New Revised Standard NRS
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 Then Elihu continued and said:
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And Elihu made answer and said,
2 "Hear my words, you wise men, and give ear to me, you who know;
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Give ear, you wise, to my words; and you who have knowledge, give attention to me;
3 for the ear tests words as the palate tastes food.
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For words are tested by the ear, as food is tasted by the mouth.
4 Let us choose what is right; let us determine among ourselves what is good.
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Let us make the decision for ourselves as to what is right; let us have the knowledge among ourselves of what is good.
5 For Job has said, "I am innocent, and God has taken away my right;
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For Job has said, I am upright, and it is God who has taken away my right;
6 in spite of being right I am counted a liar; my wound is incurable, though I am without transgression.'
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Though I am right, still I am in pain; my wound may not be made well, though I have done no wrong.
7 Who is there like Job, who drinks up scoffing like water,
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What man is like Job, a man who freely makes sport of God,
8 who goes in company with evildoers and walks with the wicked?
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And goes in the company of evil-doers, walking in the way of sinners?
9 For he has said, "It profits one nothing to take delight in God.'
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For he has said, It is no profit to a man to take delight in God.
10 "Therefore, hear me, you who have sense, far be it from God that he should do wickedness, and from the Almighty that he should do wrong.
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Now then, you wise, take note; you men of knowledge, give ear to me. Let it be far from God to do evil, and from the Ruler of all to do wrong.
11 For according to their deeds he will repay them, and according to their ways he will make it befall them.
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For he gives to every man the reward of his work, and sees that he gets the fruit of his ways.
12 Of a truth, God will not do wickedly, and the Almighty will not pervert justice.
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Truly, God does not do evil, and the Ruler of all is not a false judge.
13 Who gave him charge over the earth and who laid on him the whole world?
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Who put the earth into his care, or made him responsible for the world?
14 If he should take back his spirit to himself, and gather to himself his breath,
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If he made his spirit come back to him, taking his breath into himself again,
15 all flesh would perish together, and all mortals return to dust.
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All flesh would come to an end together, and man would go back to the dust.
16 "If you have understanding, hear this; listen to what I say.
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If you are wise, take note of this; give ear to the voice of my words.
17 Shall one who hates justice govern? Will you condemn one who is righteous and mighty,
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How may a hater of right be a ruler? and will you say that the upright Ruler of all is evil?
18 who says to a king, "You scoundrel!' and to princes, "You wicked men!';
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He who says to a king, You are an evil-doer; and to rulers, You are sinners;
19 who shows no partiality to nobles, nor regards the rich more than the poor, for they are all the work of his hands?
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Who has no respect for rulers, and who gives no more attention to those who have wealth than to the poor, for they are all the work of his hands.
20 In a moment they die; at midnight the people are shaken and pass away, and the mighty are taken away by no human hand.
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Suddenly they come to an end, even in the middle of the night: the blow comes on the men of wealth, and they are gone, and the strong are taken away without the hand of man.
21 "For his eyes are upon the ways of mortals, and he sees all their steps.
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For his eyes are on the ways of a man, and he sees all his steps.
22 There is no gloom or deep darkness where evildoers may hide themselves.
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There is no dark place, and no thick cloud, in which the workers of evil may take cover.
23 For he has not appointed a time for anyone to go before God in judgment.
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For he does not give man a fixed time to come before him to be judged.
24 He shatters the mighty without investigation, and sets others in their place.
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He sends the strong to destruction without searching out their cause, and puts others in their place.
25 Thus, knowing their works, he overturns them in the night, and they are crushed.
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For he has knowledge of their works, overturning them in the night, so that they are crushed.
26 He strikes them for their wickedness while others look on,
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The evil-doers are broken by his wrath, he puts his hand on them with force before the eyes of all onlookers.
27 because they turned aside from following him, and had no regard for any of his ways,
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Because they did not go after him, and took no note of his ways,
28 so that they caused the cry of the poor to come to him, and he heard the cry of the afflicted—
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So that the cry of the poor might come up to him, and the prayer of those in need come to his ears.
29 When he is quiet, who can condemn? When he hides his face, who can behold him, whether it be a nation or an individual?—
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30 so that the godless should not reign, or those who ensnare the people.
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31 "For has anyone said to God, "I have endured punishment; I will not offend any more;
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32 teach me what I do not see; if I have done iniquity, I will do it no more'?
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33 Will he then pay back to suit you, because you reject it? For you must choose, and not I; therefore declare what you know.
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34 Those who have sense will say to me, and the wise who hear me will say,
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Men of knowledge, and all wise men, hearing me, will say,
35 "Job speaks without knowledge, his words are without insight.'
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Job's words do not come from knowledge; they are not the fruit of wisdom.
36 Would that Job were tried to the limit, because his answers are those of the wicked.
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May Job be tested to the end, because his answers have been like those of evil men.
37 For he adds rebellion to his sin; he claps his hands among us, and multiplies his words against God."
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For in addition to his sin, he is uncontrolled in heart; before our eyes he makes sport of God, increasing his words against him.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.