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Job 9
EasyEnglish Bible
Job 9
EasyEnglish Bible
Job replies to Bildad
9 Then Job replied. This is what he said:
2 ‘The things that you have said are true.
But nobody can show God that he is completely good.
3 It is not possible to argue with God.
God can ask 1,000 questions that we cannot answer.
4 God is very wise and he is very powerful.
It is impossible to argue against him and win.
5 He has the power to move mountains suddenly.
When he is angry he can knock them down.
6 He shakes the earth,
to move it from its proper place.
The foundations of the earth shake!
7 He may command the sun not to shine during the day.
He may stop the stars shining at night.
8 God alone put the whole sky in its place.
He marches over the waves of the sea.
9 He put the groups of stars in their places.
He made the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades.[a]
He put the groups of stars in the southern sky.
10 He does great things that we cannot understand.
He does more wonderful things than we can count.
11 When God passes in front of me,
I do not see him.
If he moves further away,
I do not see where he has gone.
12 If God decides to take something,
nobody can stop him.
Nobody can ask him, “What are you doing?”
13 If God is angry, he will not stop.
He destroys Rahab and the other monsters of the sea.[b]
14 So I can never give an answer to God.
There are no words that I can use to argue with him.
15 Even if I am completely right,
I cannot answer him.
He is my judge.
I can only ask him to be kind to me.
16 He might agree to meet with me in court.
But I do not believe that he would listen to me.
17 He would attack me with a strong storm.
He would hurt me even more, for no reason.
18 He would not allow me to breathe quietly.
Instead, he would make me very upset.
19 If I tried to fight God,
he is much stronger than I am.
And if I ask for justice,
who can bring God to court?
20 I am right. I have not done anything that is wrong.
But my words would say that I am guilty.
21 I have not done anything that is wrong.
But it does not matter what happens to me.
My life is not important to me.
22 The same thing happens to good people and to wicked people.
So I say, “God destroys people who are not guilty
as well as those who are guilty.”
23 When disease comes, people may die suddenly.
God laughs at good people who suffer like that.
24 A wicked man may have power to rule a nation.
Then God stops the judges from being fair.
It must be God who does that.
Who else could it be?
25 The days of my life are passing very quickly,
like a fast runner.
None of my days makes me happy.
26 My days go past like a fast boat on a river.
They move quickly like an eagle
when it flies down to catch its food.
27 I may try to be happy and to smile.
I may try to forget about my troubles.
28 Even then, I will be afraid of all my pain.
God, I know that you think I am guilty.
29 So, if I am guilty,
it is useless to do anything about it.
30 I might wash myself with pure water.
I might clean my hands with soap.
31 But then God would throw me down into a dirty hole.
Even my own clothes would be ashamed of me!
32 God is not a human, as I am.
So I cannot answer him.
We cannot argue with each other in court.
33 There is nobody who can decide which of us is right.
Nobody has authority to judge both of us.
34 Nobody can stop God from punishing me.
If that were possible, I would not be afraid any more.
35 I would speak to God and I would not be afraid.
But now I cannot do that.
Footnotes
- 9:9 The Bear, Orion and the Pleiades are the names of three groups of stars.
- 9:13 See Isaiah 51:9. Rahab was the name of a great sea monster.
Job 9
New International Version
Job 9
New International Version
Job
9 Then Job replied:
2 “Indeed, I know that this is true.
But how can mere mortals prove their innocence before God?(A)
3 Though they wished to dispute with him,(B)
they could not answer him one time out of a thousand.(C)
4 His wisdom(D) is profound, his power is vast.(E)
Who has resisted(F) him and come out unscathed?(G)
5 He moves mountains(H) without their knowing it
and overturns them in his anger.(I)
6 He shakes the earth(J) from its place
and makes its pillars tremble.(K)
7 He speaks to the sun and it does not shine;(L)
he seals off the light of the stars.(M)
8 He alone stretches out the heavens(N)
and treads on the waves of the sea.(O)
9 He is the Maker(P) of the Bear[a] and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.(Q)
10 He performs wonders(R) that cannot be fathomed,
miracles that cannot be counted.(S)
11 When he passes me, I cannot see him;
when he goes by, I cannot perceive him.(T)
12 If he snatches away, who can stop him?(U)
Who can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’(V)
13 God does not restrain his anger;(W)
even the cohorts of Rahab(X) cowered at his feet.
14 “How then can I dispute with him?
How can I find words to argue with him?(Y)
15 Though I were innocent, I could not answer him;(Z)
I could only plead(AA) with my Judge(AB) for mercy.(AC)
16 Even if I summoned him and he responded,
I do not believe he would give me a hearing.(AD)
17 He would crush me(AE) with a storm(AF)
and multiply(AG) my wounds for no reason.(AH)
18 He would not let me catch my breath
but would overwhelm me with misery.(AI)
19 If it is a matter of strength, he is mighty!(AJ)
And if it is a matter of justice, who can challenge him[b]?(AK)
20 Even if I were innocent, my mouth would condemn me;
if I were blameless, it would pronounce me guilty.(AL)
21 “Although I am blameless,(AM)
I have no concern for myself;(AN)
I despise my own life.(AO)
22 It is all the same; that is why I say,
‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’(AP)
23 When a scourge(AQ) brings sudden death,
he mocks the despair of the innocent.(AR)
24 When a land falls into the hands of the wicked,(AS)
he blindfolds its judges.(AT)
If it is not he, then who is it?(AU)
25 “My days are swifter than a runner;(AV)
they fly away without a glimpse of joy.(AW)
26 They skim past(AX) like boats of papyrus,(AY)
like eagles swooping down on their prey.(AZ)
27 If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,(BA)
I will change my expression, and smile,’
28 I still dread(BB) all my sufferings,
for I know you will not hold me innocent.(BC)
29 Since I am already found guilty,
why should I struggle in vain?(BD)
30 Even if I washed myself with soap(BE)
and my hands(BF) with cleansing powder,(BG)
31 you would plunge me into a slime pit(BH)
so that even my clothes would detest me.(BI)
32 “He is not a mere mortal(BJ) like me that I might answer him,(BK)
that we might confront each other in court.(BL)
33 If only there were someone to mediate between us,(BM)
someone to bring us together,(BN)
34 someone to remove God’s rod from me,(BO)
so that his terror would frighten me no more.(BP)
35 Then I would speak up without fear of him,(BQ)
but as it now stands with me, I cannot.(BR)
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