< Job 40 >

1 And the Lord addide, and spak to Joob,
Moreover the LORD answered Job, and said:
2 Whether he, that stryueth with God, schal haue rest so liytli? Sotheli he, that repreueth God, owith for to answere to hym.
Shall he that reproveth contend with the Almighty? He that argueth with God, let him answer it.
3 Forsothe Joob answeride to the Lord,
Then Job answered the LORD, and said:
4 and seide, What may Y answere, which haue spoke liytli? Y schal putte myn hond on my mouth.
Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer Thee? I lay my hand upon my mouth.
5 Y spak o thing, which thing Y wold, that Y hadde not seid; and Y spak anothir thing, to which Y schal no more adde.
Once have I spoken, but I will not answer again; yea, twice, but I will proceed no further.
6 Forsothe the Lord answeride to Joob fro the whirlewynd,
Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:
7 and seide, Girde thou as a man thi leendis, and Y schal axe thee, and schewe thou to me.
Gird up thy loins now like a man; I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto Me.
8 Whether thou schalt make voide my doom, and schalt condempne me, that thou be maad iust?
Wilt thou even make void My judgment? Wilt thou condemn Me, that thou mayest be justified?
9 And if thou hast an arm, as God hath, and if thou thundrist with lijk vois, `take thou fairnesse aboute thee,
Or hast thou an arm like God? And canst thou thunder with a voice like Him?
10 and be thou reisid an hiy, and be thou gloriouse, and be thou clothid `in faire clothis.
Deck thyself now with majesty and excellency, and array thyself with glory and beauty.
11 Distrie thou proude men in thi woodnesse, and biholde thou, and make lowe ech bostere.
Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath; and look upon every one that is proud, and abase him.
12 Biholde thou alle proude men, and schende thou hem; and al to-breke thou wickid men in her place.
Look on every one that is proud, and bring him low; and tread down the wicked in their place.
13 Hide thou hem in dust togidere, and drenche doun her faces in to a diche.
Hide them in the dust together; bind their faces in the hidden place.
14 And Y schal knowleche, that thi riyt hond may saue thee.
Then will I also confess unto thee that thine own right hand can save thee.
15 Lo! behemot, whom Y made with thee, schal as an oxe ete hey.
Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox.
16 His strengthe is in hise leendis, and his vertu is in the nawle of his wombe.
Lo now, his strength is in his loins, and his force is in the stays of his body.
17 He streyneth his tail as a cedre; the senewis of his `stones of gendrure ben foldid togidere.
He straineth his tail like a cedar; the sinews of his thighs are knit together.
18 Hise boonys ben as the pipis of bras; the gristil of hym is as platis of yrun.
His bones are as pipes of brass; his gristles are like bars of iron.
19 He is the bigynnyng of the weies of God; he, that made hym, schal sette his swerd to hym.
He is the beginning of the ways of God; He only that made him can make His sword to approach unto him.
20 Hillis beren eerbis to this behemot; alle the beestis of the feeld pleien there.
Surely the mountains bring him forth food, and all the beasts of the field play there.
21 He slepith vndur schadewe, in the pryuete of rehed, in moiste places.
He lieth under the lotus-trees, in the covert of the reed, and fens.
22 Schadewis hilen his schadewe; the salewis of the ryuer cumpassen hym.
The lotus-trees cover him with their shadow; the willows of the brook compass him about.
23 He schal soupe vp the flood, and he schal not wondre; he hath trist, that Jordan schal flowe in to his mouth.
Behold, if a river overflow, he trembleth not; he is confident, though the Jordan rush forth to his mouth.
24 He schal take hem bi `the iyen of hym, as bi an hook; and bi scharpe schaftis he schal perse hise nosethirlis.
Shall any take him by his eyes, or pierce through his nose with a snare?

< Job 40 >