There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God [with reverence] and abstained from and turned away from evil [because he honored God].

He also possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke (pairs) of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and a very great number of servants, so that this man was the greatest [and wealthiest and most respected] of all the men of the east (northern Arabia).

The Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered and reflected on My servant Job? For there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God [with reverence] and abstains from and turns away from evil [because he honors God].”

Then the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that Job has is in your power, only do not put your hand on the man himself.” So Satan departed from the presence of the Lord.

The Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered and reflected on My servant Job? For there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God [with reverence] and abstains from and turns away from evil [because he honors God]. And still he maintains and holds tightly to his integrity, although you incited Me against him to destroy him without cause.”

Satan answered the Lord, “Skin for skin! Yes, a man will give all he has for his life.

“Let the day on which I was born perish,
And the night which announced: ‘There is a man-child conceived.’

“Why is the light of day given to a man whose way is hidden,
And whom God has hedged in?

“Amid disquieting thoughts from the visions of the night,
When deep sleep falls on men,

‘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?

“For anger slays the foolish man,
And jealousy kills the simple (naive).

“For man is born for trouble,
[As naturally] as sparks fly upward.

“Behold, how happy and fortunate is the man whom God reproves,
So do not despise or reject the discipline of the Almighty [subjecting you to trial and suffering].

“Is not man forced to labor on earth?
And are not his days like the days of a hired man?

“What is man that You [should] magnify him [and think him important]?
And that You are concerned about him?

“If I have sinned, what [harm] have I done to You,
O Watcher of mankind?
Why have You set me as a target for You,
So that I am a burden to myself?

“Behold, God will not reject a man of integrity,
Nor will He strengthen or support evildoers.

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

“For God is not a [mere] man, as I am, that I may answer Him,
That we may go to court and judgment together.

‘Do You have eyes of flesh?
Do You see as a man sees?

‘Are Your days as the days of a mortal,
Are Your years as man’s years,

“Shall a multitude of words not be answered?
And should a talkative man [making such a long-winded defense] be acquitted?

“Should your boasts and babble silence men?
And shall you scoff and no one put you to shame?

“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?]

“For He recognizes and knows false and worthless men,
And He sees wickedness, will He not consider it?

“But a hollow (empty-headed) man will become intelligent and wise
[Only] when the colt of a wild donkey is born as a man.

“I am a joke to my friends;
I, one whom God answered when he called upon Him—
A just and blameless man is a joke [and laughed to scorn].

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

“He makes priests walk barefoot,
And He overturns men firmly seated and secure.

“They grope in darkness without light,
And He makes them stagger like a drunken man.”

“Oh, that you would be completely silent,
And that silence would be your wisdom!

“Will it be well for you when He investigates you [and your tactics against me]?
Or will you deceive Him as one deceives a man?

“This also will be my salvation,
For a godless man may not come before Him.

“Man, who is born of a woman,
Is short-lived and full of turmoil.

“Since his days are determined,
The number of his months is with You [in Your control],
And You have made his limits so he cannot pass [his allotted time].

“For there is hope for a tree,
If it is cut down, that it will sprout again,
And that the shoots of it will not cease nor fail, [but there is no such hope for man].

“But [the brave, strong] man must die and lie face down;
Man breathes his last, and where is he?

So man lies down and does not rise [again].
Until the heavens are no longer,
The dead will not awake nor be raised from their sleep.

“If a man dies, will he live again?
I will wait all the days of my struggle
Until my change and release will come.

Water wears away the stones,
Its floods and torrents wash away the soil of the earth,
So You [O Lord] destroy the hope of man.

“Should a wise man [such as you] utter such windy and vain knowledge [as we have just heard]
And fill himself with the east wind [of withering, parching, and violent accusations]?

“Were you the first man to be born [the original wise man],
Or were you created before the hills?

“What is man, that he should be pure and clean,
Or he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous and just?

How much less [pure and clean is] the one who is repulsive and corrupt,
Man, who drinks unrighteousness and injustice like water!

What wise men have [freely] told,
And have not hidden [anything passed on to them] from their fathers,

“The wicked man writhes with pain all his days,
And numbered are the years stored up for him, the ruthless one.

And he has lived in desolate [God-forsaken] cities,
In houses which no one should inhabit,
Which were destined to become heaps [of ruins];

“Oh, that a man would mediate and plead with God [for me]
Just as a man [mediates and pleads] with his neighbor and friend.

“The upright will be [astonished and] appalled at this,
And the innocent will stir himself up against the godless and polluted.

“But as for all of you, come back again,
Even though I do not find a wise man among you.

“Those in the west are astonished and appalled at his fate,
And those in the east are seized with horror.

“All the men of my council hate me;
Those I love have turned against me.

“Do you not know this from the old days,
Since the time that man was placed on the earth,

Complete darkness (misfortune) is held in reserve for his treasures.
An unfanned fire will devour him;
It will consume the survivor in his tent.

“This is the wicked man’s portion from God,
And the heritage decreed and appointed to him by God.”

“As for me, is my complaint to man or about him?
And why should I not be impatient and my spirit troubled?

“You say, ‘God stores away [the punishment of] man’s wickedness for his children.’
Let God repay him so that he may know and experience it.

“For what pleasure does he have in his house and family after he is dead,
When the number of his months [of life] is cut off?

Whereas another dies with a bitter soul,
Never even tasting pleasure or good fortune.

“That evil men are [now] reserved for the day of disaster and destruction,
They will be led away on the day of [God’s] wrath?

“But who will confront him with his actions and rebuke him face to face,
And who will repay him for what he has done?

“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.

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

“But the land is possessed by the man with power,
And the favored and honorable man dwells in it.

“Will you keep to the ancient path
That wicked men walked [in the time of Noah],

Men who were snatched away before their time,
Whose foundations were poured out like a river?

“They harvest their fodder in a field [that is not their own],
And glean the vineyard of the wicked.

“Others snatch the fatherless [infants] from the breast [to sell or make them slaves],
And against the poor they take a pledge [of clothing].

“From the [populous and crowded] city men groan,
And the souls of the wounded cry out for help;
Yet God [seemingly] does not pay attention to the wrong [done to them].

“They are insignificant on the surface of the water;
Their portion is cursed on the earth;
They do not turn toward the vineyards.

“He preys on the barren (childless) woman
And does no good for the widow.

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

“Behold, even the moon has no brightness [compared to God’s majesty and glory]
And the stars are not pure in His sight,

How much less man, that maggot,
And the son of man, that worm!”

“I will teach you regarding the hand (power) of God;
I will not conceal what is with the Almighty [God’s actual treatment of the wicked].

“This [which I am about to explain] is the portion of a wicked man from God,
And the inheritance which tyrants and oppressors receive from the Almighty:

“People will clap their hands at him [to mock and ridicule him]
And hiss him out of his place.

“Surely there is a mine for silver,
And a place where they refine gold.

“Man puts an end to darkness [by bringing in a light],
And to the farthest bounds he searches out
The rock buried in gloom and deep shadow.

“He breaks open (mine) shafts far away from where people live,
[In places] forgotten by the [human] foot;
They dangle [in the mines] and hang away from men.

“[As for] the earth, out of it comes food,
But underneath [its surface, down deep] it is turned over as fire.

“Man puts his hand on [and tears apart] the flinty rock;
He overturns the mountains at the base [looking for treasure].

“Man dams up the streams from flowing [so that they do not trickle into the mine],
And what is hidden he brings out to the light.

“Man does not know the value of it;
Nor is it found in the land of the living.

“But to man He said, ‘Behold, the reverential and worshipful fear of the Lord—that is wisdom;
And to depart from evil is understanding.’”

The young men saw me and hid themselves,
The aged arose and stood [respectfully];

“They listened to me and waited
And kept silent for my counsel.

“Indeed, how could the strength of their hands profit me?
Vigor had perished from them.

“They are driven from the community;
They shout after them as after a thief.

If I beheld the sun [as an object of worship] when it shone
Or the moon going in its splendor,

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

“The stranger has not lodged in the street,
Because I have opened my door to the traveler.

“Have I concealed my transgressions like Adam or like other men,
By hiding my wickedness in my bosom,

So these three men ceased answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes [and could not be persuaded otherwise by them].

And when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouths of these three men, he burned with anger.

“But there is [a vital force and] a spirit [of intelligence] in man,
And the breath of the Almighty gives them understanding.

“Beware if you say,
‘We have found wisdom;
God thrusts Job down [justly], not man [for God alone is dealing with him].’

“I will not [I warn you] be partial to any man [that is, let my respect for you mitigate what I say];
Nor flatter any man.

“Look, let me answer you, in this you are not right or just;
For God is greater and far superior to man.

“For God speaks once,
And even twice, yet no one notices it [including you, Job].