JOB 15

« Job 14 | Job 15 | Job 16 »

Eliphaz Says Job Presumes Much  15:1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded,

2 “Should a wise man answer with windy knowledge

And fill himself with the east wind?

3 “Should he argue with useless talk,

Or with words which are not profitable?

4 “Indeed, you do away with reverence

And hinder meditation before God.

5 “For your guilt teaches your mouth,

And you choose the language of the crafty.

6 “Your own mouth condemns you, and not I;

And your own lips testify against you.

7 “Were you the first man to be born,

Or were you brought forth before the hills?

8 “Do you hear the secret counsel of God,

And limit wisdom to yourself?

9 “What do you know that we do not know?

What do you understand that we do not?

10 “Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us,

Older than your father.

11 “Are the consolations of God too small for you,

Even the word spoken gently with you?

12 “Why does your heart carry you away?

And why do your eyes flash,

13 That you should turn your spirit against God

And allow such words to go out of your mouth?

14 “What is man, that he should be pure,

Or he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?

15 “Behold, He puts no trust in His holy ones,

And the heavens are not pure in His sight;

16 How much less one who is detestable and corrupt,

Man, who drinks iniquity like water!

What Eliphaz Has Seen of Life17 “I will tell you, listen to me;

And what I have seen I will also declare;

18 What wise men have told,

And have not concealed from their fathers,

19 To whom alone the land was given,

And no alien passed among them.

20 “The wicked man writhes in pain all his days,

And numbered are the years stored up for the ruthless.

21 “Sounds of terror are in his ears;

While at peace the destroyer comes upon him.

22 “He does not believe that he will return from darkness,

And he is destined for the sword.

23 “He wanders about for food, saying, ‘Where is it?’

He knows that a day of darkness is at hand.

24 “Distress and anguish terrify him,

They overpower him like a king ready for the attack,

25 Because he has stretched out his hand against God

And conducts himself arrogantly against the Almighty.

26 “He rushes headlong at Him

With his massive shield.

27 “For he has covered his face with his fat

And made his thighs heavy with flesh.

28 “He has lived in desolate cities,

In houses no one would inhabit,

Which are destined to become ruins.

29 “He will not become rich, nor will his wealth endure;

And his grain will not bend down to the ground.

30 “He will not escape from darkness;

The flame will wither his shoots,

And by the breath of His mouth he will go away.

31 “Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself;

For emptiness will be his reward.

32 “It will be accomplished before his time,

And his palm branch will not be green.

33 “He will drop off his unripe grape like the vine,

And will cast off his flower like the olive tree.

34 “For the company of the godless is barren,

And fire consumes the tents of the corrupt.

35 “They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity,

And their mind prepares deception.”

PSALM 35

« Psalm 34 | Psalm 35 | Psalm 36 »

Prayer for Rescue from Enemies.A Psalm of David.
35:1 Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;

Fight against those who fight against me.

2 Take hold of buckler and shield

And rise up for my help.

3 Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me;

Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.”

4 Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life;

Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me.

5 Let them be like chaff before the wind,

With the angel of the LORD driving them on.

6 Let their way be dark and slippery,

With the angel of the LORD pursuing them.

7 For without cause they hid their net for me;

Without cause they dug a pit for my soul.

8 Let destruction come upon him unawares,

And let the net which he hid catch himself;

Into that very destruction let him fall.

9 And my soul shall rejoice in the LORD;

It shall exult in His salvation.

10 All my bones will say, “LORD, who is like You,

Who delivers the afflicted from him who is too strong for him,

And the afflicted and the needy from him who robs him?”

11 Malicious witnesses rise up;

They ask me of things that I do not know.

12 They repay me evil for good,

To the bereavement of my soul.

13 But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth;

I humbled my soul with fasting,

And my prayer kept returning to my bosom.

14 I went about as though it were my friend or brother;

I bowed down mourning, as one who sorrows for a mother.

15 But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together;

The smiters whom I did not know gathered together against me,

They slandered me without ceasing.

16 Like godless jesters at a feast,

They gnashed at me with their teeth.

17 Lord, how long will You look on?

Rescue my soul from their ravages,

My only life from the lions.

18 I will give You thanks in the great congregation;

I will praise You among a mighty throng.

19 Do not let those who are wrongfully my enemies rejoice over me;

Nor let those who hate me without cause wink maliciously.

20 For they do not speak peace,

But they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land.

21 They opened their mouth wide against me;

They said, “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen it!”

22 You have seen it, O LORD, do not keep silent;

O Lord, do not be far from me.

23 Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right

And to my cause, my God and my Lord.

24 Judge me, O LORD my God, according to Your righteousness,

And do not let them rejoice over me.

25 Do not let them say in their heart, “Aha, our desire!”

Do not let them say, “We have swallowed him up!”

26 Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress;

Let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me.

27 Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication;

And let them say continually, “The LORD be magnified,

Who delights in the prosperity of His servant.”

28 And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness

And Your praise all day long.

PSALM 36

« Psalm 35 | Psalm 36 | Psalm 37 »

Wickedness of Men and Lovingkindness of God.For the choir director. A Psalm of David the servant of the LORD.
36:1 Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his heart;

There is no fear of God before his eyes.

2 For it flatters him in his own eyes

Concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.

3 The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;

He has ceased to be wise and to do good.

4 He plans wickedness upon his bed;

He sets himself on a path that is not good;

He does not despise evil.

5 Your lovingkindness, O LORD, extends to the heavens,

Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

6 Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;

Your judgments are like a great deep.

O LORD, You preserve man and beast.

7 How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!

And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.

8 They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house;

And You give them to drink of the river of Your delights.

9 For with You is the fountain of life;

In Your light we see light.

10 O continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,

And Your righteousness to the upright in heart.

11 Let not the foot of pride come upon me,

And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away.

12 There the doers of iniquity have fallen;

They have been thrust down and cannot rise.

PROVERBS 26

« Proverbs 25 | Proverbs 26 | Proverbs 27 »

Similitudes, Instructions26:1 Like snow in summer and like rain in harvest,

So honor is not fitting for a fool.

2 Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,

So a curse without cause does not alight.

3 A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

And a rod for the back of fools.

4 Do not answer a fool according to his folly,

Or you will also be like him.

5 Answer a fool as his folly deserves,

That he not be wise in his own eyes.

6 He cuts off his own feet and drinks violence

Who sends a message by the hand of a fool.

7 Like the legs which are useless to the lame,

So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

8 Like one who binds a stone in a sling,

So is he who gives honor to a fool.

9 Like a thorn which falls into the hand of a drunkard,

So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

10 Like an archer who wounds everyone,

So is he who hires a fool or who hires those who pass by.

11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit

Is a fool who repeats his folly.

12 Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?

There is more hope for a fool than for him.

13 The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!

A lion is in the open square!”

14 As the door turns on its hinges,

So does the sluggard on his bed.

15 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

He is weary of bringing it to his mouth again.

16 The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes

Than seven men who can give a discreet answer.

17 Like one who takes a dog by the ears

Is he who passes by and meddles with strife not belonging to him.

18 Like a madman who throws

Firebrands, arrows and death,

19 So is the man who deceives his neighbor,

And says, “Was I not joking?”

20 For lack of wood the fire goes out,

And where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down.

21 Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,

So is a contentious man to kindle strife.

22 The words of a whisperer are like dainty morsels,

And they go down into the innermost parts of the body.

23 Like an earthen vessel overlaid with silver dross

Are burning lips and a wicked heart.

24 He who hates disguises it with his lips,

But he lays up deceit in his heart.

25 When he speaks graciously, do not believe him,

For there are seven abominations in his heart.

26 Though his hatred covers itself with guile,

His wickedness will be revealed before the assembly.

27 He who digs a pit will fall into it,

And he who rolls a stone, it will come back on him.

28 A lying tongue hates those it crushes,

And a flattering mouth works ruin.