| New American Standard Bible 1995 | International Standard Version |
| 1Then Job responded, | 1In response Job replied: |
| 2"Truly then you are the people, And with you wisdom will die! | 2"Truly, you are the people and wisdom will die with you! |
| 3"But I have intelligence as well as you; I am not inferior to you. And who does not know such things as these? | 3Like you, I also have understanding. I'm not inferior to you; who doesn't know things like this?" |
| 4"I am a joke to my friends, The one who called on God and He answered him; The just and blameless man is a joke. | 4"I'm a laughingstock to my friends, someone who called on God. But then he answered this upright and blameless man, and I have become a laughingstock. |
| 5"He who is at ease holds calamity in contempt, As prepared for those whose feet slip. | 5The carefree are thinking, 'I have contempt for misfortune,' Those who are about to stumble deserve it. |
| 6"The tents of the destroyers prosper, And those who provoke God are secure, Whom God brings into their power. | 6The tents of robbers are at rest, and those who provoke God are secure, that is, those who carry their god in their pocket. |
| 7"But now ask the beasts, and let them teach you; And the birds of the heavens, and let them tell you. | 7"Ask the wild animals, and they'll teach you; the birds of the sky will tell you. |
| 8"Or speak to the earth, and let it teach you; And let the fish of the sea declare to you. | 8Or ask the green plants of the earth and they'll teach you; let the fish in the sea tell you. |
| 9"Who among all these does not know That the hand of the LORD has done this, | 9Who among all of these doesn't know that the LORD's hand made them, |
| 10In whose hand is the life of every living thing, And the breath of all mankind? | 10and that the life of every living thing rests in his control, along with the breath of every living human being? |
| 11"Does not the ear test words, As the palate tastes its food? | 11The ear scrutinizes speech just as the palate tastes food." |
| 12"Wisdom is with aged men, With long life is understanding. | 12"Wisdom may be found in the company of the aged. Understanding comes with longevity. |
| 13"With Him are wisdom and might; To Him belong counsel and understanding. | 13With God is wisdom and strength; counsel and understanding belongs to him. |
| 14"Behold, He tears down, and it cannot be rebuilt; He imprisons a man, and there can be no release. | 14When he tears down, nobody rebuilds; when he incarcerates, nobody escapes. |
| 15"Behold, He restrains the waters, and they dry up; And He sends them out, and they inundate the earth. | 15When he withholds water, rivers dry up; when he lets them loose, they'll flood the land. |
| 16"With Him are strength and sound wisdom, The misled and the misleader belong to Him. | 16"With God are strength and sound wisdom; both the deceived and those who deceive are responsible to him. |
| 17"He makes counselors walk barefoot And makes fools of judges. | 17He leads counselors away naked; he turns judges into fools. |
| 18"He loosens the bond of kings And binds their loins with a girdle. | 18He strips away the authority of kings to punish and puts them in prison clothes instead. |
| 19"He makes priests walk barefoot And overthrows the secure ones. | 19He leads away the priests naked and overthrows the ruling class. |
| 20"He deprives the trusted ones of speech And takes away the discernment of the elders. | 20He keeps reliable advisors from speaking, and removes discernment from elders. |
| 21"He pours contempt on nobles And loosens the belt of the strong. | 21He pours contempt on nobles and embarrasses the mighty. |
| 22"He reveals mysteries from the darkness And brings the deep darkness into light. | 22He uncovers the hidden dimensions from darkness, bringing what is in deep shadow to light. |
| 23"He makes the nations great, then destroys them; He enlarges the nations, then leads them away. | 23He makes nations great, and then destroys them; he enlarges nations, but then sends them away to captivity. |
| 24"He deprives of intelligence the chiefs of the earth's people And makes them wander in a pathless waste. | 24He withdraws understanding from national leaders of the world, causing them to wander through uncharted wilderness. |
| 25"They grope in darkness with no light, And He makes them stagger like a drunken man. | 25They grope in the dark without light; he causes them to stagger around like a drunkard." |
| New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. |
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