Elihu Contradicts Job

33 “But please, Job, hear my speech,
And listen to all my words.
Now, I open my mouth;
My tongue speaks in my mouth.
My words come from my upright heart;
My lips utter pure knowledge.
(A)The Spirit of God has made me,
And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
If you can answer me,
Set your words in order before me;
Take your stand.
(B)Truly I am [a]as your spokesman before God;
I also have been formed out of clay.
(C)Surely no fear of me will terrify you,
Nor will my hand be heavy on you.

“Surely you have spoken [b]in my hearing,
And I have heard the sound of your words, saying,
‘I(D) am pure, without transgression;
I am innocent, and there is no iniquity in me.
10 Yet He finds occasions against me,
(E)He counts me as His enemy;
11 (F)He puts my feet in the stocks,
He watches all my paths.’

12 “Look, in this you are not righteous.
I will answer you,
For God is greater than man.
13 Why do you (G)contend with Him?
For He does not give an accounting of any of His words.
14 (H)For God may speak in one way, or in another,
Yet man does not perceive it.
15 (I)In a dream, in a vision of the night,
When deep sleep falls upon men,
While slumbering on their beds,
16 (J)Then He opens the ears of men,
And seals their instruction.
17 In order to turn man from his deed,
And conceal pride from man,
18 He keeps back his soul from the Pit,
And his life from [c]perishing by the sword.

19 Man is also chastened with pain on his (K)bed,
And with strong pain in many of his bones,
20 (L)So that his life abhors (M)bread,
And his soul [d]succulent food.
21 His flesh wastes away from sight,
And his bones stick out which once were not seen.
22 Yes, his soul draws near the Pit,
And his life to the executioners.

23 “If there is a messenger for him,
A mediator, one among a thousand,
To show man His uprightness,
24 Then He is gracious to him, and says,
‘Deliver him from going down to the Pit;
I have found [e]a ransom’;
25 His flesh shall be young like a child’s,
He shall return to the days of his youth.
26 He shall pray to God, and He will delight in him,
He shall see His face with joy,
For He restores to man His righteousness.
27 Then he looks at men and (N)says,
‘I have sinned, and perverted what was right,
And it (O)did not profit me.’
28 He will (P)redeem [f]his soul from going down to the Pit,
And his life shall see the light.

29 “Behold, God works all these things,
Twice, in fact, three times with a man,
30 (Q)To bring back his soul from the Pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life.

31 “Give ear, Job, listen to me;
Hold your peace, and I will speak.
32 If you have anything to say, answer me;
Speak, for I desire to justify you.
33 If not, (R)listen to me;
[g]Hold your peace, and I will teach you wisdom.”

Footnotes

  1. Job 33:6 Lit. as your mouth
  2. Job 33:8 Lit. in my ears
  3. Job 33:18 Lit. passing
  4. Job 33:20 desirable
  5. Job 33:24 an atonement
  6. Job 33:28 Kt. my
  7. Job 33:33 Keep silent

Greeting

Paul, (A)called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ (B)through the will of God, and (C)Sosthenes our brother,

To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who (D)are [a]sanctified in Christ Jesus, (E)called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ (F)our Lord, (G)both theirs and ours:

(H)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Gifts at Corinth

(I)I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him (J)in all [b]utterance and all knowledge, even as (K)the testimony of Christ was confirmed [c]in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly (L)waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, (M)who will also confirm you to the end, (N)that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. (O)God is faithful, by whom you were called into (P)the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Sectarianism Is Sin

10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, (Q)that you all [d]speak the same thing, and that there be no [e]divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 11 For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are [f]contentions among you. 12 Now I say this, that (R)each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of (S)Apollos,” or “I am of (T)Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” 13 (U)Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

14 I thank God that I baptized (V)none of you except (W)Crispus and (X)Gaius, 15 lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name. 16 Yes, I also baptized the household of (Y)Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other. 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, (Z)not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.

Christ the Power and Wisdom of God(AA)

18 For the [g]message of the cross is (AB)foolishness to (AC)those who are perishing, but to us (AD)who are being saved it is the (AE)power of God. 19 For it is written:

(AF)“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”

20 (AG)Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the [h]disputer of this age? (AH)Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For since, in the (AI)wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 22 For (AJ)Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; 23 but we preach Christ crucified, (AK)to the Jews a [i]stumbling block and to the [j]Greeks (AL)foolishness, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ (AM)the power of God and (AN)the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Glory Only in the Lord

26 For [k]you see your calling, brethren, (AO)that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many [l]noble, are called. 27 But (AP)God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28 and the [m]base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29 that no flesh should glory in His presence. 30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and (AQ)righteousness and sanctification and redemption— 31 that, as it is written, (AR)“He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”

Christ Crucified

And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the [n]testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you (AS)except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. (AT)I was with you (AU)in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching (AV)were not with persuasive words of [o]human wisdom, (AW)but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the (AX)power of God.

Spiritual Wisdom

However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God [p]ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for (AY)had they known, they would not have (AZ)crucified the Lord of glory.

But as it is written:

(BA)“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

10 But (BB)God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the (BC)spirit of the man which is in him? (BD)Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but (BE)the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.

13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the [q]Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 (BF)But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. 16 For (BG)“who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” (BH)But we have the mind of Christ.

Sectarianism Is Carnal

And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to (BI)babes in Christ. I fed you with (BJ)milk and not with solid food; (BK)for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and [r]behaving like mere men? For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not carnal?

Watering, Working, Warning

Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but (BL)ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? (BM)I planted, (BN)Apollos watered, (BO)but God gave the increase. So then (BP)neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, (BQ)and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

For (BR)we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are (BS)God’s building. 10 (BT)According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid (BU)the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than (BV)that which is laid, (BW)which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day (BX)will declare it, because (BY)it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

16 (BZ)Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone [s]defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

Avoid Worldly Wisdom

18 (CA)Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, (CB)“He catches the wise in their own craftiness”; 20 and again, (CC)“The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” 21 Therefore let no one boast in men. For (CD)all things are yours: 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come—all are yours. 23 And (CE)you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Corinthians 1:2 set apart
  2. 1 Corinthians 1:5 speech
  3. 1 Corinthians 1:6 Or among
  4. 1 Corinthians 1:10 Have a uniform testimony
  5. 1 Corinthians 1:10 schisms or dissensions
  6. 1 Corinthians 1:11 quarrels
  7. 1 Corinthians 1:18 Lit. word
  8. 1 Corinthians 1:20 debater
  9. 1 Corinthians 1:23 Gr. skandalon, offense
  10. 1 Corinthians 1:23 NU Gentiles
  11. 1 Corinthians 1:26 consider
  12. 1 Corinthians 1:26 well-born
  13. 1 Corinthians 1:28 insignificant or lowly
  14. 1 Corinthians 2:1 NU mystery
  15. 1 Corinthians 2:4 NU omits human
  16. 1 Corinthians 2:7 predetermined
  17. 1 Corinthians 2:13 NU omits Holy
  18. 1 Corinthians 3:3 Lit. walking according to man
  19. 1 Corinthians 3:17 destroys

Bible Gateway Recommends