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

“For calamity from God is a terror to me,
And because of His majesty I can do nothing.

“Have the men of my tent not said,
‘Who can find one who has not been satisfied with his meat’?

“Refute me if you can;
Array yourselves before me, take your stand.

When He keeps quiet, who then can condemn?
And when He hides His face, who then can behold Him,
That is, in regard to both nation and man?—

“Can anyone understand the spreading of the clouds,
The thundering of His pavilion?

“Can you, with Him, spread out the skies,
Strong as a molten mirror?

“Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades,
Or loose the cords of Orion?

“Can you lead forth a constellation in its season,
And guide the Bear with her satellites?

“Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
So that an abundance of water will cover you?

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

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

“Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,

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

“Can you bind the wild ox in a furrow with ropes,
Or will he harrow the valleys after you?

“Behold, I am insignificant; what can I reply to You?
I lay my hand on my mouth.

“Or do you have an arm like God,
And can you thunder with a voice like His?

“Then I will also confess to you,
That your own right hand can save you.

“Can anyone capture him when he is on watch,
With barbs can anyone pierce his nose?

“Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook?
Or press down his tongue with a cord?

“Can you put a rope in his nose
Or pierce his jaw with a hook?

“Can you fill his skin with harpoons,
Or his head with fishing spears?

“No one is so fierce that he dares to arouse him;
Who then is he that can stand before Me?

“Who can strip off his outer armor?
Who can come within his double mail?

“Who can open the doors of his face?
Around his teeth there is terror.

“One is so near to another
That no air can come between them.

“I know that You can do all things,
And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
In the Lord I take refuge;
How can you say to my soul, “Flee as a bird to your mountain;

If the foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?”

For by You I can run upon a troop;
And by my God I can leap over a wall.

He trains my hands for battle,
So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults.

I can count all my bones.
They look, they stare at me;

No man can by any means redeem his brother
Or give to God a ransom for him—

In God, whose word I praise,
In God I have put my trust;
I shall not be afraid.
What can mere man do to me?

In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid.
What can man do to me?

Before your pots can feel the fire of thorns
He will sweep them away with a whirlwind, the green and the burning alike.

They hold fast to themselves an evil purpose;
They talk of laying snares secretly;
They say, “Who can see them?”

Then they spoke against God;
They said, “Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?

“Behold, He struck the rock so that waters gushed out,
And streams were overflowing;
Can He give bread also?
Will He provide meat for His people?”

What man can live and not see death?
Can he deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah.

Can a throne of destruction be allied with You,
One which devises mischief by decree?

Who can speak of the mighty deeds of the Lord,
Or can show forth all His praise?

The Lord is for me; I will not fear;
What can man do to me?

Beth.
How can a young man keep his way pure?
By keeping it according to Your word.

How can we sing the Lord’s song
In a foreign land?

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?

He casts forth His ice as fragments;
Who can stand before His cold?

Can a man take fire in his bosom
And his clothes not be burned?

Or can a man walk on hot coals
And his feet not be scorched?

The spirit of a man can endure his sickness,
But as for a broken spirit who can bear it?

Many a man proclaims his own loyalty,
But who can find a trustworthy man?

Who can say, “I have cleansed my heart,
I am pure from my sin”?

Man’s steps are ordained by the Lord,
How then can man understand his way?

The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes
Than seven men who can give a discreet answer.

Wrath is fierce and anger is a flood,
But who can stand before jealousy?

An excellent wife, who can find?
For her worth is far above jewels.

For who can eat and who can have enjoyment without Him?

Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone?

And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.

As he had come naked from his mother’s womb, so will he return as he came. He will take nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can carry in his hand.

For who knows what is good for a man during his lifetime, during the few years of his futile life? He will spend them like a shadow. For who can tell a man what will be after him under the sun?

What has been is remote and exceedingly mysterious. Who can discover it?

If no one knows what will happen, who can tell him when it will happen?

Yet the fool multiplies words. No man knows what will happen, and who can tell him what will come after him?

“I have taken off my dress,
How can I put it on again?
I have washed my feet,
How can I dirty them again?

For the Lord of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?”

The princes of Zoan are mere fools;
The advice of Pharaoh’s wisest advisers has become stupid.
How can you men say to Pharaoh,
“I am a son of the wise, a son of ancient kings”?

Sinners in Zion are terrified;
Trembling has seized the godless.
“Who among us can live with the consuming fire?
Who among us can live with continual burning?”

How then can you repulse one official of the least of my master’s servants and rely on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?

“But when I look, there is no one,
And there is no counselor among them
Who, if I ask, can give an answer.

All the nations have gathered together
So that the peoples may be assembled.
Who among them can declare this
And proclaim to us the former things?
Let them present their witnesses that they may be justified,
Or let them hear and say, “It is true.”

“Even from eternity I am He,
And there is none who can deliver out of My hand;
I act and who can reverse it?”

“You have bought Me not sweet cane with money,
Nor have you filled Me with the fat of your sacrifices;
Rather you have burdened Me with your sins,
You have wearied Me with your iniquities.

“For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act;
For how can My name be profaned?
And My glory I will not give to another.

“Can a woman forget her nursing child
And have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.

“Can the prey be taken from the mighty man,
Or the captives of a tyrant be rescued?”

“Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things?
Can a land be born in one day?
Can a nation be brought forth all at once?
As soon as Zion travailed, she also brought forth her sons.

“For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me,
The fountain of living waters,
To hew for themselves cisterns,
Broken cisterns
That can hold no water.

“How can you say, ‘I am not defiled,
I have not gone after the Baals’?
Look at your way in the valley!
Know what you have done!
You are a swift young camel entangling her ways,

A wild donkey accustomed to the wilderness,
That sniffs the wind in her passion.
In the time of her heat who can turn her away?
All who seek her will not become weary;
In her month they will find her.

“But where are your gods
Which you made for yourself?
Let them arise, if they can save you
In the time of your trouble;
For according to the number of your cities
Are your gods, O Judah.

“Can a virgin forget her ornaments,
Or a bride her attire?
Yet My people have forgotten Me
Days without number.

“Roam to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem,
And look now and take note.
And seek in her open squares,
If you can find a man,
If there is one who does justice, who seeks truth,
Then I will pardon her.

“Behold, I am bringing a nation against you from afar, O house of Israel,” declares the Lord.
“It is an enduring nation,
It is an ancient nation,
A nation whose language you do not know,
Nor can you understand what they say.

“For what purpose does frankincense come to Me from Sheba
And the sweet cane from a distant land?
Your burnt offerings are not acceptable
And your sacrifices are not pleasing to Me.”

“How can you say, ‘We are wise,
And the law of the Lord is with us’?
But behold, the lying pen of the scribes
Has made it into a lie.

Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts,
“Behold, I will refine them and assay them;
For what else can I do, because of the daughter of My people?

“Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field are they,
And they cannot speak;
They must be carried,
Because they cannot walk!
Do not fear them,
For they can do no harm,
Nor can they do any good.”

“What right has My beloved in My house
When she has done many vile deeds?
Can the sacrificial flesh take away from you your disaster,
So that you can rejoice?”

“If you have run with footmen and they have tired you out,
Then how can you compete with horses?
If you fall down in a land of peace,
How will you do in the thicket of the Jordan?

“Can the Ethiopian change his skin
Or the leopard his spots?
Then you also can do good
Who are accustomed to doing evil.

Are there any among the idols of the nations who give rain?
Or can the heavens grant showers?
Is it not You, O Lord our God?
Therefore we hope in You,
For You are the one who has done all these things.

“Can anyone smash iron,
Iron from the north, or bronze?

Can man make gods for himself?
Yet they are not gods!

“The heart is more deceitful than all else
And is desperately sick;
Who can understand it?

“Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.

“Can a man hide himself in hiding places
So I do not see him?” declares the Lord.
“Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the Lord.

‘Ask now, and see
If a male can give birth.
Why do I see every man
With his hands on his loins, as a woman in childbirth?
And why have all faces turned pale?

Thus says the Lord,
“If the heavens above can be measured
And the foundations of the earth searched out below,
Then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel
For all that they have done,” declares the Lord.