Job 15-16

New Life Version

Eliphaz Talks

15 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered, ² “Should a wise man answer with learning that is of no worth, and fill himself with the east wind? ³ Should he argue with talk that will not help, or with words that do no good? ⁴ For sure you are doing away with the fear of the Lord. You are stopping the quiet worship of God. ⁵ You show your sin by what you say. You are trying to hide behind your words. ⁶ Your own mouth says you are guilty, and not I. Your own lips speak against you.

⁷ “Were you the first man to be born? Or were you made before the hills? ⁸ Were you there to hear the secret plans of God? Are you the only one who has wisdom? ⁹ What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not clear to us? ¹⁰ Men whose hair has grown white and those who have lived many years are among us. They are older than your father. ¹¹ Are the gentle words spoken to you, which give comfort from God, too little for you? ¹² Why does your heart carry you away? And why do your eyes shine, ¹³ that you turn your spirit against God and let such words go out of your mouth? ¹⁴ What is man, that he can be pure, or he who is born of a woman, that he can be right and good? ¹⁵ See, God puts no trust in His holy ones. The heavens are not pure in His eyes. ¹⁶ How much less one who is hated and sinful, a man who drinks sin like water!

¹⁷ “I will tell you, listen to me. I will make known what I have seen, ¹⁸ what wise men have told that they learned from their fathers. They have not hidden anything. ¹⁹ These were the ones to whom the land was given, and no stranger passed among them. ²⁰ The sinful man suffers in pain all his days. His years are numbered because of all his sin. ²¹ Sounds of fear are in his ears. When all seems to be going well, the one who destroys will come upon him. ²² He does not believe that he will be taken away from darkness, and the sword is meant for him. ²³ He goes to look for food, saying, ‘Where is it?’ He knows that a day of darkness is near. ²⁴ Trouble and pain fill him with fear. They have power over him like a king ready for battle. ²⁵ He has put out his hand against God, and is full of pride against the All-powerful. ²⁶ He rushes in pride against Him with his big battle-covering. ²⁷ His face is fat, and his thighs are heavy with fat. ²⁸ He has lived in cities that have been laid waste, in houses where no one lives which will be destroyed. ²⁹ He will no longer be rich, and what he has will not last. His grain will come to nothing. ³⁰ He will not get away from darkness. The fire will dry up his branches, and the breath of God’s mouth will drive him away. ³¹ Let him not lie to himself and trust in what is empty. For what is empty will be his reward. ³² It will be paid in full while he still lives, and his branch will not be green. ³³ He will be like the vine that drops off its grapes before they are ready. And he will throw off his flower like the olive tree. ³⁴ Those who visit the sinful bring no fruit. And fire destroys the tents of those who do wrong. ³⁵ They give birth to trouble and bring sin. Their minds plan lies.”

Job Talks

16 Then Job answered, ² “I have heard many such things. All of you bring trouble instead of comfort. ³ Is there no end to your words that are full of wind? What is your problem that you keep on talking? ⁴ I also could speak like you, if I were in your place. I could put words together against you, and shake my head at you. ⁵ I could give you strength with my mouth. I could speak words of comfort and make your pain less.

⁶ “If I speak, my pain is not made less. And if I keep quiet, it does not leave me. ⁷ But now God has taken away my strength. He has taken away all my family. ⁸ He has made me dry up, and this speaks against me. The wasting away of my body rises up against me. It speaks against me to my face. ⁹ His anger has torn me and hated me. He has ground His teeth at me. The one against me looks hard at me. ¹⁰ Men have looked at me with their mouths open. They have hit me on the face with anger. They have gathered together against me. ¹¹ God gives me over to bad men. He throws me into the hands of the sinful. ¹² I was living in comfort, but He has taken that away. He has taken hold of me by the neck and shaken me to pieces. He has set me up for something to shoot at. ¹³ His arrows are all around me. He cuts my kidneys open without pity. He pours the bitter insides on the ground. ¹⁴ He hurts me again and again. He runs at me like a man of war. ¹⁵ I have sewed cloth made from hair over my skin, and have laid my hope in the dust. ¹⁶ My face is red from crying, and darkness is over my eyes. ¹⁷ But my hands have done nothing bad, and my prayer is pure.

¹⁸ “O earth, do not cover my blood. Let my cry have no place to rest. ¹⁹ See, even now there is One Who sees me from heaven. The One Who speaks for me is on high. ²⁰ My friends make fun of me. My eyes pour out tears to God. ²¹ If only a man could give reasons to God, as a man does for his neighbor! ²² In a few years I will go the way that I cannot return.