1 ELIPHAZ THE TEMANITE ANSWERED:
2 禄Can a mortal man be of use to God? Can even the wisest be of service to him?
3 禄Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous? Is it profitable to him if you make your ways blameless?
4 禄Is it for your reverence that he reproves you, and enters into judgment with you?
5 禄Is not your wickedness great? There is no end to your iniquities.
6 禄You have indeed exacted pledges from your family for no reason, and stripped the naked of their clothing.
7 禄You have given no water to the weary to drink. You have withheld bread from the hungry.
8 禄The powerful possess the land, and the favored live in it.
9 禄You have sent widows away empty-handed. You crush the arms of the orphans.
10 禄Therefore snares are around you, and sudden terror overwhelms you!
11 禄There is darkness so you cannot see. A flood of water covers you.
12 禄Is not God high in the heavens? See the highest stars, how eminent they are!
13 禄So you say: 聭What does God know? Can he judge through the thick darkness?
14 禄聭Thick clouds enwrap him, so that he does not see, and he walks on the dome of the heavens.聮芦
15 禄Will you keep to the old way that the wicked have trod?
16 禄They were snatched away before their time. Their foundation is washed away by flood.
17 禄They said to God: 聭Leave us alone.聮 They asked: 聭What can the Almighty do to us?聮
18 禄Yet he filled their houses with good things. Yet the plans of the wicked are repugnant.
19 禄The righteous see it and are glad and the innocent laugh them to scorn.
20 禄They say: 聭Our adversaries are cut off and the fire consumed what they left.聮
21 禄Agree with God, and be at peace. In this way good will come to you.
22 禄Receive instruction from his mouth, and lay up his words in your heart.
23 禄If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored. You must remove unrighteousness from your tents,
24 禄If you treat gold like dust, and gold of Ophir like the stones of the torrent-bed,
25 and if the Almighty is your gold and your precious silver,
26 you will delight yourself in the Almighty, and lift up your face to God.
27 禄You will pray to him and he will hear you! You will pay your vows.
28 禄You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you. The light of God聮s favor will shine on your ways.
29 禄When others are humiliated, you say it is pride for he saves the humble.
30 禄He will deliver even those who are guilty. They will escape because of the cleanness of your hands.芦