Font Size
Job 3-4
Common English Bible
Job 3-4
Common English Bible
Job responds differently
3 Afterward, Job spoke up and cursed the day he was born.
2 Job said:
3 Perish the day I was born,
the night someone said,
“A boy has been conceived.”
4 That day—let it be darkness;
may God above ignore it,
and light not shine on it.
5 May deepest darkness claim it
and a cloud linger over it;
may all that darkens the day terrify it.
6 May gloom seize that night;
may it not be counted in the days of a year;
may it not appear in the months.
7 May that night be childless;
may no happy singing come in it.
8 May those who curse the day curse it,
those with enough skill to awaken Leviathan.
9 May its evening stars stay dark;
may it wait in vain for light;
may it not see dawn’s gleam,
10 because it didn’t close the doors of my mother’s womb,[a]
didn’t hide trouble from my eyes.
Job laments his misfortune
11 Why didn’t I die at birth,
come forth from the womb and die?
12 Why did knees receive me
and breasts let me nurse?
13 For now I would be lying down quietly;
I’d sleep; rest would be mine
14 with kings and earth’s advisors,
who rebuild ruins for themselves,
15 or with princes who have gold,
who fill their houses with silver.
16 Or why wasn’t I like a buried miscarried infant,
like babies who never see light?
17 There the wicked rage no more;
there the weak rest.
18 Prisoners are entirely at ease;
they don’t hear a boss’s voice.
19 Both small and great are there;
a servant is free from his masters.
20 Why is light given to the hard worker,
life to those bitter of soul,
21 those waiting in vain for death,
who search for it more than for treasure,
22 who rejoice excitedly,
who are thrilled when they find a grave?
23 Why is light given[b] to the person whose way is hidden,
whom God has fenced in?
24 My groans become my bread;
my roars pour out like water.
25 Because I was afraid of something awful,
and it arrived;
what I dreaded came to me.
26 I had no ease, quiet, or rest,
and trembling came.
Eliphaz tries to comfort Job
4 Then Eliphaz, a native of Teman, responded:
2 If one tries to answer you, will you be annoyed?
But who can hold words back?
3 Look, you’ve instructed many
and given strength to drooping hands.
4 Your words have raised up the falling;
you’ve steadied failing knees.
5 But now it comes to you, and you are dismayed;
it has struck you, and you are frightened.
6 Isn’t your religion the source of[c] your confidence;
the integrity of your conduct, the source of your hope?
Sinners don’t live long
7 Think! What innocent person has ever perished?
When have those who do the right thing been destroyed?
8 As I’ve observed, those who plow sin
and sow trouble will harvest it.
9 When God breathes deeply, they perish;
by a breath of his nostril they are annihilated.
10 The roar of a lion and snarl of the king of beasts—
yet the teeth of lions are shattered;
11 the lion perishes without prey,
and its cubs are scattered.
A frightening dream
12 But a word sneaked up on me;
my ears caught a hint of it.
13 In profound thoughts, visions of night,
when deep sleep falls on people,
14 fear and dread struck me;
all of my bones shook.
15 A breeze swept by my face;
the hair of my skin bristled.
16 It stopped. I didn’t recognize its visible form,
although a figure was in front of my eyes.
Silence! Then I heard a voice:
17 “Can a human be more righteous than God,
a person purer than their maker?”
Its interpretation
18 If he doesn’t trust his servants
and levels a charge against his messengers,
19 how much less those who dwell in houses of clay,
whose foundations are in dust,
and who are crushed like a moth?
20 They are smashed between morning and evening;
they perish forever without anyone knowing.
21 Isn’t their tent cord pulled up?
They die without wisdom.[d]
Job 3-4
New International Version
Job 3-4
New International Version
Job Speaks
3 After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth.(A) 2 He said:
3 “May the day of my birth perish,
and the night that said, ‘A boy is conceived!’(B)
4 That day—may it turn to darkness;
may God above not care about it;
may no light shine on it.
5 May gloom and utter darkness(C) claim it once more;
may a cloud settle over it;
may blackness overwhelm it.
6 That night—may thick darkness(D) seize it;
may it not be included among the days of the year
nor be entered in any of the months.
7 May that night be barren;
may no shout of joy(E) be heard in it.
8 May those who curse days[a] curse that day,(F)
those who are ready to rouse Leviathan.(G)
9 May its morning stars become dark;
may it wait for daylight in vain
and not see the first rays of dawn,(H)
10 for it did not shut the doors of the womb on me
to hide trouble from my eyes.
11 “Why did I not perish at birth,
and die as I came from the womb?(I)
12 Why were there knees to receive me(J)
and breasts that I might be nursed?
13 For now I would be lying down(K) in peace;
I would be asleep and at rest(L)
14 with kings and rulers of the earth,(M)
who built for themselves places now lying in ruins,(N)
15 with princes(O) who had gold,
who filled their houses with silver.(P)
16 Or why was I not hidden away in the ground like a stillborn child,(Q)
like an infant who never saw the light of day?(R)
17 There the wicked cease from turmoil,(S)
and there the weary are at rest.(T)
18 Captives(U) also enjoy their ease;
they no longer hear the slave driver’s(V) shout.(W)
19 The small and the great are there,(X)
and the slaves are freed from their owners.
20 “Why is light given to those in misery,
and life to the bitter of soul,(Y)
21 to those who long for death that does not come,(Z)
who search for it more than for hidden treasure,(AA)
22 who are filled with gladness
and rejoice when they reach the grave?(AB)
23 Why is life given to a man
whose way is hidden,(AC)
whom God has hedged in?(AD)
24 For sighing(AE) has become my daily food;(AF)
my groans(AG) pour out like water.(AH)
25 What I feared has come upon me;
what I dreaded(AI) has happened to me.(AJ)
26 I have no peace,(AK) no quietness;
I have no rest,(AL) but only turmoil.”(AM)
Eliphaz
4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite(AN) replied:
2 “If someone ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?
But who can keep from speaking?(AO)
3 Think how you have instructed many,(AP)
how you have strengthened feeble hands.(AQ)
4 Your words have supported those who stumbled;(AR)
you have strengthened faltering knees.(AS)
5 But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged;(AT)
it strikes(AU) you, and you are dismayed.(AV)
6 Should not your piety be your confidence(AW)
and your blameless(AX) ways your hope?
7 “Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished?(AY)
Where were the upright ever destroyed?(AZ)
8 As I have observed,(BA) those who plow evil(BB)
and those who sow trouble reap it.(BC)
9 At the breath of God(BD) they perish;
at the blast of his anger they are no more.(BE)
10 The lions may roar(BF) and growl,
yet the teeth of the great lions(BG) are broken.(BH)
11 The lion perishes for lack of prey,(BI)
and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.(BJ)
12 “A word(BK) was secretly brought to me,
my ears caught a whisper(BL) of it.(BM)
13 Amid disquieting dreams in the night,
when deep sleep falls on people,(BN)
14 fear and trembling(BO) seized me
and made all my bones shake.(BP)
15 A spirit glided past my face,
and the hair on my body stood on end.(BQ)
16 It stopped,
but I could not tell what it was.
A form stood before my eyes,
and I heard a hushed voice:(BR)
17 ‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God?(BS)
Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker?(BT)
18 If God places no trust in his servants,(BU)
if he charges his angels with error,(BV)
19 how much more those who live in houses of clay,(BW)
whose foundations(BX) are in the dust,(BY)
who are crushed(BZ) more readily than a moth!(CA)
20 Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces;
unnoticed, they perish forever.(CB)
21 Are not the cords of their tent pulled up,(CC)
so that they die(CD) without wisdom?’(CE)
Footnotes
- Job 3:8 Or curse the sea
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.