Round Three: Job’s Third Speech
27 After a pause,[a] Job began to present this discourse:
2 As God lives, he has deprived me of justice.
The Almighty has made my life[b] bitter.
3 Yes, as long as the breath of life is still in me,
as long as the breath from God is still in my nostrils,
4 my lips will not speak wickedness,
and my tongue will not murmur deception.
5 May I be cursed if I ever admit you are right.
Until I die, I will never deny my integrity.
6 I have held tight to my righteousness,
and I will not let it go.
My conscience[c] will not accuse me as long as I live.
7 May my enemy be like the wicked.
May the one who rises up against me be like the unjust.
8 For what hope is there for a godless person when God cuts him off,
when God takes away his life?
9 Will God hear his cry when distress comes upon him?
10 Will he take delight in the Almighty?
Will he call upon God at all times?
11 I will teach you about the hand of God.
I will not hide what the Almighty is doing.
12 Listen, all of you have observed this.
So why do you continue to spew forth such worthless vapor?
13 This is the allotment a wicked man receives from God,
the inheritance that tyrants receive from the Almighty:
14 Although his children are many, they are sent to the sword.
His offspring will not be satisfied with bread.
15 Those who survive will be buried by a plague.
They will be buried, and their widows will not weep.
16 Though the wicked man piles up silver like dust,
and he accumulates clothing like mounds of clay,
17 the righteous will wear what he accumulated,
and the innocent will divide his silver.
18 He has built a house, but it will be like a moth’s cocoon,
like a shack that a watchman has put up.
19 He goes to bed as a rich man,
but his wealth does not remain.
He opens his eyes, and it is all gone.
20 Terrors sweep over him like floodwaters.
At night, a strong wind carries him away.
21 The east wind lifts him up, and off he goes.
It blows him away from his place.
22 It hurls itself at him, and it does not spare him.
He flees from its power as fast as he can.
23 It mockingly claps its hands at him
and drives him from his place with hissing.
Footnotes
- Job 27:1 The words after a pause are not in the Hebrew text, but this is the location for Zophar’s third turn to speak. Zophar, however, sits in silence, and the debate comes to an end. The next speaker to respond to Job will be Elihu son of Barakel, beginning at 32:5.
- Job 27:2 Or soul
- Job 27:6 Literally heart