Job 33
1 Howbeit, Job, I pray thee, hear mine utterances, and hearken to all my words.
Therfor, Joob, here thou my spechis, and herkene alle my wordis.
2 Behold now, I have opened my mouth, my tongue speaketh in my palate,
Lo! Y haue openyd my mouth, my tunge schal speke in my chekis.
3 My words shall be of the uprightness of my heart, and my lips shall utter knowledge purely.
Of symple herte ben my wordis, and my lippis schulen speke clene sentence.
4 The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.
The spirit of God made me, and the brething of Almyyti God quykenyde me.
5 If thou canst, answer me; array [thy words] before me: take thy stand.
If thou maist, answere thou to me, and stoonde thou ayens my face.
6 Behold, before God I am as thou; I also am formed out of the clay.
Lo! God made me as and thee; and also Y am formyd of the same cley.
7 Behold, my terror shall not make thee afraid, nor my burden be heavy upon thee.
Netheles my myracle make thee not afeerd, and myn eloquence be not greuouse to thee.
8 Surely thou hast spoken in my hearing, and I have heard the voice of [thy] words: —
Therfor thou seidist in myn eeris, and Y herde the vois of thi wordis;
9 I am clean without transgression; I am pure, and there is no iniquity in me;
Y am cleene, and with out gilt, and vnwemmed, and wickidnesse is not in me.
10 Lo, he findeth occasions of hostility against me, he counteth me for his enemy;
`For God foond querels in me, therfor he demyde me enemy to hym silf.
11 He putteth my feet in the stocks, he marketh all my paths.
He hath set my feet in a stok; he kepte alle my pathis.
12 Behold, I will answer thee in this, thou art not right; for God is greater than man.
Therfor this thing it is, in which thou art not maad iust; Y schal answere to thee, that God is more than man.
13 Why dost thou strive against him? for he giveth not account of any of his matters.
Thou stryuest ayenus God, that not at alle wordis he answeride to thee.
14 For God speaketh once, and twice, — [and man] perceiveth it not —
God spekith onys, and the secounde tyme he rehersith not the same thing.
15 In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed;
God spekith bi a dreem in the visioun of nyyt, whanne sleep fallith on men, and thei slepen in the bed.
16 Then he openeth men's ears, and sealeth their instruction,
Thanne he openith the eeris of men, and he techith hem, `and techith prudence;
17 That he may withdraw man [from his] work, and hide pride from man.
that he turne awei a man fro these thingis whiche he made, and delyuere hym fro pride; delyuerynge his soule fro corrupcioun,
18 He keepeth back his soul from the pit, and his life from passing away by the sword.
and his lijf, that it go not in to swerd.
19 He is chastened also with pain upon his bed, and with constant strife in his bones;
Also God blameth a synnere bi sorewe in the bed, and makith alle the boonys of hym `to fade.
20 And his life abhorreth bread, and his soul dainty food;
Breed is maad abhomynable to hym in his lijf, and mete desirable `bifor to his soule.
21 His flesh is consumed away from view, and his bones that were not seen stick out;
His fleisch schal faile for rot, and hise boonys, that weren hilid, schulen be maad nakid.
22 And his soul draweth near to the pit, and his life to the destroyers.
His soule schal neiye to corrupcioun, and his lijf to thingis `bryngynge deeth.
23 If there be a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to shew unto man his duty;
If an aungel, oon of a thousynde, is spekynge for hym, that he telle the equyte of man, God schal haue mercy on hym,
24 Then he will be gracious unto him, and say, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom.
and schal seie, Delyuere thou hym, that he go not doun in to corrupcioun; Y haue founde in what thing Y schal do merci to hym.
25 His flesh shall be fresher than in childhood; he shall return to the days of his youth.
His fleisch is wastid of turmentis; turne he ayen to the daies of his yonge wexynge age.
26 He shall pray unto God, and he will receive him with favour; and he shall see his face with shoutings, and he will render unto man his righteousness.
He schal biseche God, and he schal be quemeful to hym; and he schal se his face in hertly ioye, and he schal yelde to man his riytfulnesse.
27 He will sing before men, and say, I have sinned, and perverted what was right, and it hath not been requited to me;
He schal biholde men, and he schal seie, Y haue synned, and verili Y haue trespassid; and Y haue not resseyued, as Y was worthi.
28 He hath delivered my soul from going into the pit, and my life shall see the light.
For he delyueride his soule, that it schulde not go in to perischyng, but that he lyuynge schulde se liyt.
29 Lo, all these [things] worketh God twice, thrice, with man,
Lo! God worchith alle these thingis in thre tymes bi alle men;
30 To bring back his soul from the pit, that he may be enlightened with the light of the living.
that he ayen clepe her soulis fro corrupcioun, and liytne in the liyt of lyuynge men.
31 Mark well, Job, hearken unto me; be silent, and I will speak.
Thou, Joob, perseyue, and here me, and be thou stille, the while Y speke.
32 If thou hast anything to say, answer me; speak, for I desire to justify thee.
Sotheli if thou hast what thou schalt speke, answere thou to me, speke thou; for Y wole, that thou appere iust.
33 If not, hearken thou unto me; be silent, and I will teach thee wisdom.
That if thou hast not, here thou me; be thou stille, and Y schal teche thee wisdom.
