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Job 31-32
GOD’S WORD Translation
Job 31-32
GOD’S WORD Translation
Job Wonders What Sin He May Have Committed
31 “I have made an agreement with my eyes.
Then how can I look with lust at a virgin?
2 What would God above do ⌞to me⌟?
What would be my inheritance from the Almighty on high?
3 Aren’t there catastrophes for wicked people
and disasters for those who do wrong?
4 Doesn’t he see my ways
and count all my steps?
5 “If I have walked with lies
or my feet have run after deception,
6 ⌞then⌟ let God weigh me on honest scales,
and he will know I have integrity.
7 “If my steps have left the ⌞proper⌟ path,
or my heart has followed ⌞the desire of⌟ my eyes,
or my hands are stained ⌞with sin⌟,
8 ⌞then⌟ let someone else eat what I have planted,
and let my crops be uprooted.
9 “If I have been seduced by a woman
or I have secretly waited near my neighbor’s door,
10 ⌞then⌟ let my wife grind for another ⌞man⌟,
and let other ⌞men⌟ kneel over her.
11 That would be a scandal,
and that would be a criminal offense.
12 It would be a fire that burns even in Abaddon.
It would uproot my entire harvest.
13 “If I have abused the rights of my servants, male or female,
when they have disagreed with me,
14 then what could I do if God rises up?
If he examines me, how could I answer him?
15 Didn’t he who made me in my mother’s belly make them?
Didn’t the same God form us in the womb?
16 “If I have refused the requests of the poor
or made a widow’s eyes stop ⌞looking for help⌟,
17 or have eaten my food alone
without letting the orphan eat any of it….
18 (From my youth the orphan grew up with me
as though I were his father,
and from my birth I treated the widow kindly.)
19 If I have seen anyone die because he had no clothes
or a poor person going naked….
20 (If his body didn’t bless me,
or the wool from my sheep didn’t keep him warm….)
21 If I have shaken my fist at an orphan
because I knew that others would back me up in court,
22 ⌞then⌟ let my shoulder fall out of its socket,
and let my arm be broken at the elbow.
23 “A disaster from God terrifies me.
In the presence of his majesty I can do nothing.
24 “If I put my confidence in gold
or said to fine gold, ‘I trust you’….
25 If I enjoyed being very rich
because my hand had found great ⌞wealth⌟….
26 If I saw the light shine
or the moon move along in its splendor
27 so that my heart was secretly tempted,
and I threw them a kiss with my hand,
28 then that, too, would be a criminal offense,
and I would have denied God above.
29 “If I enjoyed the ruin of my enemy
or celebrated when harm came to him
30 (even though I didn’t speak sinfully
by calling down a curse on his life)….
31 “If the people who were in my tent had said,
‘We wish we had never filled ⌞our stomachs⌟ with his food’….
32 (The visitor never spent the night outside,
because I opened my door to the traveler.)
33 “If I have covered my disobedience like Adam
and kept my sin to myself,
34 because I dreaded the large, noisy crowd
and because the contempt of the ⌞local⌟ mobs terrified me
so that I kept quiet and didn’t go outside….
35 “If only I had someone who would listen to me!
Look, here is my signature!
Let the Almighty answer me.
Let the prosecutor write ⌞his complaint⌟ on a scroll.
36 I would certainly carry it on my shoulder
and place it on my head like a crown.
37 I would tell him the number of my steps
and approach him like a prince.
38 “If my land has cried out against me,
and its furrows have wept….
39 If I have eaten its produce without paying for it
and made its owners breathe their last,
40 ⌞then⌟ let it grow thistles instead of wheat,
and foul-smelling weeds instead of barley.”
This is the end of Job’s words.
Elihu Decides to Speak to Job
32 These three men stopped answering Job because Job thought he was righteous. 2 Then Elihu, son of Barachel, a descendant of Buz from the family of Ram, became very angry with Job because Job thought he was more righteous than God. 3 Elihu was also very angry with Job’s three friends because they had found no answer. They made it look as if God[a] were wrong. 4 Elihu waited as they spoke to Job because they were older than he was. 5 When Elihu saw that the three men had no further responses, he became very angry.
Elihu Speaks: the Reason for Elihu’s Discourse
6 So Elihu, son of Barachel, the descendant of Buz, replied ⌞to Job⌟,
“I am young, and you are old.
That’s why I refrained from speaking
and was afraid to tell you what I know.
7 I thought, ‘Age should speak,
and experience should teach wisdom.’
8 However, there is in humans a Spirit,
the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding.
9 People do not become wise merely because they live long.
They don’t understand what justice is merely because they’re old.
10 “That is why I say, ‘Listen to me!
Let me tell you what I know.’
11 I waited for you to speak.
I listened for you to share your understanding
until you could find the right words.
12 I’ve paid close attention to you,
but none of you refuted Job.
None of you has an answer to what he says.
13 So don’t say, ‘We’ve found wisdom.
Let God, not humans, defeat him.’
14 Job did not choose his words to refute me,
so I won’t answer him with your speeches.
15 “Job’s friends have been overwhelmed and don’t have any more answers.
They don’t have another word to say.
16 Should I wait because they don’t speak,
because they stand there and don’t have any more answers?
17 “I’ll give my answer.
I’ll tell you what I know.
18 I’m full of words.
The Spirit within me forces me ⌞to speak⌟.
19 My belly is like ⌞a bottle of⌟ wine that has not been opened,
like new wineskins that are ready to burst.
20 I must speak to get relief.
I must open my mouth and answer.
21 I won’t be partial toward anyone
or flatter anyone.
22 I don’t know how to flatter.
If I did, my maker would soon carry me away.
Footnotes
- 32:3 Masoretic Text “Job.” At times some scribes would alter the text when they thought it was disrespectful to God.
Job 31-32
New International Version
Job 31-32
New International Version
31 “I made a covenant with my eyes(A)
not to look lustfully at a young woman.(B)
2 For what is our lot(C) from God above,
our heritage from the Almighty on high?(D)
3 Is it not ruin(E) for the wicked,
disaster(F) for those who do wrong?(G)
4 Does he not see my ways(H)
and count my every step?(I)
5 “If I have walked with falsehood
or my foot has hurried after deceit(J)—
6 let God weigh me(K) in honest scales(L)
and he will know that I am blameless(M)—
7 if my steps have turned from the path,(N)
if my heart has been led by my eyes,
or if my hands(O) have been defiled,(P)
8 then may others eat what I have sown,(Q)
and may my crops be uprooted.(R)
9 “If my heart has been enticed(S) by a woman,(T)
or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 then may my wife grind(U) another man’s grain,
and may other men sleep with her.(V)
11 For that would have been wicked,(W)
a sin to be judged.(X)
12 It is a fire(Y) that burns to Destruction[a];(Z)
it would have uprooted my harvest.(AA)
13 “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,(AB)
whether male or female,
when they had a grievance against me,(AC)
14 what will I do when God confronts me?(AD)
What will I answer when called to account?(AE)
15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them?(AF)
Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?(AG)
16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor(AH)
or let the eyes of the widow(AI) grow weary,(AJ)
17 if I have kept my bread to myself,
not sharing it with the fatherless(AK)—
18 but from my youth I reared them as a father would,
and from my birth I guided the widow(AL)—
19 if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,(AM)
or the needy(AN) without garments,
20 and their hearts did not bless me(AO)
for warming them with the fleece(AP) from my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,(AQ)
knowing that I had influence in court,(AR)
22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder,
let it be broken off at the joint.(AS)
23 For I dreaded destruction from God,(AT)
and for fear of his splendor(AU) I could not do such things.(AV)
24 “If I have put my trust in gold(AW)
or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’(AX)
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,(AY)
the fortune my hands had gained,(AZ)
26 if I have regarded the sun(BA) in its radiance
or the moon(BB) moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed(BC)
and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,(BD)
28 then these also would be sins to be judged,(BE)
for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.(BF)
29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune(BG)
or gloated over the trouble that came to him(BH)—
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
by invoking a curse against their life(BI)—
31 if those of my household have never said,
‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’(BJ)—
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
for my door was always open to the traveler(BK)—
33 if I have concealed(BL) my sin as people do,[b]
by hiding(BM) my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd(BN)
and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
that I kept silent(BO) and would not go outside—
35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!(BP)
I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
let my accuser(BQ) put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,(BR)
I would put it on like a crown.(BS)
37 I would give him an account of my every step;(BT)
I would present it to him as to a ruler.(BU))—
38 “if my land cries out against me(BV)
and all its furrows are wet(BW) with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment(BX)
or broken the spirit of its tenants,(BY)
40 then let briers(BZ) come up instead of wheat
and stinkweed(CA) instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.(CB)
Elihu
32 So these three men stopped answering Job,(CC) because he was righteous in his own eyes.(CD) 2 But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite,(CE) of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself(CF) rather than God.(CG) 3 He was also angry with the three friends,(CH) because they had found no way to refute Job,(CI) and yet had condemned him.[c](CJ) 4 Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he.(CK) 5 But when he saw that the three men had nothing more to say, his anger was aroused.
6 So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said:
“I am young in years,
and you are old;(CL)
that is why I was fearful,
not daring to tell you what I know.
7 I thought, ‘Age should speak;
advanced years should teach wisdom.’(CM)
8 But it is the spirit[d](CN) in a person,
the breath of the Almighty,(CO) that gives them understanding.(CP)
9 It is not only the old[e] who are wise,(CQ)
not only the aged(CR) who understand what is right.(CS)
10 “Therefore I say: Listen to me;(CT)
I too will tell you what I know.(CU)
11 I waited while you spoke,
I listened to your reasoning;
while you were searching for words,
12 I gave you my full attention.
But not one of you has proved Job wrong;
none of you has answered his arguments.(CV)
13 Do not say, ‘We have found wisdom;(CW)
let God, not a man, refute(CX) him.’
14 But Job has not marshaled his words against me,(CY)
and I will not answer him with your arguments.
15 “They are dismayed and have no more to say;
words have failed them.(CZ)
16 Must I wait, now that they are silent,
now that they stand there with no reply?
17 I too will have my say;
I too will tell what I know.(DA)
18 For I am full of words,
and the spirit(DB) within me compels me;(DC)
19 inside I am like bottled-up wine,
like new wineskins ready to burst.(DD)
20 I must speak and find relief;
I must open my lips and reply.(DE)
21 I will show no partiality,(DF)
nor will I flatter anyone;(DG)
22 for if I were skilled in flattery,
my Maker(DH) would soon take me away.(DI)
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
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