“You would even cast lots for the orphans
And barter over your friend.

“Behold now, I have prepared my case;
I know that I will be vindicated.

“He will drop off his unripe grape like the vine,
And will cast off his flower like the olive tree.

“If you say, ‘How shall we persecute him?’
And ‘What pretext for a case against him can we find?’

“When you are cast down, you will speak with confidence,
And the humble person He will save.

“I would present my case before Him
And fill my mouth with arguments.

“I was a father to the needy,
And I investigated the case which I did not know.

“I smiled on them when they did not believe,
And the light of my face they did not cast down.

“Because He has loosed His bowstring and afflicted me,
They have cast off the bridle before me.

“He has cast me into the mire,
And I have become like dust and ashes.

“How much less when you say you do not behold Him,
The case is before Him, and you must wait for Him!

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