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Job 9-10
GOD’S WORD Translation
Job 9-10
GOD’S WORD Translation
Job Speaks: the Futility of Arguing with God
9 Then Job replied ⌞to his friends⌟,
2 “Yes, I know that this is true.
But how can a mortal be declared righteous to God?
3 If he wished to debate with God,
he wouldn’t be able to answer one question in a thousand.
4 “God is wise in heart and mighty in power.
Who could oppose him and win?
5 He moves mountains without their knowing it,
and he topples them in his anger.
6 He shakes the earth from its place,
and its pillars tremble.
7 He commands the sun not to rise.
He doesn’t let the stars come out.
8 He stretches out the heavens by himself
and walks on the waves of the sea.
9 He made ⌞the constellations⌟ Ursa Major, Orion, and the Pleiades,
and the clusters of stars in the south.
10 He does great things that are unsearchable
and miracles that cannot be numbered.
11 He passes alongside of me, and I don’t even see him.
He goes past me, and I don’t even notice him.
12 He takes something away, ⌞but⌟ who can stop him?
Who is going to ask him, ‘What are you doing?’
13 God does not hold back his anger.
Even Rahab’s[a] helpers bow humbly in front of him.
14 “How can I possibly answer God?
How can I find the right words ⌞to speak⌟ with him?
15 Even if I were right, I could not answer ⌞him⌟.
I would have to plead for mercy from my judge.
16 If I cried out and he answered me,
I do not believe that he would listen to me.
17 He would knock me down with a storm
and bruise me without a reason.
18 He would not let me catch my breath.
He fills me with bitterness.
19 If it is a matter of strength,
then he is the mighty one.
If it is about justice,
who will charge me with a crime?
20 If I am righteous, my own mouth would condemn me.
It would declare that I am corrupt even if I am a man of integrity.
21 If I am a man of integrity, I have no way of knowing it.
I hate my life!
22 It is all the same.
That is why I say,
‘He destroys ⌞both⌟ the man of integrity and the wicked.’
23 When a sudden disaster brings death,
he makes fun of the despair of innocent people.
24 The earth is handed over to the wicked.
He covers the faces of its judges.
If he isn’t the one ⌞doing this⌟, who is?
25 “My days go by more quickly than a runner.
They sprint away.
They don’t see anything good.
26 They pass by quickly like boats made from reeds,
like an eagle swooping down on its prey.
27 ⌞Even⌟ if I say, ‘I will forget my complaining;
I will change my expression and smile,’
28 I ⌞still⌟ dread everything I must suffer.
I know that you won’t declare me innocent.
29 I’ve already been found guilty.
Why should I work so hard for nothing?
30 If I wash myself with lye soap[b]
and cleanse my hands with bleach,
31 then you would plunge me into a muddy pit,
and my own clothes would find me disgusting.
32 A human like me cannot answer God,
‘Let’s take our case to court.’
33 There is no mediator between us
to put his hand on both of us.
34 God should take his rod away from me,
and he should not terrify me.[c]
35 Then I would speak and not be afraid of him.
But I know that I am not like that.
Job Says to God: I Hate My Life
10 “I hate my life.
I will freely express my complaint.
I will speak as bitterly as I feel.
2 I will say to God,
‘Don’t condemn me.
Let me know why you are quarreling with me.
3 What do you gain by mistreating me,
by rejecting the work of your hands
while you favor the plans of the wicked?
4 Do you actually have human eyes?
Do you see as a mortal sees?
5 Are your days like a mortal’s days?
Are your years like a human’s years?
6 Is that why you look for guilt in me
and search for sin in me?
7 You know I’m not guilty,
but there is no one to rescue me from your hands.
8 “ ‘Your hands formed me and made every part of me,
then you turned to destroy me.
9 Please remember that you made me out of clay
and that you will return me to the dust again.
10 Didn’t you pour me out like milk
and curdle me like cheese?
11 Didn’t you dress me in skin and flesh
and weave me together with bones and tendons?
12 You gave me life and mercy.
Your watchfulness has preserved my spirit.
13 But in your heart you hid these things.
I know this is what you did.
14 “ ‘If I sin, you watch me
and will not free me from my guilt.
15 How terrible it will be for me if I’m guilty!
Even if I’m righteous, I dare not lift up my head.
I am filled with disgrace
while I look on my misery.
16 Like a proud, ferocious lion you hunt me down.
You keep working your miracles against me.
17 You keep finding new witnesses against me.
You keep increasing your anger toward me.
You keep bringing new armies against me.
18 “ ‘Why did you take me out of the womb?
I wish I had breathed my last breath
before anyone had laid eyes on me.
19 Then it would be as if I had never existed,
as if I had been carried from the womb to the tomb.
20 “ ‘Isn’t my life short enough?
So stop ⌞this⌟, and leave me alone.
Let me smile a little
21 before I go away
to a land of darkness and gloom,
22 to a dismal land of long shadows and confusion
where light is as bright as darkness.
I’ll never return.’ ”
Job 9-10
New International Version
Job 9-10
New International Version
Job
9 Then Job replied:
2 “Indeed, I know that this is true.
But how can mere mortals prove their innocence before God?(A)
3 Though they wished to dispute with him,(B)
they could not answer him one time out of a thousand.(C)
4 His wisdom(D) is profound, his power is vast.(E)
Who has resisted(F) him and come out unscathed?(G)
5 He moves mountains(H) without their knowing it
and overturns them in his anger.(I)
6 He shakes the earth(J) from its place
and makes its pillars tremble.(K)
7 He speaks to the sun and it does not shine;(L)
he seals off the light of the stars.(M)
8 He alone stretches out the heavens(N)
and treads on the waves of the sea.(O)
9 He is the Maker(P) of the Bear[a] and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.(Q)
10 He performs wonders(R) that cannot be fathomed,
miracles that cannot be counted.(S)
11 When he passes me, I cannot see him;
when he goes by, I cannot perceive him.(T)
12 If he snatches away, who can stop him?(U)
Who can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’(V)
13 God does not restrain his anger;(W)
even the cohorts of Rahab(X) cowered at his feet.
14 “How then can I dispute with him?
How can I find words to argue with him?(Y)
15 Though I were innocent, I could not answer him;(Z)
I could only plead(AA) with my Judge(AB) for mercy.(AC)
16 Even if I summoned him and he responded,
I do not believe he would give me a hearing.(AD)
17 He would crush me(AE) with a storm(AF)
and multiply(AG) my wounds for no reason.(AH)
18 He would not let me catch my breath
but would overwhelm me with misery.(AI)
19 If it is a matter of strength, he is mighty!(AJ)
And if it is a matter of justice, who can challenge him[b]?(AK)
20 Even if I were innocent, my mouth would condemn me;
if I were blameless, it would pronounce me guilty.(AL)
21 “Although I am blameless,(AM)
I have no concern for myself;(AN)
I despise my own life.(AO)
22 It is all the same; that is why I say,
‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’(AP)
23 When a scourge(AQ) brings sudden death,
he mocks the despair of the innocent.(AR)
24 When a land falls into the hands of the wicked,(AS)
he blindfolds its judges.(AT)
If it is not he, then who is it?(AU)
25 “My days are swifter than a runner;(AV)
they fly away without a glimpse of joy.(AW)
26 They skim past(AX) like boats of papyrus,(AY)
like eagles swooping down on their prey.(AZ)
27 If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,(BA)
I will change my expression, and smile,’
28 I still dread(BB) all my sufferings,
for I know you will not hold me innocent.(BC)
29 Since I am already found guilty,
why should I struggle in vain?(BD)
30 Even if I washed myself with soap(BE)
and my hands(BF) with cleansing powder,(BG)
31 you would plunge me into a slime pit(BH)
so that even my clothes would detest me.(BI)
32 “He is not a mere mortal(BJ) like me that I might answer him,(BK)
that we might confront each other in court.(BL)
33 If only there were someone to mediate between us,(BM)
someone to bring us together,(BN)
34 someone to remove God’s rod from me,(BO)
so that his terror would frighten me no more.(BP)
35 Then I would speak up without fear of him,(BQ)
but as it now stands with me, I cannot.(BR)
10 “I loathe my very life;(BS)
therefore I will give free rein to my complaint
and speak out in the bitterness of my soul.(BT)
2 I say to God:(BU) Do not declare me guilty,
but tell me what charges(BV) you have against me.(BW)
3 Does it please you to oppress me,(BX)
to spurn the work of your hands,(BY)
while you smile on the plans of the wicked?(BZ)
4 Do you have eyes of flesh?
Do you see as a mortal sees?(CA)
5 Are your days like those of a mortal
or your years like those of a strong man,(CB)
6 that you must search out my faults
and probe after my sin(CC)—
7 though you know that I am not guilty(CD)
and that no one can rescue me from your hand?(CE)
8 “Your hands shaped(CF) me and made me.
Will you now turn and destroy me?(CG)
9 Remember that you molded me like clay.(CH)
Will you now turn me to dust again?(CI)
10 Did you not pour me out like milk
and curdle me like cheese,
11 clothe me with skin and flesh
and knit me together(CJ) with bones and sinews?
12 You gave me life(CK) and showed me kindness,(CL)
and in your providence(CM) watched over(CN) my spirit.
13 “But this is what you concealed in your heart,
and I know that this was in your mind:(CO)
14 If I sinned, you would be watching me(CP)
and would not let my offense go unpunished.(CQ)
15 If I am guilty(CR)—woe to me!(CS)
Even if I am innocent, I cannot lift my head,(CT)
for I am full of shame
and drowned in[c] my affliction.(CU)
16 If I hold my head high, you stalk me like a lion(CV)
and again display your awesome power against me.(CW)
17 You bring new witnesses against me(CX)
and increase your anger toward me;(CY)
your forces come against me wave upon wave.(CZ)
18 “Why then did you bring me out of the womb?(DA)
I wish I had died before any eye saw me.(DB)
19 If only I had never come into being,
or had been carried straight from the womb to the grave!(DC)
20 Are not my few days(DD) almost over?(DE)
Turn away from me(DF) so I can have a moment’s joy(DG)
21 before I go to the place of no return,(DH)
to the land of gloom and utter darkness,(DI)
22 to the land of deepest night,
of utter darkness(DJ) and disorder,
where even the light is like darkness.”(DK)
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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