Job 21:2 "Listen carefully to my speech, And let this be your way of consolation.

Job 21:3 "Bear with me that I may speak; Then after I have spoken, you may mock.

Job 21:4 "As for me, is my complaint to man? And why should I not be impatient?

Job 21:5 "Look at me, and be astonished, And put your hand over your mouth.

Job 21:6 "Even when I remember, I am disturbed, And horror takes hold of my flesh.

Job 21:7 "Why do the wicked still live, Continue on, also become very powerful?

Job 21:8 "Their descendants are established with them in their sight, And their offspring before their eyes,

Job 21:9 Their houses are safe from fear, And the rod of God is not on them.

Job 21:10 "His ox mates without fail; His cow calves and does not abort.

Job 21:11 "They send forth their little ones like the flock, And their children skip about.

Job 21:12 "They sing to the timbrel and harp And rejoice at the sound of the flute.

Job 21:13 "They spend their days in prosperity, And suddenly they go down to Sheol.

Job 21:14 "They say to God, 'Depart from us! We do not even desire the knowledge of Your ways.

Job 21:15 'Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him, And what would we gain if we entreat Him?'

Job 21:16 "Behold, their prosperity is not in their hand; The counsel of the wicked is far from me.

Job 21:17 "How often is the lamp of the wicked put out, Or does their calamity fall on them? Does God apportion destruction in His anger?

Job 21:18 "Are they as straw before the wind, And like chaff which the storm carries away?

Job 21:19 "You say, 'God stores away a man's iniquity for his sons.' Let God repay him so that he may know it.

Job 21:20 "Let his own eyes see his decay, And let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty.

Job 21:21 "For what does he care for his household after him, When the number of his months is cut off?

Job 21:22 "Can anyone teach God knowledge, In that He judges those on high?

Job 21:23 "One dies in his full strength, Being wholly at ease and satisfied;

Job 21:24 His sides are filled out with fat, And the marrow of his bones is moist,

Job 21:25 While another dies with a bitter soul, Never even tasting anything good.

Job 21:26 "Together they lie down in the dust, And worms cover them.

Job 21:27 "Behold, I know your thoughts, And the plans by which you would wrong me.

Job 21:28 "For you say, 'Where is the house of the nobleman, And where is the tent, the dwelling places of the wicked?'

Job 21:29 "Have you not asked wayfaring men, And do you not recognize their witness?

Job 21:30 "For the wicked is reserved for the day of calamity; They will be led forth at the day of fury.

Job 21:31 "Who will confront him with his actions, And who will repay him for what he has done?

Job 21:32 "While he is carried to the grave, Men will keep watch over his tomb.

Job 21:33 "The clods of the valley will gently cover him; Moreover, all men will follow after him, While countless ones go before him.

Job 21:34 "How then will you vainly comfort me, For your answers remain full of falsehood?"

--------

Job 22:1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded,

Job 22:2 "Can a vigorous man be of use to God, Or a wise man be useful to himself?

Job 22:3 "Is there any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous, Or profit if you make your ways perfect?

Job 22:4 "Is it because of your reverence that He reproves you, That He enters into judgment against you?

Job 22:5 "Is not your wickedness great, And your iniquities without end?

Job 22:6 "For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause, And stripped men naked.

Job 22:7 "To the weary you have given no water to drink, And from the hungry you have withheld bread.

Job 22:8 "But the earth belongs to the mighty man, And the honorable man dwells in it.

Job 22:9 "You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of the orphans has been crushed.

Job 22:10 "Therefore snares surround you, And sudden dread terrifies you,

Job 22:11 Or darkness, so that you cannot see, And an abundance of water covers you.

Job 22:12 "Is not God in the height of heaven? Look also at the distant stars, how high they are!

Job 22:13 "You say, 'What does God know? Can He judge through the thick darkness?

Job 22:14 'Clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see; And He walks on the vault of heaven.'

Job 22:15 "Will you keep to the ancient path Which wicked men have trod,

Job 22:16 Who were snatched away before their time, Whose foundations were washed away by a river?

Job 22:17 "They said to God, 'Depart from us!' And 'What can the Almighty do to them?'

Job 22:18 "Yet He filled their houses with good things; But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

Job 22:19 "The righteous see and are glad, And the innocent mock them,

Job 22:20 Saying, 'Truly our adversaries are cut off, And their abundance the fire has consumed.'

Job 22:21 "Yield now and be at peace with Him; Thereby good will come to you.

Job 22:22 "Please receive instruction from His mouth And establish His words in your heart.

Job 22:23 "If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored; If you remove unrighteousness far from your tent,

Job 22:24 And place your gold in the dust, And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks,

Job 22:25 Then the Almighty will be your gold And choice silver to you.

Job 22:26 "For then you will delight in the Almighty And lift up your face to God.

Job 22:27 "You will pray to Him, and He will hear you; And you will pay your vows.

Job 22:28 "You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And light will shine on your ways.

Job 22:29 "When you are cast down, you will speak with confidence, And the humble person He will save.

Job 22:30 "He will deliver one who is not innocent, And he will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands."

--------

Job 23:1 Then Job replied,

Job 23:2 "Even today my complaint is rebellion; His hand is heavy despite my groaning.

Job 23:3 "Oh that I knew where I might find Him, That I might come to His seat!

Job 23:4 "I would present my case before Him And fill my mouth with arguments.

Job 23:5 "I would learn the words which He would answer, And perceive what He would say to me.

Job 23:6 "Would He contend with me by the greatness of His power? No, surely He would pay attention to me.

Job 23:7 "There the upright would reason with Him; And I would be delivered forever from my Judge.

Job 23:8 "Behold, I go forward but He is not there, And backward, but I cannot perceive Him;

Job 23:9 When He acts on the left, I cannot behold Him; He turns on the right, I cannot see Him.

Job 23:10 "But He knows the way I take; When He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

Job 23:11 "My foot has held fast to His path; I have kept His way and not turned aside.

Job 23:12 "I have not departed from the command of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.

Job 23:13 "But He is unique and who can turn Him? And what His soul desires, that He does.

Job 23:14 "For He performs what is appointed for me, And many such decrees are with Him.

Job 23:15 "Therefore, I would be dismayed at His presence; When I consider, I am terrified of Him.

Job 23:16 "It is God who has made my heart faint, And the Almighty who has dismayed me,

Job 23:17 But I am not silenced by the darkness, Nor deep gloom which covers me.