Job 22:11-14

The Message

Eliphaz Attacks Job—The Third Round

Come to Terms with God

22 ^1-11Once again Eliphaz the Temanite took up his theme:

“Are any of us strong enough to give God a hand,
    or smart enough to give him advice?
So what if you were righteous—would God Almighty even notice?
    Even if you gave a perfect performance, do you think
        he’d applaud?
Do you think it’s because he cares about your purity
    that he’s disciplining you, putting you on the spot?
Hardly! It’s because you’re a first-class moral failure,
    because there’s no end to your sins.
When people came to you for help,
    you took the shirts off their backs, exploited their helplessness.
You wouldn’t so much as give a drink to the thirsty,
    or food, not even a scrap, to the hungry.
And there you sat, strong and honored by everyone,
    surrounded by immense wealth!
You turned poor widows away from your door;
    heartless, you crushed orphans.
Now you’re the one trapped in terror, paralyzed by fear.
    Suddenly the tables have turned!
How do you like living in the dark, sightless,
    up to your neck in flood waters?

^12-14“You agree, don’t you, that God is in charge?
    He runs the universe—just look at the stars!
Yet you dare raise questions: ‘What does God know?
    From that distance and darkness, how can he judge?
He roams the heavens wrapped in clouds,
    so how can he see us?’

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