Study Desk

Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded,

"Can a strong ^(C1)man be of use to God, Or a wise one be useful to himself?

-"Is it any pleasure to ^(F1)the Almighty if you are righteous, Or gain if you make your ways blameless?

-"Is it because of your ^(F1)reverence that He punishes you, That He ^(C1)enters into judgment against you?

-"Is ^(C1)your wickedness not abundant, And is there no end to your guilty deeds?

-"For you have ^(C1)seized pledges from your brothers without cause, And ^(F1)(C2)stripped people naked.

-"You have ^(C1)given the weary no water to drink, And you have ^(C2)withheld bread from the hungry.

-"But the earth ^(C1)belongs to the ^(C2)powerful man, And ^(C3)the one who is honorable dwells on it.

-"You have sent ^(C1)widows away empty, And the ^(F1)strength of ^(C2)orphans has been crushed.

-"Therefore ^(C1)traps surround you, And sudden ^(C2)dread terrifies you,

Or ^(C1)darkness, so that you cannot see, And a ^(C2)flood of water covers you.

"Is God not ^(C1)in the height of heaven? Look also at the ^(F1)highest stars, how high they are!

-"But you say, '^(C1)What does God know? Can He judge through the thick darkness?

-'^(C1)Clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see; And He walks on the ^(F1)vault of heaven.'

-"Will you keep to the ancient path Which ^(C1)wicked people have walked,

Who were snatched away ^(C1)before their time, Whose ^(C2)foundations were ^(F1)washed away by a river?

-"They ^(C1)said to God, 'Go away from us!' And 'What can ^(F1)the Almighty do to them?'

-"Yet He ^(C1)filled their houses with good things; But ^(C2)the advice of the wicked is far from me.

-"The ^(C1)righteous see and are glad, And the innocent mock them, saying,

'Truly our enemies are eliminated, And ^(C1)fire has consumed their ^(F1)abundance.'

"^(C1)Be reconciled with Him, and be at peace; Thereby good will come to you.

-"Please receive ^(F1)(C1)instruction from His mouth, And put His words in your heart.

-"If you ^(C1)return to ^(F1)the Almighty, you will be ^(F2)restored; If you ^(C2)remove injustice far from your tent,

And ^(C1)put your ^(F1)gold in the dust, And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks,

Then ^(F1)the Almighty will be your ^(F2)gold And abundant silver to you.

-"For then you will ^(C1)take pleasure in ^(F1)the Almighty And lift up your face to God.

-"You will ^(C1)pray to Him, and ^(C2)He will hear you; And you will pay your vows.

-"You will also decide something, and it will be established for you; And ^(C1)light will shine on your ways.

-"When ^(F1)they have brought you low, you will speak with ^(F2)confidence, And He will save the ^(F3)(C1)humble person.

-"He will rescue one who is not innocent, And he will be ^(C1)rescued due to the cleanness of your hands."

Then Job responded,

"Even today my ^(C1)complaint is rebellion; ^(F1)His hand is ^(C2)heavy despite my groaning.

-"Oh that I knew how to find Him, That I might come to His home!

-"I would ^(C1)present my case before Him And fill my mouth with arguments.

-"I would learn the words which He would ^(F1)answer, And perceive what He would tell me.

-"Would He contend with me by ^(C1)the greatness of His power? No, surely He would pay attention to me.

-"There the upright would ^(C1)argue with Him; And I ^(F1)would be ^(C2)free of my Judge forever.

"Behold, I go forward but He is not there, And backward, but I ^(C1)cannot perceive Him;

When He acts on the left, I cannot see Him; He turns to the right, but I cannot see Him.

-"But He knows the ^(F1)way I take; When He has ^(C1)put me to the test, I will come out as gold.

-"My foot has ^(C1)held on to His path; I have kept His way and not turned aside.

-"I have not ^(F1)failed the command of His lips; I have treasured the ^(C1)words of His mouth ^(F2)more than my ^(F3)necessary food.

-"But He is unique, and who can ^(F1)make Him turn? Whatever His soul desires, He does it.

-"For He carries out what is destined for me, And many such destinies are with Him.

-"Therefore, I would be terrified at His presence; When I consider this, I am frightened of Him.

-"It is God who has made my ^(C1)heart faint, And the Almighty who has terrified me,

But I ^(C1)am not destroyed by darkness, Nor by ^(C2)deep gloom which covers me.

"^(C1)Why are ^(F1)times not stored up by the Almighty, And why do those who know Him not see ^(C2)His ^(F1)days?

-"People ^(C1)remove landmarks; They seize and ^(F1)devour flocks.

-"They drive away the donkeys of ^(C1)orphans; They seize the ^(C2)widow's ox as a pledge.

-"They push ^(C1)the needy aside from the road; The ^(C2)poor of the land have to hide themselves together.

-"Behold, like ^(C1)wild donkeys in the wilderness They ^(C2)go out scavenging for food in their activity, As ^(F1)bread for their children in the desert.

-"They harvest their feed in the field And glean the vineyard of the wicked.

-"^(C1)They spend the night naked, without clothing, And have no covering against the cold.

-"They are wet from the mountain rains, And they hug the rock for lack of a shelter.

-"Others snatch an ^(C1)orphan from the breast, And they seize it as a pledge against the poor.

-"The poor move about naked without clothing, And they carry sheaves, while going hungry.

-"Within the walls they produce oil; They tread wine presses but go thirsty.

-"From the city people groan, And the souls of the wounded cry for help; Yet God ^(C1)does not pay attention to the offensiveness.

"^(F1)Others have been with those who rebel against the light; They do not want to know its ways Nor stay in its paths.

-"The murderer ^(C1)arises at dawn; He ^(C2)kills the poor and the needy, And at night he is like a thief.

-"The eye of the ^(C1)adulterer watches for ^(F1)twilight, Saying, 'No eye will see me.' And he ^(F2)disguises his face.

-"In the darkness they ^(C1)dig into houses, They ^(C2)shut themselves up by day; They do not know the light.

-"For the morning is the same to him as thick darkness, For he is familiar with the ^(C1)terrors of thick darkness.

"They are ^(F1)(C1)insignificant on the surface of the water; Their plot of land on the earth is ^(C2)cursed. They do not turn ^(F2)toward the ^(C3)vineyards.

-"Dryness and heat ^(C1)snatch away the snow waters, As ^(F1)(C2)Sheol snatches those who have sinned.

-"A ^(F1)(C1)mother will forget him; The ^(C2)maggot feeds sweetly until he is ^(C3)no longer remembered. And injustice will be broken ^(C4)like a tree.

-"He wrongs the ^(F1)infertile woman, And does no good for ^(C1)the widow.

-"But He drags off the mighty by ^(C1)His power; He rises, but ^(C2)no one has assurance of life.

-"He provides them ^(C1)with security, and they are supported; And His ^(C2)eyes are on their ways.

-"They are exalted a ^(C1)little while, then they are gone; Moreover, they are ^(C2)brought low, and like everything they are gathered up; Like the heads of grain they wither.

-"Now if it is not so, ^(C1)who can prove me a liar, And make my speech worthless?"