< Job 5 >
1 “Pray, call, is there any to answer you? And to which of the holy ones do you turn?
Call now; is there any that will answer thee? And to which of the holy ones wilt thou turn?
2 For provocation slays the perverse, And envy puts to death the simple,
For anger killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.
3 I have seen the perverse taking root, And I mark his habitation straight away,
I have seen the foolish taking root; but suddenly I beheld his habitation cursed.
4 His sons are far from safety, And they are bruised in the gate, And there is no deliverer.
His children are far from safety, and are crushed in the gate, with none to deliver them.
5 Whose harvest the hungry eat, And even take it from the thorns, And the designing swallowed their wealth.
Whose harvest the hungry eateth up, and taketh it even out of the thorns, and the snare gapeth for their substance.
6 For sorrow does not come forth from the dust, Nor does misery spring up from the ground.
For affliction cometh not forth from the dust, neither doth trouble spring out of the ground;
7 For man is born to misery, And the sparks go high to fly.
But man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.
8 Yet I inquire for God, And for God I give my word,
But as for me, I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause;
9 Doing great things, and there is no searching. Wonderful, until there is no numbering.
Who doeth great things and unsearchable, marvellous things without number;
10 Who is giving rain on the face of the land, And is sending waters on the out-places.
Who giveth rain upon the earth, and sendeth waters upon the fields;
11 To set the low on a high place, And the mourners have been high [in] safety.
So that He setteth up on high those that are low, and those that mourn are exalted to safety.
12 Making void thoughts of the cunning, And their hands do not execute wisdom.
He frustrateth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands can perform nothing substantial.
13 Capturing the wise in their subtlety, And the counsel of wrestling ones was hurried,
He taketh the wise in their own craftiness; and the counsel of the wily is carried headlong.
14 By day they meet darkness, And as night—they grope at noon.
They meet with darkness in the day-time, and grope at noonday as in the night.
15 He saves the needy from the sword in their mouth, And from a strong hand,
But He saveth from the sword of their mouth, even the needy from the hand of the mighty.
16 And there is hope for the poor, And perverseness has shut her mouth.
So the poor hath hope, and iniquity stoppeth her mouth.
17 Behold, the blessedness of mortal man, God reproves him: And do not despise the discipline of the Mighty,
Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth; therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty.
18 For He pains, and He binds up, He strikes, and His hands heal.
For He maketh sore, and bindeth up; He woundeth, and His hands make whole.
19 In six distresses He delivers you, And in seven evil does not strike on you.
He will deliver thee in six troubles; yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.
20 In famine He has redeemed you from death, And in battle from the hands of the sword.
In famine He will redeem thee from death; and in war from the power of the sword.
21 When the tongue scourges you are hid, And you are not afraid of destruction, When it comes.
Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue; neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh.
22 At destruction and at hunger you mock, And of the beast of the earth, You are not afraid.
At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh; neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth.
23 (For with sons of the field [is] your covenant, And the beast of the field Has been at peace with you.)
For thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field; and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee.
24 And you have known that your tent [is] peace, And inspected your habitation, and do not err,
And thou shalt know that thy tent is in peace; and thou shalt visit thy habitation, and shalt miss nothing.
25 And have known that your seed [is] numerous, And your offspring as the herb of the earth;
Thou shalt know also that thy seed shall be great, and thine offspring as the grass of the earth.
26 You come in full age to the grave, As the going up of a stalk in its season.
Thou shalt come to thy grave in a ripe age, like as a shock of corn cometh in in its season.
27 Behold, this—we searched it out—it [is] right, listen; And you, know for yourself!”
Lo this, we have searched it, so it is; hear it, and know thou it for thy good.