Moreover Jehovah answered Job, and said,
Shall he that cavilleth contend with the Almighty?
He that argueth with God, let him answer it.
Then Job answered Jehovah, and said,
Behold, I am of small account; What shall I answer thee?
I lay my hand upon my mouth.
Once have I spoken, and I will not answer;
Yea, twice, but I will proceed no further.
Then Jehovah answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
Gird up thy loins now like a man:
I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
Wilt thou even annul my judgment?
Wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be justified?
Or hast thou an arm like God?
And canst thou thunder with a voice like him?
Deck thyself now with excellency and dignity;
And array thyself with honor and majesty.
Pour forth the overflowings of thine anger;
And look upon every one that is proud, and abase him.
Look on every one that is proud, and bring him low;
And tread down the wicked where they stand.
Hide them in the dust together;
Bind their faces in the hidden place.
Then will I also confess of thee
That thine own right hand can save thee.
Behold now, {That is, the hippopotamus.}behemoth, which I made {Hebrew: with.}as well as thee;
He eateth grass as an ox.
Lo now, his strength is in his loins,
And his force is in the muscles of his belly.
He moveth his tail like a cedar:
The sinews of his thighs are knit together.
His bones are as tubes of brass;
His {Or, ribs}limbs are like bars of iron.
He is the chief of the ways of God:
He only that made him giveth him his sword.
Surely the mountains bring him forth food,
Where all the beasts of the field do play.
He lieth under the lotus-trees,
In the covert of the reed, and the fen.
The lotus-trees cover him with their shade;
The willows of the brook compass him about.
Behold, if a river {Or, be violent}overflow, he trembleth not;
He is confident, though a Jordan swell even to his mouth.
Shall any take him when he is on the watch,
Or pierce through his nose with a snare?
Querverweise zu Hiob 40,2 Hiob 40,2
{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.
With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding?
Why died I not from the womb?Why did I not give up the ghost when my mother bare me?
Why dost thou strive against him,For that he giveth not account of any of his matters?
For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
Why did the knees receive me?Or why the breast, that I should suck?
{Or, Whatsoever he be, his name was given him long ago, and it is known that he is man}Whatsoever hath been, the name thereof was given long ago; and it is known what {Hebrew: Adam. See Genesis 2:7.}man is; neither can he contend with him that is mightier than he.
Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery,And life unto the bitter in soul;
Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! a potsherd among the potsherds of the earth! Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?
Woe unto him that saith unto a father, What begettest thou? or to a woman, With what travailest thou?
Thus saith Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker: Ask me of the things that are to come; concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands, command ye me.
Why is light given to a man whose way is hid,And whom God hath hedged in?
He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand up together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me.
Am I a sea, or a sea-monster,That thou settest a watch over me?
Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?
How long wilt thou not look away from me,Nor let me alone till I swallow down my spittle?
If I have sinned, what {Or, can I do}do I unto thee, O thou {Or, preserver}watcher of men?Why hast thou set me as a mark for thee,So that I am a burden to myself?
And why dost thou not pardon my transgression, and take away mine iniquity?For now shall I lie down in the dust;And thou wilt seek me diligently, but I shall not be.
{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.
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.
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?
Hast thou eyes of flesh?Or seest thou as man seeth?
Are thy days as the days of man,Or thy years as man's days,
That thou inquirest after mine iniquity,And searchest after my sin,
Although thou knowest that I am not wicked,And there is none that can deliver out of thy hand?
If I sin, then thou markest me,And thou wilt not acquit me from mine iniquity.
If I be wicked, woe unto me;And if I be righteous, yet shall I not lift up my head;Being filled with ignominy,And looking upon mine affliction.
And if my head exalt itself, thou huntest me as a lion;And again thou showest thyself marvellous upon me.
Thou renewest thy witnesses against me,And increasest thine indignation upon me: {Or, Host after host is against me}Changes and warfare are with me.
Withdraw thy hand far from me;And let not thy terror make me afraid.
Then call thou, and I will answer;Or let me speak, and answer thou me.
How many are mine iniquities and sins?Make me to know my transgression and my sin.
Wherefore hidest thou thy face,And holdest me for thine enemy?
Wilt thou harass a driven leaf?And wilt thou pursue the dry stubble?
For thou writest bitter things against me,And makest me to inherit the iniquities of my youth:
Thou puttest my feet also in the stocks,And markest all my paths;Thou settest a bound to the soles of my feet:
But now thou numberest my steps:Dost thou not watch over my sin?
My transgression is sealed up in a bag,And thou fastenest up mine iniquity.
God delivereth me to the ungodly,And casteth me into the hands of the wicked.
I was at ease, and he brake me asunder;Yea, he hath taken me by the neck, and dashed me to pieces:He hath also set me up for his mark.
His {Or, arrows Or, mighty ones}archers compass me round about;He cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare;He poureth out my gall upon the ground.
He breaketh me with breach upon breach;He runneth upon me like a {Or, mighty man}giant.
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin,And have {Or, defiled}laid my horn in the dust.
My face is red with weeping,And on my eyelids is the shadow of death;
Although there is no violence in my hands,And my prayer is pure.
O earth, cover not thou my blood,And let my cry {Or, have no more place}have no resting-place.
Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven,And he that voucheth for me is on high.
My friends scoff at me:But mine eye poureth out tears unto God,
{Or, That one might plead for a man with God. As a son of man pleadeth for his neighbor}That he would maintain the right of a man with God,And of a son of man with his neighbor!
Know now that God hath {Or, overthrown me}subverted me in my cause,And hath compassed me with his net.
Behold, I {Or, cry out, Violence:}cry out of wrong, but I am not heard:I cry for help, but there is no justice.
He hath walled up my way that I cannot pass,And hath set darkness in my paths.
He hath stripped me of my glory,And taken the crown from my head.
He hath broken me down on every side, and I am gone;And my hope hath he plucked up like a tree.
He hath also kindled his wrath against me,And he counteth me unto him as one of his adversaries.
As God liveth, who hath taken away my right,And the Almighty, who hath {Hebrew: made my soul bitter.}vexed my soul:
Thou art turned to be cruel to me;With the might of thy hand thou persecutest me.
What mean ye, that ye use this proverb {Or, in}concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge?
And when they received it, they murmured against the householder,
Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he still find fault? For who withstandeth his will?
Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why didst thou make me thus?
Or hath not the potter a right over the clay, from the same lump to make one part a vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor?
What if God, {Or, although willing}willing to show his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering vessels of wrath fitted unto destruction:
{Some ancient authorities omit and.}and that he might make known the riches of his glory upon vessels of mercy, which he afore prepared unto glory,
For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?
or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again?
For of him, and through him, and unto him, are all things. To him be the glory {Greek: unto the ages.}for ever. Amen.