Job 22:1-11
Job 22:1-11 The Message (MSG)
Once again Eliphaz the Temanite took up his theme: “Are any of us strong enough to give God a hand, or smart enough to give him advice? So what if you were righteous—would God Almighty even notice? Even if you gave a perfect performance, do you think he’d applaud? Do you think it’s because he cares about your purity that he’s disciplining you, putting you on the spot? Hardly! It’s because you’re a first-class moral failure, because there’s no end to your sins. When people came to you for help, you took the shirts off their backs, exploited their helplessness. You wouldn’t so much as give a drink to the thirsty, or food, not even a scrap, to the hungry. And there you sat, strong and honored by everyone, surrounded by immense wealth! You turned poor widows away from your door; heartless, you crushed orphans. Now you’re the one trapped in terror, paralyzed by fear. Suddenly the tables have turned! How do you like living in the dark, sightless, up to your neck in flood waters?
Job 22:1-11 King James Version (KJV)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said, Can a man be profitable unto God, As he that is wise may be profitable unto himself? Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? Or is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect? Will he reprove thee for fear of thee? Will he enter with thee into judgment? Is not thy wickedness great? And thine iniquities infinite? For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, And stripped the naked of their clothing. Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, And thou hast withholden bread from the hungry. But as for the mighty man, he had the earth; And the honourable man dwelt in it. Thou hast sent widows away empty, And the arms of the fatherless have been broken. Therefore snares are round about thee, And sudden fear troubleth thee; Or darkness, that thou canst not see; And abundance of waters cover thee.
Job 22:1-11 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded, “Can a vigorous man be of use to God, Or a wise man be useful to himself? Is there any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous, Or profit if you make your ways perfect? Is it because of your reverence that He reproves you, That He enters into judgment against you? Is not your wickedness great, And your iniquities without end? For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause, And stripped men naked. To the weary you have given no water to drink, And from the hungry you have withheld bread. But the earth belongs to the mighty man, And the honorable man dwells in it. You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of the orphans has been crushed. Therefore snares surround you, And sudden dread terrifies you, Or darkness, so that you cannot see, And an abundance of water covers you.
Job 22:1-11 New Century Version (NCV)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered: “Can anyone be of real use to God? Can even a wise person do him good? Does it help the Almighty for you to be good? Does he gain anything if you are innocent? Does God punish you for respecting him? Does he bring you into court for this? No! It is because your evil is without limits and your sins have no end. You took your brothers’ things for a debt they didn’t owe; you took clothes from people and left them naked. You did not give water to tired people, and you kept food from the hungry. You were a powerful man who owned land; you were honored and lived in the land. But you sent widows away empty-handed, and you mistreated orphans. That is why traps are all around you and sudden danger frightens you. That is why it is so dark you cannot see and a flood of water covers you.
Job 22:1-11 American Standard Version (ASV)
Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said, Can a man be profitable unto God? Surely he that is wise is profitable unto himself. Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? Or is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect? Is it for thy fear of him that he reproveth thee, That he entereth with thee into judgment? Is not thy wickedness great? Neither is there any end to thine iniquities. For thou hast taken pledges of thy brother for nought, And stripped the naked of their clothing. Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, And thou hast withholden bread from the hungry. But as for the mighty man, he had the earth; And the honorable man, he dwelt in it. Thou hast sent widows away empty, And the arms of the fatherless have been broken. Therefore snares are round about thee, And sudden fear troubleth thee, Or darkness, so that thou canst not see, And abundance of waters cover thee.
Job 22:1-11 New International Version (NIV)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied: “Can a man be of benefit to God? Can even a wise person benefit him? What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous? What would he gain if your ways were blameless? “Is it for your piety that he rebukes you and brings charges against you? Is not your wickedness great? Are not your sins endless? You demanded security from your relatives for no reason; you stripped people of their clothing, leaving them naked. You gave no water to the weary and you withheld food from the hungry, though you were a powerful man, owning land— an honored man, living on it. And you sent widows away empty-handed and broke the strength of the fatherless. That is why snares are all around you, why sudden peril terrifies you, why it is so dark you cannot see, and why a flood of water covers you.
Job 22:1-11 New King James Version (NKJV)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said: “Can a man be profitable to God, Though he who is wise may be profitable to himself? Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that you are righteous? Or is it gain to Him that you make your ways blameless? “Is it because of your fear of Him that He corrects you, And enters into judgment with you? Is not your wickedness great, And your iniquity without end? For you have taken pledges from your brother for no reason, And stripped the naked of their clothing. You have not given the weary water to drink, And you have withheld bread from the hungry. But the mighty man possessed the land, And the honorable man dwelt in it. You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of the fatherless was crushed. Therefore snares are all around you, And sudden fear troubles you, Or darkness so that you cannot see; And an abundance of water covers you.
Job 22:1-11 Amplified Bible (AMP)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said, “Can a vigorous man be of use to God, Or a wise man be useful to himself? [Ps 16:2; Luke 17:10] “Is it any pleasure or joy to the Almighty that you are righteous? Or is it of benefit to Him that you make your ways perfect? [Is 62:3; Zech 2:8; Mal 3:17; Acts 20:28] “Is it because of your fear of Him that He corrects you, That He enters into judgment against you? “Is not your wickedness great, And your sins without end? “For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause, And stripped men naked. “You have not given water to the weary to drink, And you have withheld bread from the hungry. [Matt 25:42] “But the land is possessed by the man with power, And the favored and honorable man dwells in it. “You have sent widows away empty-handed, And the arms (strength) of the fatherless have been broken. “Therefore snares surround you, And sudden dread terrifies and overwhelms you; Or darkness, so that you cannot see, And a flood of water covers you.
Job 22:1-11 New Living Translation (NLT)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied: “Can a person do anything to help God? Can even a wise person be helpful to him? Is it any advantage to the Almighty if you are righteous? Would it be any gain to him if you were perfect? Is it because you’re so pious that he accuses you and brings judgment against you? No, it’s because of your wickedness! There’s no limit to your sins. “For example, you must have lent money to your friend and demanded clothing as security. Yes, you stripped him to the bone. You must have refused water for the thirsty and food for the hungry. You probably think the land belongs to the powerful and only the privileged have a right to it! You must have sent widows away empty-handed and crushed the hopes of orphans. That is why you are surrounded by traps and tremble from sudden fears. That is why you cannot see in the darkness, and waves of water cover you.
Job 22:1-11 English Standard Version Revision 2016 (ESV)
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said: “Can a man be profitable to God? Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself. Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are in the right, or is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless? Is it for your fear of him that he reproves you and enters into judgment with you? Is not your evil abundant? There is no end to your iniquities. For you have exacted pledges of your brothers for nothing and stripped the naked of their clothing. You have given no water to the weary to drink, and you have withheld bread from the hungry. The man with power possessed the land, and the favored man lived in it. You have sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless were crushed. Therefore snares are all around you, and sudden terror overwhelms you, or darkness, so that you cannot see, and a flood of water covers you.