Job 22
1 respondens autem Eliphaz Themanites dixit
Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded and said,
2 numquid Deo conparari potest homo etiam cum perfectae fuerit scientiae
“How can anyone be of help to God? Even wise people are only helpful to themselves.
3 quid prodest Deo si iustus fueris aut quid ei confers si inmaculata fuerit via tua
Is it any benefit to the Almighty if you're a good person? What does he gain if you do what's right?
4 numquid timens arguet te et veniet tecum in iudicium
Does he correct you and bring charges against you because of your reverence?
5 et non propter malitiam tuam plurimam et infinitas iniquitates tuas
No: it's because you're so wicked! Your sins are never-ending!
6 abstulisti enim pignus fratrum tuorum sine causa et nudos spoliasti vestibus
For no reason at all you took your brother's clothing as a security for a debt, and left them stripped naked.
7 aquam lasso non dedisti et esurienti subtraxisti panem
You refused water to the thirsty; you denied food to the hungry.
8 in fortitudine brachii tui possidebas terram et potentissimus obtinebas eam
Is it because the land belongs to the powerful, and only the privileged have a right to live there?
9 viduas dimisisti vacuas et lacertos pupillorum comminuisti
You have sent widows away empty-handed; you have crushed the outstretched arms of orphans, begging for help.
10 propterea circumdatus es laqueis et conturbat te formido subita
That's why you're surrounded by traps to catch you, and why you suddenly panic in terror.
11 et putabas te tenebras non visurum et impetu aquarum inundantium non oppressurum
That's why it's so dark you cannot see, and why you feel like you're drowning.
12 an cogitas quod Deus excelsior caelo et super stellarum vertices sublimetur
Doesn't God live in highest heaven and looks down on even the highest stars?
13 et dicis quid enim novit Deus et quasi per caliginem iudicat
But you ask, ‘What does God know? How can he see and judge what happens in down here in darkness?
14 nubes latibulum eius nec nostra considerat et circa cardines caeli perambulat
Thick clouds cover him so he can't see anything as he walks around in heaven.’
15 numquid semitam saeculorum custodire cupis quam calcaverunt viri iniqui
Why do you insist on following the traditional thinking of the wicked?
16 qui sublati sunt ante tempus suum et fluvius subvertit fundamentum eorum
They were taken before their time; all they had built was washed away.
17 qui dicebant Deo recede a nobis et quasi nihil possit facere Omnipotens aestimabant eum
They had told God, ‘Get lost! What can the Almighty do to us?’
18 cum ille implesset domos eorum bonis quorum sententia procul sit a me
And yet he was the one who had filled their homes with good things—but I don't accept their way of thinking.
19 videbunt iusti et laetabuntur et innocens subsannabit eos
Those who do right rejoice when they see the destruction of the wicked, and the innocent mock them,
20 nonne succisa est erectio eorum et reliquias eorum devoravit ignis
saying, ‘Our enemies are destroyed, and fire has burned up all that's left of them.’
21 adquiesce igitur ei et habeto pacem et per haec habebis fructus optimos
Come back to God and be reconciled to him, and you'll be prosperous again.
22 suscipe ex ore illius legem et pone sermones eius in corde tuo
Listen to what he tells you and keep his words in mind.
23 si reversus fueris ad Omnipotentem aedificaberis et longe facies iniquitatem a tabernaculo tuo
If you return to God you will be restored. If you renounce your sinful life
24 dabit pro terra silicem et pro silice torrentes aureos
and give up your love of money and desire for possessions,
25 eritque Omnipotens contra hostes tuos et argentum coacervabitur tibi
then the Almighty will be your gold and your precious silver.
26 tunc super Omnipotentem deliciis afflues et elevabis ad Deum faciem tuam
Then you will find delight in the Almighty, and be able to face him without feeling ashamed.
27 rogabis eum et exaudiet te et vota tua reddes
You will pray to him, and he will hear you, and you will keep your promises to him.
28 decernes rem et veniet tibi et in viis tuis splendebit lumen
Whatever you decide to do will be successful, and wherever you go, light will shine on you.
29 qui enim humiliatus fuerit erit in gloria et qui inclinaverit oculos suos ipse salvabitur
When others are humbled, and you say, ‘please help them,’ God will save them.
30 salvabitur innocens salvabitur autem munditia manuum suarum
God saves those who are innocent, and you will be saved if you do what is right.”
