And there were born to him seven sons and three daughters.

And his sons went and held a feast in the house of each one upon his day, and they sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

And it was so, when the days of their feasting were completed, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt-offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, It may be that my so

Now it came to pass on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before LORD, that Satan also came among them.

And LORD said to Satan, From where do thou come? Then Satan answered LORD, and said, From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.

And LORD said to Satan, Have thou considered my servant Job? For there is none like him on the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one who fears God, and turns away from evil.

But put forth thy hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will renounce thee to thy face.

And LORD said to Satan, Behold, all that he has is in thy power, only upon himself do not put forth thy hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of LORD.

And it fell on a day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house,

that there came a messenger to Job, and said, The oxen were plowing, and the donkeys feeding beside them,

and the Sabeans fell [upon them], and took them away. Yea, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword, and only I alone have escaped to tell thee.

While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The fire of God fell from heaven, and has burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed them, and only I alone have escaped to tell thee.

And, behold, there came a great wind from the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young men, and they are dead, and only I alone have escaped to tell thee.

Again it came to pass on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before LORD, that Satan came also among them to present himself before LORD.

And LORD said to Satan, From where did thou come? And Satan answered LORD, and said, From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.

And LORD said to Satan, Have thou considered my servant Job? For there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one who fears God, and turns away from evil. And he still holds fast his integrity, although thou m

But put forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will renounce thee to thy face.

And LORD said to Satan, Behold, he is in thy hand, only spare his life.

So Satan went forth from the presence of LORD, and smote Job with severe boils from the sole of his foot to his crown.

And he took a potsherd for him to scrape himself with it, and he sat among the ashes.

Then his wife said to him, Do thou still hold fast thine integrity? Renounce God, and die.

But he said to her, Thou speak as one of the foolish women speaks. What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Now when Job's three friends heard of all this evil that came upon him, they came each one from his own place--Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite--and they made an appointment together to come t

So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights. And none spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.

After this Job opened his mouth, and cursed his day.

Let the day perish in which I was born, and the night which said, There is a man-child conceived.

Let that day be darkness. Let not God from above seek for it, nor let the light shine upon it.

Let them curse it who curse the day, who are ready to rouse up leviathan.

Why did I not die from the womb? Why did I not give up the spirit when my mother bore me?

There the prisoners are at ease together. They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.

Why is light given to him who is in misery, and life to the bitter in soul,

[Why is light given] to a man whose way is hid, and whom God has hedged in?

For the thing which I fear comes upon me, and that which I am afraid of comes to me.

If a man tries to converse with thee, will thou be grieved? But who can withhold himself from speaking?

But now it comes to thee, and thou faint. It touches thee, and thou are troubled.

Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and my ear received a whisper of it.

fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.

Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them? They die, and that without wisdom.

Call now, is there any who will answer thee? And to which of the holy ones will thou turn?

His sons are far from safety, and they are crushed in the gate. Neither is there any to deliver them,

but man is born to trouble, as the sparks fly upward.

But as for me, I would seek to God. And to God I would commit my cause,

so that he sets up on high those who are low, and those who mourn are exalted to safety.

Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects. Therefore do not despise thou the chastening of the Almighty.

Thou shall come to thy grave in a full age, like a shock of grain comes in its season.

My soul refuses to touch [them]. They are as loathsome food to me.

Even that it would please God to crush me, that he would let loose his hand, and cut me off!

To him who is ready to faint, kindness [should be] from his friend, even to him who forsakes the fear of the Almighty.

They were put to shame because they had hoped. They came there, and were confounded.

Did I say, Give to me? Or, Offer a present for me from your substance?

Teach me, and I will be quiet. And cause me to understand how I have erred.

Do ye think to reprove words, seeing that the speeches of a man who is desperate are as wind?

Now therefore be pleased to look upon me, for truly I shall not lie to your face.

Is there not a warfare to man upon earth? And are not his days like the days of a hireling?

so I am made to possess months of misery, and wearisome nights are appointed to me.

When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? And I am full of tossing to and fro to the dawning of the day.

As the cloud is consumed and vanishes away, so he who goes down to Sheol shall come up no more.

He shall return no more to his house, nor shall his place know him any more.

If I have sinned, what do I do to thee, O thou watcher of men? Why have thou set me as a mark for thee, so that I am a burden to myself?

And why do thou not pardon my transgression, and take away my iniquity? For now I shall lay down in the dust, and thou will seek me diligently, but I shall not be.

if thou would seek diligently to God, and make thy supplication to the Almighty,

For inquire, I pray thee, of the former age, and apply thyself to that which their fathers have searched out

If he is pleased to contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.

[He] who removes the mountains, and they do not know it when he overturns them in his anger,

Lo, he goes by me, and I do not see him. He also passes on, but I do not perceive him.

Behold, he seizes; who can hinder him? Who will say to him, What are thou doing?

How much less shall I answer him, and choose out my words [to reason] with him?

Whom, though I were righteous, yet I would not answer. I would make supplication to my judge.

If I had called, and he had answered me, yet I would not believe that he hearkened to my voice.

He will not allow me to take my breath, but fills me with bitterness.

Though I were perfect, I do not regard myself. I despise my life.

I shall be condemned. Why then do I labor in vain?

My soul is weary of my life. I will give free reign to my complaint. I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.

I will say to God, Do not condemn me. Show me why thou contend with me.

Is it good to thee that thou should oppress, that thou should despise the work of thy hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?

Have thou eyes of flesh? Or do thou see as man sees?

If I be wicked, woe to me. And if I be righteous, yet I shall not lift up my head, being filled with shame, and looking upon my affliction.

I should have been as though I had not been. I should have been carried from the womb to the grave.

before I go where I shall not return, to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death,

Can thou find out God by searching? Can thou find out the Almighty to perfection?

It is high as heaven; what can thou do? Deeper than Sheol; what can thou know?

If he passes through, and shuts up, and all to judgment, then who can hinder him?

But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall have no way to flee. And their hope shall be the giving up of the spirit.

No doubt but ye are the people, and wisdom shall die with you.

But I have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you. Yes, who does not know such things as these?

I am as a man who is a laughing-stock to his neighbor. I who called upon God, and he answered. The just, the perfect man is a laughing-stock.

Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee, and the fishes of the sea shall declare to thee.

He uncovers deep things out of darkness, and brings out to light the shadow of death.

He takes away understanding from the chiefs of the people of the earth, and causes them to wander in a wilderness where there is no way.

They grope in the dark without light, and he makes them to stagger like a drunken man.

What ye know, I also know; I am not inferior to you.

Surely I would speak to the Almighty, and I desire to reason with God.

Hear now my reasoning, and hearken to the pleadings of my lips.

Will ye show partiality to him? Will ye contend for God?

Only do not do two things to me, then I will not hide myself from thy face:

Withdraw thy hand far from me, and do not let thy dread make me afraid.

How many are my iniquities and sins? Make me to know my transgression and my sin.

Why do thou hide thy face, and reckon me for thine enemy?

For thou write bitter things against me, and make me to inherit the iniquities of my youth.

Thou also put my feet in the stocks, and mark all my paths. Thou set a bound to the soles of my feet.