Job 11  Living Bible

11 Zophar the Naamathite replies to Job:

² “Shouldn’t someone stem this torrent of words? Is a man proved right by all this talk? ³ Should I remain silent while you boast? When you mock God, shouldn’t someone make you ashamed? ⁴ You claim you are pure in the eyes of God! ⁵ Oh, that God would speak and tell you what he thinks! ⁶ Oh, that he would make you truly see yourself, for he knows everything you’ve done. Listen! God is doubtless punishing you far less than you deserve!

⁷ “Do you know the mind and purposes of God? Will long searching make them known to you? Are you qualified to judge the Almighty? ⁸ He is as faultless as heaven is high—but who are you? His mind is fathomless—what can you know in comparison? ⁹ His Spirit is broader than the earth and wider than the sea. ¹⁰ If he rushes in and makes an arrest, and calls the court to order, who is going to stop him? ¹¹ For he knows perfectly all the faults and sins of mankind; he sees all sin without searching.

¹² “Mere man is as likely to be wise as a wild donkey’s colt is likely to be born a man!

^13-14 “Before you turn to God and stretch out your hands to him, get rid of your sins and leave all iniquity behind you. ¹⁵ Only then, without the spots of sin to defile you, can you walk steadily forward to God without fear. ¹⁶ Only then can you forget your misery. It will all be in the past. ¹⁷ And your life will be cloudless; any darkness will be as bright as morning!

¹⁸ “You will have courage because you will have hope. You will take your time and rest in safety. ¹⁹ You will lie down unafraid, and many will look to you for help. ²⁰ But the wicked shall find no way to escape; their only hope is death.”