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Job 11
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Job 11
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 11
Zophar’s First Speech. 1 And Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
2 Should not many words be answered,
or must the garrulous man necessarily be right?
3 Shall your babblings keep others silent,
and shall you deride and no one give rebuke?
4 Shall you say: “My teaching is pure,
and I am clean in your sight”?
5 But oh, that God would speak,[a]
and open his lips against you,
6 And tell you the secrets of wisdom,
for good sense has two sides;
So you might learn that God
overlooks some of your sinfulness.
7 Can you find out the depths of God?(A)
or find out the perfection of the Almighty?
8 It is higher than the heavens; what can you do?
It is deeper than Sheol; what can you know?
9 It is longer than the earth in measure,
and broader than the sea.
10 If he should seize and imprison
or call to judgment, who then could turn him back?
11 For he knows the worthless
and sees iniquity; will he then ignore it?
12 An empty head will gain understanding,
when a colt of a wild jackass(B) is born human.[b]
13 If you set your heart aright
and stretch out your hands toward him,
14 If iniquity is in your hand, remove it,
and do not let injustice dwell in your tent,
15 Surely then you may lift up your face in innocence;
you may stand firm and unafraid.
16 For then you shall forget your misery,
like water that has ebbed away you shall regard it.
17 Then your life shall be brighter than the noonday;
its gloom shall become like the morning,
18 And you shall be secure, because there is hope;
you shall look round you and lie down in safety;(C)
19 you shall lie down and no one will disturb you.
Many shall entreat your favor,
20 but the wicked, looking on, shall be consumed with envy.
Escape shall be cut off from them,
their only hope their last breath.
Footnotes
- 11:5 This is another of many ironies (e.g., cf. 11:16–19) that occur throughout the book. Zophar does not know that God will speak (chaps. 38–42), but contrary to what he thinks.
- 11:12 A colt…is born human: the Hebrew is obscure. As translated, it seems to be a proverb referring to an impossible event.
Job 11
New International Version
Job 11
New International Version
Zophar
11 Then Zophar the Naamathite(A) replied:
2 “Are all these words to go unanswered?(B)
Is this talker to be vindicated?(C)
3 Will your idle talk(D) reduce others to silence?
Will no one rebuke you when you mock?(E)
4 You say to God, ‘My beliefs are flawless(F)
and I am pure(G) in your sight.’
5 Oh, how I wish that God would speak,(H)
that he would open his lips against you
6 and disclose to you the secrets of wisdom,(I)
for true wisdom has two sides.
Know this: God has even forgotten some of your sin.(J)
7 “Can you fathom(K) the mysteries of God?
Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?
8 They are higher(L) than the heavens(M) above—what can you do?
They are deeper than the depths below(N)—what can you know?(O)
9 Their measure(P) is longer than the earth
and wider than the sea.(Q)
10 “If he comes along and confines you in prison
and convenes a court, who can oppose him?(R)
11 Surely he recognizes deceivers;
and when he sees evil, does he not take note?(S)
12 But the witless can no more become wise
than a wild donkey’s colt(T) can be born human.[a](U)
13 “Yet if you devote your heart(V) to him
and stretch out your hands(W) to him,(X)
14 if you put away(Y) the sin that is in your hand
and allow no evil(Z) to dwell in your tent,(AA)
15 then, free of fault, you will lift up your face;(AB)
you will stand firm(AC) and without fear.(AD)
16 You will surely forget your trouble,(AE)
recalling it only as waters gone by.(AF)
17 Life will be brighter than noonday,(AG)
and darkness will become like morning.(AH)
18 You will be secure, because there is hope;
you will look about you and take your rest(AI) in safety.(AJ)
19 You will lie down, with no one to make you afraid,(AK)
and many will court your favor.(AL)
20 But the eyes of the wicked will fail,(AM)
and escape will elude them;(AN)
their hope will become a dying gasp.”(AO)
Footnotes
- Job 11:12 Or wild donkey can be born tame
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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