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Elihu Asks Job to Hear and Respond

¹ "However now, Job, please ^(C1)hear my speech,
And give ear to all my words.

² "Behold now, I open my mouth;
My tongue in my ^(F1)mouth speaks.

³ "My words are from the uprightness of my heart,
And my lips speak ^(C1)knowledge sincerely.

⁴ "The ^(C1)Spirit of God has made me,
And the ^(C2)breath of ^(F1)the Almighty gives me life.

⁵ "^(C1)Respond to me if you can;
Arrange yourselves before me, take your stand.

⁶ "Behold, I belong to God like you;
I too have been ^(F1)formed out of the ^(C1)clay.

⁷ "Behold, ^(C1)no dread of me should terrify you,
Nor should my pressure weigh heavily on you.

⁸ "Surely you have spoken in my hearing,
And I have heard the sound of your speech:

⁹ 'I am ^(C1)pure, ^(C2)without transgression;
I am innocent, and there ^(C3)is no guilt in me.

¹⁰ 'Behold, He finds reasons for opposition against me;
He ^(C1)counts me as His enemy.

¹¹ 'He ^(C1)puts my feet in the stocks;
He keeps watch over all my paths.'

¹² "Behold, let me answer you; ^(C1)you are not right in this,
For God is greater than mortal man.

¹³ "Why do you ^(C1)contend against Him?
For He does not give an answer for all His doings.

¹⁴ "Indeed ^(C1)God speaks once,
Or twice, yet no one perceives it.

¹⁵ "In a ^(C1)dream, a vision of the night,
When deep sleep falls on men,
While they slumber in their beds,

¹⁶ Then ^(C1)He opens the ears of men,
And seals in their discipline,

¹⁷ That He may turn man aside from his conduct,
And ^(F1)keep man from pride;

¹⁸ He ^(C1)holds back his soul from the pit,
And his life from passing over ^(F1)to death ^(C2)by a weapon.

¹⁹ "^(F1)Man is also reproved with ^(C1)pain on his bed,
And with unceasing contention in his bones,

²⁰ So that his life ^(C1)loathes bread,
And his soul favorite food.

²¹ "His ^(C1)flesh wastes away from sight,
And his ^(C2)bones which were not seen stick out.

²² "Then ^(C1)his soul draws near to the pit,
And his life to those who bring death.

²³ "If there is an angel as ^(C1)mediator for him,
One out of a thousand,
To declare to a man what is ^(F1)right for him,

²⁴ Then let him be gracious to him, and say,
'Deliver him from ^(C1)going down to the pit;
I have found ^(C2)atonement';

²⁵ Let his flesh become fresher than in youth,
Let him return to the days of his youthful vigor;

²⁶ Then he will ^(C1)entreat God, and He will accept him,
And ^(C2)he will see His face with joyful shouts,
And He may restore His righteousness to man.

²⁷ "He will sing to men and say,
'I ^(C1)have sinned and perverted what is right,
But He has not done ^(C2)what is due to me.

²⁸ 'He has redeemed my soul from passing into the pit,
And my life shall ^(C1)see the light.'

²⁹ "Behold, God does ^(C1)all these things twice, three times with men,

³⁰ To ^(C1)bring back his soul from the pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life.

³¹ "Pay attention, O Job, listen to me;
Keep silent, and I will speak.

³² "Then if ^(F1)you have any speech, respond to me;
Speak, for I desire to prove you righteous.

³³ "If not, ^(C1)listen to me;
Keep silent, and I will teach you wisdom."