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Job 17-19
Holman Christian Standard Bible

17 My spirit is broken.
My days are extinguished.
A graveyard(A) awaits me.
2 Surely mockers surround[a] me
and my eyes must gaze at their rebellion.(B)

3 Make arrangements! Put up security for me.[b](C)
Who else will be my sponsor?[c]
4 You have closed their minds to understanding,
therefore You will not honor them.
5 If a man informs on his friends for a price,
the eyes of his children will fail.

6 He has made me an object of scorn to the people;
I have become a man people spit at.[d](D)
7 My eyes have grown dim from grief,
and my whole body has become but a shadow.
8 The upright are appalled(E) at this,
and the innocent are roused against the godless.
9 Yet the righteous person will hold to his way,
and the one whose hands are clean(F) will grow stronger.
10 But come back and try again, all of you.[e]
I will not find a wise man among you.

11 My days have slipped by;
my plans have been ruined,
even the things dear to my heart.
12 They turned night into day
and made light seem near in the face of darkness.(G)
13 If I await Sheol as my home,
spread out my bed in darkness,
14 and say to corruption: You are my father,
and to the maggot: My mother or my sister,(H)
15 where then is my hope?(I)
Who can see any hope for me?
16 Will it go down to the gates of Sheol,(J)
or will we descend together to the dust?

Bildad Speaks

18 Then Bildad the Shuhite(K) replied:

2 How long until you stop talking?
Show some sense, and then we can talk.
3 Why are we regarded as cattle,
as stupid in your sight?
4 You who tear yourself in anger[f]—
should the earth be abandoned on your account,
or a rock be removed from its place?

5 Yes, the light(L) of the wicked(M) is extinguished;
the flame of his fire does not glow.
6 The light in his tent grows dark,(N)
and the lamp beside him is put out.
7 His powerful stride is shortened,
and his own schemes trip him up.(O)
8 For his own feet lead him into a net,
and he strays into its mesh.
9 A trap catches him by the heel;
a noose seizes him.
10 A rope lies hidden for him on the ground,
and a snare waits for him along the path.
11 Terrors frighten him on every side(P)
and harass him at every step.
12 His strength is depleted;
disaster lies ready for him to stumble.[g]
13 Parts of his skin are eaten away;
death’s firstborn consumes his limbs.
14 He is ripped from the security of his tent
and marched away to the king of terrors.
15 Nothing he owned remains in his tent.
Burning sulfur(Q) is scattered over his home.
16 His roots below dry up,
and his branches above wither away.(R)
17 All memory(S) of him perishes from the earth;
he has no name anywhere.[h]
18 He is driven from light to darkness
and chased from the inhabited world.
19 He has no children or descendants among his people,
no survivor where he used to live.(T)
20 Those in the west are appalled(U) at his fate,
while those in the east tremble in horror.
21 Indeed, such is the dwelling of the unjust man,
and this is the place of the one who does not know God.(V)

Job’s Reply to Bildad

19 Then Job answered:

2 How long will you torment me
and crush me with words?
3 You have humiliated me ten times now,
and you mistreat[i] me without shame.(W)
4 Even if it is true that I have sinned,
my mistake concerns only[j] me.
5 If you really want to appear superior(X) to me
and would use my disgrace as evidence against me,
6 then understand that it is God who has wronged me
and caught me in His net.(Y)

7 I cry out: “Violence!” but get no response;(Z)
I call for help, but there is no justice.
8 He has blocked(AA) my way so that I cannot pass through;
He has veiled my paths with darkness.(AB)
9 He has stripped me of my honor
and removed the crown from my head.
10 He tears me down on every side so that I am ruined.[k]
He uproots my hope like a tree.(AC)
11 His anger(AD) burns against me,
and He regards me as one of His enemies.(AE)
12 His troops advance together;
they construct a ramp[l] against me
and camp(AF) around my tent.

13 He has removed my brothers from me;
my acquaintances have abandoned me.(AG)
14 My relatives stop coming by,
and my close friends have forgotten me.
15 My house guests[m] and female servants regard me as a stranger;
I am a foreigner in their sight.(AH)
16 I call for my servant, but he does not answer,
even if I beg him with my own mouth.
17 My breath is offensive to my wife,
and my own family[n] finds me repulsive.
18 Even young boys scorn me.
When I stand up, they mock me.(AI)
19 All of my best friends[o] despise me,(AJ)
and those I love have turned against me.(AK)
20 My skin and my flesh cling to my bones;
I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.

21 Have mercy on me, my friends,(AL) have mercy,
for God’s hand(AM) has struck me.(AN)
22 Why do you persecute me as God does?
Will you never get enough of my flesh?

23 I wish that my words were written down,
that they were recorded on a scroll
24 or were inscribed in stone forever
by an iron stylus and lead!
25 But I know my living Redeemer,[p](AO)
and He will stand on the dust[q] at last.[r](AP)
26 Even after my skin has been destroyed,[s]
yet I will see God in[t] my flesh.(AQ)
27 I will see Him myself;
my eyes will look at Him, and not as a stranger.[u]
My heart longs[v] within me.(AR)

28 If you say, “How will we pursue him,
since the root of the problem lies with him?”[w]
29 then be afraid of the sword,
because wrath brings punishment by the sword,(AS)
so that you may know there is a judgment.

Footnotes

  1. Job 17:2 Lit are with
  2. Job 17:3 Lit me with You
  3. Job 17:3 Lit Who is there that will strike himself into my hand
  4. Job 17:6 Lit become a spitting to the faces
  5. Job 17:10 Some Hb mss, LXX, Vg; other Hb mss read them
  6. Job 18:4 Lit He who tears himself in his anger
  7. Job 18:12 Or disaster hungers for him
  8. Job 18:17 Or name in the streets
  9. Job 19:3 Hb obscure
  10. Job 19:4 Lit mistake lives with
  11. Job 19:10 Lit gone
  12. Job 19:12 Lit they raise up their way
  13. Job 19:15 Or The resident aliens in my household
  14. Job 19:17 Lit and the sons of my belly
  15. Job 19:19 Lit of the men of my council
  16. Job 19:25 Or know that my Redeemer is living
  17. Job 19:25 Or earth
  18. Job 19:25 Or dust at the last, or dust as the Last One
  19. Job 19:26 Lit skin which they destroyed, or skin they destroyed in this way
  20. Job 19:26 Or apart from
  21. Job 19:27 Or not a stranger
  22. Job 19:27 Lit My kidneys grow faint
  23. Job 19:28 Some Hb mss, LXX, Vg; other Hb mss read me
Listen to Job 17-19
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Job 17-19
New International Version

17 1 My spirit(A) is broken,
    my days are cut short,(B)
    the grave awaits me.(C)
2 Surely mockers(D) surround me;(E)
    my eyes must dwell on their hostility.

3 “Give me, O God, the pledge you demand.(F)
    Who else will put up security(G) for me?(H)
4 You have closed their minds to understanding;(I)
    therefore you will not let them triumph.
5 If anyone denounces their friends for reward,(J)
    the eyes of their children will fail.(K)

6 “God has made me a byword(L) to everyone,(M)
    a man in whose face people spit.(N)
7 My eyes have grown dim with grief;(O)
    my whole frame is but a shadow.(P)
8 The upright are appalled at this;
    the innocent are aroused(Q) against the ungodly.
9 Nevertheless, the righteous(R) will hold to their ways,
    and those with clean hands(S) will grow stronger.(T)

10 “But come on, all of you, try again!
    I will not find a wise man among you.(U)
11 My days have passed,(V) my plans are shattered.
    Yet the desires of my heart(W)
12 turn night into day;(X)
    in the face of the darkness light is near.(Y)
13 If the only home I hope for is the grave,(Z)
    if I spread out my bed(AA) in the realm of darkness,(AB)
14 if I say to corruption,(AC) ‘You are my father,’
    and to the worm,(AD) ‘My mother’ or ‘My sister,’
15 where then is my hope—(AE)
    who can see any hope for me?(AF)
16 Will it go down to the gates of death?(AG)
    Will we descend together into the dust?”(AH)

Bildad

18 Then Bildad the Shuhite(AI) replied:

2 “When will you end these speeches?(AJ)
    Be sensible, and then we can talk.
3 Why are we regarded as cattle(AK)
    and considered stupid in your sight?(AL)
4 You who tear yourself(AM) to pieces in your anger,(AN)
    is the earth to be abandoned for your sake?
    Or must the rocks be moved from their place?(AO)

5 “The lamp of a wicked man is snuffed out;(AP)
    the flame of his fire stops burning.(AQ)
6 The light in his tent(AR) becomes dark;(AS)
    the lamp beside him goes out.(AT)
7 The vigor(AU) of his step is weakened;(AV)
    his own schemes(AW) throw him down.(AX)
8 His feet thrust him into a net;(AY)
    he wanders into its mesh.
9 A trap seizes him by the heel;
    a snare(AZ) holds him fast.(BA)
10 A noose(BB) is hidden for him on the ground;
    a trap(BC) lies in his path.(BD)
11 Terrors(BE) startle him on every side(BF)
    and dog(BG) his every step.
12 Calamity(BH) is hungry(BI) for him;
    disaster(BJ) is ready for him when he falls.(BK)
13 It eats away parts of his skin;(BL)
    death’s firstborn devours his limbs.(BM)
14 He is torn from the security of his tent(BN)
    and marched off to the king(BO) of terrors.(BP)
15 Fire resides[a] in his tent;(BQ)
    burning sulfur(BR) is scattered over his dwelling.
16 His roots dry up below(BS)
    and his branches wither above.(BT)
17 The memory of him perishes from the earth;(BU)
    he has no name(BV) in the land.(BW)
18 He is driven from light into the realm of darkness(BX)
    and is banished(BY) from the world.(BZ)
19 He has no offspring(CA) or descendants(CB) among his people,
    no survivor(CC) where once he lived.(CD)
20 People of the west are appalled(CE) at his fate;(CF)
    those of the east are seized with horror.
21 Surely such is the dwelling(CG) of an evil man;(CH)
    such is the place(CI) of one who does not know God.”(CJ)

Job

19 Then Job replied:

2 “How long will you torment(CK) me
    and crush(CL) me with words?
3 Ten times(CM) now you have reproached(CN) me;
    shamelessly you attack me.
4 If it is true that I have gone astray,
    my error(CO) remains my concern alone.
5 If indeed you would exalt yourselves above me(CP)
    and use my humiliation against me,
6 then know that God has wronged me(CQ)
    and drawn his net(CR) around me.(CS)

7 “Though I cry, ‘Violence!’ I get no response;(CT)
    though I call for help,(CU) there is no justice.(CV)
8 He has blocked my way so I cannot pass;(CW)
    he has shrouded my paths in darkness.(CX)
9 He has stripped(CY) me of my honor(CZ)
    and removed the crown from my head.(DA)
10 He tears me down(DB) on every side till I am gone;
    he uproots my hope(DC) like a tree.(DD)
11 His anger(DE) burns against me;
    he counts me among his enemies.(DF)
12 His troops advance in force;(DG)
    they build a siege ramp(DH) against me
    and encamp around my tent.(DI)

13 “He has alienated my family(DJ) from me;
    my acquaintances are completely estranged from me.(DK)
14 My relatives have gone away;
    my closest friends(DL) have forgotten me.
15 My guests(DM) and my female servants(DN) count me a foreigner;
    they look on me as on a stranger.
16 I summon my servant, but he does not answer,
    though I beg him with my own mouth.
17 My breath is offensive to my wife;
    I am loathsome(DO) to my own family.
18 Even the little boys(DP) scorn me;
    when I appear, they ridicule me.(DQ)
19 All my intimate friends(DR) detest me;(DS)
    those I love have turned against me.(DT)
20 I am nothing but skin and bones;(DU)
    I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.[b]

21 “Have pity on me, my friends,(DV) have pity,
    for the hand of God has struck(DW) me.
22 Why do you pursue(DX) me as God does?(DY)
    Will you never get enough of my flesh?(DZ)

23 “Oh, that my words were recorded,
    that they were written on a scroll,(EA)
24 that they were inscribed with an iron tool(EB) on[c] lead,
    or engraved in rock forever!(EC)
25 I know that my redeemer[d](ED) lives,(EE)
    and that in the end he will stand on the earth.[e]
26 And after my skin has been destroyed,
    yet[f] in[g] my flesh I will see God;(EF)
27 I myself will see him
    with my own eyes(EG)—I, and not another.
    How my heart yearns(EH) within me!

28 “If you say, ‘How we will hound(EI) him,
    since the root of the trouble lies in him,[h]’
29 you should fear the sword yourselves;
    for wrath will bring punishment by the sword,(EJ)
    and then you will know that there is judgment.[i]”(EK)

Footnotes

  1. Job 18:15 Or Nothing he had remains
  2. Job 19:20 Or only by my gums
  3. Job 19:24 Or and
  4. Job 19:25 Or vindicator
  5. Job 19:25 Or on my grave
  6. Job 19:26 Or And after I awake, / though this body has been destroyed, / then
  7. Job 19:26 Or destroyed, / apart from
  8. Job 19:28 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts me
  9. Job 19:29 Or sword, / that you may come to know the Almighty
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Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

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