Job 5:1-27

“Call if you want to, Job, but no one will answer you. You can’t turn to any of the holy ones. Anger kills the fool, and jealousy slays the stupid. I have seen a fool succeed, but I cursed his home immediately. His children are far from safety and are crushed in court with no defense. The hungry eat his harvest, even taking what grew among the thorns, and thirsty people want his wealth. Hard times do not come up from the ground, and trouble does not grow from the earth. People produce trouble as surely as sparks fly upward. “But if I were you, I would call on God and bring my problem before him. God does wonders that cannot be understood; he does so many miracles they cannot be counted. He gives rain to the earth and sends water on the fields. He makes the humble person important and lifts the sad to places of safety. He ruins the plans of those who trick others so they have no success. He catches the wise in their own clever traps and sweeps away the plans of those who try to trick others. Darkness covers them up in the daytime; even at noon they feel around in the dark. God saves the needy from their lies and from the harm done by powerful people. So the poor have hope, while those who are unfair are silenced. “The one whom God corrects is happy, so do not hate being corrected by the Almighty. God hurts, but he also bandages up; he injures, but his hands also heal. He will save you from six troubles; even seven troubles will not harm you. God will buy you back from death in times of hunger, and in battle he will save you from the sword. You will be protected from the tongue that strikes like a whip, and you will not be afraid when destruction comes. You will laugh at destruction and hunger, and you will not fear the wild animals, because you will have an agreement with the stones in the field, and the wild animals will be at peace with you. You will know that your tent is safe, because you will check the things you own and find nothing missing. You will know that you will have many children, and your descendants will be like the grass on the earth. You will come to the grave with all your strength, like bundles of grain gathered at the right time. “We have checked this, and it is true, so hear it and decide what it means to you.”