Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said,
How long wilt thou speak these things?
And how long shall the words of thy mouth be like a mighty wind?
Doth God pervert justice?
Or doth the Almighty pervert righteousness?
{Or, If thy children sinned…he delivered &c.}If thy children have sinned against him,
And he hath delivered them into the hand of their transgression;
If thou wouldest seek diligently unto God,
And make thy supplication to the Almighty;
If thou wert pure and upright:
Surely now he would awake for thee,
And make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous.
And though thy beginning was small,
Yet thy latter end would greatly increase.
For inquire, I pray thee, of the former age,
And apply thyself to that which their fathers have searched out
(For we are but of yesterday, and know nothing,
Because our days upon earth are a shadow);
Shall not they teach thee, and tell thee,
And utter words out of their heart?
Can the {Or, papyrus}rush grow up without mire?
Can the {Or, reed-grass}flag grow without water?
Whilst it is yet in its greenness, and not cut down,
It withereth before any other herb.
So are the paths of all that forget God;
And the hope of the godless man shall perish:
Whose confidence shall {Or, be cut off}break in sunder,
And whose trust is a spider's {Hebrew: house.}web.
He shall lean upon his house, but it shall not stand:
He shall hold fast thereby, but it shall not endure.
He is green before the sun,
And his shoots go forth over his garden.
His roots are wrapped {Or, beside the spring}about the stone-heap,
He beholdeth the place of stones.
If he be destroyed from his place,
Then it shall deny him, saying, I have not seen thee.
Behold, this is the joy of his way;
And out of the {Or, dust}earth shall others spring.
Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man,
Neither will he uphold the evil-doers.
{Or, Till he fill}He will yet fill thy mouth with laughter,
And thy lips with shouting.
They that hate thee shall be clothed with shame;
And the tent of the wicked shall be no more.
Querverweise zu Hiob 8,3 Hiob 8,3
Shall mortal man {Or, be just before God}be more just than God?Shall a man {Or, be pure before his Maker}be more pure than his Maker?
What is the Almighty, that we should serve him?And what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?
Of a truth I know that it is so: {Or, For}But how can man be just {Or, before}with God?
Let his own eyes see his destruction,And let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty.
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress,That thou shouldest despise the {Hebrew: labor.}work of thy hands,And shine upon the counsel of the wicked?
Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding:Far be it from God, that he should do wickedness,And from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.
For the work of a man will he render unto him,And cause every man to find according to his ways.
Yea, of a surety, God will not do wickedly,Neither will the Almighty pervert justice.
Behold, I {Or, cry out, Violence:}cry out of wrong, but I am not heard:I cry for help, but there is no justice.
Surely God will not hear an empty cry,Neither will the Almighty regard it.
For Job hath said, I am righteous,And God hath taken away my right:
Shall he that cavilleth contend with the Almighty?He that argueth with God, let him answer it.
Yea, of a surety, God will not do wickedly,Neither will the Almighty pervert justice.
The king's strength also loveth justice;Thou dost establish equity;Thou executest justice and righteousness in Jacob.
Shall even one that hateth justice govern?And wilt thou condemn him that is righteous and mighty?—
{The Hebrew as pointed reads, Is it fit to say to a king, Thou art vile? Or, to nobles, Ye are wicked?}Him that saith to a king, Thou art vile,Or to nobles, Ye are wicked;
That respecteth not the persons of princes,Nor regardeth the rich more than the poor;For they all are the work of his hands.
And they sing the song of Moses the {Greek: bondservant.}servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,Great and marvellous are thy works, O Lord God, the Almighty; righteous and true are thy ways, thou King of the {Many ancient authorities read nations. Jeremiah 10:7.}ages.
Wilt thou even annul my judgment?Wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be justified?
And I heard the altar saying, Yea, O Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked, that so the righteous should be as the wicked; that be far from thee: shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
The Rock, his work is perfect;For all his ways are justice:A God of faithfulness and without iniquity,Just and right is he.
Now therefore let the fear of Jehovah be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with Jehovah our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of bribes.
Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel: Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal?
Yet the children of thy people say, The way of the Lord is not equal: but as for them, their way is not equal.
Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, I will judge you every one after his ways.
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of thy throne:Lovingkindness and truth go before thy face.
Therefore hath Jehovah watched over the evil, and brought it upon us; for Jehovah our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth, and we have not obeyed his voice.
but after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up for thyself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;
{Greek: Be it not so: and so elsewhere.}God forbid: yea, let God be found true, but every man a liar; as it is written, {Psalm 51:4}That thou mightest be justified in thy words,And mightest prevail when thou comest into judgment.
But if our unrighteousness commendeth the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who visiteth with wrath? (I speak after the manner of men.)
{Greek: Be it not so: and so elsewhere.}God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world?