Job 5
1 Call now, see if any will answer thee! And to which of the holy ones wilt thou look?
“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 Verily grief destroyeth the fool, And wrath consumeth the weak man.
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 an impious man taking root, But soon I cursed his habitation.
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; They are oppressed at the gate, and there is 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 His harvest the hungry devour, Carrying it even through the thorns; And a snare gapeth after his 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 from the dust, Nor doth trouble spring up from the ground;
But evil circumstances/sufferings are not produced by the soil; troubles do not grow up from the ground.
7 Behold, man is born to 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 I would look to God, And to 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; Yea, 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 water upon the fields;
He sends rain on the ground; he sends water on our fields.
11 Who placeth the lowly in high places, And restoreth the afflicted to prosperity;
He exalts those who are humble, and causes those who mourn to be joyful (OR, safe, prosperous).
12 Who disappointeth the devices of the crafty, So that their hands cannot perform their enterprises;
He causes crafty/cunning people to not be able to do what they plan to do, with the result that they achieve nothing.
13 Who taketh the wise in their own craftiness, And bringeth to nought the counsel of the artful.
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 daytime; They grope at noon as if it were 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 So he saveth the persecuted from their mouth; The oppressed 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 bruiseth, 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 In six troubles will he deliver thee; Yea, in seven 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 safe from the scourge of the tongue, And shalt not 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, And of the wild beasts of the land shalt thou not be afraid.
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; Yea, the beasts of the forest 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 Thou shalt find that thy tent is in peace; Thou shalt visit thy dwelling, and not be disappointed.
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 see thy descendants numerous, 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 full age, As a shock of corn gathered 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 out; so it is: Hear it, and lay it up in thy mind!
[“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!”
