Job

9 Then Job replied:

2 “Indeed, I know that this is true.

But how can mere mortals prove their innocence before God?v

3 Though they wished to dispute with him,w

they could not answer him one time out of a thousand.x

4 His wisdomy is profound, his power is vast.z

Who has resisteda him and come out unscathed?b

5 He moves mountainsc without their knowing it

and overturns them in his anger.d

6 He shakes the earthe from its place

and makes its pillars tremble.f

7 He speaks to the sun and it does not shine;g

he seals off the light of the stars.h

8 He alone stretches out the heavensi

and treads on the waves of the sea.j

9 He is the Makerk of the Beara and Orion,

the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.l

10 He performs wondersm that cannot be fathomed,

miracles that cannot be counted.n

11 When he passes me, I cannot see him;

when he goes by, I cannot perceive him.o

12 If he snatches away, who can stop him?p

Who can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’q

13 God does not restrain his anger;r

even the cohorts of Rahabs cowered at his feet.

14 “How then can I dispute with him?

How can I find words to argue with him?t

15 Though I were innocent, I could not answer him;u

I could only pleadv with my Judgew for mercy.x

16 Even if I summoned him and he responded,

I do not believe he would give me a hearing.y

17 He would crush mez with a storma

and multiplyb my wounds for no reason.c

18 He would not let me catch my breath

but would overwhelm me with misery.d

19 If it is a matter of strength, he is mighty!e

And if it is a matter of justice, who can challenge himb?f

20 Even if I were innocent, my mouth would condemn me;

if I were blameless, it would pronounce me guilty.g

21 “Although I am blameless,h

I have no concern for myself;i

I despise my own life.j

22 It is all the same; that is why I say,

‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’k

23 When a scourgel brings sudden death,

he mocks the despair of the innocent.m

24 When a land falls into the hands of the wicked,n

he blindfolds its judges.o

If it is not he, then who is it?p

25 “My days are swifter than a runner;q

they fly away without a glimpse of joy.r

26 They skim pasts like boats of papyrus,t

like eagles swooping down on their prey.u

27 If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,v

I will change my expression, and smile,’

28 I still dreadw all my sufferings,

for I know you will not hold me innocent.x

29 Since I am already found guilty,

why should I struggle in vain?y

30 Even if I washed myself with soapz

and my handsa with cleansing powder,b

31 you would plunge me into a slime pitc

so that even my clothes would detest me.d

32 “He is not a mere mortale like me that I might answer him,f

that we might confront each other in court.g

33 If only there were someone to mediate between us,h

someone to bring us together,i

34 someone to remove God’s rod from me,j

so that his terror would frighten me no more.k

35 Then I would speak up without fear of him,l

but as it now stands with me, I cannot.m