“He frustrates the plotting of the shrewd,
So that their hands cannot attain success.

“Is there injustice on my tongue?
Cannot my palate discern calamities?

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

“Since his days are determined,
The number of his months is with You;
And his limits You have set so that he cannot pass.

“He has walled up my way so that I cannot pass,
And He has put darkness on my paths.

“He flies away like a dream, and they cannot find him;
Even like a vision of the night he is chased away.

“He returns what he has attained
And cannot swallow it;
As to the riches of his trading,
He cannot even enjoy them.

Or darkness, so that you cannot see,
And an abundance of water covers you.

‘Clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see;
And He walks on the vault of heaven.’

“Behold, I go forward but He is not there,
And backward, but I cannot perceive Him;

When He acts on the left, I cannot behold Him;
He turns on the right, I cannot see Him.

“Pure gold cannot be given in exchange for it,
Nor can silver be weighed as its price.

“It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
In precious onyx, or sapphire.

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

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

“From want and famine they are gaunt
Who gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation,

“I am seething within and cannot relax;
Days of affliction confront me.

“God thunders with His voice wondrously,
Doing great things which we cannot comprehend.

“Teach us what we shall say to Him;
We cannot arrange our case because of darkness.

“The Almighty—we cannot find Him;
He is exalted in power
And He will not do violence to justice and abundant righteousness.

“Who can count the clouds by wisdom,
Or tip the water jars of the heavens,

“Can you count the months they fulfill,
Or do you know the time they give birth?

“They are joined one to another;
They clasp each other and cannot be separated.

“The sword that reaches him cannot avail,
Nor the spear, the dart or the javelin.

“The arrow cannot make him flee;
Slingstones are turned into stubble for him.