4 Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said,
2 If one assay to commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved?
But who can withhold himself from speaking?
3 Behold, thou hast instructed many,
And thou hast strengthened the weak hands.
4 Thy words have upholden him that was falling,
And thou hast made firm the [a]feeble knees.
5 But now it is come unto thee, and thou [b]faintest;
It toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.
6 Is not thy fear of God thy confidence,
And the integrity of thy ways thy hope?
7 Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent?
Or where were the upright cut off?
8 According as I have seen, they that plow iniquity,
And sow [c]trouble, reap the same.
9 By the breath of God they perish,
And by the blast of his anger are they consumed.
10 The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion,
And the teeth of the young lions, are broken.
11 The old lion perisheth for lack of prey,
And the whelps of the lioness are scattered abroad.
12 Now a thing was [d]secretly brought to me,
And mine ear received a whisper thereof.
13 In thoughts from the visions of the night,
When deep sleep falleth on men,
14 Fear came upon me, and trembling,
Which made all my bones to shake.
15 Then [e]a spirit passed before my face;
The hair of my flesh stood up.
16 It stood still, but I could not discern the appearance thereof;
A form was before mine eyes:
[f]There was silence, and I heard a voice, saying,
17 Shall mortal man [g]be more just than God?
Shall a man [h]be more pure than his Maker?
18 Behold, he putteth no trust in his servants;
And his angels he chargeth with folly:
19 How much more them that dwell in houses of clay,
Whose foundation is in the dust,
Who are crushed [i]before the moth!
20 [j]Betwixt morning and evening they are [k]destroyed:
They perish for ever without any regarding it.
21 [l]Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them?
They die, and that without wisdom.
Footnotes
- Job 4:4 Hebrew bowing
- Job 4:5 Or, art grieved
- Job 4:8 Or, mischief
- Job 4:12 Hebrew brought by stealth
- Job 4:15 Or, a breath passed over
- Job 4:16 Or, I heard a still voice
- Job 4:17 Or, be just before God
- Job 4:17 Or, be pure before his Maker
- Job 4:19 Or, like
- Job 4:20 Or, From morning to evening
- Job 4:20 Hebrew broken in pieces.
- Job 4:21 Or, Is not their excellency which is in them removed?