Parallel Bible results for "job 22"

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Job 22

HNV

MSG

1 Then Elifaz the Temanite answered,
1 Once again Eliphaz the Temanite took up his theme:
2 "Can a man be profitable to God? Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself.
2 "Are any of us strong enough to give God a hand, or smart enough to give him advice?
3 Is it any pleasure to Shaddai, that you are righteous? Or does it benefit him, that you make your ways perfect?
3 So what if you were righteous - would God Almighty even notice? Even if you gave a perfect performance, do you think he'd applaud?
4 Is it for your piety that he reproves you, That he enters with you into judgment?
4 Do you think it's because he cares about your purity that he's disciplining you, putting you on the spot?
5 Isn't your wickedness great? Neither is there any end to your iniquities.
5 Hardly! It's because you're a first-class moral failure, because there's no end to your sins.
6 For you have taken pledges from your brother for nothing, And stripped the naked of their clothing.
6 When people came to you for help, you took the shirts off their backs, exploited their helplessness.
7 You haven't given water to the weary to drink, And you have withheld bread from the hungry.
7 You wouldn't so much as give a drink to the thirsty, or food, not even a scrap, to the hungry.
8 But as for the mighty man, he had the eretz. The honorable man, he lived in it.
8 And there you sat, strong and honored by everyone, surrounded by immense wealth!
9 You have sent widows away empty, And the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
9 You turned poor widows away from your door; heartless, you crushed orphans.
10 Therefore snares are round about you. Sudden fear troubles you,
10 Now you're the one trapped in terror, paralyzed by fear. Suddenly the tables have turned!
11 Or darkness, so that you can not see, And floods of waters cover you.
11 How do you like living in the dark, sightless, up to your neck in flood waters?
12 "Isn't God in the heights of heaven? See the height of the stars, how high they are!
12 "You agree, don't you, that God is in charge? He runs the universe - just look at the stars!
13 You say, 'What does God know? Can he judge through the thick darkness?
13 Yet you dare raise questions: 'What does God know? From that distance and darkness, how can he judge?
14 Thick clouds are a covering to him, so that he doesn't see. He walks on the vault of the sky.'
14 He roams the heavens wrapped in clouds, so how can he see us?'
15 Will you keep the old way Which wicked men have trodden,
15 "Are you going to persist in that tired old line that wicked men and women have always used?
16 Who were snatched away before their time, Whose foundation was poured out as a stream,
16 Where did it get them? They died young, flash floods sweeping them off to their doom.
17 Who said to God, 'Depart from us;' And, 'What can Shaddai do for us?'
17 They told God, 'Get lost! What good is God Almighty to us?'
18 Yet he filled their houses with good things, But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
18 And yet it was God who gave them everything they had. It's beyond me how they can carry on like this!
19 The righteous see it, and are glad; The innocent laugh them to scorn,
19 "Good people see bad people crash, and call for a celebration. Relieved, they crow,
20 Saying, 'Surely those who rose up against us are cut off, The fire has consumed the remnant of them.'
20 'At last! Our enemies - wiped out. Everything they had and stood for is up in smoke!'
21 "Acquaint yourself with him, now, and be at shalom. Thereby good shall come to you.
21 "Give in to God, come to terms with him and everything will turn out just fine.
22 Please receive instruction from his mouth, And lay up his words in your heart.
22 Let him tell you what to do; take his words to heart.
23 If you return to Shaddai, you shall be built up, If you put away unrighteousness far from your tents.
23 Come back to God Almighty and he'll rebuild your life. Clean house of everything evil.
24 Lay your treasure in the dust, The gold of Ofir among the stones of the brooks.
24 Relax your grip on your money and abandon your gold-plated luxury.
25 The Almighty will be your treasure, Precious silver to you.
25 God Almighty will be your treasure, more wealth than you can imagine.
26 For then shall you delight yourself in Shaddai, And shall lift up your face to God.
26 "You'll take delight in God, the Mighty One, and look to him joyfully, boldly.
27 You shall make your prayer to him, and he will hear you. You shall pay your vows.
27 You'll pray to him and he'll listen; he'll help you do what you've promised.
28 You shall also decree a thing, and it shall be established to you. Light shall shine on your ways.
28 You'll decide what you want and it will happen; your life will be bathed in light.
29 When they cast down, you shall say, 'be lifted up.' He will save the humble person.
29 To those who feel low you'll say, 'Chin up! Be brave!' and God will save them.
30 He will even deliver him who is not innocent; Yes, he shall be delivered through the cleanness of your hands."
30 Yes, even the guilty will escape, escape through God's grace in your life."
The Hebrew Names Version is in the public domain.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.