Job 22; Job 23; Job 24; Acts 11

1 Then Eliphaz the Themanite answered, and said:

2 Can man be compared with God, even though he were of perfect knowledge?

3 What doth it profit God if thou be just? or what dost thou give him if thy way be unspotted?

4 Shall he reprove thee for fear, and come with thee into judgment:

5 And not for thy manifold wickedness and thy infinite iniquities?

6 For thou hast taken away the pledge of thy brethren without cause, and stripped the naked of their clothing.

7 Thou hast not given water to the weary, thou hast withdrawn bread from the hungry.

8 In the strength of thy arm thou didst possess the land, and being the most mighty thou holdest it.

9 Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless thou hast broken in pieces.

10 Therefore art thou surrounded with shares, and sudden fear troubleth thee.

11 And didst thou think that thou shouldst not see darkness, and that thou shouldst not be covered with the violence of overflowing waters?

12 Dost not thou think that God is higher than heaven, and is elevated above the height of the stars?

13 And thou sayst: What doth God know? and he judgeth as it were through a mist.

14 The clouds are his covert, and he doth not consider our things, and he walketh about the poles of heaven.

15 Dost thou desire to keep the path of ages, which wicked men have trodden?

16 Who were taken away before their time, and a flood hath overthrown their foundation.

17 Who said to God: Depart from us: and looked upon the Almighty as if he could do nothing:

18 Whereas he had filled their houses with good things: whose way of thinking be far from me.

19 The just shall see, and shall rejoice, and the innocent shall laugh them to scorn.

20 Is not their exaltation cut down, and hath not fire devoured the remnants of them?

21 Submit thyself then to him, and be at peace: and thereby thou shalt have the best fruits.

22 Receive the law of his mouth, and lay up his words in thy heart.

23 If thou wilt return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, and shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacle.

24 He shall give for earth flint, and for flint torrents of gold.

25 And the Almighty shall be against thy enemies, and silver shall be heaped together for thee.

26 Then shalt thou abound in delights in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face to God.

27 Thou shalt pray to him, and he will hear thee, and thou shalt pay vows.

28 Thou shalt decree a thing, and it shall come to thee, and light shall shine in thy ways.

29 For he that hath been humbled, shall be in glory: and he that shall bow down his eyes, he shall be saved.

30 The innocent shall be saved, and he shall be saved by the cleanness of his hands.

1 Then Job answered, and said:

2 Now also my words are in bitterness, and the hand of my scourge is more grievous than my mourning.

3 Who will grant me that I might know and find him, and come even to his throne?

4 I would set judgment before him, and would fill my mouth with complaints

5 That I might know the words that he would answer me, and understand what he would say to me.

6 I would not that he should contend with me with much strength, nor overwhelm me with the weight of his greatness.

7 Let him propose equity against me, and let my judgment come to victory.

8 But if I go to the east, he appeareth not; if to the west, I shall not understand him.

9 If to the left hand, what shall I do? I shall not take hold on him: if I turn myself to the right hand, I shall not see him.

10 But he knoweth my way, and has tried me as gold that passeth through the fire:

11 My foot hath followed his steps, I have kept his way, and have not declined from it.

12 I have not departed from the commandments of his lips, and the words of his mouth I have hid in my bosom.

13 For he is alone, and no man can turn away his thought: and whatsoever his soul hath desired, that hath he done.

14 And when he shall have fulfilled his will in me, many other like things are also at hand with him

15 And therefore I am troubled at his presence, and when I consider him I am made pensive with fear.

16 God hath softened my heart, and the Almighty hath troubled me.

17 For I have not perished because of the darkness that hangs over me, neither hath the mist covered my face.

1 Times are not hid from the Almighty: but they that know him, know not his days.

2 Some have removed landmarks, have taken away flocks by force, and fed them.

3 They have driven away the ass of the fatherless, and have taken away the widow’s ox for a pledge.

4 They have overturned the way of the poor, and have oppressed together the meek of the earth.

5 Others like wild asses in the desert go forth to their work: by watching for a prey they get bread for their children.

6 They reap the field that is not their own, and gather the vintage of his vineyard whom by violence they have oppressed.

7 They send men away naked, taking away their clothes who have no covering in the cold:

8 Who are wet, with the showers of the mountains, and having no covering embrace the stones.

9 They have violently robbed the fatherless, and stripped the poor common people.

10 From the naked and them that go without clothing, and from the hungry they have taken away the ears of corn.

11 They have taken their rest at noon among the stores of them, who after having trodden the winepresses suffer thirst.

12 Out of the cities they have made men to groan, and the soul of the wounded hath cried out, and God doth not suffer it to pass unrevenged.

13 They have been rebellious to the light, they have not known his ways, neither have they returned by his paths.

14 The murderer riseth at the very break of day, he killeth the needy, and the poor man: but in the night he will be as a thief.

15 The eye of the adulterer observeth darkness, saying: No eye shall see me: and he will cover his face.

16 He diggeth through houses in the dark, as in the day they had appointed for themselves, and they have not known the light.

17 If the morning suddenly appear, it is to them the shadow of death: and they walk in darkness as if it were in light.

18 He is light upon the face of the water: cursed be his portion on the earth, let him not walk by the way of the vineyards.

19 Let him pass from the snow waters to excessive heat, and his sin even to hell.

20 Let mercy forget him: may worms be his sweetness: let him be remembered no more, but be broken in pieces as an unfruitful tree.

21 For he hath fed the barren that beareth not, and to the widow he hath done no good.

22 He hath pulled down the strong by his might: and when he standeth up, he shall not trust to his life.

23 God hath given him place for penance, and he abuseth it unto pride: but his eyes are upon his ways.

24 They are lifted up for a little while and shall not stand, and shall be brought down as all things, and shall be taken away, and as the tops of the ears of corn they shall be broken.

25 And if it be not so, who can convince me that I have lied, and set my words before God?

1 And the apostles and brethren, who were in Judea, heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.

2 And when Peter was come up to Jerusalem, they that were of the circumcision contended with him,

3 Saying: Why didst thou go in to men uncircumcised and didst eat with them?

4 But Peter began and declared to them the matter in order, saying:

5 I was in the city of Joppe praying: and I saw in an ecstasy of mind a vision, a certain vessel descending, as it were a great sheet let down from heaven by four corners. And it came even unto me.

6 Into which looking, I considered and saw fourfooted creatures of the earth and beasts and creeping things and fowls of the air.

7 And I heard also a voice saying to me: Arise, Peter. Kill and eat.

8 And I said: Not so, Lord: for nothing common or unclean hath ever entered into my mouth.

9 And the voice answered again from heaven: What God hath made clean, do not thou call common.

10 And this was done three times. And all were taken up again into heaven.

11 And behold, immediately there were three men come to the house wherein I was, sent to me from Caesarea.

12 And the Spirit said to me that I should go with them, nothing doubting. And these six brethren went with me also: and we entered into the man’s house.

13 And he told us how he had seen an angel in his house, standing and saying to him: Send to Joppe and call hither Simon, who is surnamed Peter,

14 Who shall speak to thee words whereby thou shalt be saved, and all thy house.

15 And when I had begun to speak, the Holy Ghost fell upon them, as upon us also in the beginning.

16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how that he said: John indeed baptized with water but you shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.

17 If then God gave them the same grace as to us also who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ: who was I, that could withstand God?

18 Having heard these things, they held their peace and glorified God, saying: God then hath also to the Gentiles given repentance, unto life.

19 Now they who had been dispersed by the persecution that arose on occasion of Stephen went about as far as Phenice and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to none, but to the Jews only.

20 But some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they were entered into Antioch, spoke also to the Greeks, preaching the Lord Jesus.

21 And the hand of he Lord was with them: and a great number believing, were converted to the Lord.

22 And the tidings came to the ears of the church that was at Jerusalem, touching these things: and they sent Barnabas as far as Antioch.

23 Who, when he was come and had seen the grace of God, rejoiced. And he exhorted them all with purpose of heart to continue in the Lord.

24 For he was a good man and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith. And a great multitude was added to the Lord.

25 And Barnabas went to Tarsus to seek Saul: whom, when he had found, he brought to Antioch.

26 And they conversed there in the church a whole year: and they taught a great multitude, so that at Antioch the disciples were first named Christians.

27 And in these days there came prophets from Jerusalem to Antioch.

28 And one of them named Agabus, rising up, signified by the Spirit that there should be a great famine over the whole world, which came to pass under Claudius.

29 And the disciples, every man according to his ability, purposed to send relief to the brethren who dwelt in Judea.

30 Which also they did, sending it to the ancients, by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.