Job 4
1 Then spake Eliphaz the Temanite, and said:
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered Job.
2 If one attempt a word with thee, wilt thou be offended? But who can refrain from speaking?
“Could I say a word? I don't want to upset you but who could keep quiet and not respond?
3 Behold, thou hast admonished many; Thou hast strengthened feeble hands;
You've certainly encouraged many people and supported those who are weak.
4 Thy words have upheld him that was falling, And thou hast given strength to feeble knees.
Your advice has helped those who are stumbling not to fall, and you have strengthened those whose knees are weak.
5 But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; It toucheth thee, and thou art confounded!
But now you're the one suffering and you're upset.
6 Is not thy fear of God thy hope, And the uprightness of thy ways thy confidence?
Wasn't it your reverence for God that gave you confidence and your integrity that gave you hope?
7 Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished being innocent? Or where have the righteous been cut off?
Think about it: since when did the innocent die? Since when were good people destroyed?
8 According to what I have seen, they who plough iniquity, And sow mischief, reap the same.
From what I've seen it's those who plant evil and sow trouble who reap the same!
9 By the blast of God they perish, And by the breath of his nostrils they are consumed.
A breath from God destroys them; a blast of his anger wipes them out.
10 The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, And the teeth of the young lions are broken.
Lions may roar and growl, but their teeth still break.
11 The fierce lion perisheth for lack of prey, And the whelps of the lioness are scattered abroad.
Even a lion dies from lack of food, and the lioness' cubs are scattered.
12 A word was once secretly brought to me, And mine ear caught a whisper thereof.
A word quietly crept up on me; a whisper reached my ear.
13 Amid thoughts from visions of the night, When deep sleep falleth upon men,
Troubling thoughts came to me in nightmares when you fall into a deep sleep.
14 A fear and a horror came upon me, Which made all my bones to shake.
I became terrified and trembled; all my bones were shaking.
15 Then a spirit passed before my face, The hair of my flesh rose on end;
Then a breath brushed my face and gave me goose-pimples.
16 It stood still, but its form I could not discern; An image was before mine eyes; There was silence, and I heard a voice:
Something stopped, but I couldn't see its face. My eyes could only make out a shape. It was totally quiet, and then I heard a voice:
17 “Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall man be more pure than his Maker?
‘Can anyone be right before God? Can anyone be pure before their Maker?
18 Behold, he putteth no trust in his ministering spirits, And his angels he chargeth with frailty.
If he doesn't even trust his servants, and he says his angels make mistakes,
19 What then are they who dwell in houses of clay, Whose foundation is in the dust, Who crumble to pieces, as if moth-eaten!
how much more does this apply to those who live in these houses made of clay, whose foundations are based on dust, who fall apart like clothing to a moth?
20 Between morning and evening are they destroyed; They perish for ever, and none regardeth it.
Alive in the morning, they are dead by evening. They die, unnoticed.
21 The excellency that is in them is torn away; They die before they have become wise.”
They are like tent ropes that are pulled up, and they collapse in death. They die without wisdom.’”
