{194}
JOB.
No doubt but ye are the people,And wisdom shall die with you.But I have understanding as well as you;I am not inferior to you:Yea, who knoweth not such things as these?Lo, mine eye hath seen all this,Mine ear hath heard and understood it.What ye know, the same do I know also:I am not inferior unto you.Surely I would speak to the Almighty,And I desire to reason with God.But ye are forgers of lies,Ye are all physicians of no value.Oh that ye would altogether hold your peace!And it should be your wisdom.Your memorable sayings are proverbs of ashes.Though he slay me, yet will I wait for him:Nevertheless I will maintain my ways before him.This also shall be my salvation;For a godless man shall not come before him.Hear diligently my speech,And let my declaration be in your ears.Behold now, I have ordered my cause;I know that I am righteous.Who is he that will contend with me?How many are mine iniquities and sins?Make me to know my transgression and my sin.Wherefore hidest thou thy face,{195}And holdest me for thine enemy?Wilt thou harass a driven leaf?And wilt thou pursue the dry stubble?Man that is born of a womanIs of few days, and full of trouble.He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down:He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one,And bringest me into judgment with thee?For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again,And that the tender branch thereof will not cease.Though the root thereof grow old in the earth,And the stock thereof die in the ground;Yet through the scent of water it will bud,And put forth boughs like a plant.But man dieth, and wasteth away:Yea, man giveth up his spirit, and where is he?If a man die, shall he live again?All the days of my warfare would I wait,Till my release should come.Thou shouldest call, and I would answer thee:Thou wouldest have a desire to the work of thine hands.
THE FIRST CYCLE OF SPEECHES IS ENDED.
The three friends center their thought about God. The question is, why has Job suffered? Their answer is, because he has sinned. God is just, and would never make a man suffer unless he had sinned.Eliphazsays that all men are imperfect, and so{196}suffer. Let Job acknowledge that he has sinned, and this suffering will be only discipline, and God will again bless him.Bildadsays that the fathers have always understood that God was just. The man who does not believe as they did must be wicked.Zopharsays that God knows Job has sinned, even if Job himself is too blind to see it; else he would not make Job suffer.Jobis perplexed. Has he sinned so as to merit this suffering? No. If they say that God is just--yes, but what does God mean, then, by dealing thus with him? He had expected sympathy from his friends. Why do they not give it? He can only turn helplessly to God himself. Would that he could meet God as one might a man, and plead his cause! But, no! Even that chance for justice is cut off. And yet they can talk of God as being just!
IIELIPHAZ.
Should a wise man make answer with vain knowledge,And fill his belly with the east wind?Should he reason with unprofitable talk,Or with speeches wherewith he can do no good?Yea, thou doest away with fear,And restrainest devotion before God.For thine iniquity teacheth thy mouth,And thou choosest the tongue of the crafty.Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I;Yea, thine own lips testify against thee.Art thou the first man that was born?Or wast thou brought forth before the hills?Hast thou heard the secret counsel of God?And dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself?What knowest thou, that we know not?{197}What understandest thou, which is not in us?With us are both the grayheaded and the very aged men,Much older than thy father.Are the consolations of God too small for thee,And the word that dealeth gently with thee?Why doth thine heart carry thee away?And why do thine eyes wink?That thou turnest thy spirit against God,And lettest such words go out of thy mouth.
JOB.
I have heard many such things:Miserable comforters are ye all.Shall vain words have an end?Or what provoketh thee that thou answerest?I also could speak as ye do;If your soul were in my soul's stead,I could join words together against you,And shake mine head at you.But I would strengthen you with my mouth,And the solace of my lips should assuage your grief.God delivereth me to the ungodly,And casteth me into the hands of the wicked.I was at ease, and he brake me asunder;Yea, he hath taken me by the neck, and dashed me to pieces:He hath also set me up for his mark.His archers compass me round about,{198}My face is red with weeping,And on my eyelids is the shadow of death;Although there is no violence in mine hands,And my prayer is pure.O earth, cover not thou my blood,And let my cry have no resting place.Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven,And he that voucheth for me is on high.My friends scorn me:But mine eye poureth out tears unto God;That he would maintain the right of a man with God,And of a son of man with his neighbour!For when a few years are come,I shall go the way whence I shall not return.My spirit is consumed, my days are extinct,The grave is ready for me.Surely there are mockers with me,And mine eye abideth in their provocation.But return ye, all of you, and come now:And I shall not find a wise man among you.My days are past, my purposes are broken off,Even the thoughts of my heart.They change the night into day:The light, say they, is near unto the darkness.If I look for Sheol as mine house:If I have spread my couch, in the darkness;If I have said to corruption, "Thou art my father";To the worm, "Thou art my mother, and my sister";{199}Where then is my hope?And as for my hope, who shall see it?It shall go down to the bars of Sheol,When once there is rest in the dust.
BILDAD.
How long will ye lay snares for words?Consider, and afterwards we will speak.Wherefore are we counted as beasts,And are become unclean in your sight?Thou that tearest thyself in thine anger,Shall the earth be forsaken for thee?Or shall the rock be removed out of its place?Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out,And the spark of his fire shall not shine.The light shall be dark in his tent,And his lamp above him shall be put out.The steps of his strength shall be straitened,And his own counsel shall cast him down.He shall be rooted out of his tent wherein he trusteth;And he shall be brought to the king of terrors.He shall be driven from light into darkness,And chased out of the world.He shall have neither son nor son's son among his people,Nor any remaining where he sojourned.They that come after shall be astonished at his day,As they that went before were frightened.Surely such are the dwellings of the unrighteous,And this is the place of him that knoweth not God.
{200}
JOB.
How long will ye vex my soul,And break me in pieces with words?These ten times have ye reproached me:Ye are not ashamed that ye deal hardly with me.And if indeed I have erred,Mine error remaineth with myself.If indeed ye will magnify yourselves against me,And plead against me my reproach:Know now that God hath wronged me in my cause,And hath compassed me with his net.Behold, I cry out of wrong, but I am not heard:I cry for help, but there is no judgment.He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass,And hath set darkness in my paths.He hath put my brethren far from me,And mine acquaintance are wholly estranged from me.My kinsfolk have failed,And my familiar friends have forgotten me.Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends;For the hand of God hath touched me.Why do ye persecute me as God,And are not satisfied with my flesh?Oh that my words were now written!Oh that they were inscribed in a book!That with an iron pen and leadThey were graven in the rock for ever!But I know that my redeemer liveth,{201}And that he shall stand up at the last upon the earth:And after my skin hath been thus destroyed,Yet from my flesh shall I see God:Whom I shall see for myself,And mine eyes shall behold, and not another.
ZOPHAR.
Knowest thou not this of old time,Since man was placed upon earth,That the triumphing of the wicked is short,And the joy of the godless but for a moment?Though his excellency mount up to the heavens,And his head reach unto the clouds;He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found:Yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night.The eye which saw him shall see him no more;Neither shall his place any more behold him.For he hath oppressed and forsaken the poor;He hath violently taken away an house, and he shall not build it up.Because he knew no quietness within him,He shall not save aught of that wherein he delighteth.There was nothing left that he devoured not;Therefore his prosperity shall not endure.In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits:The hand of everyone that is in misery shall come upon him.The heavens shall reveal his iniquity,And the earth shall rise up against him.{202}The increase of his house shall depart,His goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.This is the portion of a wicked man from God,And the heritage appointed unto him by God.
JOB.
Hear diligently my speech;And let this be your consolations.Suffer me, and I also will speak;And after that I have spoken, mock on.As for me, is my complaint to man?And why should I not be impatient?Wherefore do the wicked live,Become old, yea, wax mighty in power?Their seed is established with them in their sight,And their offspring before their eyes.Their houses are safe from fear,Neither is the rod of God upon them.They send forth their little ones like a flock,And their children dance.They sing to the timbrel and harp,And rejoice at the sound of the pipe.They spend their days in prosperity,And in a moment they go down to Sheol.Yet they said unto God, "Depart from us;For we desire not the knowledge of thy ways.What is the Almighty, that we should serve him?{203}And what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?"Lo, their prosperity is not in their hand:The counsel of the wicked is far from me.How oft is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out?That their calamity cometh upon them?That God distributeth sorrows in his anger?That they are as stubble before the wind,And as chaff that the storm carrieth away?Ye say, God layeth up his iniquity for his children.Let him recompense it unto himself, that he may know it.Let his own eyes see his destruction,And let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty.For what pleasure hath he in his house after him,When the number of his months is cut off in the midst?Shall any teach God knowledge?Seeing he judgeth those that are high.One dieth in his full strength,Being wholly at ease and quiet:And another dieth in bitterness of soul,And never tasteth of good.They lie down alike in the dust,And the worm covereth them.Behold, I know your thoughts,And the devices which ye wrongfully imagine against me.For ye say, Where is the house of the tyrant?And where is the tent wherein the wicked dwelt?{204}Have ye not asked them that go by the way?And do ye not know their tokens?That the evil man is reserved to the day of calamity?That they are led forth to the day of wrath?Who shall declare his way to his face?And who shall repay him what he hath done?Yet shall he be borne to the grave,And shall keep watch over the tomb.The clods of the valley shall be sweet unto him,And all men shall draw after him,As there were innumerable before him.How then comfort ye me in vain,Seeing in your answers there remaineth only falsehood?
THE SECOND CYCLE OF SPEECHES IS ENDED.
In the first cycle, the three friends had tried to bring Job to their idea of God, and had failed. Now they center their thought about the wicked man,--how his wickedness brings suffering.Eliphazsays that all men know that the wicked suffer.Bildadsays that the very order of nature is such that the wicked suffer.Zopharsays that, even if the wicked have any prosperity, it is short, and the end is suffering. All this is to rouse the conscience of Job to believe that he is suffering for his sins. Job, overwhelmed by their lack of sympathy, at first does not try to meet their arguments, but continues his complaint and prayer to God. Zophar's speech arouses him to answer, and he says Zophar does not speak the truth. The wicked live and die as happily as the righteous.
The real argument is ended. The friends have tried to show that Job suffers because he has sinned. They have come to the question from the side of God and from the side of man; and in each case Job has denied their position. Nothing is left but to charge Job directly with sin.
{205}
IIIELIPHAZ.
Can a man be profitable unto God?Surely he that is wise is profitable unto himself.Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou are righteous?Or, is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect?Is it for thy fear of him that he reproveth thee,That he entereth with thee into judgment?Is not thy wickedness great?Neither is there any end to thine iniquities.For thou hast taken pledges of thy brother for nought,And stripped the naked of their clothing.Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink,And thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.Thou hast sent widows away empty,And the arms of the fatherless have been broken.Therefore snares are round about thee,And sudden fear troubleth thee,Or darkness, that thou canst not see,And abundance of waters cover thee.Is not God in the height of heaven?And behold the height of the stars, how high they are!And thou sayest, "What doth God know?Can he judge through the thick darkness?Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he seeth not;And he walketh in the circuit of heaven."Wilt thou keep the old wayWhich wicked men have trodden?{206}If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up;If thou put away unrighteousness far from thy tents.And lay thou thy treasure in the dust,And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks;And the Almighty shall be thy treasure,And precious silver unto thee.For then shalt thou delight thyself in the Almighty,And shalt lift up thy face unto God.Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee;And thou shalt pay thy vows.Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee;And light shall shine upon thy ways.
JOB.
Even to-day is my complaint rebellious:My stroke is heavier than my groaning.Oh that I knew where I might find him,That I might come even to his dwelling place!I would order my cause before him,And fill my mouth with arguments.I would know the words which he would answer me,And understand what he would say unto me.Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power?Nay; but he would give heed unto me.There the upright might reason with him;So should I be delivered for ever from my judge.Behold, I go forward, but he is not there;{207}And backward, but I cannot perceive him:On the left hand, when he doth work, but I cannot behold him:He hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him.But he knoweth the way: that I take;When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.My foot hath held fast to his steps;His way have I kept, and turned not aside.I have not gone back from the commandment of his lips;I have treasured up the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.But he is in one mind, and who can turn him?And what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.For he performeth that which is appointed for me:And many such things are with him.Therefore am I troubled at his presence;When I consider, I am afraid of him.For God hath made my heart faint,And the Almighty hath troubled me:Because I was not cut off before the darkness,Neither did he cover the thick darkness from my face.
BILDAD.
Dominion and fear are with him;He maketh peace in his high places.Is there any number of his armies?And upon whom doth not his light arise?How then can man be just with God?{208}Or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?Behold, even the moon hath no brightness,And the stars are not pure in his sight:How much less man, that is a worm!And the son of man, which is a worm!
JOB.
How hast thou helped him that is without power!How hast thou saved the arm that hath no strength!How hast thou counselled him that hath no wisdom,And plentifully declared sound knowledge!To whom hast thou uttered words?And whose spirit came forth from thee?They that are deceased trembleBeneath the waters and the inhabitants thereof.Sheol is naked before him,And Abaddon hath no covering.He stretcheth out the north over empty space,And hangeth the earth upon nothing.He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds;And the cloud is not rent under them.He closeth in the face of his throne,And spreadeth his cloud upon it.He hath described a boundary upon the face of the watersUnto the confines of light and darkness.The pillars of heaven trembleAnd are astonished at his rebuke.He stirreth up the sea with his power,And by his understanding he smiteth through Rahab.{209}By his spirit the heavens are garnished;His hand hath pierced the swift serpent.Lo, these are but the outskirts of his ways:And how small a whisper do we hear of him!But the thunder of his power who can understand?As God liveth, who hath taken away my right;And the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul;(For my life is yet whole in me,And the spirit of God is in my nostrils;)Surely my lips shall not speak unrighteousness,Neither shall my tongue utter deceit.God forbid that I should justify you:Till I die I will not put away mine integrity from me.My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go:My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.
ZOPHAR.
This is the portion of a wicked man with God,And the heritage of oppressors, which they receive from the Almighty.Though he heap up silver as the dust,And prepare raiment as the clay;He may prepare it, but the just shall put it on,And the innocent shall divide the silver.He openeth his eyes, and he is not.Terrors overtake him like waters;A tempest stealeth him away in the night.The east wind carrieth him away, and he departeth;And it sweepeth him out of his place.
{210}
JOB.
Oh that I were as in the months of old,As in the days when God watched over me;When his lamp shined upon my head,And by his light I walked through darkness;As I was in the ripeness of my days,When the secret of God was upon my tent;When the Almighty was yet with me,And my children were about me;When I went forth to the gate unto the city,When I prepared my seat in the street,The young men saw me and hid themselves,And the aged rose up and stood;The princes refrained talking,And laid their hand on their mouth;The voice of the nobles was hushed,And their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth.For when the ear heard me, then it blessed me;And when the eye saw me, it gave witness unto me:Because I delivered the poor that cried,The fatherless also, that had none to help him.The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me:And I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.I put on righteousness, and it clothed me:My justice was as a robe and a diadem.I was eyes to the blind,And feet was I to the lame.I was a father to the needy:And the cause of him that I knew not I searched out.{211}But now they that are younger than I have me in derision,Upon my right hand rise the rabble;They thrust aside my feet,And they cast up against me their ways of destruction.And now my soul is poured out within me;Days of affliction have taken hold upon me.In the night season my bones are pierced in me,And the pains that gnaw me take no rest.He hath cast me into the mire,And I am become like dust and ashes.I cry unto thee, and thou dost not answer me:I stand up, and thou lookest at me.Thou liftest me up to the wind, thou causest me to ride upon it;And thou dissolvest me in the storm.If I did despise the cause of my manservant or of my maidservant,When they contended with me:What then shall I do when God riseth up?And when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?If I have withheld the poor from their desire,Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail;Or have eaten my morsel alone,And the fatherless hath not eaten thereof;If I have seen any perish for want of clothing,Or that the needy had no covering;If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless,Because I saw my help in the gate:{212}Then let my shoulder fall from the shoulder blade,And mine arm be broken from the bone.If I have made gold my hope,And have said to the fine gold,Thou art my confidence;If I rejoiced because my wealth was great,And because mine hand had gotten much;If I rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me,Or lifted up myself when evil found him;If the men of my tent said not,Who can find one that hath not been satisfied with his food?The stranger did not lodge in the street;But I opened my doors to the traveller.Oh that I had one to hear me!(Lo, here is my signature, let the Almighty answer me;)And that I had the indictment which mine adversary hath written!Surely I would carry it upon my shoulder;I would bind it unto me as a crown.I would declare unto him the number of my steps;As a prince would I go near unto him.If my land cry out against me,And the furrows thereof weep together;If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money,Or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:{213}Let thistles grow instead of wheat,And cockle instead of barley.
IN THE THIRD CYCLE OF SPEECHES
The three friends still try to show Job that he must have sinned.Eliphazcharges him directly with the sins that a rich man in his position could most easily commit.Bildadonly repeats in feebler phrase former statements about man's impurity in the pure sight of God.Zophareither does not appear at all, or maintains his former position with no new argument.Jobstill wishes he might find God to plead his cause, and, at the end, affirms formally his innocence of the sins with which Eliphaz had charged him.
The argument has ended. Neither side has moved the other a single step from the position taken at the beginning. The question of why Job suffers is still unanswered. If it is ever to be answered, some other solution than that of the three friends must be offered.
IV
So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram: against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified himself rather than God. Also against his three friends was his wrath kindled, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job. Now Elihu had waited to speak unto Job, because they were older than he. And when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouth of these three men, his wrath was kindled.
ELIHU.(He speaks to the friends.)
I am young, and ye are very old;{214}Wherefore I held back, and durst not shew you mine opinion.I said, "Days should speak,And multitude of years should teach wisdom."But there is a spirit in man,And the breath of the Almighty giveth them understanding.It is not the great alone that are wise,Nor the aged that understand judgment.Therefore I said, "Hearken to me;I also will shew mine opinion."Behold, I waited for your words,I listened for your reasons,Whilst ye searched out what to say.Yea, I attended unto you,And, behold, there was none that convinced Job,Or that answered his words, among you.
(He speaks to Job.)
Howbeit, Job, I pray thee, hear my speechAnd hearken to all my words.Behold now, I have opened my mouth,My tongue hath spoken in my mouth.My words shall utter the uprightness of my heart:And that which my lips know they shall speak sincerely.The spirit of God hath made me,And the breath of the Almighty giveth me life.If thou canst, answer thou me;Set thy words in order before me, stand forth.{215}Behold, I am toward God even as thou art:I also am formed out of the clay.Behold, my terror shall not make thee afraid,Neither shall my pressure be heavy upon thee.Surely thou hast spoken in mine hearing,And I have heard the voice of thy words, saying,"I am clean, without transgression;I am innocent, neither is there iniquity in me:Behold, he findeth occasions against me,He counteth me for his enemy;He putteth my feet in the stocks,He marketh all my paths."Behold, I will answer thee, in this thou art not just;For God is greater than man.Why dost thou strive against him?For he giveth not account of any of his matters.For God speaketh once,Yea twice, though man regardeth it not.In a dream, in a vision of the night,When deep sleep falleth upon men,In slumberings upon the bed;Then he openeth the ears of men,And sealeth their instruction,That he may withdraw man from his purpose,And hide pride from man;He keepeth back his soul from the pit,And his life from perishing by the sword.To shew unto man what is right for him;Then he is gracious unto him, and saith,{216}"Deliver him from going down to the pit,I have found a ransom."His flesh shall be fresher than a child's;He returneth to the days of his youth:He prayeth unto God, and he is favourable unto him;So that he seeth his face with joy:And he restoreth unto man his righteousness.He singeth before men, and saith,"I have sinned, and perverted that which was right,And it profited me not:He hath redeemed my soul from going into the pit,And my life shall behold the light."Lo, all these things doth God work,Twice, yea thrice, with a man,To bring back his soul from the pit,That he may be enlightened with the light of the living.Mark well, O Job, hearken unto me:Hold thy peace, and I will speak.If thou hast any thing to say, answer me:Speak, for I desire to justify thee.If not, hearken thou unto me:Hold thy peace, and I will teach thee wisdom.
(He speaks again to the friends.)
Hear my words, ye wise men;And give ear unto me, ye that have knowledge.For the ear trieth words,As the palate tasteth meat.Let us choose for us that which is right:{217}Let us know among ourselves what is good.For Job hath said, "I am righteous,And God hath taken away my right."Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding:Far be it from God, that he should do wickedness;And from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.For the work of a man shall he render unto him,And cause every man to find according to his ways.Yea, of a surety, God will not do wickedly,Neither will the Almighty pervert judgment.Is it fit to say to a king, "Thou art vile?"Or to nobles, "Ye are wicked?"How much less to him that respecteth not the persons of princes,Nor regardeth the rich more than the poor?For they all are the work of his hands.In a moment they die, even at midnight;For his eyes are upon the ways of a man,And he seeth all his goings.There is no darkness, nor shadow of death,Where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.Therefore speak what thou knowest.Men of understanding will say unto me,Yea, every wise man that heareth me:"Job speaketh without knowledge,And his words are without wisdom.Would that Job were tried unto the end,Because of his answering like wicked men.{218}For he addeth rebellion unto his sin,He clappeth his hands among us,And multiplieth his words against God."
(He speaks again to Job.)
Thinkest thou this to be thy right,Or sayest thou, "My righteousness is more than God's,"That thou sayest, "What advantage will it be unto thee?"And, "What profit shall I have, more than if I had sinned?"I will answer thee,And thy companions with thee.Look unto the heavens, and see;And behold the skies, which are higher than thou.If thou hast sinned, what doest thou against him?And if thy transgressions be multiplied, what doest thou unto him?If thou be righteous, what givest thou him?Or what receiveth he of thine hand?There they cry, but none giveth answer,Because of the pride of evil men.Surely God will not hear vanity,Neither will the Almighty regard it.How much less when thou sayest thou beholdest him not,The cause is before him, and thou waitest for him!But now, because he hath not visited in his anger,Neither doth he greatly regard arrogance;Therefore doth Job open his mouth in vanity;He multiplieth words without knowledge.{219}Behold, God is mighty, and despiseth not any:He is mighty in strength of understanding.He preserveth not the life of the wicked:But giveth to the afflicted their right.He withdraweth not his eyes from the righteous:But with kings upon the throneHe setteth them for ever, and they are exalted.And if they be bound in fetters,And be taken in the cords of affliction;Then he sheweth them their work,And their transgressions, that they have behaved themselves proudly.He openeth also their ear to instruction.Behold, God is great, and we know him not;The number of his years is unsearchable.For he draweth up the drops of water,Which distil in rain from his vapour:Which the skies pour downAnd drop upon man abundantly.Yea, can any understand the spreadings of the clouds,The thunderings of his pavilion?Behold, he spreadeth his light around him;And he covereth the bottom of the sea.For by these he judgeth the peoples;He giveth meat in abundance.He covereth his hands with the lightning;And giveth it a charge that it strike the mark.The noise thereof telleth concerning him,The cattle also concerning the storm that cometh up.At this also my heart trembleth,{220}And is moved out of its place.Hearken ye unto the noise of his voice,And the sound that goeth out of his mouth.He sendeth it forth under the whole heaven,And his lightning unto the ends of the earth.After it a voice roareth;He thundereth with the voice of his majesty:And he stayeth them not when his voice is heard.God thundereth marvellously with his voice;Great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend.For he saith to the snow, "Fall thou on the earth";Likewise to the shower of rain,And to the showers of his mighty rain.He sealeth up the hand of every man;That all men whom he hath made may know it.Then the beasts go into coverts,And remain in their dens.Out of the chamber of the south cometh the storm:And cold out of the north.By the breath of God ice is given:And the breadth of the waters is straitened.Yea, he ladeth the thick cloud with moisture;He spreadeth abroad the cloud of his lightning:And it is turned round about by his guidance,That they may do whatsoever he commandeth themUpon the face of the habitable world:Whether it be for correction, or for his land,Or for mercy, that he cause it to come.Hearken unto this, O Job:{221}Stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.Dost thou know how God layeth his charge upon them,And causeth the lightning of his cloud to shine?Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds,The wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?How thy garments are warm,When the earth is still by reason of the south wind?Canst thou with him spread out the sky,Which is strong as a molten mirror?Teach us what we shall say unto him;For we cannot order our speech by reason of darkness.Shall it be told him that I would speak?Or should a man wish that he were swallowed up?And now men see not the light which is bright in the skies:But the wind passeth, and cleanseth them.Out of the north cometh golden splendour:God hath upon him terrible majesty.Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out; he is excellent in power:And in judgment and plenteous justice he will not afflict.Men do therefore fear him:He regardeth not any that are wise of heart.
(Elihuoffers his solution to the question, Why does Job suffer? He is young, conceited, and wordy, but sincere in his belief that he has wisdom which his elders and betters have not found. It is difficult to see what that wisdom is. Most of what he says has been better said before. If he adds anything, it is the thought that God sometimes sends suffering, not only to punish for past sin, but to keep man from future sin.)
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VTHE LORD.(He speaks to Job out of the whirlwind.)
Who is this that darkeneth counselBy words without knowledge?Gird up now thy loins like a man;For I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?Declare, if thou hast understanding.Who determined the measures thereof, if thou knowest?Or who stretched the line upon it?Whereupon were the foundations thereof fastened?Or who laid the corner stone thereof;When the morning stars sang together,And all the sons of God shouted for joy?Or who shut up the sea with doors,When it brake forth,When I made the cloud the garment thereof,And thick darkness a swaddlingband for it,And prescribed for it my decree,And set bars and doors,And said, "Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further;And here shall thy proud waves be stayed"?Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days began,And caused the dayspring to know its place;{223}That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,And the wicked be shaken out of it?It is changed as clay under the seal;And all things stand forth as a garment:And from the wicked their light is withholden,And the high arm is broken.Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea?Or hast thou walked in the recesses of the deep?Have the gates of death been revealed unto thee?Or hast thou seen the gates of the shadow of death?Hast thou comprehended the breadth of the earth?Declare, if thou knowest it all.Where is the way to the dwelling of light,And as for darkness, where is the place thereof;That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof,And that thou shouldest discern the paths to the house thereof?Doubtless, thou knowest, for thou wast then born,And the number of thy days is great!Hast thou entered the treasuries of the snow,Or hast thou seen the treasuries of the hail,Which I have reserved against the time of trouble,Against the day of battle and war?By what way is the light parted,Or the east wind scattered upon the earth?Who hath cleft a channel for the waterflood,Or a way for the lightning of the thunder;To cause it to rain on a land where no man is;{224}On the wilderness, wherein there is no man;To satisfy the waste and desolate ground;And to cause the tender grass to spring forth?Canst thou bind the cluster of the Pleiades,Or loose the bands of Orion?Canst thou lead forth the signs of the Zodiac in their season?Or canst thou guide the Bear with her train?Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens?Canst thou establish the dominion thereof in the earth?Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds,That abundance of waters may cover thee?Canst thou send forth lightnings, that they may go,And say unto thee, "Here we are"?Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts?Or who hath given understanding to the mind?Who can number the clouds by wisdom?Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven,When the dust runneth into a mass,And the clods cleave fast together?Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lioness?Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,When they couch in their dens,And abide in the covert to lie in wait?Who provideth for the raven his food,When his young ones cry unto God,And wander for lack of meat?{225}Who hath sent out the wild ass free?Or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass?Whose house I have made the wilderness,And the salt land his dwelling place ..He scorneth the tumult of the city,Neither heareth he the shoutings of the driver.The range of the mountains is his pasture,And he searcheth after every green thing.Will the wild-ox be content to serve thee?Or will he abide by thy crib?Canst thou bind the wild-ox with his band in the furrow?Or will he harrow the valleys after thee?Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great?Or wilt thou leave to him thy labour?Wilt thou confide in him, that he will bring home thy seed,And gather the corn of thy threshing-floor?The wing of the ostrich rejoiceth;But are her pinions and feathers kindly?For she leaveth her eggs on the earth,And warmeth them in the dust,And forgetteth that the foot may crush them,Or that the wild beast may trample them.She is hardened against her young ones, as if they were not hers:Though her labour be in vain, she is without fear;Because God hath deprived her of wisdom,Neither hath he imparted to her understanding.{226}What time she lifteth up herself on high,She scorneth the horse and his rider.Hast thou given the horse his might?Hast thou clothed his neck with the quivering mane?Hast thou made him to leap as a locust?The glory of his snorting is terrible.He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his strength:He goeth out to meet the armed men.He mocketh at fear, and is not dismayed;Neither turneth he back from the sword.The quiver rattleth against him,The flashing spear and the javelin.He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage;Neither believeth he that it is the voice of the trumpetAs oft as the trumpet soundeth he saith, "Aha!"And he smelleth the battle afar off,The thunder of the captains, and the shouting.Doth the hawk soar by thy wisdom,And stretch her wings toward the south?Doth the eagle mount up at thy command,And make her nest on high?She dwelleth on the rock, and hath her lodging there,Upon the crag of the rock, and the strong hold.From thence she spieth out the prey;Her eyes behold it afar off.Her young ones also suck up blood:And where the slain are, there is she.
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JOB.