The Message Bible MSG
English Standard Version ESV
1 Having waited for Zophar, Job now resumed his defense:
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And Job again took up his discourse, and said:
2 "God-Alive! He's denied me justice! God Almighty! He's ruined my life!
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“As God lives, who has taken away my right, and the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter,
3 But for as long as I draw breath, and for as long as God breathes life into me,
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as long as my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils,
4 I refuse to say one word that isn't true. I refuse to confess to any charge that's false.
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my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit.
5 There is no way I'll ever agree to your accusations. I'll not deny my integrity even if it costs me my life.
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Far be it from me to say that you are right; till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.
6 I'm holding fast to my integrity and not loosening my grip - and, believe me, I'll never regret it.
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I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go; my heart does not reproach me for any of my days.
7 "Let my enemy be exposed as wicked! Let my adversary be proven guilty!
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“Let my enemy be as the wicked, and let him who rises up against me be as the unrighteous.
8 What hope do people without God have when life is cut short? when God puts an end to life?
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For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts him off, when God takes away his life?
9 Do you think God will listen to their cry for help when disaster hits?
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Will God hear his cry when distress comes upon him?
10 What interest have they ever shown in the Almighty? Have they ever been known to pray before?
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Will he take delight in the Almighty? Will he call upon God at all times?
11 "I've given you a clear account of God in action, suppressed nothing regarding God Almighty.
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I will teach you concerning the hand of God; what is with the Almighty I will not conceal.
12 The evidence is right before you. You can all see it for yourselves, so why do you keep talking nonsense?
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Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves; why then have you become altogether vain?
13 "I'll quote your own words back to you: "'This is how God treats the wicked, this is what evil people can expect from God Almighty:
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“This is the portion of a wicked man with God, and the heritage that oppressors receive from the Almighty:
14 Their children - all of them - will die violent deaths; they'll never have enough bread to put on the table.
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If his children are multiplied, it is for the sword, and his descendants have not enough bread.
15 They'll be wiped out by the plague, and none of the widows will shed a tear when they're gone.
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Those who survive him the pestilence buries, and his widows do not weep.
16 Even if they make a lot of money and are resplendent in the latest fashions,
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Though he heap up silver like dust, and pile up clothing like clay,
17 It's the good who will end up wearing the clothes and the decent who will divide up the money.
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he may pile it up, but the righteous will wear it, and the innocent will divide the silver.
18 They build elaborate houses that won't survive a single winter.
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He builds his house like a moth’s, like a booth that a watchman makes.
19 They go to bed wealthy and wake up poor.
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He goes to bed rich, but will do so no more; he opens his eyes, and his wealth is gone.
20 Terrors pour in on them like flash floods - a tornado snatches them away in the middle of the night,
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Terrors overtake him like a flood; in the night a whirlwind carries him off.
21 A cyclone sweeps them up - gone! Not a trace of them left, not even a footprint.
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The east wind lifts him up and he is gone; it sweeps him out of his place.
22 Catastrophes relentlessly pursue them; they run this way and that, but there's no place to hide -
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It hurls at him without pity; he flees from its power in headlong flight.
23 Pummeled by the weather, blown to kingdom come by the storm.'
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It claps its hands at him and hisses at him from its place.
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.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2025