Who alone stretches out the heavens
And tramples down the waves of the sea;

Who made [the constellations] the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades,
And the [vast starry] spaces of the south;

“God will not turn back His anger;
The [proud] helpers of Rahab [the arrogant monster of the sea] bow under Him.

“If I called and He answered me,
I could not believe that He was listening to my voice.

“If it is a matter of strength and power, behold, He is mighty!
And if of justice, who can summon and challenge Him?

“When [His] scourge kills suddenly,
He mocks at the despair of the innocent.

“The earth is given into the hands of the wicked;
He covers the faces of its judges [so that they are blind to justice].
If it is not He, then who is it [that is responsible for all this injustice]?

“They pass by like the [swift] boats made of reeds,
Like an eagle that swoops down on its prey.

“If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,
I will leave off my sad appearance, and be cheerful and brighten up,’

I am afraid of all my pains and worries [yet to come];
I know that You will not acquit me and leave me unpunished.

“If I were to wash myself with snow
And cleanse my hands with lye,

“Let Him take His rod away from me,
And let not the dread and fear of Him terrify me.

“I am disgusted with my life and loathe it!
I will give free expression to my complaint;
I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.

‘Does it indeed seem right to You to oppress,
To despise and reject the work of Your hands,
And to look with favor on the schemes of the wicked?

‘Do You have eyes of flesh?
Do You see as a man sees?

‘Are Your days as the days of a mortal,
Are Your years as man’s years,

‘Although You know that I am not guilty or wicked,
Yet there is no one who can rescue me from Your hand.

‘Remember now, that You have made me as clay;
So will You turn me into dust again?

‘If I sin, then You would take note and observe me,
And You would not acquit me of my guilt.

‘If I am wicked, woe to me [for judgment comes]!
And if I am righteous, I dare not lift up my head.
For I am sated and filled with disgrace and the sight of my misery.

‘Should I lift my head up, You would hunt me like a lion;
And again You would show Your marvelous power against me.

‘You renew Your witnesses against me
And increase Your indignation and anger toward me;
Hardship after hardship is with me [attacking me time after time].

‘Why then did You bring me out of the womb?
Would that I had perished and no eye had seen me!

Before I go—and I shall not return—
To the land of darkness and the deep shadow [of death],

The [sunless] land of utter gloom as darkness itself,
[The land] of the shadow of death, without order,
And [where] it shines as [thick] darkness.”

“Shall a multitude of words not be answered?
And should a talkative man [making such a long-winded defense] be acquitted?

And [that He would] show you the secrets of wisdom!
For sound wisdom has two sides.
Know therefore that God forgets a part of your wickedness and guilt.

“Can you discover the depths of God?
Can you [by searching] discover the limits of the Almighty [ascend to His heights, extend to His widths, and comprehend His infinite perfection]?

“His wisdom is as high as the heights of heaven. What can you do?
It is deeper than Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead). What can you know?

“If God passes by or arrests,
Or calls an assembly [of judgment], who can restrain Him?
[If He is against a man, who can call Him to account for it?]

“For He recognizes and knows false and worthless men,
And He sees wickedness, will He not consider it?

“If you direct your heart [on the right path]
And stretch out your hands to Him,

If sin is in your hand, put it far away [from you],
And do not let wrongdoing dwell in your tents;

Then, indeed, you could lift up your face [to Him] without moral defect,
And you would be firmly established and secure and not fear.

“But the eyes of the wicked will fail,
And they will not escape [the justice of God];
And their hope is to breathe their last [and die].”

“But I have intelligence and understanding as well as you;
I am not inferior to you.
Who does not know such things as these [of God’s wisdom and might]?

“He who is at ease has contempt for misfortune,
But misfortune is ready [and anxiously waiting] for those whose feet slip.

“The tents of the destroyers prosper;
And those who provoke God are [apparently] secure,
Whom God brings into their power.

“Now ask the animals, and let them teach you [that God does not deal with His creatures according to their character];
And ask the birds of the air, and let them tell you;

Or speak to the earth [with its many forms of life], and it will teach you;
And let the fish of the sea declare [this truth] to you.

In whose hand is the life of every living thing,
And the breath of all mankind?

“Does the ear not put words to the test,
Just as the palate tastes its food [distinguishing between the desirable and the undesirable]?

“With the aged [you say] is wisdom,
And with long life is understanding.

“He loosens the bond of kings
And binds their loins with a loincloth.

“He deprives the trusted ones of speech
And takes away the discernment and discretion of the aged.

“He pours contempt on princes and nobles
And loosens the belt of the strong [disabling them].

“He uncovers mysteries [that are difficult to grasp and understand] out of the darkness
And brings black gloom and the shadow of death into light.

“He removes intelligence and understanding from the leaders of the people of the earth
And makes them wander and move blindly in a pathless waste.

“But I wish to speak to the Almighty,
And I desire to argue with God.

“But you smear me with lies [you defame my character most untruthfully];
You are all worthless physicians and have no remedy to offer.

“Please hear my argument
And listen to the pleadings of my lips.

“Will it be well for you when He investigates you [and your tactics against me]?
Or will you deceive Him as one deceives a man?

“He will surely reprimand you
If you secretly show partiality.

“Your memorable sayings are [worthless, merely] proverbs of ashes;
Your defenses are defenses of [crumbling] clay.

“Why should I take my flesh in my teeth
And put my life in my hands [incurring the wrath of God]?

Withdraw Your hand from me and remove this bodily suffering,
And let not the dread of You terrify me.

“Why do You hide Your face [as if offended]
And consider me Your enemy?

“Will You cause a windblown leaf to tremble?
Will You pursue the chaff of the dry stubble?

“For You write bitter things against me [in Your indictment]
And make me inherit and suffer for the iniquities of my youth.

“You also put my feet in the stocks [as punishment]
And [critically] observe all my paths;
You set a circle and limit around the soles of my feet [which I must not overstep],

“Man, who is born of a woman,
Is short-lived and full of turmoil.

“Who can make a clean thing out of the unclean?
No one!

“Since his days are determined,
The number of his months is with You [in Your control],
And You have made his limits so he cannot pass [his allotted time].

“For there is hope for a tree,
If it is cut down, that it will sprout again,
And that the shoots of it will not cease nor fail, [but there is no such hope for man].

Yet at the scent of water [the stump of the tree] will flourish
And bring forth sprigs and shoots like a seedling.

So man lies down and does not rise [again].
Until the heavens are no longer,
The dead will not awake nor be raised from their sleep.

“If a man dies, will he live again?
I will wait all the days of my struggle
Until my change and release will come.

“[Then] You will call, and I will answer You;
You will long for [me] the work of Your hands.

“But now You number [each of] my steps;
You do not observe nor take note of my sin.

“My transgression is sealed up in a bag,
And You cover my wickedness [from Your view].

“But as a mountain, if it falls, crumbles into nothing,
And as the rock is moved from its place,

Water wears away the stones,
Its floods and torrents wash away the soil of the earth,
So You [O Lord] destroy the hope of man.

“You prevail forever against him and overpower him, and he passes on;
You change his appearance and send him away [from the presence of the living].

“But his body [lamenting its decay] grieves in pain over it,
And his soul mourns over [the loss of] himself.”

“Should a wise man [such as you] utter such windy and vain knowledge [as we have just heard]
And fill himself with the east wind [of withering, parching, and violent accusations]?

“For your guilt teaches your mouth,
And you choose [to speak] the language of the crafty and cunning.

“Do you hear the secret counsel of God,
And do you limit [the possession of] wisdom to yourself?

That you should turn your spirit against God
And let such words [as you have spoken] go out of your mouth?

“What is man, that he should be pure and clean,
Or he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous and just?

“A [dreadful] sound of terrors is in his ears;
While at peace and in a time of prosperity the destroyer comes upon him [the tent of the robber is not at peace].

“He does not believe that he will return out of the darkness [for fear of being murdered],
And he is destined for the sword [of God’s vengeance].

“He wanders about for food, saying, ‘Where is it?’
He knows that the day of darkness and destruction is already at hand.

For he has covered his face with his fat,
Adding layers of fat to his thighs [giving himself up to pleasures],

And he has lived in desolate [God-forsaken] cities,
In houses which no one should inhabit,
Which were destined to become heaps [of ruins];

“He will not escape from darkness [fleeing disaster];
The flame [of God’s wrath] will wither his branch,
And by the blast of His mouth he will go away.

“He will fail to bring his grapes to maturity [leaving them to wither unnourished] on the vine,
And will cast off blossoms [and fail to bring forth fruit] like the olive tree.

“For the company of the godless is barren,
And fire consumes the tents of bribery (wrong and injustice).

“Is there no end to [your futile] words of wind?
Or what plagues you [so much] that you [so boldly] answer [me like this]?

“I also could speak like you,
If you were in my place;
I could compose and join words together against you
And shake my head at you.

“[But instead] I could strengthen and encourage you with [the words of] my mouth,
And the consolation and solace of my lips would soothe your suffering and lessen your anguish.

“If I speak [to you miserable comforters], my pain is not relieved;
And if I refrain [from speaking], what [pain or anguish] leaves me?

“You have taken a firm hold on me and have shriveled me up,
It has become a witness [against me];
And my leanness [and infirmity] rises up [as evidence] against me,
It testifies to my face [about my guilt].

“They have gaped at me with their mouths,
With contempt they have struck me on the cheek;
They massed themselves together [and conspired] against me.

“God hands me over to criminals
And tosses me [headlong] into the hands of the wicked.

“I have sewed sackcloth over my skin [as a sign of mourning]
And have defiled my horn (symbol of strength) in the dust.

“My face is red and swollen with weeping,
And on my eyelids is the shadow of death [my eyes are dimmed],

“Oh, that a man would mediate and plead with God [for me]
Just as a man [mediates and pleads] with his neighbor and friend.

“He who denounces and informs against his friends for a share of the spoil,
The eyes of his children will also languish and fail.

“My eye has grown dim (unexpressive) because of grief,
And all my [body’s] members are [wasted away] like a shadow.

“But as for all of you, come back again,
Even though I do not find a wise man among you.