Bible in 90 Days

25 The further reply of Bildad the Shuhite:

² “God is powerful and dreadful. He enforces peace in heaven. ³ Who is able to number his hosts of angels? And his light shines down on all the earth. ⁴ How can mere man stand before God and claim to be righteous? Who in all the earth can boast that he is clean? ⁵ God is so glorious that even the moon and stars are less than nothing as compared to him. ⁶ How much less is man, who is but a worm in his sight?”

26 Job’s reply:

² “What wonderful helpers you all are! And how you have encouraged me in my great need! ³ How you have enlightened my stupidity! What wise things you have said! ⁴ How did you ever think of all these brilliant comments?

^5-6 “The dead stand naked, trembling before God in the place where they go. ⁷ God stretches out heaven over empty space and hangs the earth upon nothing. ⁸ He wraps the rain in his thick clouds, and the clouds are not split by the weight. ⁹ He shrouds his throne with his clouds. ¹⁰ He sets a boundary for the ocean, yes, and a boundary for the day and for the night. ¹¹ The pillars of heaven tremble at his rebuke. ¹² And by his power the sea grows calm; he is skilled at crushing its pride! ¹³ The heavens are made beautiful by his Spirit;^[a] he pierces the swiftly gliding serpent.

¹⁴ “These are some of the minor things he does, merely a whisper of his power. Who then can withstand his thunder?”

27 Job’s final defense:

² “I vow by the living God, who has taken away my rights, even the Almighty God who has embittered my soul, ³ that as long as I live, while I have breath from God, ⁴ my lips shall speak no evil, my tongue shall speak no lies. ⁵ I will never, never agree that you are right; until I die I will vow my innocence. ⁶ I am not a sinner—I repeat it again and again. My conscience is clear for as long as I live. ⁷ Those who declare otherwise are my wicked enemies. They are evil men.

⁸ “But what hope has the godless when God cuts him off and takes away his life? ⁹ Will God listen to his cry when trouble comes upon him? ¹⁰ For he does not delight himself in the Almighty or pay any attention to God except in times of crisis.

¹¹ “I will teach you about God— ¹² but really, I don’t need to, for you yourselves know as much about him as I do; yet you are saying all these useless things to me.

¹³ “This is the fate awaiting the wicked from the hand of the Almighty: ¹⁴ If he has a multitude of children, it is so that they will die in war or starve to death. ¹⁵ Those who survive shall be brought down to the grave by disease and plague, with no one to mourn them, not even their wives.

¹⁶ “The evil man may accumulate money like dust, with closets jammed full of clothing— ¹⁷ yes, he may order them made by his tailor, but the innocent shall wear that clothing and shall divide his silver among them. ¹⁸ Every house built by the wicked is as fragile as a spider web, as full of cracks as a leafy booth!

¹⁹ “He goes to bed rich but wakes up to find that all his wealth is gone. ²⁰ Terror overwhelms him, and he is blown away in the storms of the night. ²¹ The east wind carries him away, and he is gone. It sweeps him into eternity. ²² For God shall hurl at him unsparingly. He longs to flee from God. ²³ Everyone will cheer at his death and boo him into eternity.

28 “Men know how to mine silver and refine gold, ² to dig iron from the earth and melt copper from stone. ^3-4 Men know how to put light into darkness so that a mine shaft can be sunk into the earth, and the earth searched and its deep secrets explored. Into the black rock, shadowed by death, men descend on ropes, swinging back and forth.

⁵ “Men know how to obtain food from the surface of the earth, while underneath there is fire.

⁶ “They know how to find sapphires and gold dust— ⁷ treasures that no bird of prey can see, no eagle’s eye observe— ⁸ for they are deep within the mines. No wild animal has ever walked upon those treasures; no lion has set his paw there. ⁹ Men know how to tear apart flinty rocks and how to overturn the roots of mountains. ¹⁰ They drill tunnels in the rocks and lay bare precious stones. ¹¹ They dam up streams of water and pan the gold.^[b]

¹² “But though men can do all these things, they don’t know where to find wisdom and understanding. ¹³ They not only don’t know how to get it, but, in fact, it is not to be found among the living.

¹⁴ “‘It’s not here,’ the oceans say; and the seas reply, ‘Nor is it here.’

¹⁵ “It cannot be bought for gold or silver, ¹⁶ nor for all the gold of Ophir or precious onyx stones or sapphires. ¹⁷ Wisdom is far more valuable than gold and glass. It cannot be bought for jewels mounted in fine gold. ¹⁸ Coral or crystal is worthless in trying to get it; its price is far above rubies. ¹⁹ Topaz from Ethiopia cannot purchase it, nor even the purest gold.

²⁰ “Then where can we get it? Where can it be found? ²¹ For it is hid from the eyes of all mankind; even the sharp-eyed birds in the sky cannot discover it.

²² “But Destruction and Death speak of knowing something about it! ^23-24 And God surely knows where it is to be found, for he looks throughout the whole earth, under all the heavens. ²⁵ He makes the winds blow and sets the boundaries of the oceans. ²⁶ He makes the laws of the rain and a path for the lightning. ²⁷ He knows where wisdom is and declares it to all who will listen. He established it and examined it thoroughly. ²⁸ And this is what he says to all mankind: ‘Look, to fear the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real understanding.’”

29 Job continues:

² “Oh, for the years gone by when God took care of me, ³ when he lighted the way before me and I walked safely through the darkness; ⁴ yes, in my early years, when the friendship of God was felt in my home; ⁵ when the Almighty was still with me and my children were around me; ⁶ when my projects prospered and even the rock poured out streams of olive oil to me!

⁷ “Those were the days when I went out to the city gate and took my place among the honored elders. ⁸ The young saw me and stepped aside, and even the aged rose and stood up in respect at my coming. ⁹ The princes stood in silence and laid their hands upon their mouths. ¹⁰ The highest officials of the city stood in quietness. ¹¹ All rejoiced in what I said. All who saw me spoke well of me.

¹² “For I, as an honest judge,^[c] helped the poor in their need and the fatherless who had no one to help them. ¹³ I helped those who were ready to perish, and they blessed me. And I caused the widows’ hearts to sing for joy. ¹⁴ All I did was just and honest, for righteousness was my clothing! ¹⁵ I served as eyes for the blind and feet for the lame. ¹⁶ I was as a father to the poor and saw to it that even strangers received a fair trial. ¹⁷ I knocked out the fangs of the godless oppressors and made them drop their victims.

¹⁸ “I thought, ‘Surely I shall die quietly in my nest after a long, good life.’ ¹⁹ For everything I did prospered; the dew lay all night upon my fields and watered them. ²⁰ Fresh honors were constantly given me, and my abilities were constantly refreshed and renewed. ²¹ Everyone listened to me and valued my advice, and was silent until I spoke. ²² And after I spoke, they spoke no more, for my counsel satisfied them. ²³ They longed for me to speak as those in drought-time long for rain. They waited eagerly with open mouths. ²⁴ When they were discouraged, I smiled and that encouraged them and lightened their spirits. ²⁵ I told them what they should do and corrected them as their chief, or as a king instructs his army, and as one who comforts those who mourn.

30 “But now those younger than I deride me—young men whose fathers are less than my dogs. ² Oh, they have strong backs all right, but they are useless, stupid fools. ³ They are gaunt with famine and have been cast out into deserts and the wastelands, desolate and gloomy. ⁴ They eat roots and leaves, ⁵ having been driven from civilization. Men shouted after them as after thieves. ⁶ So now they live in frightening ravines, and in caves, and among the rocks. ⁷ They sound like animals among the bushes, huddling together for shelter beneath the nettles. ⁸ These sons of theirs have also turned out to be fools, yes, children of no name, outcasts of civilization.

⁹ “And now I have become the subject of their ribald song! I am a joke among them! ¹⁰ They despise me and won’t come near me, and don’t mind spitting in my face. ¹¹ For God has placed my life in jeopardy. These young men, having humbled me, now cast off all restraint before me. ¹² This rabble trips me and lays traps in my path. ¹³ They block my road and do everything they can to hasten my calamity, knowing full well that I have no one to help me. ¹⁴ They come at me from all directions. They rush upon me when I am down.

¹⁵ “I live in terror now. They hold me in contempt, and my prosperity has vanished as a cloud before a strong wind. ¹⁶ My heart is broken. Depression haunts my days. ¹⁷ My weary nights are filled with pain as though something were relentlessly gnawing at my bones. ¹⁸ All night long I toss and turn, and my garments bind about me. ¹⁹ God has thrown me into the mud. I have become as dust and ashes.

²⁰ “I cry to you, O God, but you don’t answer me. I stand before you and you don’t bother to look. ²¹ You have become cruel toward me and persecute me with great power and effect. ²² You throw me into the whirlwind and dissolve me in the storm. ²³ And I know that your purpose for me is death. ²⁴ I expected my fall to be broken, just as one who falls stretches out his hand or cries for help in his calamity.

²⁵ “And did I not weep for those in trouble? Wasn’t I deeply grieved for the needy? ²⁶ I therefore looked for good to come. Evil came instead. I waited for the light. Darkness came. ²⁷ My heart is troubled and restless. Waves of affliction have come upon me. ^28-29 I am black but not from sunburn. I stand up and cry to the assembly for help. But I might as well save my breath,^[d] for I am considered a brother to jackals and a companion to ostriches. ³⁰ My skin is black and peeling. My bones burn with fever. ³¹ The voice of joy and gladness has turned to mourning.

31 “I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust upon a girl. ^2-3 I know full well that Almighty God above sends calamity on those who do. ⁴ He sees everything I do and every step I take.

⁵ “If I have lied and deceived— ⁶ but God knows that I am innocent— ^7-8 or if I have stepped off God’s pathway, or if my heart has lusted for what my eyes have seen, or if I am guilty of any other sin, then let someone else reap the crops I have sown and let all that I have planted be rooted out.

⁹ “Or if I have longed for another man’s wife, ¹⁰ then may I die, and may my wife be in another man’s home and someone else become her husband. ¹¹ For lust is a shameful sin, a crime that should be punished. ¹² It is a devastating fire that destroys to hell and would root out all I have planted.

¹³ “If I have been unfair to my servants, ¹⁴ how could I face God? What could I say when he questioned me about it? ¹⁵ For God made me and made my servant too. He created us both.

¹⁶ “If I have hurt the poor, or caused widows to weep, ¹⁷ or refused food to hungry orphans— ¹⁸ (but we have always cared for orphans in our home, treating them as our own children)— ^19-20 or if I have seen anyone freezing and not given him clothing or fleece from my sheep to keep him warm, ²¹ or if I have taken advantage of an orphan because I thought I could get away with it— ²² if I have done any of these things, then let my arm be torn from its socket! Let my shoulder be wrenched out of place! ²³ Rather that than face the judgment sent by God; that I dread more than anything else. For if the majesty of God opposes me, what hope is there?

²⁴ “If I have put my trust in money, ²⁵ if my happiness depends on wealth, ²⁶ or if I have looked at the sun shining in the skies or the moon walking down her silver pathway ²⁷ and my heart has been secretly enticed, and I have worshiped them by kissing my hand to them, ²⁸ this, too, must be punished by the judges. For if I had done such things, it would mean that I denied the God of heaven.

²⁹ “If I have rejoiced at harm to an enemy— ³⁰ (but actually I have never cursed anyone nor asked for revenge)— ³¹ or if any of my servants have ever gone hungry— ³² (actually I have never turned away even a stranger but have opened my doors to all)— ³³ or if, like Adam, I have tried to hide my sins, ³⁴ fearing the crowd and its contempt so that I refused to acknowledge my sin and do not go out of my way to help others— ³⁵ (oh, that there were someone who would listen to me and try to see my side of this argument. Look, I will sign my signature to my defense; now let the Almighty show me that I am wrong; let him approve the indictments made against me by my enemies. ³⁶ I would treasure it like a crown. ³⁷ Then I would tell him exactly what I have done and why, presenting my defense as one he listens to).

^38-39 “Or if my land accuses me because I stole the fruit it bears, or if I have murdered its owners to get their land for myself, ⁴⁰ then let thistles grow on that land instead of wheat, and weeds instead of barley.”

Job’s words are ended.

32 The three men refused to reply further to Job because he kept insisting on his innocence.

² Then Elihu (son of Barachel, the Buzite, of the clan of Ram) became angry because Job refused to admit he had sinned and to acknowledge that God had just cause for punishing him. ³ But he was also angry with Job’s three friends because they had been unable to answer Job’s arguments and yet had condemned him. ⁴ Elihu had waited until now to speak because the others were older than he.

⁵ But when he saw that they had no further reply, he spoke out angrily, ⁶ and said, “I am young and you are old, so I held back and did not dare to tell you what I think, ⁷ for those who are older are said to be wiser; ^8-9 but it is not mere age that makes men wise. Rather, it is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty that makes him intelligent. ¹⁰ So listen to me awhile and let me express my opinion.

^11-12 “I have waited all this time, listening very carefully to your arguments, but not one of them has convinced Job that he is a sinner or has proved that he is. ¹³ And don’t give me that line about ‘only God can convince the sinner of his sin.’ ¹⁴ If Job had been arguing with me, I would not answer with that kind of logic!

¹⁵ “You sit there baffled, with no further replies. ¹⁶ Shall I then continue to wait when you are silent? ¹⁷ No, I will give my answer too. ¹⁸ For I am pent up and full of words, and the spirit within me urges me on. ¹⁹ I am like a wine cask without a vent! My words are ready to burst out! ²⁰ I must speak to find relief, so let me give my answers. ^21-22 Don’t insist that I be cautious lest I insult someone, and don’t make me flatter anyone. Let me be frank lest God should strike me dead.

33 “Please listen, Job, to what I have to say. ² I have begun to speak; now let me continue. ³ I will speak the truth with all sincerity. ⁴ For the Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. ⁵ Don’t hesitate to answer me if you can.

⁶ “Look, I am the one you were wishing for, someone to stand between you and God and to be both his representative and yours. ⁷ You need not be frightened of me. I am not some person of renown to make you nervous and afraid. I, too, am made of common clay.

⁸ “You have said it in my hearing, yes, you’ve said it again and again— ⁹ ‘I am pure, I am innocent; I have not sinned.’ ¹⁰ You say God is using a fine-tooth comb to try to find a single fault, and so to count you as his enemy. ¹¹ ‘And he puts my feet in the stocks,’ you say, ‘and watches every move I make.’

¹² “All right, here is my reply: In this very thing, you have sinned by speaking of God that way. For God is greater than man. ¹³ Why should you fight against him just because he does not give account to you of what he does?

¹⁴ “For God speaks again and again, ¹⁵ in dreams, in visions of the night when deep sleep falls on men as they lie on their beds. ¹⁶ He opens their ears in times like that and gives them wisdom and instruction, ^17-18 causing them to change their minds, and keeping them from pride, and warning them of the penalties of sin, and keeping them from falling into some trap.

¹⁹ “Or God sends sickness and pain, even though no bone is broken, ²⁰ so that a man loses all taste and appetite for food and doesn’t care for even the daintiest dessert. ²¹ He becomes thin, mere skin and bones, ²² and draws near to death.

^23-24 “But if a messenger from heaven is there to intercede for him as a friend, to show him what is right, then God pities him and says,^[e] ‘Set him free. Do not make him die, for I have found a substitute.’ ²⁵ Then his body will become as healthy as a child’s, firm and youthful again. ²⁶ And when he prays to God, God will hear and answer and receive him with joy, and return him to his duties. ²⁷ And he will declare to his friends, ‘I sinned, but God let me go. ²⁸ He did not let me die. I will go on living in the realm of light.’

²⁹ “Yes, God often does these things for man— ³⁰ brings back his soul from the pit, so that he may live in the light of the living. ³¹ Mark this well, O Job. Listen to me, and let me say more. ³² But if you have anything to say at this point, go ahead. I want to hear it, for I am anxious to justify you. ³³ But if not, then listen to me. Keep silence and I will teach you wisdom!”

34 Elihu continued:

² “Listen to me, you wise men. ³ We can choose the sounds we want to listen to; we can choose the taste we want in food, ⁴ and we should choose to follow what is right. But first of all we must define among ourselves what is good. ⁵ For Job has said, ‘I am innocent, but God says I’m not. ⁶ I am called a liar, even though I am innocent. I am horribly punished, even though I have not sinned.’

^7-8 “Who else is as arrogant as Job? He must have spent much time with evil men, ⁹ for he said, ‘Why waste time trying to please God?’

¹⁰ “Listen to me, you with understanding. Surely everyone knows that God doesn’t sin! ¹¹ Rather, he punishes the sinners. ¹² There is no truer statement than this: God is never wicked or unjust. ¹³ He alone has authority over the earth and dispenses justice for the world. ¹⁴ If God were to withdraw his Spirit, ¹⁵ all life would disappear and mankind would turn again to dust.

¹⁶ “Listen now and try to understand. ¹⁷ Could God govern if he hated justice? Are you going to condemn the Almighty Judge? ¹⁸ Are you going to condemn this God who says to kings and nobles, ‘You are wicked and unjust’? ¹⁹ For he doesn’t care how great a man may be, and doesn’t pay any more attention to the rich than to the poor. He made them all. ²⁰ In a moment they die, and at midnight great and small shall suddenly pass away, removed by no human hand.

²¹ “For God carefully watches the goings on of all mankind; he sees them all. ²² No darkness is thick enough to hide evil men from his eyes, ²³ so there is no need to wait for some great crime before a man is called before God in judgment. ²⁴ Without making a big issue over it, God simply shatters the greatest of men and puts others in their places. ²⁵ He watches what they do and in a single night he overturns them, destroying them, ²⁶ or openly strikes them down as wicked men. ²⁷ For they turned aside from following him, ²⁸ causing the cry of the poor to come to the attention of God. Yes, he hears the cries of those being oppressed. ^29-30 Yet when he chooses not to speak, who can criticize? Again, he may prevent a vile man from ruling, thus saving a nation from ruin, and he can depose an entire nation just as easily.

³¹ “Why don’t people exclaim to their God, ‘We have sinned, but we will stop,’ ³² or ‘We know not what evil we have done; only tell us, and we will cease at once’?

³³ “Must God tailor his justice to your demands? Must he change the order of the universe to suit your whims? The answer must be obvious even to you! ^34-35 Anyone even half bright will agree with me that you, Job, are speaking like a fool. ³⁶ You should be given the maximum penalty for the wicked way you have talked about God. ³⁷ For now you have added rebellion, arrogance, and blasphemy to your other sins.”

35 Elihu continued:

^2-3 “Do you think it is right for you to claim, ‘I haven’t sinned, but I’m no better off before God than if I had’?

⁴ “I will answer you and all your friends too. ⁵ Look up there into the sky, high above you. ⁶ If you sin, does that shake the heavens and knock God from his throne? Even if you sin again and again, what effect will it have upon him? ⁷ Or if you are good, is this some great gift to him? ⁸ Your sins may hurt another man, or your good deeds may profit him. ^9-10 The oppressed may shriek beneath their wrongs and groan beneath the power of the rich; yet none of them cry to God, asking, ‘Where is God my Maker who gives songs in the night ¹¹ and makes us a little wiser than the animals and birds?’

¹² “But when anyone does cry out this question to him, he never replies by instant punishment of the tyrants.^{[f] 13} But it is false to say he doesn’t hear those cries; ^14-15 and it is even more false to say that he doesn’t see what is going on. He does bring about justice at last if you will only wait. But do you cry out against him because he does not instantly respond in anger? ¹⁶ Job, you have spoken like a fool.”

36 Elihu continued:

² “Let me go on and I will show you the truth of what I am saying. For I have not finished defending God! ³ I will give you many illustrations of the righteousness of my Maker. ⁴ I am telling you the honest truth, for I am a man of well-rounded knowledge.

⁵ “God is almighty and yet does not despise anyone! And he is perfect in his understanding. ⁶ He does not reward the wicked with his blessings, but gives them their full share of punishment. ⁷ He does not ignore the good men but honors them by placing them upon eternal, kingly thrones. ⁸ If troubles come upon them and they are enslaved and afflicted, ⁹ then he takes the trouble to point out to them the reason, what they have done that is wrong, or how they have behaved proudly. ¹⁰ He helps them hear his instruction to turn away from their sin.

¹¹ “If they listen and obey him, then they will be blessed with prosperity throughout their lives. ¹² If they won’t listen to him, they shall perish in battle and die because of their lack of good sense. ¹³ But the godless reap his anger. They do not even return to him when he punishes them. ¹⁴ They die young after lives of dissipation and depravity. ¹⁵ He delivers by distress! This makes them listen to him!

¹⁶ “How he wanted to lure you away from danger into a wide and pleasant valley and to prosper you there. ¹⁷ But you are too preoccupied with your imagined grievances against others. ¹⁸ Watch out! Don’t let your anger at others lead you into scoffing at God! Don’t let your suffering embitter you at the only one who can deliver you. ¹⁹ Do you really think that if you shout loudly enough against God, he will be ashamed and repent? Will this put an end to your chastisement?

²⁰ “Do not desire the nighttime, with its opportunities for crime. ²¹ Turn back from evil, for it was to prevent you from getting into a life of evil that God sent this suffering.

²² “Look, God is all-powerful. Who is a teacher like him? ²³ Who can say that what he does is absurd or evil? ²⁴ Instead, glorify him for his mighty works for which he is so famous. ²⁵ Everyone has seen these things from a distance.

²⁶ “God is so great that we cannot begin to know him. No one can begin to understand eternity. ²⁷ He draws up the water vapor and then distills it into rain, ²⁸ which the skies pour down. ²⁹ Can anyone really understand the spreading of the clouds and the thunders within? ³⁰ See how he spreads the lightning around him, and blankets the tops of the mountains. ³¹ By his fantastic powers in nature he punishes or blesses the people, giving them food in abundance. ³² He fills his hands with lightning bolts. He hurls each at its target. ³³ We feel his presence in the thunder. Even the cattle know when a storm is coming.

37 “My heart trembles at this. ² Listen, listen to the thunder of his voice. ³ It rolls across the heavens and his lightning flashes out in every direction. ⁴ Afterwards comes the roaring of the thunder—the tremendous voice of his majesty. ⁵ His voice is glorious in the thunder. We cannot comprehend the greatness of his power. ⁶ For he directs the snow, the showers, and storm to fall upon the earth. ⁷ Man’s work stops at such a time so that all men everywhere may recognize his power. ⁸ The wild animals hide in the rocks or in their dens.

⁹ “From the south comes the rain; from the north, the cold. ¹⁰ God blows upon the rivers, and even the widest torrents freeze. ¹¹ He loads the clouds with moisture, and they send forth his lightning. ¹² The lightning bolts are directed by his hand and do whatever he commands throughout the earth. ¹³ He sends the storms^[g] as punishment or, in his loving-kindness, to encourage.

¹⁴ “Listen, O Job, stop and consider the wonderful miracles of God. ¹⁵ Do you know how God controls all nature and causes the lightning to flash forth from the clouds? ^16-17 Do you understand the balancing of the clouds with wonderful perfection and skill? Do you know why you become warm when the south wind is blowing and everything is still? ¹⁸ Can you spread out the gigantic mirror of the skies as he does?

^19-20 “You who think you know so much,^[h] teach the rest of us how we should approach God. For we are too dull to know! With your wisdom, would we then dare to approach him? Well, does a man wish to be swallowed alive? ²¹ For as we cannot look at the sun for its brightness when the winds have cleared away the clouds, ²² neither can we gaze at the terrible majesty of God breaking forth upon us from heaven, clothed in dazzling splendor. ²³ We cannot imagine the power of the Almighty, and yet he is so just and merciful that he does not destroy us. ²⁴ No wonder men everywhere fear him! For he is not impressed by the world’s wisest men!”

38 Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind:

² “Why are you using your ignorance to deny my providence? ³ Now get ready to fight, for I am going to demand some answers from you, and you must reply.

⁴ “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. ⁵ Do you know how its dimensions were determined, and who did the surveying? ^6-7 What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?

^8-9 “Who decreed the boundaries of the seas when they gushed from the depths? Who clothed them with clouds and thick darkness ¹⁰ and barred them by limiting their shores, ¹¹ and said, ‘Thus far and no farther shall you come, and here shall your proud waves stop’?

¹² “Have you ever once commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east? ¹³ Have you ever told the daylight to spread to the ends of the earth, to end the night’s wickedness? ¹⁴ Have you ever robed the dawn in red, ¹⁵ and disturbed the haunts of wicked men, and stopped the arm raised to strike?

¹⁶ “Have you explored the springs from which the seas come, or walked in the sources of their depths? ^17-18 Has the location of the gates of death been revealed to you? Do you realize the extent of the earth? Tell me about it if you know! ¹⁹ Where does the light come from, and how do you get there? Or tell me about the darkness. Where does it come from? ²⁰ Can you find its boundaries, or go to its source? ²¹ But of course you know all this! For you were born before it was all created, and you are so very experienced!

^22-23 “Have you visited the treasuries of the snow, or seen where hail is made and stored? For I have reserved it for the time when I will need it in war. ²⁴ Where is the path to the distribution point of light? Where is the home of the east wind? ^25-27 Who dug the valleys for the torrents of rain? Who laid out the path for the lightning, causing the rain to fall upon the barren deserts, so that the parched and barren ground is satisfied with water and tender grass springs up?

²⁸ “Has the rain a father? Where does dew come from? ²⁹ Who is the mother of the ice and frost? ³⁰ For the water changes and turns to ice as hard as rock.

³¹ “Can you hold back the stars? Can you restrain Orion or Pleiades? ³² Can you ensure the proper sequence of the seasons, or guide the constellation of the Bear with her satellites across the heavens? ³³ Do you know the laws of the universe and how the heavens influence the earth? ³⁴ Can you shout to the clouds and make it rain? ³⁵ Can you make lightning appear and cause it to strike as you direct it?

³⁶ “Who gives intuition and instinct?^{[i] 37-38} Who is wise enough to number all the clouds? Who can tilt the water jars of heaven, when everything is dust and clods? ^39-40 Can you stalk prey like a lioness, to satisfy the young lions’ appetites as they lie in their dens or lie in wait in the jungle? ⁴¹ Who provides for the ravens when their young cry out to God as they try to struggle up from their nest in hunger?

39 “Do you know how mountain goats give birth? Have you ever seen them giving birth to their young? ^2-3 Do you know how many months of pregnancy they have before they bow themselves to give birth to their young and carry their burden no longer? ⁴ Their young grow up in the open field, then leave their parents and return to them no more.

⁵ “Who makes the wild donkeys wild? ⁶ I have placed them in the wilderness and given them salt plains to live in. ⁷ For they hate the noise of the city and want no drivers shouting at them! ⁸ The mountain ranges are their pastureland; there they search for every blade of grass.

⁹ “Will the wild ox be your happy servant? Will he stay beside your feeding crib? ¹⁰ Can you use a wild ox to plow with? Will he pull the harrow for you? ¹¹ Because he is so strong, will you trust him? Will you let him decide where to work? ¹² Can you send him out to bring in the grain from the threshing floor?

¹³ “The ostrich flaps her wings grandly but has no true motherly love. ¹⁴ She lays her eggs on top of the earth, to warm them in the dust. ¹⁵ She forgets that someone may step on them and crush them, or the wild animals destroy them. ¹⁶ She ignores her young as though they weren’t her own and is unconcerned though they die, ¹⁷ for God has deprived her of wisdom. ¹⁸ But whenever she jumps up to run, she passes the swiftest horse with its rider.

¹⁹ “Have you given the horse strength or clothed his neck with a quivering mane? ²⁰ Have you made him able to leap forward like a locust? His majestic snorting is something to hear! ^21-23 He paws the earth and rejoices in his strength, and when he goes to war, he is unafraid and does not run away though the arrows rattle against him, or the flashing spear and javelin. ²⁴ Fiercely he paws the ground and rushes forward into battle when the trumpet blows. ²⁵ At the sound of the bugle he shouts, ‘Aha!’ He smells the battle when far away. He rejoices at the shouts of battle and the roar of the captain’s commands.

²⁶ “Do you know how a hawk soars and spreads her wings to the south? ²⁷ Is it at your command that the eagle rises high upon the cliffs to make her nest? ²⁸ She lives upon the cliffs, making her home in her mountain fortress. ²⁹ From there she spies her prey, from a very great distance. ³⁰ Her nestlings gulp down blood, for she goes wherever the slain are.”

40 The Lord went on:

² “Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? Or will you yield? Do you—God’s critic—have the answers?”

³ Then Job replied to God:

⁴ “I am nothing—how could I ever find the answers? I lay my hand upon my mouth in silence. ⁵ I have said too much already.”

⁶ Then the Lord spoke to Job again from the whirlwind:

⁷ “Stand up like a man and brace yourself for battle. Let me ask you a question, and give me the answer. ⁸ Are you going to discredit my justice and condemn me so that you can say you are right? ⁹ Are you as strong as God, and can you shout as loudly as he? ¹⁰ All right then, put on your robes of state, your majesty and splendor. ¹¹ Give vent to your anger. Let it overflow against the proud. ¹² Humiliate the haughty with a glance; tread down the wicked where they stand. ¹³ Knock them into the dust, stone-faced in death. ¹⁴ If you can do that, then I’ll agree with you that your own strength can save you.

¹⁵ “Take a look at the hippopotamus!^[j] I made him, too, just as I made you! He eats grass like an ox. ¹⁶ See his powerful loins and the muscles of his belly. ¹⁷ His tail is as straight as a cedar. The sinews of his thighs are tightly knit together. ¹⁸ His vertebrae lie straight as a tube of brass. His ribs are like iron bars. ¹⁹ How ferocious he is among all of God’s creation, so let whoever hopes to master him bring a sharp sword! ²⁰ The mountains offer their best food to him—the other wild animals on which he preys. ²¹ He lies down under the lotus plants, hidden by the reeds, ²² covered by their shade among the willows there beside the stream. ²³ He is not disturbed by raging rivers, not even when the swelling Jordan rushes down upon him. ²⁴ No one can catch him off guard or put a ring in his nose and lead him away.

41 “Can you catch a crocodile^[k] with a hook and line? Or put a noose around his tongue? ² Can you tie him with a rope through the nose, or pierce his jaw with a spike? ³ Will he beg you to desist or try to flatter you from your intentions? ⁴ Will he agree to let you make him your slave for life? ⁵ Can you make a pet of him like a bird, or give him to your little girls to play with? ⁶ Do fishing partners sell him to the fishmongers? ⁷ Will his hide be hurt by darts, or his head with a harpoon?

⁸ “If you lay your hands upon him, you will long remember the battle that ensues and you will never try it again! ⁹ No, it’s useless to try to capture him. It is frightening even to think about it! ¹⁰ No one dares to stir him up, let alone try to conquer him. And if no one can stand before him, who can stand before me? ¹¹ I owe no one anything. Everything under the heaven is mine.

¹² “I should mention, too, the tremendous strength in his limbs and throughout his enormous frame. ¹³ Who can penetrate his hide, or who dares come within reach of his jaws? ¹⁴ For his teeth are terrible. ^15-17 His overlapping scales are his pride, making a tight seal so no air can get between them, and nothing can penetrate.

¹⁸ “When he sneezes, the sunlight sparkles like lightning across the vapor droplets. His eyes glow like sparks. ¹⁹ Fire leaps from his mouth. ²⁰ Smoke flows from his nostrils, like steam from a boiling pot that is fired by dry rushes. ²¹ Yes, his breath would kindle coals—flames leap from his mouth.

²² “The tremendous strength in his neck strikes terror wherever he goes. ²³ His flesh is hard and firm, not soft and fat. ²⁴ His heart is hard as rock, just like a millstone. ²⁵ When he stands up, the strongest are afraid. Terror grips them. ²⁶ No sword can stop him, nor spear nor dart nor pointed shaft. ^27-28 Iron is nothing but straw to him, and brass is rotten wood. Arrows cannot make him flee. Sling stones are as ineffective as straw. ²⁹ Clubs do no good, and he laughs at the javelins hurled at him. ³⁰ His belly is covered with scales as sharp as shards; they tear up the ground as he drags through the mud.

^31-32 “He makes the water boil with his commotion. He churns the depths. He leaves a shining wake of froth behind him. One would think the sea was made of frost! ³³ There is nothing else so fearless anywhere on earth. ³⁴ Of all the beasts, he is the proudest—monarch of all that he sees.”