They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all other, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn.

“Dominion and awe belong to God;
He establishes peace and order in His high places.

How then can man be justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?

“Behold, even the moon has no brightness [compared to God’s majesty and glory]
And the stars are not pure in His sight,

Sheol is naked before God , And Abaddon hath no covering.

By his power the sea was made quiet; and by his wisdom Rahab was wounded.

By his wind the heavens become bright: by his hand the quickly moving snake was cut through.

As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment; and the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul;

All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils;

while my breath is in me, and as long as the wind that God hath given me is in my nostrils.

God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me.

“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.

For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?

Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him?

Will he delight himself in the Almighty? will he always call upon God?

I will teach you by the hand of God: that which is with the Almighty will I not conceal.

This is the portion of a wicked man with God, and the heritage of oppressors, which they shall receive of the Almighty.

If he get many children, they shall perish with the sword, and his posterity shall have scarceness of bread.

Though he may get silver together like dust, and make ready great stores of clothing;

He may get them ready, but the upright will put them on, and he who is free from sin will take the silver for a heritage.

For God shall cast upon him, and not spare: he would fain flee out of his hand.

“People will clap their hands at him [to mock and ridicule him]
And hiss him out of his place.

With the river of water parteth he asunder the strange people, that knoweth no good neighborhead; such as are rude, unmannerly and boisterous.

A path -- not known it hath a ravenous fowl, Nor scorched it hath an eye of the kite,

He makes deep ways, cut through the rock, and his eye sees everything of value.

God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.

When God fixed the weight of the wind
and limited the water by measure,

Oh that I were as in months past, as in the days when God preserved me;

As I was in the days of my youth, when the secret of God was upon my tabernacle;

When I went out to the gate through the city, when I prepared my seat in the street!

The young men saw me, and went away, and the old men got up from their seats;

The rulers kept quiet, and put their hands on their mouths;

When all they that heard me, called me happy, and when all they that saw me, wished me good.

He that should have been lost, gave me a good word, and the widow's heart praised me.

My glory renews for me and my bow is as good as new in my hand.'

Men gave ear to me, waiting and keeping quiet for my suggestions.

After I had said what was in my mind, they were quiet and let my words go deep into their hearts;

“Indeed, what good was the strength of their hands to me?
Vigor had perished from them.

Who cut up mallows by the bushes, and juniper roots for their meat.

They have to get a resting-place in the hollows of the valleys, in holes of the earth and rocks.

They make noises like asses among the brushwood; they get together under the thorns.

“For God has loosed His bowstring [attacking me] and [He has] afflicted and humbled me;
They have cast off the bridle [of restraint] before me.

Terrors have turned on me; they pursue my soul like the wind; and my good passes away like a cloud.

By the great force of my disease is my garment changed: it bindeth me about as the collar of my coat.

“God has cast me into the mire [a swampland of crisis],
And I have become [worthless] like dust and ashes.

When I looked for good, then evil came unto me: and when I waited for light, there came darkness.

I go about in dark clothing, uncomforted; I get up in the public place, crying out for help.

I cut out a covenant for mine eyes; and why shall I show myself attentive to a virgin?

For what portion of God is there from above? and what inheritance of the Almighty from on high?

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

Let me be weighed in an even balance, that God may know mine integrity.

“If my step has turned away from the way [of God],
Or if my heart has [covetously] followed my eyes,
Or if any spot [of guilt] has stained my hands,

What then shall I do when God riseth up? and when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?

Did not the One who made me in the womb also make them?
Did not the same God form us both in the womb?

(For I was cared for by God as by a father from my earliest days; he was my guide from the body of my mother;)

If I have seen anyone about to perish for lack of clothing, or a poor man without a coat,

If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, when I saw my help in the gate:

For destruction from God was a terror to me, and by reason of his highness I could not endure.

If I was glad because my wealth was great, and because my hand had got together a great store;

This also were an iniquity to be punished by the judge: for I should have denied the God that is above.

If the men of my household have not said, Oh for some of his flesh - we cannot get filled,

because I dreaded [the] great multitude, and [the] contempt of clans terrified me, so that I kept quiet, I did not go out of [the] doorway?

If only God would give ear to me, and the Ruler of all would give me an answer! or if what he has against me had been put in writing!

So these three men ceased answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes [and could not be persuaded otherwise by them].

Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram: against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified himself rather than God.

and, against his three friends, was kindled his anger, - because that they found not a response, and condemned God.

Now Elihu had kept quiet while Job was talking, because they were older than he;

but when he saw that there had been no response from those three, he got even more angry.

Yea, when I had diligently pondered what ye said, I found not one of you that made any good argument against Job, or that directly could make answer unto his words,

Lest ye should say, We have found out wisdom: God thrusteth him down, not man.

And am I to go on waiting while they have nothing to say? while they keep quiet and give no more answers?

“I too will give my share of answers;
I too will express my opinion and share my knowledge.

My stomach is like wine which is unable to get out; like skins full of new wine, it is almost burst.

“I must speak so that I may get relief;
I will open my lips and answer.

The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.

Behold, I am according to thy wish in God's stead: I also am formed out of the clay.

“Behold, I will not make you afraid or terrified of me [for I am only mortal and not God],
Nor should any pressure from me weigh heavily upon you.

‘Behold, God finds pretexts against me;
He counts me as His enemy.

Behold, in this thou art not just: I will answer thee, that God is greater than man.

For God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not.

“In a dream, a vision of the night [one may hear God’s voice],
When deep sleep falls on men
While slumbering upon the bed,

That He may turn man aside from his conduct,
And keep him from pride;

He holds back his soul from the pit [of destruction],
And his life from passing over into Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead).

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

“If there is an angel as a mediator for him,
One out of a thousand,
To explain to a man what is right for him [that is, how to be in right standing with God],

Then God is gracious unto him, and saith, Deliver him from going down to the pit, I have found a ransom.

He shall pray unto God, and he will be favourable unto him: and he shall see his face with joy: for he will render unto man his righteousness.

He will look at men and say,
“I have sinned and perverted what was right;
yet I did not get what I deserved.

‘God has redeemed my life from going to the pit [of destruction],
And my life shall see the light.’”

Lo, all these things worketh God oftentimes with man,

Pay attention, Job, and listen to me.
Be quiet, and I will speak.

If not, then listen to me;
be quiet, and I will teach you wisdom.

Let us choose to us judgment: let us know among ourselves what is good.

For Job hath said, I am righteous: and God hath taken away my judgment.

What man is like Job, a man who freely makes sport of God,

For he hath said, It profiteth a man nothing that he should delight himself with God.

Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.

“For God pays a man according to his work,
And He will make every man find [appropriate] compensation according to his way.

Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment.

“Who put God in charge over the earth?
And who has laid on Him the whole world?