“Is there any number to His [vast celestial] armies?
And upon whom does His light not rise?

“I hold fast my uprightness and my right standing with God and I will not let them go;
My heart does not reproach me for any of my days.

“He lies down rich, but never will again;
He opens his eyes, and it is gone.

“From where then does wisdom come?
And where is the place of understanding?

“However, does not one falling in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand?
Or in his disaster [will he not] therefore cry out for help?

“I am seething within and my heart is troubled and cannot rest;
Days of affliction come to meet me.

“Does not tragedy fall [justly] on the unjust
And disaster to those who work wickedness?

“Does not God see my ways
And count all my steps?

“Why do you complain against Him?
That He does not answer [you with] all His doings.

“For God speaks once,
And even twice, yet no one notices it [including you, Job].

[Elihu comments,] “Behold, God does all these things twice, yes, three times, with a man,

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

“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?

“The people cry out, but He does not answer
Because of the pride of evil men.

“He does not prolong the life of the wicked,
But gives the afflicted their justice.

“Behold, God is exalted in His power;
Who is a ruler or a teacher like Him?

“God thunders marvelously with His voice;
He does great things which we cannot comprehend.

“The Almighty—we cannot find Him;
He is exalted in power
And He will not do violence to [nor disregard] justice and abundant righteousness.

“He laughs at fear and is not dismayed;
And [in battle] he does not turn back from the sword.

“Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up
And makes his nest on high [in an inaccessible place]?

“If a river rages and overflows, he does not tremble;
He is confident, though the Jordan [River] swells and rushes against his mouth.

“The sword that reaches him cannot avail,
Nor [does] the spear, the dart, or the javelin.

And he will be like a tree firmly planted [and fed] by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season;
Its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers [and comes to maturity].

If a man does not repent, God will sharpen His sword;
He has strung and bent His [mighty] bow and made it ready.

For He who avenges blood [unjustly shed] remembers them (His people);
He does not forget the cry of the afflicted and abused.

Why has the wicked spurned and shown disrespect to God?
He has said to himself, “You will not require me to account.”

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.

He does not slander with his tongue,
Nor does evil to his neighbor,
Nor takes up a reproach against his friend;

In his eyes an evil person is despised,
But he honors those who fear the Lord [and obediently worship Him with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder].
He keeps his word even to his own disadvantage and does not change it [for his own benefit];

He does not put out his money at interest [to a fellow Israelite],
And does not take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things will never be shaken.

A horse is a false hope for victory;
Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.

For in Him our heart rejoices,
Because we trust [lean on, rely on, and are confident] in His holy name.

He plans wrongdoing on his bed;
He sets himself on a path that is not good;
He does not reject or despise evil.

By this I know that You favor and delight in me,
Because my enemy does not shout in triumph over me.

But man, with all his [self] honor and pomp, will not endure;
He is like the beasts that perish.

Though while he lives he counts himself happy and prosperous—
And though people praise you when you do well for yourself—

May our God come and not keep silent;
Fire devours before Him,
And around Him a mighty tempest rages.

The [empty-headed] fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt and evil, and have committed repulsive injustice;
There is no one who does good.

Every one of them has turned aside and fallen away;
Together they have become filthy and corrupt;
There is no one who does good, no, not even one.

Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who alone does wonderful things.

They say, “How does God know?
Is there knowledge [of us] with the Most High?”

O God, why have You rejected us forever?
Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture?

We do not see our symbols;
There is no longer any prophet [to guide us],
Nor does any among us know for how long.

You are the [awesome] God who works [powerful] wonders;
You have demonstrated Your power among the people.

For He [graciously] remembered that they were mere [human] flesh,
A wind that goes and does not return.

A senseless man [in his crude and uncultivated state] knows nothing,
Nor does a [self-righteous] fool understand this:

Yet they say, “The Lord does not see,
Nor does the God of Jacob (Israel) notice it.”

But our God is in heaven;
He does whatever He pleases.

The sound of joyful shouting and salvation is in the tents of the righteous:
The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.

The right hand of the Lord is exalted;
The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.

To Him who alone does great wonders,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;

He does not delight in the strength (military power) of the horse,
Nor does He take pleasure in the legs (strength) of a man.

Let us swallow them alive like Sheol (the place of the dead),
Even whole, as those who go down to the pit [of death];

But whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks common sense and sound judgment and an understanding [of moral principles];
He who would destroy his soul does it.

Does not wisdom call,
And understanding lift up her voice?

The blessing of the Lord brings [true] riches,
And He adds no sorrow to it [for it comes as a blessing from God].

He who is steadfast in righteousness attains life,
But he who pursues evil attains his own death.

The lazy man does not catch and roast his prey,
But the precious possession of a [wise] man is diligence [because he recognizes opportunities and seizes them].

The ransom for a man’s life is his wealth,
But the poor man does not even have to listen to a rebuke or threats [from the envious].

The king’s favor and good will are toward a servant who acts wisely and discreetly,
But his anger and wrath are toward him who acts shamefully.

Excellent speech does not benefit a fool [who is spiritually blind],
Much less do lying lips benefit a prince.

He who becomes the parent of a fool [who is spiritually blind] does so to his sorrow,
And the father of a fool [who is spiritually blind] has no joy.

He who is careless in his work
Is a brother to him who destroys.

He who assaults his father and chases away his mother
Is a son who brings shame and disgrace.

The lazy man does not plow when the winter [planting] season arrives;
So he begs at the [next] harvest and has nothing [to reap].

Even a boy is known and distinguished by his acts,
Whether his conduct is pure and right.

He craves all the day long [and does no work],
But the righteous [willingly] gives and does not withhold [what he has].

If you [claim ignorance and] say, “See, we did not know this,”
Does He not consider it who weighs and examines the hearts and their motives?
And does He not know it who guards your life and keeps your soul?
And will He not repay [you and] every man according to his works?

Like clouds and wind without rain
Is a man who boasts falsely of gifts [he does not give].

The north wind brings forth rain;
And a backbiting tongue, an angry countenance.

Like the sparrow in her wandering, like the swallow in her flying,
So the curse without cause does not come and alight [on the undeserving].

As the door turns on its hinges,
So does the lazy person on his bed [never getting out of it].

Oil and perfume make the heart glad;
So does the sweetness of a friend’s counsel that comes from the heart.

For riches are not forever,
Nor does a crown endure to all generations.

She comforts, encourages, and does him only good and not evil
All the days of her life.

What advantage does man have from all his work
Which he does under the sun (while earthbound)?

I said of laughter, “It is madness,” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?”

For there is no [more] lasting remembrance of the wise man than of the fool, since in the days to come all will be long forgotten. And how does the wise man die? Even as the fool!

I know that whatever God does, it endures forever; nothing can be added to it nor can anything be taken from it, for God does it so that men will fear and worship Him [with awe-filled reverence, knowing that He is God].

There was a certain man—without a dependent, having neither a child nor a brother, yet there was no end to all his labor. Indeed, his eyes were not satisfied with riches and he never asked, “For whom do I labor and deprive myself of pleasure?” This too is vanity (a wisp of smoke, self-conceit); yes, it is a painful effort and an unhappy task.

a man to whom God has given riches and wealth and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God has not given him the power or capacity to enjoy them [all those things which are gifts from God], but a stranger [in whom he has no interest succeeds him and] enjoys them. This is vanity and it is a [cause of] great distress.

Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who always does good and who never sins.

Do not be in a hurry to get out of his presence. Do not join in a malevolent matter, for the king will do whatever he pleases.

For no one knows what will happen;
So who can tell him how and when it will happen?

Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and his life [seemingly] is prolonged [in spite of his wickedness], still I know that it will be well with those who [reverently] fear God, who fear and worship Him openly [realizing His omnipresence and His power].

But it will not be well for the evil man, nor will he lengthen his days like a shadow, because he does not fear God.

It is the same for all. There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and for the unclean; for the man who offers sacrifices and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as he who swears an oath is, so is he who is afraid to swear an oath.

Dead flies make the oil of the perfumer give off a foul odor; so a little foolishness [in one who is esteemed] outweighs wisdom and honor.

If the axe is dull and he does not sharpen its edge, then he must exert more strength; but wisdom [to sharpen the axe] helps him succeed [with less effort].

The labor of a fool so wearies him [because he is ignorant] that he does not even know how to go to a city.

Just as you do not know the way and path of the wind or how the bones are formed in the womb of a pregnant woman, even so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things.

“The ox [instinctively] knows its owner,
And the donkey its master’s feeding trough,
But Israel does not know [Me as Lord],
My people do not understand.”

Your rulers are rebels
And companions of thieves;
Everyone loves bribes
And chases after gifts.
They do not defend the fatherless,
Nor does the widow’s cause come before them [instead they delay or turn a deaf ear].

Yet it is not Assyria’s intention [to do My will],
Nor does it plan so in its heart,
But instead it is its purpose to destroy
And to cut off many nations.

Does the farmer plow all day to plant seed?
Does he continually dig furrows and harrow his ground [after it is prepared]?

When he has leveled its surface,
Does he not sow [the seed of] dill and scatter cumin,
And plant wheat in rows,
And barley in its [intended] place and rye within its border?

Bread grain is crushed fine,
Indeed, the farmer does not continue to thresh it forever.
Because the wheel of his cart and his horses eventually damage it,
He does not thresh it longer.

Yet He is also wise and will bring disaster,
And does not retract His words,
But will arise against the house of evildoers
And against the helpers of those who do evil.