Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said,
Should not the multitude of words be answered?
And should a man full of talk be justified?
Should thy boastings make men hold their peace?
And when thou mockest, shall no man make thee ashamed?
For thou sayest, My doctrine is pure,
And I am clean in thine eyes.
But oh that God would speak,
And open his lips against thee,
And that he would show thee the secrets of wisdom!
For he is manifold in understanding.
Know therefore that God {Or, remitteth (Hebrew: causeth to be forgotten) unto thee of thine iniquity}exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth.
{Or, Canst thou find out the deep things of God?}Canst thou by searching find out God?
Canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection?
{Hebrew: The heights of heaven.}It is high as heaven; what canst thou do?
Deeper than Sheol; what canst thou know?
The measure thereof is longer than the earth,
And broader than the sea.
If he pass through, and shut up,
And {Hebrew: call an assembly.}call unto judgment, then who can hinder him?
For he knoweth false men:
He seeth iniquity also, {Or, and him that considereth not}even though he consider it not.
{Or, But an empty man will get understanding, when a wild ass's colt is born a man}But vain man is void of understanding,
Yea, man is born as a wild ass's colt.
If thou set thy heart aright,
And stretch out thy hands toward him;
If iniquity be in thy hand, put it far away,
And let not unrighteousness dwell in thy tents.
Surely then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot;
Yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear:
For thou shalt forget thy misery;
Thou shalt remember it as waters that are passed away,
And thy life shall {Or, rise above}be clearer than the noonday;
Though there be darkness, it shall be as the morning.
And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope;
Yea, thou shalt search about thee, and shalt take thy rest in safety.
Also thou shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid;
Yea, many shall make suit unto thee.
But the eyes of the wicked shall fail,
And {Hebrew: refuge is perished from them.}they shall have no way to flee;
And their hope shall be the giving up of the ghost.
Querverweise zu Hiob 11,12 Hiob 11,12
Surely men of low degree are {Hebrew: a breath.}vanity, and men of high degree are a lie:In the balances they will go up;They are together lighter than {Hebrew: a breath.}vanity.
He taketh the wise in their own craftiness;And the counsel of the cunning is carried headlong.
What is man, that he should be clean?And he that is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?
Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass?Or loweth the ox over his fodder?
Trust not in oppression,And become not vain in robbery:If riches increase, set not your heart thereon.
No doubt but ye are the people,And wisdom shall die with you.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity;And in sin did my mother conceive me.
Who hath sent out the wild ass free?Or who hath loosed the bonds of the swift ass,
Whose home I have made the wilderness,And the salt land his dwelling-place?
He scorneth the tumult of the city,Neither heareth he the shoutings of the {Or, taskmaster}driver.
The range of the mountains is his pasture,And he searcheth after every green thing.
So brutish {Or, am}was I, and ignorant;I was as a beast {Hebrew: with thee.}before thee.
But I have understanding as well as you;I am not inferior to you:Yea, who knoweth not such things as these?
among whom we also all once lived in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the {Greek: thoughts.}mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest:—
a wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind in her desire; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her.
A brutish man knoweth not;Neither doth a fool understand this:
And unto man he said,Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;And to depart from evil is understanding.
{Or, I said in my heart concerning the sons of men, It is God &c.}I said in my heart, It is because of the sons of men, that God may prove them, and that they may see that they themselves are but as beasts.
Surely I am more brutish than any man,And have not the understanding of a man;
And I have not learned wisdom, {Or, That I should have the knowledge &c.}Neither have I the knowledge of the Holy One.
Who hath ascended up into heaven, and descended?Who hath gathered the wind in his fists?Who hath bound the waters in his garment?Who hath established all the ends of the earth?What is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou knowest?
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
Be of the same mind one toward another. Set not your mind on high things, but {Greek: be carried away with.}condescend to {Or, them}things that are lowly. Be not wise in your own conceits.
But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith apart from works is barren?
Let no man deceive himself. If any man thinketh that he is wise among you in this {Or, age}world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, {Job 5:13.}He that taketh the wise in their craftiness:
and again, {Psalms 94:11.}The Lord knoweth the reasonings of the wise, that they are vain.
Who is wise and understanding among you? let him show by his good life his works in meekness of wisdom.
But if ye have bitter jealousy and faction in your heart, glory not and lie not against the truth.
This wisdom is not a wisdom that cometh down from above, but is earthly, {Or, natural Or, animal}sensual, {Greek: demoniacal.}devilish.
For where jealousy and faction are, there is confusion and every vile deed.
But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without {Or, doubtfulness Or, partiality}variance, without hypocrisy.