King James Version KJV
Good News Translation GNT
1 Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said,
1
Will no one answer all this nonsense?
2 Should not the multitude of words be answered? and should a man full of talk be justified?
2
Does talking so much put you in the right?
3 Should thy lies make men hold their peace? and when thou mockest, shall no man make thee ashamed?
3
Job, do you think we can't answer you? That your mocking words will leave us speechless?
4 For thou hast said, My doctrine is pure, and I am clean in thine eyes.
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You claim that what you say is true; you claim you are pure in the sight of God.
5 But oh that God would speak, and open his lips against thee;
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How I wish God would answer you!
6 And that he would shew thee the secrets of wisdom, that they are double to that which is! Know therefore that God exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth.
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He would tell you there are many sides to wisdom; there are things too deep for human knowledge. God is punishing you less than you deserve.
7 Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection?
7
Can you discover the limits and bounds of the greatness and power of God?
8 It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know?
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The sky is no limit for God, but it lies beyond your reach. God knows the world of the dead, but you do not know it.
9 The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea.
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God's greatness is broader than the earth, wider than the sea.
10 If he cut off, and shut up, or gather together, then who can hinder him?
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If God arrests you and brings you to trial, who is there to stop him?
11 For he knoweth vain men: he seeth wickedness also; will he not then consider it?
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God knows which people are worthless; he sees all their evil deeds.
12 For vain man would be wise, though man be born like a wild ass's colt.
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Stupid people will start being wise when wild donkeys are born tame.
13 If thou prepare thine heart, and stretch out thine hands toward him;
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Put your heart right, Job. Reach out to God.
14 If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles.
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Put away evil and wrong from your home.
15 For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear:
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Then face the world again, firm and courageous.
16 Because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass away:
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Then all your troubles will fade from your memory, like floods that are past and remembered no more.
17 And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday; thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning.
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Your life will be brighter than sunshine at noon, and life's darkest hours will shine like the dawn.
18 And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; yea, thou shalt dig about thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety.
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You will live secure and full of hope; God will protect you and give you rest.
19 Also thou shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid; yea, many shall make suit unto thee.
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You won't be afraid of your enemies; many people will ask you for help.
20 But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape, and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost.
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But the wicked will look around in despair and find that there is no way to escape. Their one hope is that death will come.
The King James Version is in the public domain.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.