Job 34 Common English Bible

34 Elihu continued:

²Hear my words, wise ones;
        knowledgeable ones, listen to me,
³    for the ear tests words
        like the palate tastes food.
⁴Let’s choose for us what’s right;
    let’s determine among ourselves what’s good;
⁵    for Job has said, “I’m innocent;
        God has denied my just cause;
⁶    because of my cause I’m thought a liar;
        my wound from an arrow is incurable, even though I didn’t rebel.”
⁷Who is a man like Job?
    He drinks mockery like water
⁸    and travels a path with wrongdoers,
        walking with evil persons.
⁹Indeed he said, “No one is rewarded
    for delighting in God.”
¹⁰Therefore, intelligent ones, hear me;
    far be it from God to do evil
    and the Almighty to sin,
¹¹    for he repays people based on what they do,
        paying back everyone according to their ways.
¹²Surely God doesn’t act wickedly;
    the Almighty doesn’t distort justice.
¹³Who placed earth in his care,
    and who gave him dominion over the entire world?
¹⁴If he were to decide to do it—
    to gather his spirit and breath back to himself—
¹⁵        all flesh would die together,
        and humans would return to dust.

¹⁶But if you have understanding, hear this;
    pay attention to the sound of my words.
¹⁷Will one who hates justice rule;
    will you condemn the most righteous one?
¹⁸Will you say to a king, “Worthless!”
    to royalty, “Evil!”
¹⁹Who shows no favor to princes
        nor regards the rich over the poor,
    for they are all the work of God’s hands?
²⁰    In the middle of the night they suddenly die;
        people are shaken and pass away.
    The mighty are removed, not by a human hand.
²¹God’s eyes are on human ways,
    and he sees all their steps.
²²There’s no darkness, no deep darkness,
    where evildoers can hide themselves;
²³    surely no time is set for a person
    to appear before God in judgment.
²⁴He shatters the mighty without examining them;
    makes others take their place.
²⁵Thus he regards their deeds,
    overturns them at night, and they are crushed.
²⁶He strikes them because of their wickedness
    at a place where people can see it.
²⁷Because they turned from following him
        and didn’t value all his ways,
²⁸        causing the cry of the poor to reach him,
    he hears the cry of the afflicted.
²⁹Still, if he remains quiet, who can condemn;
    if he hides his face, who can see him?
³⁰He prevents a lawless person from ruling,
    from capturing people.

³¹Has Job said to God,
    “I have borne punishment; I won’t sin again?
³²You teach me what I can’t see;
    if I’ve sinned, I won’t do it again.”
³³Will he repay you because you reject sin,
    for you must choose, not I;
    declare what you know.
³⁴Smart people say to me,
        the wise who hear me,
³⁵    “Job speaks without knowledge;
        his words aren’t astute.”
³⁶I wish Job would be tested to the limit
    because he responds like evil people.
³⁷He adds rebellion to his sin;
    mocks us openly
    and adds to his words against God.