“If we dare to converse with you, will you be impatient [or offended]?
But who can restrain himself from speaking?

‘Can [mortal] man be just before God or be more righteous than He?
Can a man be pure before his Maker or be more cleansed than He?

“Can something that has no taste to it be eaten without salt?
Or is there any flavor in the white of an egg?

“When I lie down I say,
‘When shall I arise [and the night be gone]?’
But the night continues,
And I am continually tossing until the dawning of day.

“The eye of him who sees me [now] will see me no more;
Your eyes will be upon me, but I will not be.

“Can the papyrus grow up without a marsh?
Can the rushes or reed grass grow without water?

“Yes, I know it is true.
But how can a mortal man be right before God?

“Behold, He snatches away; who can restrain or turn Him back?
Who will say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’

‘Although You know that I am not guilty or wicked,
Yet there is no one who can rescue me from Your hand.

“Can you discover the depths of God?
Can you [by searching] discover the limits of the Almighty [ascend to His heights, extend to His widths, and comprehend His infinite perfection]?

“His wisdom is as high as the heights of heaven. What can you do?
It is deeper than Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead). What can you know?

“If God passes by or arrests,
Or calls an assembly [of judgment], who can restrain Him?
[If He is against a man, who can call Him to account for it?]

Then, indeed, you could lift up your face [to Him] without moral defect,
And you would be firmly established and secure and not fear.

“Behold, He tears down, and it cannot be rebuilt;
He imprisons a man, and there can be no release.

“Will you show partiality for Him [and be unjust to me so that you may gain favor with Him]?
Will you contend and plead for God?

“Who can make a clean thing out of the unclean?
No one!

“Should he rebuke and argue with useless talk?
Or with words in which there is no benefit?

“He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone;
He has uprooted my hope like a tree.

“The [dirt] clods of the valley are sweet to him [and gently cover him],
Moreover, all men will follow after him [to a grave],
While countless ones go before him.

“How then can you vainly comfort me with empty words,
Since your answers remain untrue?”

“Can a vigorous man be of use to God,
Or a wise man be useful to himself?

“Is it any pleasure or joy to the Almighty that you are righteous?
Or is it of benefit to Him that you make your ways perfect?

“You say, ‘What does God know [about me]?
Can He judge through the thick darkness?

“They said to God, ‘Depart from us!
What can the Almighty do for us or to us?’

“I have not departed from the commandment of His lips;
I have kept the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.

“But He is unique and unchangeable, and who can turn Him?
And what His soul desires, that He does.

“They are exalted for a little while, and then they are gone;
Moreover, they are brought low and like everything [they are] gathered up and taken out of the way;
Even like the heads of grain they are cut off.

“How then can man be justified and righteous with God?
Or how can he who is born of a woman be pure and clean?

“Yet these are just the fringes of His ways [mere samples of His power],
The faintest whisper of His voice!
Who can contemplate the thunder of His [full] mighty power?”

“He lies down rich, but never will again;
He opens his eyes, and it is gone.

“The east wind lifts him up, and he is gone;
It sweeps him out of his place.

“Gold and glass cannot equal wisdom,
Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.

“The topaz of Ethiopia cannot compare with it,
Nor can it be valued in pure gold.

“If my step has turned away from the way [of God],
Or if my heart has [covetously] followed my eyes,
Or if any spot [of guilt] has stained my hands,

“I assure you, the men of my tent have said,
‘Who can find one [in need] who has not been satisfied with his meat’?

“Answer me, if you can;
Set yourselves before me, take your stand.

“When He keeps quiet, who then can condemn?
When He hides His face [withdrawing His favor and help], who then can behold Him [and make supplication to Him],
Whether it be a nation or a man by himself?—

“Who has appointed God His way,
And who can say [to Him], ‘You have done wrong’?

“Can anyone understand the spreading of the clouds
Or the thundering of His pavilion?

“Can you, with Him, spread out the sky,
Strong as a molten mirror?

“Out of the north comes golden splendor [and people can hardly look on it];
Around God is awesome splendor and majesty [far too glorious for man’s eyes].

“Can you bind the chains of [the cluster of stars called] Pleiades,
Or loose the cords of [the constellation] Orion?

“Can you lead forth a constellation in its season,
And guide [the stars of] the Bear with her sons?

“Do you know the ordinances of the heavens,
Or [can you] establish their rule over the earth?

“Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
So that an abundance of water will cover you?

“Can you send forth lightnings that they may go
And say to you, ‘Here we are’?

“Who can count the clouds by [earthly] wisdom,
Or pour out the water jars of the heavens,

“Can you [Job] hunt the prey for the lion,
Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions

“Can you count the months that they carry offspring,
Or do you know the time when they give birth?

“Can you bind the wild ox with a harness [to the plow] in the furrow?
Or will he plow the valleys for you?

“Yet when she lifts herself on high,
[So swift is she that] she laughs at the horse and his rider.

“With fierceness and rage he races to devour the ground,
And he does not stand still at the sound of the [war] trumpet.

“Have you an arm like God,
And can you thunder with a voice like His?

“[If you can do all this, Job, proving your divine power] then I [God] will also praise you and acknowledge
That your own right hand can save you.

“He is the first [in magnitude and power] of the works of God;
[Only] He who made him can bring near His sword [to master him].

“Can anyone capture him when he is on watch,
Or pierce his nose with barbs [to trap him]?

“Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook?
Or press down his tongue with a cord?

“Can you put a rope [made] of rushes into his nose
Or pierce his jaw through with a hook?

“Can you fill his skin with harpoons,
Or his head with fishing spears?

“No one is so fierce [and foolhardy] that he dares to stir up Leviathan;
Who then is he who can stand before Me [or dares to contend with Me, the beast’s creator]?

“Who has first given to Me that I should repay him?
Whatever is under the whole heaven is Mine. [Who can have a claim against Me who made the unmastered beast?]

“Who can penetrate or strip off his outer armor?
Who can come to his jaws with a double bridle?

“Who can open the doors (jaws) of his face?
Around his [open jaws and] teeth there is terror.

“One is so near to another
That no air can come between them.

“He looks on everything that is high [without terror];
He is monarch over all the sons of pride. [And now, Job, who are you who does not dare to disturb the beast, yet who dares resist Me, the beast’s creator? Everything under the heavens is Mine; therefore, who can have a claim against God?]”

“I know that You can do all things,
And that no thought or purpose of Yours can be restrained.