now it has come on you and it is a weariness to you; you are touched by it and your mind is troubled.

At the sound of your voice I would give an answer, and you would have a desire for the work of your hands.

See, he goes past me and I see him not: he goes on before, but I have no knowledge of him.

And so a hollow-minded man will get wisdom, when a young ass of the field gets teaching.

The eye of him who sees me will see me no longer: your eyes will be looking for me, but I will be gone.

My bones are joined to my skin, and I have got away with my flesh in my teeth.

With him there is wisdom and strength; power and knowledge are his.

I will take my flesh in my teeth, and put my life in my hand.

Let the dark and the black night take it for themselves; let it be covered with a cloud; let the dark shades of day send fear on it.

(For we are but of yesterday, and have no knowledge, because our days on earth are gone like a shade:)

My soul has no desire for such things, they are as disease in my food.

By you I was clothed with skin and flesh, and joined together with bones and muscles.

How much less one who is disgusting and unclean, a man who takes in evil like water!

Is anyone able to give teaching to God? for he is the judge of those who are on high.

But if you put your heart right, stretching out your hands to him;

And the Satan said in answer to the Lord, Skin for skin, all a man has he will give for his life.

For now my steps are numbered by you, and my sin is not overlooked.

The traveller did not take his night's rest in the street, and my doors were open to anyone on a journey;

He had never enough for his desire; for this cause his well-being will quickly come to an end.

If you come back to the Ruler of all, making yourself low before him; if you put evil far away from your tents;

Will they not give you teaching, and say words of wisdom to you?

Truly, there is no building up of what is pulled down by him; when a man is shut up by him, no one may let him loose.

You have been kind to me, and your grace has been with me, and your care has kept my spirit safe.

If only he would be pleased to put an end to me; and would let loose his hand, so that I might be cut off!

Is not your fear of God your support, and your upright way of life your hope?

One comes to his end in complete well-being, full of peace and quiet:

If he puts out his hand to take, by whom may it be turned back? who may say to him, What are you doing?

If only I might have an answer to my prayer, and God would give me my desire!

He has no offspring or family among his people, and in his living-place there is no one of his name.

And put your gold in the dust, even your gold of Ophir among the rocks of the valleys;

Take note and give ear to my words; and I will say what I have seen:

Though my hands have done no violent acts, and my prayer is clean.

Who gives rain on the earth, and sends water on the fields:

And my music has been turned to sorrow, and the sound of my pipe into the noise of weeping.

But now, if you only put your hand on his bone and his flesh, he will certainly be cursing you to your face.

Who does great things outside our knowledge, wonders without number:

Have pity on me, have pity on me, O my friends! for the hand of God is on me.

And that will be my salvation, for an evil-doer would not come before him,

And the Lord said to the Satan, See, he is in your hands, only do not take his life.

Then truly your face will be lifted up, with no mark of sin, and you will be fixed in your place without fear:

He will not come back to his house, and his place will have no more knowledge of him.

If you put far away the evil of your hands, and let no wrongdoing have a place in your tent;

And if it is not so, now, who will make it clear that my words are false, and that what I say is of no value?

He takes away the wisdom of the wise guides, and makes judges foolish;

Why are you cruel to me, like God, for ever saying evil against me?

Am I a sea, or a sea-beast, that you put a watch over me?

That night--let the thick dark take it; let it not have joy among the days of the year; let it not come into the number of the months.

With him are strength and wise designs; he who is guided into error, together with his guide, are in his hands;

O earth, let not my blood be covered, and let my cry have no resting-place!

What I have seen is that those by whom trouble has been ploughed, and evil planted, get the same for themselves.

Have you ever seen destruction come to an upright man? or when were the god-fearing ever cut off?

When they are stretched out in their holes, and are waiting in the brushwood?

If I kept my evil doings covered, and my sin in the secret of my breast,

Lifting up those who are low, and putting the sad in a safe place;

For your sorrow will go from your memory, like waters flowing away:

That, if I did wrong, you would take note of it, and would not make me clear from sin:

My wrongdoing is corded up in a bag, and my sin is shut up safe.

Even when his wealth is great, he is full of care, for the hand of everyone who is in trouble is turned against him.

See now, I have put my cause in order, and I am certain that I will be seen to be right.

Truly, he keeps back the waters and they are dry; he sends them out and the earth is overturned.

And your life will be brighter than day; though it is dark, it will become like the morning.

But the eyes of the evil-doers will be wasting away; their way of flight is gone, and their only hope is the taking of their last breath.

At his fate those of the west are shocked, and those of the east are overcome with fear.

Uncovering deep things out of the dark, and making the deep shade bright;

He makes priests prisoners, overturning those in safe positions;

He whose heart is shut against his friend has given up the fear of the Ruler of all.

But truly a mountain falling comes to dust, and a rock is moved from its place;

That you would send new witnesses against me, increasing your wrath against me, and letting loose new armies on me.

So is the end of all who do not keep God in mind; and the hope of the evil-doer comes to nothing:

When it is still green, without being cut down, it becomes dry and dead before any other plant.

Even if my cause was good, I would not be able to give an answer; I would make request for grace from him who was against me.

He undoes the chains of kings, and puts his band on them;

Let it be cursed by those who put a curse on the day; who are ready to make Leviathan awake.

And you will be safe because there is hope; after looking round, you will take your rest in quiet;

God's wrath may not be turned back; the helpers of Rahab were bent down under him.

Whose support is cut off, and whose hope is no stronger than a spider's thread.

He puts shame on chiefs, and takes away the power of the strong;

Let its morning stars be dark; let it be looking for light, but may it not have any; let it not see the eyes of the dawn.

Sleeping with no fear of danger; and men will be desiring to have grace in your eyes;

Before I go to the place from which I will not come back, to the land where all is dark and black,

As for that night, let it have no fruit; let no voice of joy be sounded in it;

So I will not keep my mouth shut; I will let the words come from it in the pain of my spirit, my soul will make a bitter outcry.

When I say, In my bed I will have comfort, there I will get rest from my disease;

He makes the words of responsible persons without effect, and takes away the good sense of the old;

His buckets are full of milk, and there is no loss of strength in his bones.

But you kept these things in the secret of your heart; I am certain this was in your thoughts:

For I would be crushed by his storm, my wounds would be increased without cause.

He is looking to his family for support, but it is not there; he puts his hope in it, but it comes to nothing.

Are not the days of my life small in number? Let your eyes be turned away from me, so that I may have a little pleasure,

Why then did you make me come out of my mother's body? It would have been better for me to have taken my last breath, and for no eye to have seen me,

They go feeling about in the dark without light, wandering without help like those overcome with wine.

He is full of strength before the sun, and his branches go out over his garden.

Will the river-plant come up in its pride without wet earth? will the grass get tall without water?

Though I was in the right, he would say that I was in the wrong; I have done no evil; but he says that I am a sinner.

He takes away the wisdom of the rulers of the earth, and sends them wandering in a waste where there is no way.

If I had sent for him to be present, and he had come, I would have no faith that he would give ear to my voice.

Give ear with care to my words, and keep what I say in your minds.

And he took a broken bit of a pot, and, seated in the dust, was rubbing himself with the sharp edge of it.

May Job be tested to the end, because his answers have been like those of evil men.

How much less may I give an answer to him, using the right words in argument with him?

Truly, these are the houses of the sinner, and this is the place of him who has no knowledge of God.

If it is a question of strength, he says, Here I am! and if it is a question of a cause at law, he says, Who will give me a fixed day?

Why did death not take me when I came out of my mother's body, why did I not, when I came out, give up my last breath?

I have no help in myself, and wisdom is completely gone from me.

Who makes the designs of the wise go wrong, so that they are unable to give effect to their purposes.

The camel-trains of Tema were searching with care, the bands of Sheba were waiting for them:

And why do you not take away my sin, and let my wrongdoing be ended? for now I go down to the dust, and you will be searching for me with care, but I will be gone.

So I would still have comfort, and I would have joy in the pains of death, for I have not been false to the words of the Holy One.

Because it did not keep the doors of my mother's body shut, so that trouble might be veiled from my eyes.

If he is taken away from his place, then it will say, I have not seen you.

That, if I was an evil-doer, the curse would come on me; and if I was upright, my head would not be lifted up, being full of shame and overcome with trouble.

A sound of fear is in his ears; in time of peace destruction will come on him:

His sons come to honour, and he has no knowledge of it; they are made low, but he is not conscious of it.

Why did the knees take me, or why the breasts that they might give me milk?

I have done no wrong; I give no thought to what becomes of me; I have no desire for life.

But he keeps safe from their sword those who have no father, and the poor from the power of the strong.

And lifting up their eyes when they were still far off, it did not seem that the man they saw was Job because of the change in him. And they gave way to bitter weeping, with signs of grief, and put dust on their heads.

For then you will have delight in the Ruler of all, and your face will be lifted up to God.

And with an iron pen and lead be cut into the rock for ever!

He takes the wise in their secret designs, and the purposes of the twisted are cut off suddenly.

My days go quicker than a post-runner: they go in flight, they see no good.

In the daytime it becomes dark for them, and in the sunlight they go feeling about as if it was night.

Or as a child dead at birth I might never have come into existence; like young children who have not seen the light.

So that he may give decision for a man in his cause with God, and between a son of man and his neighbour.

Have I strength to go on waiting, or have I any end to be looking forward to?

All his wealth is stored up for the dark: a fire not made by man sends destruction on him, and on everything in his tent.

For then I might have gone to my rest in quiet, and in sleep have been in peace,

He is wandering about in search of bread, saying, Where is it? and he is certain that the day of trouble is ready for him:

By the breath of God destruction takes them, and by the wind of his wrath they are cut off.

There the passions of the evil are over, and those whose strength has come to an end have rest.

(The things which wise men have got from their fathers, and have not kept secret from us;

With kings and the wise ones of the earth, who put up great houses for themselves;

For in a short time I will take the journey from which I will not come back.

Then you send dreams to me, and visions of fear;

And they took their seats on the earth by his side for seven days and seven nights: but no one said a word to him, for they saw that his pain was very great.

What is the number of my evil-doings and my sins? give me knowledge of them.

And Job made answer and said,

So the poor man has hope, and the mouth of the evil-doer is stopped.

And the Lord said to the Satan, Where do you come from? And the Satan said in answer, From wandering this way and that on the earth, and walking about on it.

My soul is tired of life; I will let my sad thoughts go free in words; my soul will make a bitter outcry.

How the evil man goes free in the day of trouble, and has salvation in the day of wrath?

Old men have wisdom, and a long life gives knowledge.

No doubt you have knowledge, and wisdom will come to an end with you.

Increasing nations, and sending destruction on them; making wide the lands of peoples, and then giving them up.

Take your hand far away from me; and let me not be overcome by fear of you.

Let destruction take the day of my birth, and the night on which it was said, A man child has come into the world.

Why does he give light to him who is in trouble, and life to the bitter in soul;

Who will make his way clear to his face? and if he has done a thing, who gives him punishment for it?

A land of thick dark, without order, where the very light is dark.

Only two things do not do to me, then I will come before your face:

Whom I will see on my side, and not as one strange to me. My heart is broken with desire.

Is any one able to take up the argument against me? If so, I would keep quiet and give up my breath.

Only his flesh still has pain, and his soul is sad.

Then Zophar the Naamathite made answer and said,

He makes safe the man who is free from sin, and if your hands are clean, salvation will be yours.

He is greatly in fear of the dark day, trouble and pain overcome him:

I have no desire for life, I would not be living for ever! Keep away from me, for my days are as a breath.

So that a hard death seems better to my soul than my pains.

What is man, that you have made him great, and that your attention is fixed on him,

Then at the sound of your voice I will give answer; or let me put forward my cause for you to give me an answer.

For after his punishment he gives comfort, and after wounding, his hands make you well.

And Job made answer and said,

They are higher than heaven; what is there for you to do? deeper than the underworld, and outside your knowledge;

If you say, How cruel we will be to him! because the root of sin is clearly in him:

Is my strength the strength of stones, or is my flesh brass?

For only to them was the land given, and no strange people were among them:)

And would make clear to you the secrets of wisdom, and the wonders of his purpose!

It seems that I am to be as one who is a cause of laughing to his neighbour, one who makes his prayer to God and is answered! the upright man who has done no wrong is to be made sport of!

You will make sport of destruction and need, and will have no fear of the beasts of the earth.

Give now a cry for help; is there anyone who will give you an answer? and to which of the holy ones will you make your prayer?

For wrath is the cause of death to the foolish, and he who has no wisdom comes to his end through passion.

For you put bitter things on record against me, and send punishment on me for the sins of my early years;

Though a man comes to nothing like a bit of dead wood, or like a robe which has become food for the worm.

He will keep you safe from the evil tongue; and you will have no fear of wasting when it comes.

He is taken to his last resting-place, and keeps watch over it.

God gives him his desire, and sends the heat of his wrath on him, making it come down on him like rain.

Even now my witness is in heaven, and the supporter of my cause is on high.

And he has made his resting-place in the towns which have been pulled down, in houses where no man had a right to be, whose fate was to become masses of broken walls.

He is like a vine whose grapes do not come to full growth, or an olive-tree dropping its flowers.

Are your words of pride to make men keep quiet? and are you to make sport, with no one to put you to shame?

Who does not see by all these that the hand of the Lord has done this?

Are all these words to go unanswered? and is a man seen to be right because he is full of talk?

I will say to God, Do not put me down as a sinner; make clear to me what you have against me.

I would make clear the number of my steps, I would put it before him like a prince! The words of Job are ended.

If I have done wrong, what have I done to you, O keeper of men? why have you made me a mark for your blows, so that I am a weariness to myself?

I have no peace, no quiet, and no rest; nothing but pain comes on me.

Job made answer and said,

The small and the great are there, and the servant is free from his master.

Running against him like a man of war, covered by his thick breastplate; even like a king ready for the fight,

Will you be hard on a leaf in flight before the wind? will you make a dry stem go more quickly on its way?

Or with rulers who had gold, and whose houses were full of silver;

Though the noise of the lion and the sounding of his voice, may be loud, the teeth of the young lions are broken.

There the prisoners are at peace together; the voice of the overseer comes not again to their ears.

You may say, My way is clean, and I am free from sin in your eyes.

For in his eyes men are as nothing; he sees evil and takes note of it.

For you will be in agreement with the stones of the earth, and the beasts of the field will be at peace with you.

To a man whose way is veiled, and who is shut in by God?

Are not words tested by the ear, even as food is tasted by the mouth?

And for me to have been as if I had not been; to have been taken from my mother's body straight to my last resting-place.

And you put chains on my feet, watching all my ways, and making a limit for my steps;

Then Bildad the Shuhite made answer and said,

My friends have been false like a stream, like streams in the valleys which come to an end:

If my land has made an outcry against me, or the ploughed earth has been in sorrow;

Why then do you give me comfort with words in which there is no profit, when you see that there is nothing in your answers but deceit?

Why is your face veiled from me, as if I was numbered among your haters?

Such is the joy of his way, and out of the dust another comes up to take his place.

And you will be certain that your tent is at peace, and after looking over your property you will see that nothing is gone.

Was I not drained out like milk, becoming hard like cheese?

If he goes on his way, shutting a man up and putting him to death, who may make him go back from his purpose?

O keep in mind that you made me out of earth; and will you send me back again to dust?

There is wealth in the tents of those who make destruction, and those by whom God is moved to wrath are safe; even those whose god is their strength.

But if only God would take up the word, opening his lips in argument with you;

He does not get wealth for himself, and is unable to keep what he has got; the heads of his grain are not bent down to the earth.

How long will it be before your eyes are turned away from me, so that I may have a minute's breathing-space?

Because his face is covered with fat, and his body has become thick;

The time will come when your mouth will be full of laughing, and cries of joy will come from your lips.

But I have a mind as well as you; I am equal to you: yes, who has not knowledge of such things as these?

Evil has made them with child, and they give birth to trouble; and the fruit of their body is shame for themselves.

The produce of his house is taken away into another country, like things given into the hands of others in the day of wrath.

To those whose desire is for death, but it comes not; who are searching for it more than for secret wealth;

And another comes to his end with a bitter soul, without ever tasting good.

He would not let me take my breath, but I would be full of bitter grief.

For fear of the great body of people, or for fear that families might make sport of me, so that I kept quiet, and did not go out of my door;

In the thought of him who is in comfort there is no respect for one who is in trouble; such is the fate of those whose feet are slipping.

Who are glad with great joy, and full of delight when they come to their last resting-place;

Your haters will be clothed with shame, and the tent of the sinner will not be seen again.

Longer in measure than the earth, and wider than the sea.

What profit is it to you to be cruel, to give up the work of your hands, looking kindly on the design of evil-doers?

When there is need of food he will keep you from death, and in war from the power of the sword.

In troubled thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep comes on men,

Truly, God will not give up him who is without sin, and will not take evil-doers by the hand.

Though you see that I am not an evil-doer; and there is no one who is able to take a man out of your hands?

Truly, I see that it is so: and how is it possible for a man to get his right before God?

You will come to your last resting-place in full strength, as the grain is taken up to the crushing-floor in its time.

Will a man take food which has no taste without salt? or is there any taste in the soft substance of purslain?

Have you eyes of flesh, or do you see as man sees?

In place of my food I have grief, and cries of sorrow come from me like water.

Their produce is taken by him who has no food, and their grain goes to the poor, and he who is in need of water gets it from their spring.

For the arrows of the Ruler of all are present with me, and their poison goes deep into my spirit: his army of fears is put in order against me.

Are your days as the days of man, or your years like his,

That you take note of my sin, searching after my wrongdoing,

The old lion comes to his end for need of food, and the young of the she-lion go wandering in all directions.

The evil man is in pain all his days, and the number of the years stored up for the cruel is small.

Put the question now to the past generations, and give attention to what has been searched out by their fathers:

And though your start was small, your end will be very great.

You will be certain that your seed will be great, and your offspring like the plants of the earth.

And Job made answer and said,

And Job made answer and said,

O, keep in mind that my life is wind: my eye will never again see good.

I have seen the foolish taking root, but suddenly the curse came on his house.

His roots are twisted round the stones, forcing their way in between them.

Give me teaching and I will be quiet; and make me see my error.

Fear came on me and shaking, and my bones were full of trouble;

If you will make search for God with care, and put your request before the Ruler of all;

My days go quicker than the cloth-worker's thread, and come to an end without hope.

Which are dark because of the ice, and the snow falling into them;

See, we have made search with care, and it is so; it has come to our ears; see that you take note of it for yourself.

Who is moving the earth out of its place, so that its pillars are shaking:

The land is given into the power of the evil-doer; the faces of its judges are covered; if not by him, then who has done it?

Now his children have no safe place, and they are crushed before the judges, for no one takes up their cause.

So I have for my heritage months of pain to no purpose, and nights of weariness are given to me.

Who gives orders to the sun, and it does not give its light; and who keeps the stars from shining.

He is wise in heart and great in strength: who ever made his face hard against him, and any good came of it?

How long will you say these things, and how long will the words of your mouth be like a strong wind?

So have you now become to me; you see my sad condition and are in fear.

Does God give wrong decisions? or is the Ruler of all not upright in his judging?

And Eliphaz the Temanite made answer and said,

The stones are crushed small by the force of the waters; the dust of the earth is washed away by their overflowing: and so you put an end to the hope of man.

Job's words do not come from knowledge; they are not the fruit of wisdom.

Did I say, Give me something? or, Make a payment for me out of your wealth?

And that your hand is on him every morning, and that you are testing him every minute?

When I go to my bed, I say, When will it be time to get up? but the night is long, and I am turning from side to side till morning light.

You overcome him for ever, and he is gone; his face is changed in death, and you send him away.

It is he who takes away the mountains without their knowledge, overturning them in his wrath:

Does the ass of the fields give out his voice when he has grass? or does the ox make sounds over his food?

Under the burning sun they are cut off, and come to nothing because of the heat.

Then the Ruler of all will be your gold, and his teaching will be your silver;

As a servant desiring the shades of evening, and a workman looking for his payment:

If your children have done evil against him, then their punishment is from his hand.

If only my passion might be measured, and put into the scales against my trouble!

My friends make sport of me; to God my eyes are weeping,

My flesh is covered with worms and dust; my skin gets hard and then is cracked again.

For then its weight would be more than the sand of the seas: because of this my words have been uncontrolled.

May a man be upright before God? or a man be clean before his Maker?

If you are clean and upright; then he will certainly be moved to take up your cause, and will make clear your righteousness by building up your house again.

For in addition to his sin, he is uncontrolled in heart; before our eyes he makes sport of God, increasing his words against him.

It is all the same to me; so I say, He puts an end to the sinner and to him who has done no wrong together.

The camel-trains go out of their way; they go up into the waste and come to destruction.

He may go in flight from the iron spear, but the arrow from the bow of brass will go through him;

A word was given to me secretly, and the low sound of it came to my ears.

Your purposes will come about, and light will be shining on your ways.

If death comes suddenly through disease, he makes sport of the fate of those who have done no wrong.

They go rushing on like reed-boats, like an eagle dropping suddenly on its food.

Truly, he puts no faith in his servants, and he sees error in his angels;

Truly, you are such as would give up the child of a dead man to his creditors, and would make a profit out of your friend.

How frequently are they as dry stems before the wind, or as grass taken away by the storm-wind?

How pleasing are upright words! but what force is there in your arguments?

They were put to shame because of their hope; they came and their hope was gone.

Or, Get me out of the power of my hater? or, Give money so that I may be free from the power of the cruel ones?

My words may seem wrong to you, but the words of him who has no hope are for the wind.

And Job said in answer to the Lord,

You will make your prayer to him, and be answered; and you will give effect to your oaths.

Is there evil in my tongue? is not the cause of my trouble clear to me?

Now then, let your eyes be turned to me, for truly I will not say what is false to your face.

If a man was desiring to go to law with him, he would not be able to give him an answer to one out of a thousand questions.

And he said to her, You are talking like one of the foolish women. If we take the good God sends us, are we not to take the evil when it comes? In all this Job kept his lips from sin.

If I am washed with snow water, and make my hands clean with soap;

I go in fear of all my pains; I am certain that I will not be free from sin in your eyes.

They take their rest at night without clothing, and have no cover in the cold.

But truly it is the spirit in man, even the breath of the Ruler of all, which gives them knowledge.

And of cattle he had seven thousand sheep and goats, and three thousand camels, and a thousand oxen, and five hundred she-asses, and a very great number of servants. And the man was greater than any of the sons of the east.

And it came about, after he had said these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, I am very angry with you and your two friends, because you have not said what is right about me, as my servant Job has.

Let your minds be changed, and do not have an evil opinion of me; yes, be changed, for my righteousness is still in me.

You will not let me be clear of sin! why then do I take trouble for nothing?

If I say, I will put my grief out of mind, I will let my face be sad no longer and I will be bright;

Are you able to take God's measure, to make discovery of the limits of the Ruler of all?

If only a clean thing might come out of an unclean! But it is not possible.

And there was a day when the sons of the gods came together before the Lord, and the Satan came with them.

And the Lord said to the Satan, See, I give all he has into your hands, only do not put a finger on the man himself. And the Satan went out from before the Lord.

And at the end of their days of feasting, Job sent and made them clean, getting up early in the morning and offering burned offerings for them all. For, Job said, It may be that my sons have done wrong and said evil of God in their hearts. And Job did this whenever the feasts came round.

How much more those living in houses of earth, whose bases are in the dust! They are crushed more quickly than an insect;

And the Lord said to the Satan, Where do you come from? And the Satan said in answer, From wandering this way and that on the earth, and walking about on it.

If death takes a man, will he come to life again? All the days of my trouble I would be waiting, till the time came for me to be free.

See, I am conscious of your thoughts, and of your violent purposes against me;

He has no hope of coming safe out of the dark, and his fate will be the sword;

And a breath was moving over my face; the hair of my flesh became stiff:

And the Lord made up to Job for all his losses, after he had made prayer for his friends: and all Job had before was increased by the Lord twice as much.

For I have a fear and it comes on me, and my heart is greatly troubled.

Between morning and evening they are completely broken; they come to an end for ever, and no one takes note.

Truly, that man is happy who has training from the hand of God: so do not let your heart be shut to the teaching of the Ruler of all.

For there is hope of a tree; if it is cut down, it will come to life again, and its branches will not come to an end.

And his wife said to him, Are you still keeping your righteousness? Say a curse against God, and put an end to yourself.

And the Lord said to the Satan, Have you taken note of my servant Job, for there is no one like him on the earth, a man without sin and upright, fearing God and keeping himself far from evil? and he still keeps his righteousness, though you have been moving me to send destruction on him without cause.

But put now a question to the beasts, and get teaching from them; or to the birds of the heaven, and they will make it clear to you;

If their tent-cord is pulled up, do they not come to an end, and without wisdom?

He who was near to falling has been lifted up by your words, and you have given strength to bent knees.

And all his brothers and sisters, and his friends of earlier days, came and took food with him in his house; and made clear their grief for him, and gave him comfort for all the evil which the Lord had sent on him; and they all gave him a bit of money and a gold ring.

And ... without my flesh I will see God;

Together they go down to the dust, and are covered by the worm.

For God makes low those whose hearts are lifted up, but he is a saviour to the poor in spirit.

Are the bands of the Pleiades fixed by you, or are the cords of Orion made loose?

Do you go after food for the she-lion, or get meat so that the young lions may have enough,

And the Satan went out from before the Lord, and sent on Job an evil disease covering his skin from his feet to the top of his head.

If his days are ordered, and you have knowledge of the number of his months, having given him a fixed limit past which he may not go;

I have never gone against the orders of his lips; the words of his mouth have been stored up in my heart.

Something was present before me, but I was not able to see it clearly; there was a form before my eyes: a quiet voice came to my ears, saying:

And the Satan said in answer to the Lord, Is it for nothing that Job is a god-fearing man?

...

If only God would give ear to me, and the Ruler of all would give me an answer! or if what he has against me had been put in writing!

The heavens make clear his sin, and the earth gives witness against him.

But his purpose is fixed and there is no changing it; and he gives effect to the desire of his soul.

Truly there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is washed out.

For this cause I give witness that what I said is false, and in sorrow I take my seat in the dust.

But trouble is man's fate from birth, as the flames go up from the fire.

Truly, you have been a helper to others, and you have made feeble hands strong;

His sons regularly went to one another's houses, and every one on his day gave a feast: and at these times they sent for their three sisters to take part in their feasts with them.

Did not God make him as well as me? did he not give us life in our mothers' bodies?

By whose hand the heavens were stretched out, and who is walking on the waves of the sea:

But now those who are younger than I make sport of me; those whose fathers I would not have put with the dogs of my flocks.

Have you come into the secret place of snow, or have you seen the store-houses of the ice-drops,

And Job's three friends had word of all this evil which had come on him. And they came every one from his place, Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. So they came together to a meeting-place, in order that they might go and make clear to Job their grief for him, and give him comfort.

Is it possible for Leviathan to be pulled out with a fish-hook, or for a hook to be put through the bone of his mouth?

Be in fear of the sword, for the sword is the punishment for such things, so that you may be certain that there is a judge.

But where may wisdom be seen? and where is the resting-place of knowledge?

So man goes down to his last resting-place and comes not again: till the heavens come to an end, they will not be awake or come out of their sleep.

Why is life given to the evil-doers? why do they become old and strong in power?

If one says a word, will it be a weariness to you? but who is able to keep from saying what is in his mind?

Still the upright keeps on his way, and he who has clean hands gets new strength.

He comes out like a flower, and is cut down: he goes in flight like a shade, and is never seen again.

Has not man his ordered time of trouble on the earth? and are not his days like the days of a servant working for payment?

For you say, Where is the house of the ruler, and where is the tent of the evil-doer?

Who is this who makes the purpose of God dark by words without knowledge?

Put yourself now in a right relation with him and be at peace: so will you do well in your undertakings.

Or where were you when the sea came to birth, pushing out from its secret place;

And Eliphaz the Temanite made answer and said,

And Job made answer and said,

There is no one to give a decision between us, who might have control over us.

In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all flesh of man.

If, when I saw the sun shining, and the moon moving on its bright way,

What is man, that he may be clean? and how may the son of woman be upright?

But you put a false face on things; all your attempts to put things right are of no value.

If now there may be an angel sent to him, one of the thousands which there are to be between him and God, and to make clear to man what is right for him;

Then Job made answer and said,

(For all my breath is still in me, and the spirit of God is my life;)

He will keep you safe from six troubles, and in seven no evil will come near you.

Who ever went against me, and got the better of me? There is no one under heaven!

The underworld is uncovered before him, and Destruction has no veil.

For God gives his word in one way, even in two, and man is not conscious of it:

Will the ox of the mountains be your servant? or is his night's resting-place by your food-store?

But man comes to his death and is gone: he gives up his spirit, and where is he?

Truly, I am of no value; what answer may I give to you? I will put my hand on my mouth.

And Job made answer and said,

Your hands made me, and I was formed by you, but then, changing your purpose, you gave me up to destruction.

Is it possible for a man to be of profit to God? No, for a man's wisdom is only of profit to himself.

A cloud comes to an end and is gone; so he who goes down into the underworld comes not up again.

On what were its pillars based, or who put down its angle-stone,

If only you would keep me safe in the underworld, putting me in a secret place till your wrath is past, giving me a fixed time when I might come to your memory again!

When my steps were washed with milk, and rivers of oil were flowing out of the rock for me.

Then in place of grain let thorns come up, and in place of barley evil-smelling plants.

Though they said to God, Go away from us, for we have no desire for the knowledge of your ways.

Who made the Bear and Orion, and the Pleiades, and the store-houses of the south:

If only my words might be recorded! if they might be put in writing in a book!

Then, opening his mouth, and cursing the day of his birth,

And the Lord's blessing was greater on the end of Job's life than on its start: and so he came to have fourteen thousand sheep and goats, and six thousand camels, and two thousand oxen, and a thousand she-asses.

If he made his spirit come back to him, taking his breath into himself again,

By him a circle is marked out on the face of the waters, to the limits of the light and the dark.

Then Eliphaz the Temanite made answer and said,

The shades in the underworld are shaking; the waters and those living in them.

Will you, with him, make the skies smooth, and strong as a polished looking-glass?

Who is this who makes dark the purpose of God by words without knowledge? For I have been talking without knowledge about wonders not to be searched out.

But as for me, I would make my prayer to God, and I would put my cause before him:

Then Zophar the Naamathite made answer and said,

Have you not put the question to the travellers, and do you not take note of their experience?

If I am waiting for the underworld as my house, if I have made my bed in the dark;

He is pulling it out, and it comes out of his back; and its shining point comes out of his side; he is overcome by fears.

Truly, my eye has seen all this, word of it has come to my ear, and I have knowledge of it.

When I went out of my door to go up to the town, and took my seat in the public place,

How much less man who is an insect, and the son of man who is a worm!

If I did wrong in the cause of my man-servant, or my woman-servant, when they went to law with me;

Have you, from your earliest days, given orders to the morning, or made the dawn conscious of its place;

So these three men gave no more answers to Job, because he seemed to himself to be right.

For I was a saviour to the poor when he was crying for help, to the child with no father, and to him who had no supporter.

His skin is wasted by disease, and his body is food for the worst of diseases.

My spirit is broken, my days are ended, the last resting-place is ready for me.

For he is not a man as I am, that I might give him an answer, that we might come together before a judge.

Truly, God is great, greater than all our knowledge; the number of his years may not be searched out.

Truly, he puts no faith in his holy ones, and the heavens are not clean in his eyes;

And now, take seven oxen and seven sheep, and go to my servant Job, and give a burned offering for yourselves, and my servant Job will make prayer for you, that I may not send punishment on you; because you have not said what is right about me, as my servant Job has.

If only I had knowledge of where he might be seen, so that I might come even to his seat!

By his power the sea was made quiet; and by his wisdom Rahab was wounded.

Is the wing of the ostrich feeble, or is it because she has no feathers,

Then Bildad the Shuhite made answer and said,

That the pride of the sinner is short, and the joy of the evil-doer but for a minute?

How then is it possible for man to be upright before God? or how may he be clean who is a son of woman?

I am broken by his wrath, and his hate has gone after me; he has made his teeth sharp against me: my haters are looking on me with cruel eyes;

Now then, you wise, take note; you men of knowledge, give ear to me. Let it be far from God to do evil, and from the Ruler of all to do wrong.

The landmarks are changed by evil men, they violently take away flocks, together with their keepers.

But no one has said, Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night;

In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep comes on men, while they take their rest on their beds;

And Job again took up the word and said,

Have you an arm like God? have you a voice of thunder like his?

See, these are only the outskirts of his ways; and how small is that which comes to our ears about him! But the thunder of his acts of power is outside all knowledge.

The earth of the valley covering his bones is sweet to him, and all men come after him, as there were unnumbered before him.

See, I go forward, but he is not there; and back, but I do not see him;

Then Bildad the Shuhite made answer and said,

Have you come into the springs of the sea, walking in the secret places of the deep?

For he takes up the drops from the sea; he sends them through his mist as rain,

Truly I would take up the book in my hands; it would be to me as a crown;

How long will it be before you have done talking? Get wisdom, and then we will say what is in our minds.

And said, So far you may come, and no farther; and here the pride of your waves will be stopped?

Their days come to an end without trouble, and suddenly they go down to the underworld.

Let him not put his hope in what is false, falling into error: for he will get deceit as his reward.

For the light of the sinner is put out, and the flame of his fire is not shining.

If only I might again be as I was in the months which are past, in the days when God was watching over me!

For his eyes are on the ways of a man, and he sees all his steps.

The pillars of heaven are shaking, and are overcome by his sharp words.

And Elihu, the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, was angry, burning with wrath against Job, because he seemed to himself more right than God;

And Elihu made answer and said,

Why are times not stored up by the Ruler of all, and why do those who have knowledge of him not see his days?

Will you say in God's name what is not right, and put false words into his mouth?

Will they go down with me into the underworld? Will we go down together into the dust?

This is the reward of the evil man, and the heritage given to him by God.

Have you knowledge of the rock-goats? or do you see the roes giving birth to their young?

Do you make Mazzaroth come out in its right time, or are the Bear and its children guided by you?

They make songs to the instruments of music, and are glad at the sound of the pipe.

He does not come out of the dark; his branches are burned by the flame, and the wind takes away his bud.

Thick clouds are covering him, so that he is unable to see; and he is walking on the arch of heaven.

Though evil-doing is sweet in his mouth, and he keeps it secretly under his tongue;

I put on righteousness as my clothing, and was full of it; right decisions were to me a robe and a head-dress.

At this my heart is shaking; it is moved out of its place.

Which is the way to the resting-place of the light, and where is the store-house of the dark;

Give ear to this, O Job, and keep quiet in your place; and take note of the wonders worked by God.

He is pulled out of his tent where he was safe, and he is taken away to the king of fears.

Is not God as high as heaven? and see the stars, how high they are!

Will he who is protesting give teaching to the Ruler of all? Let him who has arguments to put forward against God give an answer.

Will you keep the old way by which evil men went?

When he made a weight for the wind, measuring out the waters;

They send out their young ones like a flock, and their children have pleasure in the dance,

Rule and power are his; he makes peace in his high places.

It would not be hard for me to say such things if your souls were in my soul's place; joining words together against you, and shaking my head at you:

Have you knowledge of the balancings of the clouds, the wonders of him who has all wisdom?

If I made gold my hope, or if I ever said to the best gold, I have put my faith in you;

Snow waters become dry with the heat: so do sinners go down into the underworld.

What is the Ruler of all, that we may give him worship? and what profit is it to us to make prayer to him?

Truly, you make the fear of God without effect, so that the time of quiet worship before God is made less by your outcry.

If I kept back the desire of the poor; if the widow's eye was looking for help to no purpose;

I have become a brother to the jackals, and go about in the company of ostriches.

Do you give strength to the horse? is it by your hand that his neck is clothed with power?

For you have taken your brother's goods when he was not in your debt, and have taken away the clothing of those who have need of it.

A bright light comes out of the north; God's glory is greatly to be feared.

For words are tested by the ear, as food is tasted by the mouth.

Were you present at the secret meeting of God? and have you taken all wisdom for yourself?

Then the Lord made answer to Job out of the storm-wind, and said,

Get your strength together like a man of war; I will put questions to you, and you will give me the answers.

Then there are those who are haters of the light, who have no knowledge of its ways, and do not go in them.

Who has no respect for rulers, and who gives no more attention to those who have wealth than to the poor, for they are all the work of his hands.

For the band of the evil-doers gives no fruit, and the tents of those who give wrong decisions for reward are burned with fire.

For what is the hope of the sinner when he is cut off, when God takes back his soul?

Such things have frequently come to my ears: you are comforters who only give trouble.

Then his flesh becomes young again, and he comes back to the days of his early strength;

Is not your evil-doing great? and there is no end to your sins.

By him the waters are shut up in his thick clouds, and the cloud does not give way under them.

How long will you make my life bitter, crushing me with words?

Will a wise man make answer with knowledge of no value, or will he give birth to the east wind?

I was in comfort, but I have been broken up by his hands; he has taken me by the neck, shaking me to bits; he has put me up as a mark for his arrows.

Iron is taken out of the earth, and stone is changed into brass by the fire.

For his eyes go to the ends of the earth, and he sees everything under heaven.

His branch is cut off before its time, and his leaf is no longer green.

You have sent widows away without hearing their cause, and you have taken away the support of the child who has no father.

How frequently is the light of the evil-doers put out, or does trouble come on them? how frequently does his wrath take them with cords?

Let me not give respect to any man, or give names of honour to any living.

He takes the poison of snakes into his mouth, the tongue of the snake is the cause of his death.

Truly, those who make sport of me are round about me, and my eyes become dark because of their bitter laughing.

Let your eyes be turned away from him, and take your hand from him, so that he may have pleasure at the end of his day, like a servant working for payment.

Let him take away his rod from me and not send his fear on me:

My skin is black and dropping off me; and my bones are burning with the heat of my disease.

All the men of my circle keep away from me; and those dear to me are turned against me.

Will it be good for you to be searched out by him, or have you the thought that he may be guided into error like a man?

I have made haircloth the clothing of my skin, and my horn is rolled in the dust.

With us are men who are grey-haired and full of years, much older than your father.

If I have taken its produce without payment, causing the death of its owners;

Let your wrath be overflowing; let your eyes see all the sons of pride, and make them low.

But I would have talk with the Ruler of all, and my desire is to have an argument with God.

Will you even make my right of no value? will you say that I am wrong in order to make clear that you are right?

The same things are in my mind as in yours; I am equal to you.

And Elihu, the son of Barachel the Buzite, made answer and said, I am young, and you are very old, so I was in fear, and kept myself from putting my knowledge before you.

Then you will have me pushed into the dust, so that I will seem disgusting to my very clothing.

He does wonders, more than may be searched out; great things of which we have no knowledge;

Because his hand is stretched out against God, and his heart is lifted up against the Ruler of all,

If only you would keep quiet, it would be a sign of wisdom!

Have you knowledge of the laws of the heavens? did you give them rule over the earth?

I am broken down by him on every side, and I am gone; my hope is uprooted like a tree.

By the life of God, who has taken away my right; and of the Ruler of all, who has made my soul bitter;

The child without a father is forced from its mother's breast, and they take the young children of the poor for debt.

Pain is sent on him as a punishment, while he is on his bed; there is no end to the trouble in his bones;

He has taken my brothers far away from me; they have seen my fate and have become strange to me.

The waters go from a pool, and a river becomes waste and dry;

Let it be far from me! I will certainly not say that you are right! I will come to death before I give up my righteousness.

There is no need to say anything about coral or crystal; and the value of wisdom is greater than that of pearls.

Who has put wisdom in the high clouds, or given knowledge to the lights of the north?