Job 29:12-25

Evangelical Heritage Version

¹² Because I saved the poor when they cried for help
and the fatherless when they had no helper,
¹³ the blessing of the dying rested upon me,
and I made the heart of the widow happy.
¹⁴ I dressed myself with righteousness,
and it clothed me.
My justice clothed me like a robe and a turban.
¹⁵ I was eyes for the blind and feet for the lame.
¹⁶ I was a father for the needy.
I investigated their cases for people I did not know.
¹⁷ I shattered the fangs of the wicked,
and I snatched their prey from their teeth.
¹⁸ So I thought: “I will pass away in my own nest,
after multiplying my days like grains of sand.
¹⁹ My roots will be soaked with water,
and dew will settle on my branches at night.
²⁰ My honor will always be fresh for me,
and my bow in my hand will never wear out.”
²¹ People listened to me eagerly.
They kept silent, waiting for my advice.
²² After I spoke, they did not keep speaking.^[a]
My words fell on them gently.
²³ They waited for me the way people wait for rain.
They opened their mouths the way people wait for spring showers.
²⁴ When I laughed with them, they did not believe it.
In the light from my face, they were never downcast.
²⁵ I chose the way for them,
and I was seated as their head,
like a king among the troops,
like one who comforts mourners.