Job 9
9
Job’s Reply to Bildad
1Then Job answered:
2Yes, I know what you’ve said is true,
but how can a person be justified before God?#Jb 25:4; Ps 143:2; Rm 3:20
3If one wanted to take#Jb 13:19; 33:13; 40:2 him to court,
he could not answer God#9:3 Or court, God would not answer him once in a thousand times.#Jb 9:14; 37:19; 40:2
4God is wise#Jb 11:6; 12:13; 36:5 and all-powerful.
Who has opposed him and come out unharmed?
5He removes mountains without their knowledge,
overturning them in his anger.#Jdg 5:5; Ps 18:7; Mc 1:4
6He shakes the earth from its place
so that its pillars tremble.
7He commands the sun not to shine
and seals off the stars.#Is 13:10; Ezk 32:8; Jl 2:10,31
8He alone stretches out the heavens#Ps 104:2–3; Is 40:22; 44:24
and treads on the waves of the sea.#9:8 Or and walks on the back of the sea god
9He makes the stars: the Bear,#9:9 Or Aldebaran Orion,
the Pleiades,#Jb 38:31–32; Is 40:26; Am 5:8 and the constellations#9:9 Or chambers of the southern sky.
10He does great and unsearchable things,
wonders without number.#Jb 5:9; Ps 40:5; 72:18
11If he passed by me, I wouldn’t see him;#Jb 23:8–9; 35:14
if he went by, I wouldn’t recognize him.
12If he snatches something, who can stop#9:12 Or dissuade him?
Who can ask him, “What are you doing?” #Jb 11:10; Is 45:9; Rm 9:20
13God does not hold back his anger;
Rahab’s#Jb 26:12; Ps 89:10; Is 51:9 assistants cringe in fear beneath him!
14How then can I answer him
or choose my arguments against him?
15Even if I were in the right, I could not answer.
I could only beg my Judge for mercy.#Jb 8:5; 10:15
16If I summoned him and he answered me,
I do not believe he would pay attention to what I said.
17He batters me with a whirlwind#Jb 30:22; Ps 83:15; Jnh 1:4
and multiplies my wounds without cause.
18He doesn’t let me catch my breath
but fills me with bitter experiences.
19If it is a matter of strength, look, he is the powerful one!#Jb 9:4; Is 28:2; 40:26
If it is a matter of justice, who can summon#Jr 49:19; 50:44 him?#9:19 LXX; MT reads me
20Even if I were in the right, my own mouth would condemn me;#Jb 9:28; 40:8; Is 50:9
if I were blameless, my mouth would declare me guilty.
21Though I am blameless,
I no longer care about myself;
I renounce my life.#Jb 7:16; 10:1
22It is all the same. Therefore I say,
“He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.”#Jb 3:19; Ec 9:2–3; Is 14:3–11
23When catastrophe#9:23 Or whip; Hb obscure brings sudden death,
he mocks the despair of the innocent.
24The earth#9:24 Or land is handed over to the wicked;
he blindfolds#9:24 Lit covers the faces of its judges.#Jb 12:6,17; Is 29:14; 44:25
If it isn’t he, then who is it?
25My days fly by faster than a runner;#9:25 = a royal messenger#2Sm 18:19–33; 1Kg 1:5; Est 3:13,15
they flee without seeing any good.#Jb 7:7; Ps 78:39; Jms 4:14
26They sweep by like boats made of papyrus,
like an eagle swooping down on its prey.#Jb 39:29; Is 18:2; Hab 1:8
27If I said, “I will forget my complaint,
change my expression, and smile,”
28I would still live in terror of all my pains.#Jb 3:25; 13:11; 31:23
I know you will not acquit me.#Jb 10:14; Jl 3:21; Nah 1:3
29Since I will be found guilty,#Jb 9:20; 40:8; Is 50:9
why should I struggle in vain?
30If I wash myself with snow,
and cleanse my hands with lye,
31then you dip me in a pit of mud,
and my own clothes despise me!
32For he is not a man like me, that I can answer him,#Jb 41:13; Ps 143:2; Ec 6:10
that we can take each other to court.
33There is no mediator between us,
to lay his hand on both of us.
34Let him take his rod away from me
so his terror will no longer frighten me.#Jb 6:4; 13:21; Ps 39:10
35Then I would speak and not fear him.
But that is not the case; I am on my own.
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© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Job 9
9
Job Answers Bildad
1Then Job answered:
2“Yes, I know that this is true,
but how can anyone be right in the presence of God?
3Someone might want to argue with God,
but no one could answer God,
not one time out of a thousand.
4God’s wisdom is deep, and his power is great;
no one can fight him without getting hurt.
5God moves mountains without anyone knowing it
and turns them over when he is angry.
6He shakes the earth out of its place
and makes its foundations tremble.
7He commands the sun not to shine
and shuts off the light of the stars.
8He alone stretches out the skies
and walks on the waves of the sea.
9It is God who made the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades
and the groups of stars in the southern sky.
10He does wonders that cannot be understood;
he does so many miracles they cannot be counted.
11When he passes me, I cannot see him;
when he goes by me, I do not recognize him.
12If he snatches something away, no one can stop him
or say to him, ‘What are you doing?’
13God will not hold back his anger.
Even the helpers of the monster Rahab lie at his feet in fear.
14So how can I argue with God,
or even find words to argue with him?
15Even if I were right, I could not answer him;
I could only beg God, my Judge, for mercy.
16If I called to him and he answered,
I still don’t believe he would listen to me.
17He would crush me with a storm
and multiply my wounds for no reason.
18He would not let me catch my breath
but would overwhelm me with misery.
19When it comes to strength, God is stronger than I;
when it comes to justice, no one can accuse him.
20Even if I were right, my own mouth would say I was wrong;
if I were innocent, my mouth would say I was guilty.
21“I am innocent,
but I don’t care about myself.
I hate my own life.
22It is all the same. That is why I say,
‘God destroys both the innocent and the guilty.’
23If the whip brings sudden death,
God will laugh at the suffering of the innocent.
24When the land falls into the hands of evil people,
he covers the judges’ faces so they can’t see it.
If it is not God who does this, then who is it?
25“My days go by faster than a runner;
they fly away without my seeing any joy.
26They glide past like paper boats.
They attack like eagles swooping down to feed.
27Even though I say, ‘I will forget my complaint;
I will change the look on my face and smile,’
28I still dread all my suffering.
I know you will hold me guilty.
29I have already been found guilty,
so why should I struggle for no reason?
30I might wash myself with soap
and scrub my hands with strong soap,
31but you would push me into a dirty pit,
and even my clothes would hate me.
32“God is not human like me, so I cannot answer him.
We cannot meet each other in court.
33I wish there were someone to make peace between us,
someone to decide our case.
34Maybe he could remove God’s punishment
so his terror would no longer frighten me.
35Then I could speak without being afraid,
but I am not able to do that.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.