“Yet these are just the fringes of His ways [mere samples of His power],
The faintest whisper of His voice!
Who can contemplate the thunder of His [full] mighty power?”

“Far be it from me that I should admit you are right [in your accusations against me];
Until I die, I will not remove my integrity from me.

“Though his children are many, they are destined for the sword;
And his descendants will not have sufficient bread.

“Its stones are the bed of sapphires;
It holds dust of gold.

‘My glory and honor are fresh in me [being constantly renewed],
And my bow gains [ever] new strength in my hand.’

“But now those younger than I mock and laugh at me,
Whose fathers I refused to put with the sheepdogs of my flock.

“They are gaunt with want and famine;
They gnaw the dry and barren ground by night in [the gloom of] waste and desolation.

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

“They break up and clutter my path [upsetting my plans],
They profit from my destruction;
No one restrains them.

“Terrors are turned upon me;
They chase away my honor and reputation like the wind,
And my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.

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

“My skin falls from me in blackened flakes,
And my bones are burned with fever.

“If I have put my trust and confidence in gold,
Or have declared fine gold my hope and assurance,

Let thorns grow instead of wheat,
And stinkweed and cockleburs instead of barley.”

So the words of Job [with his friends] are finished.

Then Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite said,

“I am young, and you are aged;
For that reason I was anxious and dared not tell you what I think.

“Those [who are] abundant in years may not [always] be wise,
Nor may the elders [always] understand justice.

“They (Job’s friends) are dismayed and embarrassed, they no longer answer;
The words have moved away and failed them,” [says Elihu].

“Behold, I belong to God like you;
I too was formed out of the clay.

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

“Man is also disciplined with pain on his bed,
And with unceasing complaint in his bones,

“God who says to a king, ‘You are worthless and vile,’
Or to princes and nobles, ‘You are wicked and evil’?

“Who is not partial to princes,
Nor does He regard the rich above the poor,
For they all are the work of His hands.

“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.

“For God’s eyes are on the ways of a man,
And He sees all his steps.

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

‘Job speaks without knowledge,
And his words are without wisdom and insight.

“Do you think this is according to [your] justice?
Do you say, ‘My righteousness is more than God’s’?

“Look to the heavens and see;
And behold the skies which are [much] higher than you.

“If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against Him?
And if your transgressions are multiplied, what have you done to Him?

“If you are righteous, what do you give God,
Or what does He receive from your hand?

“Your wickedness affects only a man such as you,
And your righteousness affects only a son of man [but it cannot affect God, who is sovereign].

“Even though you say that you do not see Him [when missing His righteous judgment on earth],
Yet your case is before Him, and you must wait for Him!

“He does not withdraw His eyes from the righteous [those in right standing with Him];
But with kings upon the throne
He has seated them forever, and they are exalted.

“And if they are bound in bonds [of adversity],
And held by cords of affliction,

“They die in youth,
And their life ends among the cult prostitutes.

“But you [Job] were full of judgment on the wicked,
Judgment and justice take hold of you.

“Do not long for the night,
When people vanish from their places.

“His thundering voice declares [awesomely] His presence;
The cattle also are told of His coming storm.

“God seals (brings to a standstill, stops) [by severe weather] the hand of every man,
That all men [whom He has made] may know His work [that is, His sovereign power and their subjection to it].

“Do you know about the layers of thick clouds [and how they are balanced and poised in the heavens],
The wonderful works of Him who is perfect in knowledge,

You whose garments are hot,
When He quiets the earth [in sultry summer] with the [oppressive] south wind?

“Tell us [Job] what words [of man] shall we say to such a Being;
We cannot state our case because of darkness [that is, our ignorance in the presence of the unsearchable God].

“Men therefore fear Him;
He does not regard nor respect any who are wise in heart [in their own understanding and conceit].”

“You [must] know, since you were born then,
And because you are so extremely old!

“Water becomes like stone [and hides itself],
And the surface of the deep is frozen and imprisoned.

“Can you send forth lightnings that they may go
And say to you, ‘Here we are’?

“Do you know the time when the wild goats of the rock give birth [to their young]?
Do you observe the calving of the deer?

“Can you count the months that they carry offspring,
Or do you know the time when they give birth?

“The [flightless] wings of the ostrich wave joyously;
With the pinion (shackles, fetters) and plumage of love,

“His young ones suck up blood;
And where the slain are, there is he.”

“Adorn yourself with eminence and dignity [since you question the Almighty],
And array yourself with honor and majesty.

Look at everyone who is proud, and humble him,
And [if you are so able] tread down the wicked where they stand.

“He sways his tail like a cedar;
The tendons of his thighs are twisted and knit together [like a rope].

“His bones are tubes of bronze;
His limbs are like bars of iron.

“Who can open the doors (jaws) of his face?
Around his [open jaws and] teeth there is terror.

“His strong scales are his pride,
Bound together as with a tight seal.

“They are joined one to another;
They stick together and cannot be separated.

“His sneezes flash forth light,
And his eyes are like the [reddish] eyelids of the dawn.

“The folds of his flesh are joined together,
Firm on him and immobile [when he moves].

“When he raises himself up, the mighty are afraid;
Because of the crashing they are bewildered.

“The arrow cannot make him flee;
Slingstones are treated as stubble by him.

“Clubs [also] are regarded as stubble;
He laughs at the rushing and the rattling of the javelin.

“His underparts are like sharp pieces of broken pottery;
He moves across and spreads out [grooves] like a threshing sledge on the mire (muddy river banks).

“He looks on everything that is high [without terror];
He is monarch over all the sons of pride. [And now, Job, who are you who does not dare to disturb the beast, yet who dares resist Me, the beast’s creator? Everything under the heavens is Mine; therefore, who can have a claim against God?]”

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And on His law [His precepts and teachings] he [habitually] meditates day and night.

The wicked [those who live in disobedience to God’s law] are not so,
But they are like the chaff [worthless and without substance] which the wind blows away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand [unpunished] in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

“I will declare the decree of the Lord:
He said to Me, ‘You are My Son;
This day [I proclaim] I have begotten You.

Kiss (pay respect to) the Son, so that He does not become angry, and you perish in the way,
For His wrath may soon be kindled and set aflame.
How blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God] are all those who take refuge in Him!

O Lord, how my enemies have increased!
Many are rising up against me.

Many are saying of me,
“There is no help [no salvation] for him in God.” Selah.

But You, O Lord, are a shield for me,
My glory [and my honor], and the One who lifts my head.

For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness;
No evil [person] dwells with You.

Have mercy on me and be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am weak (faint, frail);
Heal me, O Lord, for my bones are dismayed and anguished.

Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous [those in right standing with You];
For the righteous God tries the hearts and minds.

What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of [earthborn] man that You care for him?

The Lord has made Himself known;
He executes judgment;
The wicked are trapped by the work of their own hands. Higgaion (meditation) Selah.

The wicked will turn to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),
Even all the nations who forget God.

The wicked, in the haughtiness of his face, will not seek nor inquire for Him;
All his thoughts are, “There is no God [so there is no accountability or punishment].”

His ways prosper at all times;
Your judgments [Lord] are on high, out of his sight [so he never thinks about them];
As for all his enemies, he sneers at them.

His mouth is full of curses and deceit (fraud) and oppression;
Under his tongue is mischief and wickedness [injustice and sin].

You have seen it, for You have noted mischief and vexation (irritation) to take it into Your hand.
The unfortunate commits himself to You;
You are the helper of the fatherless.

For look, the wicked are bending the bow;
They take aim with their arrow on the string
To shoot [by stealth] in darkness at the upright in heart.

“If the foundations [of a godly society] are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?”

Save and help and rescue, Lord, for godly people cease to be,
For the faithful vanish from among the sons of men.

Who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own; who is lord and master over us?”

“Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

The words and promises of the Lord are pure words,
Like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times.

The [spiritually ignorant] fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they have committed repulsive and unspeakable deeds;
There is no one who does good.

They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt;
There is no one who does good, not even one.

I said to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
I have no good besides You.”

As for the saints (godly people) who are in the land,
They are the majestic and the noble and the excellent ones in whom is all my delight.

You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.

Let my verdict of vindication come from Your presence;
May Your eyes look with equity and behold things that are just.

They have closed their unfeeling heart [to kindness and compassion];
With their mouths they speak proudly and make presumptuous claims.

From men with Your hand, O Lord,
From men of the world [these moths of the night] whose portion [of enjoyment] is in this life—idle and vain,
And whose belly You fill with Your treasure;
They are satisfied with children,
And they leave what they have left [of wealth] to their children.

The precepts of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true, they are righteous altogether.

They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.

They have bowed down and fallen,
But we have risen and stood upright.