Job 1; Job 2; Job 3; Job 4

Job 1

1 Job, the Good Man A man named Job lived in the land of Uz. He was an honest and innocent man; he honored God and stayed away from evil.

2 Job had seven sons and three daughters.

3 He owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred teams of oxen, and five hundred female donkeys. He also had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.

4 Job's sons took turns holding feasts in their homes and invited their sisters to eat and drink with them.

5 After a feast was over, Job would send and have them made clean. Early in the morning Job would offer a burnt offering for each of them, because he thought, "My children may have sinned and cursed God in their hearts." Job did this every time.

6 One day the angels came to show themselves before the Lord, and Satan was with them.

7 The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "I have been wandering around the earth, going back and forth in it."

8 Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you noticed my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him. He is an honest and innocent man, honoring God and staying away from evil."

9 But Satan answered the Lord, "Job honors God for a good reason.

10 You have put a wall around him, his family, and everything he owns. You have blessed the things he has done. His flocks and herds are so large they almost cover the land.

11 But reach out your hand and destroy everything he has, and he will curse you to your face."

12 The Lord said to Satan, "All right, then. Everything Job has is in your power, but you must not touch Job himself." Then Satan left the Lord's presence.

13 One day Job's sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine together at the oldest brother's house.

14 A messenger came to Job and said, "The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were eating grass nearby,

15 when the Sabeans attacked and carried them away. They killed the servants with swords, and I am the only one who escaped to tell you!"

16 The messenger was still speaking when another messenger arrived and said, "Lightning from God fell from the sky. It burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who escaped to tell you!"

17 The second messenger was still speaking when another messenger arrived and said, "The Babylonians sent three groups of attackers that swept down and stole your camels and killed the servants. I am the only one who escaped to tell you!"

18 The third messenger was still speaking when another messenger arrived and said, "Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine together at the oldest brother's house.

19 Suddenly a great wind came from the desert, hitting all four corners of the house at once. The house fell in on the young people, and they are all dead. I am the only one who escaped to tell you!"

20 When Job heard this, he got up and tore his robe and shaved his head to show how sad he was. Then he bowed down to the ground to worship God.

21 He said: "I was naked when I was born, and I will be naked when I die. The Lord gave these things to me, and he has taken them away. Praise the name of the Lord."

22 In all this Job did not sin or blame God.

Job 2

1 On another day the angels came to show themselves before the Lord, and Satan was with them again.

2 The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "I have been wandering around the earth, going back and forth in it."

3 Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you noticed my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him. He is an honest and innocent man, honoring God and staying away from evil. You caused me to ruin him for no good reason, but he continues to be without blame."

4 "One skin for another!" Satan answered. "A man will give all he has to save his own life.

5 But reach out your hand and destroy his flesh and bones, and he will curse you to your face."

6 The Lord said to Satan, "All right, then. Job is in your power, but you may not take his life."

7 So Satan left the Lord's presence. He put painful sores on Job's body, from the top of his head to the soles of his feet.

8 Job took a piece of broken pottery to scrape himself, and he sat in ashes in misery.

9 Job's wife said to him, "Why are you trying to stay innocent? Curse God and die!"

10 Job answered, "You are talking like a foolish woman. Should we take only good things from God and not trouble?" In spite of all this Job did not sin in what he said.

11 Now Job had three friends: Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. When these friends heard about Job's troubles, they agreed to meet and visit him. They wanted to show their concern and to comfort him.

12 They saw Job from far away, but he looked so different they almost didn't recognize him. They began to cry loudly and tore their robes and put dirt on their heads to show how sad they were.

13 Then they sat on the ground with Job seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him because they saw how much he was suffering.

Job 3

1 After seven days Job cried out and cursed the day he had been born,

2 saying:

3 "Let the day I was born be destroyed, and the night it was said, 'A boy is born!'

4 Let that day turn to darkness. Don't let God care about it. Don't let light shine on it.

5 Let darkness and gloom have that day. Let a cloud hide it. Let thick darkness cover its light.

6 Let thick darkness capture that night. Don't count it among the days of the year or put it in any of the months.

7 Let that night be empty, with no shout of joy to be heard.

8 Let those who curse days curse that day. Let them prepare to wake up the sea monster Leviathan.

9 Let that day's morning stars never appear; let it wait for daylight that never comes. Don't let it see the first light of dawn,

10 because it allowed me to be born and did not hide trouble from my eyes.

11 "Why didn't I die as soon as I was born? Why didn't I die when I came out of the womb?

12 Why did my mother's knees receive me, and my mother's breasts feed me?

13 If they had not been there, I would be lying dead in peace; I would be asleep and at rest

14 with kings and wise men of the earth who built places for themselves that are now ruined.

15 I would be asleep with rulers who filled their houses with gold and silver.

16 Why was I not buried like a child born dead, like a baby who never saw the light of day?

17 In the grave the wicked stop making trouble, and the weary workers are at rest.

18 In the grave there is rest for the captives who no longer hear the shout of the slave driver.

19 People great and small are in the grave, and the slave is freed from his master.

20 "Why is light given to those in misery? Why is life given to those who are so unhappy?

21 They want to die, but death does not come. They search for death more than for hidden treasure.

22 They are very happy when they get to the grave.

23 They cannot see where they are going. God has hidden the road ahead.

24 I make sad sounds as I eat; my groans pour out like water.

25 Everything I feared and dreaded has happened to me.

26 I have no peace or quietness. I have no rest, only trouble."

Job 4

1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:

2 "If someone tried to speak with you, would you be upset? I cannot keep from speaking.

3 Think about the many people you have taught and the weak hands you have made strong.

4 Your words have comforted those who fell, and you have strengthened those who could not stand.

5 But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged; trouble hits you, and you are terrified.

6 You should have confidence because you respect God; you should have hope because you are innocent.

7 "Remember that the innocent will not die; honest people will never be destroyed.

8 I have noticed that people who plow evil and plant trouble, harvest it.

9 God's breath destroys them, and a blast of his anger kills them.

10 Lions may roar and growl, but when the teeth of a strong lion are broken,

11 that lion dies of hunger. The cubs of the mother lion are scattered.

12 "A word was brought to me in secret, and my ears heard a whisper of it.

13 It was during a nightmare when people are in deep sleep.

14 I was trembling with fear; all my bones were shaking.

15 A spirit glided past my face, and the hair on my body stood on end.

16 The spirit stopped, but I could not see what it was. A shape stood before my eyes, and I heard a quiet voice.

17 It said, 'Can a human be more right than God? Can a person be pure before his maker?

18 God does not trust his angels; he blames them for mistakes.

19 So he puts even more blame on people who live in clay houses, whose foundations are made of dust, who can be crushed like a moth.

20 Between dawn and sunset many people are broken to pieces; without being noticed, they die and are gone forever.

21 The ropes of their tents are pulled up, and they die without wisdom.'