< Job 5 >

1 Call now; is there any that will answer thee? And to which of the holy ones wilt thou turn?
“Job, [it is okay that you] continue to cry out for someone to help you, but [I am certain that] [RHQ] no angel will come to help you!
2 For anger killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.
Foolish people die because of being (resentful/very angry at someone); people who are easily deceived are destroyed by their being jealous [of others].
3 I have seen the foolish taking root; but suddenly I beheld his habitation cursed.
I have seen foolish people who seemed to be successful/prosperous, but suddenly [they experienced disaster/trouble because] someone cursed their home.
4 His children are far from safety, and are crushed in the gate, with none to deliver them.
Their sons are never safe; they (lose their case/are condemned) when someone (takes them to court/sues them), because there is no one to defend them.
5 Whose harvest the hungry eateth up, and taketh it even out of the thorns, and the snare gapeth for their substance.
Hungry people [steal] the crops that foolish people harvest, [and] eat [those crops]; they even steal the crops that grow among thorns, and greedy people take away the wealth of foolish people.
6 For affliction cometh not forth from the dust, neither doth trouble spring out of the ground;
But evil circumstances/sufferings are not produced by the soil; troubles do not grow up from the ground.
7 But man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.
People have troubles from the time that they are born just as surely as sparks shoot up [from a fire].
8 But as for me, I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause;
[“If I were suffering like you are, ] I would ask God [for help] and tell him (what I am complaining about/about my suffering).
9 Who doeth great things and unsearchable, marvellous things without number;
He does great things, things that we cannot understand; we cannot even count the marvelous things that he does.
10 Who giveth rain upon the earth, and sendeth waters upon the fields;
He sends rain on the ground; he sends water on our fields.
11 So that He setteth up on high those that are low, and those that mourn are exalted to safety.
He exalts those who are humble, and causes those who mourn to be joyful (OR, safe, prosperous).
12 He frustrateth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands can perform nothing substantial.
He causes crafty/cunning people to not be able to do what they plan to do, with the result that they achieve nothing.
13 He taketh the wise in their own craftiness; and the counsel of the wily is carried headlong.
He causes people who [think that they] [IRO] are wise to be trapped by the cunning things they try to do, with the result that they do not succeed.
14 They meet with darkness in the day-time, and grope at noonday as in the night.
[It is as though] even in the daytime they are covered by darkness, and grope around [trying to find the road] at noontime like people do at night.
15 But He saveth from the sword of their mouth, even the needy from the hand of the mighty.
But God saves helpless people from being harmed by what [wicked people] say [MTY], he saves needy people from being injured by [MTY] powerful people.
16 So the poor hath hope, and iniquity stoppeth her mouth.
So, poor people confidently expect [that good things will happen to them] but God causes wicked [people] to stop talking.
17 Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth; therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty.
“But those whom God corrects/rebukes are happy; so do not despise/dislike it when [God] who is all-powerful disciplines you.
18 For He maketh sore, and bindeth up; He woundeth, and His hands make whole.
He wounds people, but then he puts bandages on those wounds; he hurts people, but he [SYN] also heals them.
19 He will deliver thee in six troubles; yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.
He will rescue you many times from your troubles, with the result that nothing evil will happen to you.
20 In famine He will redeem thee from death; and in war from the power of the sword.
When there is a famine, he will not allow you to die, and when there is a war, you will not be killed [MTY].
21 Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue; neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh.
God will protect you when people slander [MTY] you; you will not be afraid when many things [around you] are destroyed.
22 At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh; neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth.
You will [be able to] laugh/scoff when things are destroyed and when there is famine, and you will not be afraid of wild animals.
23 For thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field; and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee.
You will not worry about [having big] rocks in your fields [that will make plowing difficult], and you will not worry about [being attacked by] wild animals there.
24 And thou shalt know that thy tent is in peace; and thou shalt visit thy habitation, and shalt miss nothing.
In your tent, you will know that things will go well for you, and when you look at your livestock, you will see that (they are all there/none of them is missing).
25 Thou shalt know also that thy seed shall be great, and thine offspring as the grass of the earth.
You will be sure that you will have many descendants, who will be as numerous as blades of grass.
26 Thou shalt come to thy grave in a ripe age, like as a shock of corn cometh in in its season.
You will become very old before you die, like sheaves of grain continue to grow until it is time to harvest them.
27 Lo this, we have searched it, so it is; hear it, and know thou it for thy good.
[“My friends and I] have thought carefully about these things, and [we know that] they are true, so pay attention to what I have said!”

< Job 5 >