Job 5
1 CALL NOW--is there any who will answer you? And to which of the holy [angels] will you turn?2 For vexation and rage kill the foolish man; jealousy and indignation slay the simple.3 I have seen the foolish taking root [and outwardly prospering], but suddenly I saw that his dwelling was cursed [for his doom was certain].4 His children are far from safety; [involved in their father’s ruin] they are crushed in the [court of justice in the city’s] gate, and there is no one to deliver them.5 His harvest the hungry eat and take it even [when it grows] among the thorns; the snare opens for [his] wealth.6 For affliction comes not forth from the dust, neither does trouble spring forth out of the ground.7 But man is born to trouble as the sparks and the flames fly upward.8 As for me, I would seek God and inquire of and require Him, and to God would I commit my cause--9 Who does great things and unsearchable, marvelous things without number,10 Who gives rain upon the earth and sends waters upon the fields,11 So that He sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn He lifts to safety.12 He frustrates the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise or anything of [lasting] worth.13 He catches the [so-called] wise in their own trickiness, and the counsel of the schemers is brought to a quick end. 14 In the daytime they meet in darkness, and at noon they grope as in the night.15 But [God] saves [the fatherless] from the sword of their mouth, and the needy from the hand of the mighty.16 So the poor have hope, and iniquity shuts her mouth.17 Happy and fortunate is the man whom God reproves; so do not despise or reject the correction of the Almighty [subjecting you to trial and suffering].18 For He wounds, but He binds up; He smites, but His hands heal.19 He will rescue you in six troubles; in seven nothing that is evil [for you] will touch you.20 In famine He will redeem you from death, and in war from the power of the sword.21 You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, neither shall you be afraid of destruction when it comes.22 At destruction and famine you shall laugh, neither shall you be afraid of the living creatures of the earth.23 For you shall be in league with the stones of the field, and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you.24 And you shall know that your tent shall be in peace, and you shall visit your fold and your dwelling and miss nothing [from them].25 You shall know also that your children shall be many, and your offspring as the grass of the earth.26 You shall come to your grave in ripe old age, and as a shock of grain goes up [to the threshing floor] in its season.27 This is what we have searched out; it is true. Hear and heed it and know for yourself [for your good].
Job 5
Chapter 5
Eliphaz’s Response Continues
1 “Cry for help, but will anyone answer you?
Which of the angelst will help you?2 Surely resentment destroys the fool,
and jealousy kills the simple.3 I have seen that fools may be successful for the moment,
but then comes sudden disaster.4 Their children are abandoned far from help;
they are crushed in court with no one to defend them.5 The hungry devour their harvest,
even when it is guarded by brambles.t
The thirsty pant after their wealth.6 But evil does not spring from the soil,
and trouble does not sprout from the earth.7 People are born for trouble
as readily as sparks fly up from a fire.8 “If I were you, I would go to God
and present my case to him.9 He does great things too marvelous to understand.
He performs countless miracles.10 He gives rain for the earth
and water for the fields.11 He gives prosperity to the poor
and protects those who suffer.12 He frustrates the plans of schemers
so the work of their hands will not succeed.13 He traps the wise in their own cleverness
so their cunning schemes are thwarted.14 They find it is dark in the daytime,
and they grope at noon as if it were night.15 He rescues the poor from the cutting words of the strong,
and rescues them from the clutches of the powerful.16 And so at last the poor have hope,
and the snapping jaws of the wicked are shut.17 “But consider the joy of those corrected by God!
Do not despise the discipline of the Almighty when you sin.18 For though he wounds, he also bandages.
He strikes, but his hands also heal.19 From six disasters he will rescue you;
even in the seventh, he will keep you from evil.20 He will save you from death in time of famine,
from the power of the sword in time of war.21 You will be safe from slander
and have no fear when destruction comes.22 You will laugh at destruction and famine;
wild animals will not terrify you.23 You will be at peace with the stones of the field,
and its wild animals will be at peace with you.24 You will know that your home is safe.
When you survey your possessions, nothing will be missing.25 You will have many children;
your descendants will be as plentiful as grass!26 You will go to the grave at a ripe old age,
like a sheaf of grain harvested at the proper time!27 “We have studied life and found all this to be true.
Listen to my counsel, and apply it to yourself.”