While he was still speaking, another [messenger] also came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three bands and made a raid on the camels and have taken them away and have killed the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.”

He said,

“Naked (without possessions) I came [into this world] from my mother’s womb,
And naked I will return there.
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;
Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

“The hungry devour his harvest
And take it even [when it grows] among the thorns;
The trap opens for [his] wealth.

“Why then do You not pardon my transgression
And take away my sin and guilt?
For now I will lie down in the dust;
And You will seek me [diligently], but I will not be.”

“Behold, this is the joy of His way;
And from out of the dust others will spring up and grow [to take his place].

“Let Him take His rod away from me,
And let not the dread and fear of Him terrify me.

“Would He not let my few days alone,
Withdraw from me that I may have a little cheer

“Then you would trust [with confidence], because there is hope;
You would look around you and rest securely.

“He deprives the trusted ones of speech
And takes away the discernment and discretion of the aged.

“He removes intelligence and understanding from the leaders of the people of the earth
And makes them wander and move blindly in a pathless waste.

“Why should I take my flesh in my teeth
And put my life in my hands [incurring the wrath of God]?

Withdraw Your hand from me and remove this bodily suffering,
And let not the dread of You terrify me.

“But now You number [each of] my steps;
You do not observe nor take note of my sin.

“But now God has exhausted me.
You [O Lord] have destroyed all my family and my household.

“He has stripped me of my honor
And removed the crown from my head.

“For he has oppressed and neglected the poor;
He has violently taken away houses which he did not build.

“Even when I remember, I am troubled and afraid;
Horror and trembling take hold of my flesh.

“For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause,
And stripped men naked.

“But He knows the way that I take [and He pays attention to it].
When He has tried me, I will come forth as [refined] gold [pure and luminous].

“Some remove the landmarks;
They [violently] seize and pasture flocks [appropriating land and flocks openly].

“They drive away the donkeys of the orphans;
They take the widow’s ox for a pledge.

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

“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.

“As God lives, who has taken away my right and denied me justice,
And the Almighty, who has caused bitterness and grief for my soul,

“For what is the hope of the godless, even though he has gained [in this world],
When God takes his life?

“Will he take delight in the Almighty?
Will he call on God at all times?

“Iron is taken out of the earth,
And copper is smelted from the stone ore.

“My bones are pierced [with aching] in the night season,
And the pains that gnaw me take no rest.

“For I do not know how to flatter, [in an appropriate way, and I fear that],
My Maker would soon take me away.

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

“For Job has said, ‘I am righteous [and innocent],
But God has taken away my right;

“In a moment they die, even at midnight
The people are shaken and pass away,
And the powerful are taken away without a [human] hand.

“Therefore He knows of their works,
And He overthrows them in the night,
So that they are crushed and destroyed.

“Take heed and be careful, do not turn to wickedness,
For you have chosen this [the vice of complaining against God] rather than [learning from] affliction.

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

“Will he make a covenant or an arrangement with you?
Will you take him for your servant forever?

Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to My servant Job, and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves, and My servant Job will pray for you. For I will accept him [and his prayer] so that I may not deal with you according to your folly, because you have not spoken of Me the thing that is right, as My servant Job has.”