Job 22:2-27
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 22
2'Can a strong man be of use to God, Or a wise one be useful to himself? 3Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous, Or gain if you make your ways blameless? 4Is it because of your reverence that He punishes you, That He enters into judgment against you? 5Is your wickedness not abundant, And is there no end to your guilty deeds? 6For you have seized pledges from your brothers without cause, And stripped people naked. 7You have given the weary no water to drink, And you have withheld bread from the hungry. 8But the earth belongs to the powerful man, And the one who is honorable dwells on it. 9You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of orphans has been crushed. 10Therefore traps surround you, And sudden dread terrifies you, 11Or darkness, so that you cannot see, And a flood of water covers you. 12'Is God not in the height of heaven? Look also at the highest stars, how high they are! 13But you say, ‘What does God know? Can He judge through the thick darkness? 14Clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see; And He walks on the vault of heaven.’ 15Will you keep to the ancient path Which wicked people have walked, 16Who were snatched away before their time, Whose foundations were washed away by a river? 17They said to God, ‘Go away from us!’ And ‘What can the Almighty do to them?’ 18Yet He filled their houses with good things; But the advice of the wicked is far from me. 19The righteous see and are glad, And the innocent mock them, saying, 20‘Truly our enemies are eliminated, And fire has consumed their abundance.’ 21'Be reconciled with Him, and be at peace; Thereby good will come to you. 22Please receive instruction from His mouth, And put His words in your heart. 23If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored; If you remove injustice far from your tent, 24And put your gold in the dust, And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks, 25Then the Almighty will be your gold And abundant silver to you. 26For then you will take pleasure in the Almighty And lift up your face to God. 27You will pray to Him, and He will hear you; And you will pay your vows.King James Version
Christian Standard Bible
3Does it delight the Almighty if you are righteous? Does he profit if you perfect your behavior?
4Does he correct you and take you to court because of your piety?
5Isn’t your wickedness abundant and aren’t your iniquities endless?
6For you took collateral from your brothers without cause, stripping off their clothes and leaving them naked.
7You gave no water to the thirsty and withheld food from the famished,
8while the land belonged to a powerful man and an influential man lived on it.
9You sent widows away empty-handed, and the strength of the fatherless was crushed.
10Therefore snares surround you, and sudden dread terrifies you,
11or darkness, so you cannot see, and a flood of water covers you.
12Isn’t God as high as the heavens? And look at the highest stars—how lofty they are!
13Yet you say, "What does God know? Can he judge through total darkness?
14Clouds veil him so that he cannot see, as he walks on the circle of the sky."
15Will you continue on the ancient path that wicked men have walked?
16They were snatched away before their time, and their foundations were washed away by a river.
17They were the ones who said to God, "Leave us alone!" and "What can the Almighty do to us?"
18But it was he who filled their houses with good things. The counsel of the wicked is far from me!
19The righteous see this and rejoice; the innocent mock them, saying,
20"Surely our opponents are destroyed, and fire has consumed what they left behind."
21Come to terms with God and be at peace; in this way good will come to you.
22Receive instruction from his mouth, and place his sayings in your heart.
23If you return to the Almighty, you will be renewed. If you banish injustice from your tent
24and consign your gold to the dust, the gold of Ophir to the stones in the wadis,
25the Almighty will be your gold and your finest silver.
26Then you will delight in the Almighty and lift up your face to God.
27You will pray to him, and he will hear you, and you will fulfill your vows.
New Living Translation
Chapter 22
2'Can a person do anything to help God? Can even a wise person be helpful to him? 3Is it any advantage to the Almighty if you are righteous? Would it be any gain to him if you were perfect? 4Is it because you’re so pious that he accuses you and brings judgment against you? 5No, it’s because of your wickedness! There’s no limit to your sins.
6'For example, you must have lent money to your friend and demanded clothing as security. Yes, you stripped him to the bone.
7You must have refused water for the thirsty and food for the hungry.
8You probably think the land belongs to the powerful and only the privileged have a right to it!
9You must have sent widows away empty-handed and crushed the hopes of orphans.
10That is why you are surrounded by traps and tremble from sudden fears.
11That is why you cannot see in the darkness, and waves of water cover you.
12'God is so great — higher than the heavens, higher than the farthest stars.
13But you reply, ‘That’s why God can’t see what I am doing! How can he judge through the thick darkness?
14For thick clouds swirl about him, and he cannot see us. He is way up there, walking on the vault of heaven.’
15'Will you continue on the old paths where evil people have walked?
16They were snatched away in the prime of life, the foundations of their lives washed away.
17For they said to God, ‘Leave us alone! What can the Almighty do to us?’
18Yet he was the one who filled their homes with good things, so I will have nothing to do with that kind of thinking.
19'The righteous will be happy to see the wicked destroyed, and the innocent will laugh in contempt.
20They will say, ‘See how our enemies have been destroyed. The last of them have been consumed in the fire.’
21'Submit to God, and you will have peace; then things will go well for you.
22Listen to his instructions, and store them in your heart.
23If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored — so clean up your life.
24If you give up your lust for money and throw your precious gold into the river,
25the Almighty himself will be your treasure. He will be your precious silver!
English Standard Version
Chapter 22
2 "Can a man be profitable to God? Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself. 3Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are in the right, or is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless? 4Is it for your fear of him that he reproves you and enters into judgment with you? 5Is not your evil abundant? There is no end to your iniquities. 6For you have exacted pledges of your brothers for nothing and stripped the naked of their clothing. 7You have given no water to the weary to drink, and you have withheld bread from the hungry. 8 The man with power possessed the land, and the favored man lived in it. 9You have sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless were crushed. 10Therefore snares are all around you, and sudden terror overwhelms you, 11or darkness, so that you cannot see, and a flood of water covers you. 12"Is not God high in the heavens? See the highest stars, how lofty they are! 13But you say, ‘What does God know? Can he judge through the deep darkness? 14 Thick clouds veil him, so that he does not see, and he walks on the vault of heaven.’ 15Will you keep to the old way that wicked men have trod? 16They were snatched away before their time; their foundation was washed away. 17They said to God, ‘Depart from us,’ and ‘What can the Almighty do to us?’ 18Yet he filled their houses with good things — but the counsel of the wicked is far from me. 19 The righteous see it and are glad; the innocent one mocks at them, 20saying, ‘Surely our adversaries are cut off, and what they left the fire has consumed.’ 21 "Agree with God, and be at peace; thereby good will come to you. 22Receive instruction from his mouth, and lay up his words in your heart. 23If you return to the Almighty you will be built up; if you remove injustice far from your tents, 24if you lay gold in the dust, and gold of Ophir among the stones of the torrent-bed, 25then the Almighty will be your gold and your precious silver. 26For then you will delight yourself in the Almighty and lift up your face to God. 27You will make your prayer to him, and he will hear you, and you will pay your vows.New International Version
3What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous? What would he gain if your ways were blameless?
4"Is it for your piety that he rebukes you and brings charges against you?
5Is not your wickedness great? Are not your sins endless?
6You demanded security from your relatives for no reason; you stripped people of their clothing, leaving them naked.
7You gave no water to the weary and you withheld food from the hungry,
8though you were a powerful man, owning land— an honored man, living on it.
9And you sent widows away empty-handed and broke the strength of the fatherless.
10That is why snares are all around you, why sudden peril terrifies you,
11why it is so dark you cannot see, and why a flood of water covers you.
12"Is not God in the heights of heaven? And see how lofty are the highest stars!
13Yet you say, ‘What does God know? Does he judge through such darkness?
14Thick clouds veil him, so he does not see us as he goes about in the vaulted heavens.’
15Will you keep to the old path that the wicked have trod?
16They were carried off before their time, their foundations washed away by a flood.
17They said to God, ‘Leave us alone! What can the Almighty do to us?’
18Yet it was he who filled their houses with good things, so I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.
19The righteous see their ruin and rejoice; the innocent mock them, saying,
20‘Surely our foes are destroyed, and fire devours their wealth.’
21"Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you.
22Accept instruction from his mouth and lay up his words in your heart.
23If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored: If you remove wickedness far from your tent
24and assign your nuggets to the dust, your gold of Ophir to the rocks in the ravines,
25then the Almighty will be your gold, the choicest silver for you.
26Surely then you will find delight in the Almighty and will lift up your face to God.
27You will pray to him, and he will hear you, and you will fulfill your vows.
New King James Version
