Job 36:1-33
36 E·liʹhu continued:
2 “Be patient with me a little longer while I explain,For I still have words to speak on God’s behalf.
3 I will speak comprehensively about what I know,And I will ascribe righteousness to my Maker.+
4 Truly my words are not false;The One perfect in knowledge+ is here before you.
5 Indeed, God is mighty+ and rejects no one;He is great in his power of understanding.*
6 He will not preserve the lives of the wicked,+But he gives justice to the afflicted.+
7 He does not take his eyes off the righteous;+He enthrones them with kings,*+ and they are exalted forever.
8 But if they are bound in shacklesAnd caught in ropes of affliction,
9 He reveals to them what they have done,Their transgressions caused by their pride.
10 He opens their ears to correctionAnd tells them to turn away from wrongdoing.+
11 If they obey and serve him,They will live out their days in prosperity,And their years will be pleasant.+
12 But if they do not obey, they will perish by the sword*+And die without knowledge.
13 The godless* at heart will harbor resentment.
They do not cry for help even when he binds them.
14 They die* while still young,+Spending* their life among male temple prostitutes.+
15 But God* rescues the afflicted during their affliction;He opens their ear when they are oppressed.
16 He draws you away from the brink of distress+To a broad space, free of restriction,+With rich food on your table as consolation.+
17 Then you will be satisfied with the judgment on the wicked,+When judgment is rendered and justice is upheld.
18 But take care that rage does not lead you into spitefulness,*+And do not let a large bribe lead you astray.
19 Would your cry for helpOr any of your strenuous efforts keep you from distress?+
20 Do not long for the night,When people vanish from their place.
21 Beware that you do not turn to wrongdoing,Choosing this instead of affliction.+
22 Look! God is exalted in his power;What instructor is like him?
23 Who has directed* his way+Or said to him, ‘What you have done is wrong’?+
24 Remember to magnify his activity,+Of which men have sung.+
25 All mankind has seen it,Mortal man looks on from a distance.
26 Yes, God is greater than we can know;+The number of his years is beyond comprehension.*+
27 He draws up the drops of water;+They condense into rain from his mist;
28 Then the clouds pour it down;+They shower down upon mankind.
29 Can anyone understand the layers of clouds,The thundering from his tent?*+
30 See how he spreads his lightning*+ over itAnd covers the depths* of the sea.
31 By these he sustains* the peoples;He gives them food in abundance.+
32 With his hands he covers the lightning,And he directs it against its target.+
33 His thunder tells about him,Even the livestock tell who* is coming.
Footnotes
^ Lit., “heart.”
^ Or possibly, “He enthrones kings.”
^ Or “by a weapon (missile).”
^ Or “apostate.”
^ Or “Their soul dies.”
^ Or possibly, “Ending.”
^ Lit., “He.”
^ Or “spiteful handclapping.”
^ Or possibly, “criticized; called him to account for.”
^ Or “is unsearchable.”
^ Lit., “booth.”
^ Lit., “light.”
^ Lit., “roots.”
^ Or possibly, “pleads the cause of.”
^ Or possibly, “what.”