Bildad Speaks: Man Cannot Be Righteous
1 Then oBildad the Shuhite answered and said:
2 “Dominion and fear are with God;1
he makes peace in his high heaven.
3 Is there any number to his parmies?
Upon whom does his qlight not arise?
4 How then can man be rin the right before God?
How can he who is sborn of woman be tpure?
5 Behold, even the moon is not bright,
and the stars are not pure in his eyes;
6 uhow much less man, who is va maggot,
and wthe son of man, who is a worm!”
Job Replies: God’s Majesty Is Unsearchable
1 Then Job answered and said:
2 “How you have xhelped him who has no power!
How you have saved ythe arm that has no strength!
3 How you have zcounseled him who has no wisdom,
and plentifully declared sound knowledge!
4 With whose help have you uttered words,
and whose breath ahas come out from you?
5 The bdead tremble
under the waters and their inhabitants.
6 Sheol is cnaked before God,2
and dAbaddon has no covering.
7 He estretches out the north over fthe void
and hangs the earth on nothing.
8 He gbinds up the waters in his thick clouds,
and the cloud is not split open under them.
9 He covers the face of the full moon3
and hspreads over it his cloud.
10 He has inscribed ia circle on the face of the waters
at the boundary between light and darkness.
11 jThe pillars of heaven tremble
and are astounded at his krebuke.
12 By his power he lstilled the sea;
by his understanding he shattered mRahab.
13 nBy his wind the heavens were made fair;
his hand pierced othe fleeing serpent.
14 Behold, these are but the outskirts of his pways,
and how small qa whisper do we hear of him!
But the thunder of his power who can understand?”
Job Continues: I Will Maintain My Integrity
1 And Job again rtook up his discourse, and said:
2 “As God lives, who has staken away my right,
and the Almighty, who has tmade my soul bitter,
3 as long as my breath is in me,
and uthe spirit of God is in my nostrils,
4 my lips will not speak vfalsehood,
and my tongue will not utter vdeceit.
5 Far be it from me to say that you are right;
till I die I will not put away my wintegrity from me.
6 I xhold fast my righteousness and will not let it go;
my heart does not yreproach me for any of my days.
7 “Let my enemy be as the wicked,
and let him who rises up against me be as the unrighteous.
8 zFor what is the hope of the godless awhen God cuts him off,
when God takes away his life?
9 bWill God hear his cry
when distress comes upon him?
10 Will he ctake delight in the Almighty?
Will he call upon God at all times?
11 I will teach you concerning the hand of God;
dwhat is with the Almighty I will not conceal.
12 Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves;
why then have you become altogether vain?
13 e“This is the portion of a wicked man with God,
and the heritage that foppressors receive from the Almighty:
14 If his gchildren are multiplied, it is for hthe sword,
and his descendants have not enough bread.
15 Those who survive him the pestilence buries,
and his iwidows do not weep.
16 Though he jheap up silver like dust,
and pile up clothing like clay,
17 he may pile it up, but the righteous will wear it,
and kthe innocent will divide the silver.
18 He builds his lhouse like a moth’s,
like ma booth that na watchman makes.
19 He goes to bed rich, but will odo so no more;
he opens his eyes, and phis wealth is gone.
20 qTerrors overtake him like ra flood;
in the night a whirlwind scarries him off.
21 tThe east wind lifts him up and he is gone;
it usweeps him out of his place.
22 It4 hurls at him vwithout pity;
he flees from its5 power in headlong flight.
23 It wclaps its hands at him
and xhisses at him from its place.
Give the King Your Justice
Of qSolomon.
1 Give the king your rjustice, O God,
and your righteousness to the royal son!
2 May he sjudge your people with righteousness,
and your poor with justice!
3 Let the mountains bear tprosperity for the people,
and the hills, in righteousness!
4 May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the children of the needy,
and crush the oppressor!
5 May they fear you1 while uthe sun endures,
and as long as the moon, vthroughout all generations!
6 May he be like wrain that falls on xthe mown grass,
like yshowers that water the earth!
7 In his days may zthe righteous flourish,
and apeace abound, till the moon be no more!
8 May he have dominion from bsea to sea,
and from bthe River2 to the cends of the earth!
9 May desert tribes dbow down before him,
and his enemies elick the dust!
10 May the kings of fTarshish and of gthe coastlands
render him htribute;
may the kings of iSheba and jSeba
bring gifts!
11 May all kings kfall down before him,
all nations serve him!
12 For he delivers lthe needy when he calls,
the poor and him who has no helper.
13 He has pity on the weak and the needy,
and saves the lives of the needy.
14 From oppression and violence he redeems their life,
and mprecious is their blood in his sight.
15 Long may he live;
may ngold of Sheba be given to him!
May prayer be made ofor him continually,
and blessings invoked for him all the day!
16 May there be abundance of grain in the land;
on the tops of the mountains may it wave;
may its fruit be like Lebanon;
and may people pblossom in the cities
like the qgrass of the field!
17 rMay his name endure forever,
his fame continue as long as the sun!
sMay people be blessed in him,
tall nations call him blessed!
18 uBlessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
who alone does vwondrous things.
19 Blessed be his wglorious name forever;
may xthe whole earth be filled with his glory!
yAmen and Amen!
