1 Or, paid in full

2 Or, Wearisome

3 Heb. words of wind.

The flame shall dry up his branches,

And by the breath of his mouth shall he go

away.

Let him not trust in vanity, deceiving himself: 31
For vanity shall be his recompence.

It shall be 'accomplished before his time,
And his branch shall not be green.

32

He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine, 33
And shall cast off his flower as the olive.

For the company of the godless shall be barren, 34
And fire shall consume the tents of bribery.

They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity, 35
And their belly prepareth deceit.

Then Job answered and said,
I have heard many such things:
2 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,

But I would strengthen you with my mouth,

I 16

2.

3

And shake mine head at you.

5

And the solace of my lips should assuage your

grief.

Though I speak, my grief is not assuaged:

6

4 Heb. what

departeth from me?

Or, shrivelled me up

6 Or, hated

And though I forbear, 'what am I eased?
But now he hath made me weary :

Thou hast made desolate all my company.

7

And thou hast laid fast hold on me, which is a 8
witness against me:

And my leanness riseth up against me, it testi-
fieth to my face.

He hath torn me in his wrath, and 'persecuted 9

me;

He hath gnashed upon me with his teeth:
Mine adversary sharpeneth his eyes upon me.

10 They have gaped upon me with their mouth ; They have smitten me upon the cheek reproachfully:

They gather themselves together against me. II God delivereth me to the ungodly,

And casteth me into the hands of the wicked. 12 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.

13 His 'archers compass me round about,

He cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not
spare;

He poureth out my gall upon the ground. 14 He breaketh me with breach upon breach; He runneth upon me like a 'giant.

15 I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, And have laid my horn in the dust.

16 My face is 'foul with weeping,

And on my eyelids is the shadow of death; 17 Although there is no violence in mine hands, And my prayer is pure.

18 O earth, cover not thou my blood,

And let my cry 'have no resting place.

19 Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven, And he that voucheth for me is on high.

20

6

My friends scorn me:

But mine eye poureth out tears unto God;

21 That he would maintain the right of a man

with God,

And of a son of man with his neighbour!

22 For when a few years are come,

I shall go the way whence I shall not return.

17 My spirit is consumed, my days are extinct, The grave is ready for me.

2

Surely there are 'mockers with me,

And mine eye abideth in their provocation.

3 Give now a pledge, be surety for me with thyself;

Who is there that will strike hands with me?

For thou hast hid their heart from understand- 4 ing:

Therefore shalt thou not exalt them.

1 Heb. portion. He that denounceth his friends for a 'prey, Even the eyes of his children shall fail.

2 Or, one in

spit

5

He hath made me also a byword of the people; 6
And I am become an open abhorring.

whose face they Mine eye also is dim by reason of sorrow,
And all my members are as a shadow.
Upright men shall be astonied at this,

3 Or, For I find not

4 Heb. possessions.

And the innocent shall stir up himself against
the godless.

Yet shall the righteous hold on his way,

And he that hath clean hands shall wax stronger
and stronger.

3

But return ye, all of you, and come now:

3 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 :

5 Or, because of The light, say they, is near unto the darkness.
Or. If I hope, "If I look for "Sheol as mine house;

Sheol is

mine house;

If I have spread my couch in the darkness;

7

8

9

ΙΟ

II

12

13

I have spread If I have said to corruption, Thou art my 14

...I have said

...and where

now is my hope?

7 Or, the grave

8 Or, the pit

father;

To the worm, Thou art my mother, and my

sister;

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.

15

16

2

Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said, 1 18
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?

3

4

Thou that tearest thyself in thine anger,
Shall the earth be forsaken for thee?

Or shall the rock be removed out of its place?
5 Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out,
And the 'spark of his fire shall not shine.
6 The light shall be dark in his tent,

And his lamp 'above him shall be put out. 7 The steps of his strength shall be straitened, And his own counsel shall cast him down. 8 For he is cast into a net by his own feet, And he walketh upon the toils.

9 A gin shall take him by the heel, And a snare shall lay hold on him.

10 A noose is hid for him in the ground,

And a trap for him in the way.

1 Terrors shall make him afraid on every side, And shall chase him at his heels.

12 His strength shall be hungerbitten,

13

And calamity shall be ready for his halting.

It shall devour the 'members of his body,

3 Or, at his side

4 Heb. bars of

Yea, the firstborn of death shall devour his his skin. members.

14 He shall be rooted out of his tent wherein he

trusteth ;

And he shall be brought to the king of terrors. 15 "There shall dwell in his tent that which is none of his :

Brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation. 16 His roots shall be dried up beneath,

And above shall his branch 'be cut off.

17 His remembrance shall perish from the earth, And he shall have no name in the street.

18 He shall be driven from light into darkness, And chased out of the world.

8

19 He shall have neither son nor son's son among Or, They that his people,

Nor any remaining where he sojourned.

dwell in the

west are... as they that dwell in the

20 "They that come after shall be astonied at his day, east are &c.

1 Heb. laid

hold on horror.

As they that went before 'were affrighted.
Surely such are the dwellings of the unrighteous, 21
And this is the place of him that knoweth not
God.

Then Job answered and said,

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 be it indeed that I have erred,

2

Mine error remaineth with myself.

19

2

3

4

2 Or, Will ye If indeed ye will magnify yourselves against me, 5

indeed...

reproach?

3 Or, over

thrown me

And plead against me my reproach :

Know now that God hath subverted me in my 6

cause,

And hath compassed me with his net.

Or, cry out, Behold, I 'cry out of wrong, but I am not heard : 7
I cry for help, but there is no judgement.

Violence!

He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass, 8
And hath set darkness in my paths.

He hath stripped me of my glory,

And taken the crown from my head.

9

He hath broken me down on every side, and 10
I am gone:

And mine hope hath he plucked up like a tree.
He hath also kindled his wrath against me,
And he counteth me unto him as one of his
adversaries.

II

His troops come on together, and cast up their 12 way against me,

And encamp round about my tent.

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.

13

14