The Bible in Basic English BBE
Good News Translation GNT
1 And Eliphaz the Temanite made answer and said,
1
Job, will you be annoyed if I speak?
2 If one says a word, will it be a weariness to you? but who is able to keep from saying what is in his mind?
2
I can't keep quiet any longer.
3 Truly, you have been a helper to others, and you have made feeble hands strong;
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You have taught many people and given strength to feeble hands.
4 He who was near to falling has been lifted up by your words, and you have given strength to bent knees.
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When someone stumbled, weak and tired, your words encouraged him to stand.
5 But now it has come on you and it is a weariness to you; you are touched by it and your mind is troubled.
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Now it's your turn to be in trouble, and you are too stunned to face it.
6 Is not your fear of God your support, and your upright way of life your hope?
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You worshiped God, and your life was blameless; and so you should have confidence and hope.
7 Have you ever seen destruction come to an upright man? or when were the god-fearing ever cut off?
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Think back now. Name a single case where someone righteous met with disaster.
8 What I have seen is that those by whom trouble has been ploughed, and evil planted, get the same for themselves.
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I have seen people plow fields of evil and plant wickedness like seed; now they harvest wickedness and evil.
9 By the breath of God destruction takes them, and by the wind of his wrath they are cut off.
9
Like a storm, God destroys them in his anger.
10 Though the noise of the lion and the sounding of his voice, may be loud, the teeth of the young lions are broken.
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The wicked roar and growl like lions, but God silences them and breaks their teeth.
11 The old lion comes to his end for need of food, and the young of the she-lion go wandering in all directions.
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Like lions with nothing to kill and eat, they die, and all their children are scattered.
12 A word was given to me secretly, and the low sound of it came to my ears.
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Once a message came quietly, so quietly I could hardly hear it.
13 In troubled thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep comes on men,
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Like a nightmare it disturbed my sleep.
14 Fear came on me and shaking, and my bones were full of trouble;
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I trembled and shuddered; my whole body shook with fear.
15 And a breath was moving over my face; the hair of my flesh became stiff:
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A light breeze touched my face, and my skin crawled with fright.
16 Something was present before me, but I was not able to see it clearly; there was a form before my eyes: a quiet voice came to my ears, saying:
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I could see something standing there; I stared, but couldn't tell what it was. Then I heard a voice out of the silence:
17 May a man be upright before God? or a man be clean before his Maker?
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"Can anyone be righteous in the sight of God or be pure before his Creator?
18 Truly, he puts no faith in his servants, and he sees error in his angels;
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God does not trust his heavenly servants; he finds fault even with his angels.
19 How much more those living in houses of earth, whose bases are in the dust! They are crushed more quickly than an insect;
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Do you think he will trust a creature of clay, a thing of dust that can be crushed like a moth?
20 Between morning and evening they are completely broken; they come to an end for ever, and no one takes note.
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We may be alive in the morning, but die unnoticed before evening comes.
21 If their tent-cord is pulled up, do they not come to an end, and without wisdom?
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All that we have is taken away; we die, still lacking wisdom."
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.