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 8,5 Hiob 8,5
But as for me, I would seek unto God,And unto God would I commit my cause;
If thou set thy heart aright,And stretch out thy hands toward him;
Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: {Or,as otherwise read, Thereby shall thine increase be good.}Thereby good shall come unto thee.
Receive, I pray thee, {Or, instruction}the law from his mouth,And lay up his words in thy heart.
If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, {Or, Thou shall put away…And shall lay up}If thou put away unrighteousness far from thy tents.
And lay thou thy {Hebrew: ore.}treasure {Or, on the earth}in the dust,And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks;
And the Almighty will be thy {Hebrew: ore.}treasure,And {Or, precious silver shall be thine}precious silver unto thee.
For then shalt thou delight thyself in the Almighty,And shalt lift up thy face unto God.
Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he will hear thee;And thou shalt pay thy vows.
Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee;And light shall shine upon thy ways.
When they {Or, are made low}cast thee down, thou shalt say, There is lifting up;And {Hebrew: him that is lowly of eyes.}the humble person he will save.
He will deliver even him that is not innocent:Yea, he shall be delivered through the cleanness of thy hands.
And when he was in distress, he besought Jehovah his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.
And he prayed unto him; and he was entreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that Jehovah he was God.
Seek ye Jehovah while he may be found; call ye upon him while he is near:
let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto Jehovah, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
Wherefore, even as the Holy Spirit saith, {Psalm 95:7 ff.}To-day if ye shall hear his voice,
Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation,Like as in the day of the trial in the wilderness,
Be subject therefore unto God; but resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye doubleminded.
Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall exalt you.