Then Job answered and said,
Of a truth I know that it is so:
{Or, For}But how can man be just {Or, before}with God?
{Or, If one should desire…He could not &c.}If he be pleased to contend with him,
He cannot answer him one of a thousand.
He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength:
Who hath hardened himself against him, and prospered?—
Him that removeth the mountains, and they know it not,
When he overturneth them in his anger;
That shaketh the earth out of its place,
And the pillars thereof tremble;
That commandeth the sun, and it riseth not,
And sealeth up the stars;
That alone stretcheth out the heavens,
And treadeth upon the {Hebrew: high places.}waves of the sea;
That maketh the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades,
And the chambers of the south;
That doeth great things past finding out,
Yea, marvellous things without number.
Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not:
He passeth on also, but I perceive him not.
Behold, he seizeth the prey, who can {Or, turn him back}hinder him?
Who will say unto him, What doest thou?
God will not withdraw his anger;
The helpers of {Or, arrogancy See Isaiah 30:7.}Rahab {Or, did}do stoop under him.
How much less shall I answer him,
And choose out my words to reason with him?
Whom, though I were righteous, yet would I not answer;
I would make supplication to my judge.
If I had called, and he had answered me,
Yet would I not believe that he hearkened unto my voice.
{Hebrew: He who.}For he breaketh me with a tempest,
And multiplieth my wounds without cause.
He will not suffer me to take my breath,
But filleth me with bitterness.
If we speak of strength, {Or, Lo, here am I, saith he: And if of justice, Who &c.}lo, he is mighty!
And if of justice, Who, saith he, will summon me?
Though I be righteous, mine own mouth shall condemn me:
Though I be perfect, {Or, he}it shall prove me perverse.
{Or, Though I be perfect, I will not regard &c.}I am perfect; I regard not myself;
I despise my life.
It is all one; therefore I say,
He destroyeth the perfect and the wicked.
If the scourge slay suddenly,
He will mock at the {Or, calamity}trial of the innocent.
The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;
He covereth the faces of the judges thereof:
If it be not he, who then is it?
Now my days are swifter than a {Or, runner}post:
They flee away, they see no good,
They are passed away as the {Hebrew: ships of reed.}swift ships;
As the eagle that swoopeth on the prey.
If I say, I will forget my complaint,
I will put off my sad countenance, and {Hebrew: brighten up.}be of good cheer;
I am afraid of all my sorrows,
I know that thou wilt not hold me innocent.
I shall be condemned;
Why then do I labor in vain?
If I wash myself {Another reading is, with snow.}with snow water,
And {Hebrew: cleanse my hands with lye.}make my hands never so clean;
Yet wilt thou plunge me in the ditch,
And mine own clothes shall abhor me.
For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him,
That we should come together in judgment.
There is no umpire betwixt us,
That might lay his hand upon us both.
Let him take his rod away from me,
And let not his terror make me afraid:
Then would I speak, and not fear him;
For I am not so in myself.
Querverweise zu Hiob 9,9 Hiob 9,9
Canst thou bind the {Or, chain Or, sweet influences}cluster of the Pleiades,Or loose the bands of Orion?
Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters;Who maketh the clouds his chariot;Who walketh upon the wings of the wind;
Canst thou lead forth {Or, the signs of the Zodiac}the Mazzaroth in their season?Or canst thou guide the Bear with her {Hebrew: sons.}train?
Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens?Canst thou establish the dominion thereof in the earth?
Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds,That abundance of waters may cover thee?
Canst thou send forth lightnings, that they may go,And say unto thee, Here we are?
Who hath put wisdom in the {Or, dark clouds}inward parts?Or who hath given understanding to the {Or, meteor}mind?
Who can number the clouds by wisdom?Or who can {Hebrew: cause to lie down.}pour out the bottles of heaven,
When the dust runneth into a mass,And the clods cleave fast together?
Canst thou hunt the prey for the lioness,Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
When they couch in their dens,And abide in the covert to lie in wait?
Who provideth for the raven his prey,When his young ones cry unto God, And wander for lack of food?
He watereth the mountains from his chambers:The earth is filled with the fruit of thy works.
And God made the two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
And from thence we {Some ancient authorities read cast loose.}made a circuit, and arrived at Rhegium: and after one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli;
He counteth the number of the stars;He calleth them all by their names.
seek him that maketh the Pleiades and Orion, and turneth {Or, deep darkness}the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night; that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth (Jehovah is his name);