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Job 11-12
GOD’S WORD Translation
Job 11-12
GOD’S WORD Translation
Zophar Speaks: Your Words Call for an Answer, Job
11 Then Zophar from Naama replied ⌞to Job⌟,
2 “Shouldn’t someone answer this flood of words?
Should a good public speaker be acquitted?
3 Should your empty talk silence others
so that you can make fun of us without any shame?
4 You say, ‘My teaching is morally correct,’
and, ‘As you can see, I’m innocent.’
5 I only wish God would speak
and open his mouth ⌞to talk⌟ to you.
6 He would tell you the secrets of wisdom,
because ⌞true⌟ wisdom is twice ⌞as great as your wisdom⌟,
and you would know that God forgets your sin.
God Can Do as He Pleases
7 “Can you discover God’s hidden secrets,
or are you able to find the Almighty’s limits?
8 ⌞God’s wisdom is⌟ higher than heaven.
What can you do?
It is deeper than ⌞the depths⌟ of hell.
What can you know?
9 It is longer than the earth
and wider than the sea.
10 If God comes along and imprisons ⌞someone⌟
and then calls a court into session, who can stop him?
11 He knows who the scoundrels are.
And when he sees sin, doesn’t he pay attention to it?
12 But an empty-headed person will gain understanding
when a wild donkey is born tame.
Confess Your Sin and Be Forgiven
13 “If you want to set your heart right,
then pray to him.
14 If you’re holding on to sin, put it far away,
and don’t let injustice live in your tent.
15 Then you will be able to show your face without being ashamed,
and you will be secure and unafraid.
16 ⌞Then⌟ you will forget your misery
and remember it like water that has flowed downstream.
17 Then your life will be brighter than the noonday sun.
The darkness in your life will become like morning.
18 You will feel confident because there’s hope,
and you will look around and rest in safety.
19 You will lie down with no one to frighten you,
and many people will try to gain your favor.
20 But the wicked will lose their eyesight.
Their escape route will be closed.
Their only hope is to take their last breath.”
Job Speaks: My Friends Have No Wisdom
12 Then Job replied ⌞to his friends⌟,
2 “You certainly are ⌞wise⌟ people,
and when you die, wisdom will die.
3 Like you, I have a mind.
I am not inferior to you.
But who doesn’t know these things?
4 I am a laughingstock to my neighbors.
I am one who calls on God and expects an answer.
A man of integrity, a man who is righteous, has become a laughingstock.
5 “A person who has an easy life has no appreciation for misfortune.
He thinks it is the fate of those who slip up.
6 ⌞But⌟ robbers’ tents are prosperous,
and there is security for those who provoke God,
for those whose god is their power.
7 “Instead, ask the animals, and they will teach you.
Ask the birds, and they will tell you.
8 Or speak with the earth, and it will teach you.
Even the fish will relate ⌞the story⌟ to you.
9 What creature doesn’t know that the Lord’s hands made it?
10 The life of every living creature
and the spirit in every human body are in his hands.
11 Doesn’t the ear distinguish sounds
and the tongue taste food?
Wisdom Comes from God
12 “Wisdom is with the ancient one.
The one who has had many days has insight.[a]
13 God has wisdom and strength.
Advice and insight are his.
14 When he tears ⌞something⌟ down, it cannot be rebuilt.
When he puts someone in prison, that person cannot be freed.
15 When he holds back the waters, there is a drought.
When he releases them, they flood the earth.
16 “God has power and priceless wisdom.
He owns ⌞both⌟ the deceiver and the person who is deceived.
17 He leads counselors away barefoot
and makes fools out of judges.
18 He loosens kings’ belts
and strips them of their pants.
19 He leads priests away barefoot
and misleads those who serve in a temple.
20 He makes trusted advisers unable to speak
and takes away the good judgment of respected leaders.
21 He pours contempt on influential people
and unbuckles the belt of the mighty.
22 He uncovers mysteries ⌞hidden⌟ in the darkness
and brings gloom into the light.
23 He makes nations important and then destroys them.
He makes nations large and leads them away.
24 He takes away the common sense of a country’s leaders
and makes them stumble about in a pathless wilderness.
25 They grope in the dark with no light,
and he makes them stumble like drunks.
Footnotes
- 12:12 Or “Wisdom is with the elderly, and understanding with those who have lived a long time.”
Job 11-12
New International Version
Job 11-12
New International Version
Zophar
11 Then Zophar the Naamathite(A) replied:
2 “Are all these words to go unanswered?(B)
Is this talker to be vindicated?(C)
3 Will your idle talk(D) reduce others to silence?
Will no one rebuke you when you mock?(E)
4 You say to God, ‘My beliefs are flawless(F)
and I am pure(G) in your sight.’
5 Oh, how I wish that God would speak,(H)
that he would open his lips against you
6 and disclose to you the secrets of wisdom,(I)
for true wisdom has two sides.
Know this: God has even forgotten some of your sin.(J)
7 “Can you fathom(K) the mysteries of God?
Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?
8 They are higher(L) than the heavens(M) above—what can you do?
They are deeper than the depths below(N)—what can you know?(O)
9 Their measure(P) is longer than the earth
and wider than the sea.(Q)
10 “If he comes along and confines you in prison
and convenes a court, who can oppose him?(R)
11 Surely he recognizes deceivers;
and when he sees evil, does he not take note?(S)
12 But the witless can no more become wise
than a wild donkey’s colt(T) can be born human.[a](U)
13 “Yet if you devote your heart(V) to him
and stretch out your hands(W) to him,(X)
14 if you put away(Y) the sin that is in your hand
and allow no evil(Z) to dwell in your tent,(AA)
15 then, free of fault, you will lift up your face;(AB)
you will stand firm(AC) and without fear.(AD)
16 You will surely forget your trouble,(AE)
recalling it only as waters gone by.(AF)
17 Life will be brighter than noonday,(AG)
and darkness will become like morning.(AH)
18 You will be secure, because there is hope;
you will look about you and take your rest(AI) in safety.(AJ)
19 You will lie down, with no one to make you afraid,(AK)
and many will court your favor.(AL)
20 But the eyes of the wicked will fail,(AM)
and escape will elude them;(AN)
their hope will become a dying gasp.”(AO)
Job
12 Then Job replied:
2 “Doubtless you are the only people who matter,
and wisdom will die with you!(AP)
3 But I have a mind as well as you;
I am not inferior to you.
Who does not know all these things?(AQ)
4 “I have become a laughingstock(AR) to my friends,(AS)
though I called on God and he answered(AT)—
a mere laughingstock, though righteous and blameless!(AU)
5 Those who are at ease have contempt(AV) for misfortune
as the fate of those whose feet are slipping.(AW)
6 The tents of marauders are undisturbed,(AX)
and those who provoke God are secure(AY)—
those God has in his hand.[b]
7 “But ask the animals, and they will teach you,(AZ)
or the birds in the sky,(BA) and they will tell you;(BB)
8 or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
or let the fish in the sea inform you.
9 Which of all these does not know(BC)
that the hand of the Lord has done this?(BD)
10 In his hand is the life(BE) of every creature
and the breath of all mankind.(BF)
11 Does not the ear test words
as the tongue tastes food?(BG)
12 Is not wisdom found among the aged?(BH)
Does not long life bring understanding?(BI)
13 “To God belong wisdom(BJ) and power;(BK)
counsel and understanding are his.(BL)
14 What he tears down(BM) cannot be rebuilt;(BN)
those he imprisons cannot be released.(BO)
15 If he holds back the waters,(BP) there is drought;(BQ)
if he lets them loose, they devastate the land.(BR)
16 To him belong strength and insight;(BS)
both deceived and deceiver are his.(BT)
17 He leads rulers away stripped(BU)
and makes fools of judges.(BV)
18 He takes off the shackles(BW) put on by kings
and ties a loincloth[c] around their waist.(BX)
19 He leads priests away stripped(BY)
and overthrows officials long established.(BZ)
20 He silences the lips of trusted advisers
and takes away the discernment of elders.(CA)
21 He pours contempt on nobles(CB)
and disarms the mighty.(CC)
22 He reveals the deep things of darkness(CD)
and brings utter darkness(CE) into the light.(CF)
23 He makes nations great, and destroys them;(CG)
he enlarges nations,(CH) and disperses them.(CI)
24 He deprives the leaders of the earth of their reason;(CJ)
he makes them wander in a trackless waste.(CK)
25 They grope in darkness with no light;(CL)
he makes them stagger like drunkards.(CM)
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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