American Standard Version of 1901
Versliste
Then Job answered and said,
Oh that my vexation were but weighed,And all my calamity laid in the balances!
For now it would be heavier than the sand of the seas:Therefore have my words been rash.
For the arrows of the Almighty are within me,The poison whereof my spirit drinketh up:The terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.
Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass?Or loweth the ox over his fodder?
Can that which hath no savor be eaten without salt?Or is there any taste in {Or, the juice of purslain}the white of an egg?
{Or, What things my soul refused to touch, these are as my loathsome food}My soul refuseth to touch them;They are as loathsome food to me.
After this opened Job his mouth, and cursed his day.
And Job answered and said:
Let the day perish wherein I was born,And the night which said, There is a man-child conceived.
Let that day be darkness;Let not God from above seek for it,Neither let the light shine upon it.
Let darkness and {Or, deep darkness (and so elsewhere)}the shadow of death claim it for their own;Let a cloud dwell upon it;Let all that maketh black the day terrify it.
As for that night, let thick darkness seize upon it:Let it not rejoice among the days of the year;Let it not come into the number of the months.
Lo, let that night be {Or, solitary}barren;Let no joyful voice come therein.
Let them curse it that curse the day,Who are {Or, skilful}ready to rouse up leviathan.
Let the stars of the twilight thereof be dark:Let it look for light, but have none;Neither let it behold the eyelids of the morning:
Because it shut not up the doors of my mother's womb,Nor hid trouble from mine eyes.
Why died I not from the womb?Why did I not give up the ghost when my mother bare me?
Why did the knees receive me?Or why the breast, that I should suck?
For now should I have lain down and been quiet;I should have slept; then had I been at rest,
With kings and counsellors of the earth,Who {Or, built solitary piles}built up waste places for themselves;
Or with princes that had gold,Who filled their houses with silver
Or as a hidden untimely birth I had not been,As infants that never saw light.
There the wicked cease from {Or, raging}troubling;And there the weary are at rest.
There the prisoners are at ease together;They hear not the voice of the taskmaster.
The small and the great are there:And the servant is free from his master.
Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery,And life unto the bitter in soul;
Who {Hebrew: wait.}long for death, but it cometh not,And dig for it more than for hid treasures;
Who rejoice {Or, unto exultation}exceedingly,And are glad, when they can find the grave?
Why is light given to a man whose way is hid,And whom God hath hedged in?
For my sighing cometh {Or, like my food}before I eat,And my {Hebrew: roarings.}groanings are poured out like water.
For {Or, the thing which I feared is come &c.}the thing which I fear cometh upon me,And that which I am afraid of cometh unto me.
I {Or, was not at ease…yet trouble came}am not at ease, neither am I quiet, neither have I rest;But trouble cometh.
Then Job answered and said,
Oh that my vexation were but weighed,And all my calamity laid in the balances!
For now it would be heavier than the sand of the seas:Therefore have my words been rash.
For the arrows of the Almighty are within me,The poison whereof my spirit drinketh up:The terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.
Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass?Or loweth the ox over his fodder?
Can that which hath no savor be eaten without salt?Or is there any taste in {Or, the juice of purslain}the white of an egg?
{Or, What things my soul refused to touch, these are as my loathsome food}My soul refuseth to touch them;They are as loathsome food to me.
Oh that I might have my request;And that God would grant me the thing that I long for!
Even that it would please God to crush me;That he would let loose his hand, and cut me off!
And be it still my consolation, {Or, Though I shrink back}Yea, let me {Or, harden myself}exult in pain {Or, though he spare not}that spareth not,That I have not {Or, concealed}denied the words of the Holy One.
What is my strength, that I should wait?And what is mine end, that I should be patient?
Is my strength the strength of stones?Or is my flesh of brass?
Is it not that I have no help in me,And that wisdom is driven quite from me?
To him that is ready to faint kindness should be showed from his friend; {Or, Else might he forsake Or, But he forsaketh}Even to him that forsaketh the fear of the Almighty.
My brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook,As the channel of brooks that pass away;
Which are black by reason of the ice,And wherein the snow hideth itself:
What time they {Or, shrink}wax warm, they vanish;When it is hot, they are consumed out of their place.
{Or, The paths of their way are turned aside}The caravans that travel by the way of them turn aside;They go up into the waste, and perish.
The caravans of Tema looked,The companies of Sheba waited for them.
They were put to shame because they had hoped;They came thither, and were confounded.
For now ye {Another reading is, are like thereto.}are nothing;Ye see a terror, and are afraid.
Did I say, Give unto me?Or, Offer a present for me of your substance?
Or, Deliver me from the adversary's hand?Or, Redeem me from the hand of the oppressors?
Teach me, and I will hold my peace;And cause me to understand wherein I have erred.
How forcible are words of uprightness!But your reproof, what doth it reprove?
Do ye think to reprove words,Seeing that the speeches of one that is desperate are {Or, for the wind}as wind?
Yea, ye would cast lots upon the fatherless,And make merchandise of your friend.
Now therefore be pleased to look upon me; {Or, And it will be evident unto you if I lie}For surely I shall not lie to your face.
Return, I pray you, let there be no injustice;Yea, return again, {Hebrew: my righteousness is in it.}my cause is righteous.
Is there injustice on my tongue?Cannot my taste discern mischievous things?
Is there not a {Or, time of service}warfare to man upon earth?And are not his days like the days of a hireling?
As a servant that earnestly desireth the shadow,And as a hireling that looketh for his wages:
So am I made to possess months of misery,And wearisome nights are appointed to me.
When I lie down, I say,When shall I arise, and the night be gone?And I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day.
My flesh is clothed with worms and clods of dust;My skin {Or, is broken and become loathsome}closeth up, and breaketh out afresh.
My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle,And are spent without hope.
Oh remember that my life is a breath:Mine eye shall no more see good.
The eye of him that seeth me shall behold me no more;Thine eyes shall be upon me, but I shall not be.
As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away,So he that goeth down to Sheol shall come up no more.
He shall return no more to his house,Neither shall his place know him any more.
Therefore I will not refrain my mouth;I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Am I a sea, or a sea-monster,That thou settest a watch over me?
When I say, My bed shall comfort me,My couch shall ease my complaint;
Then thou scarest me with dreams,And terrifiest me through visions:
So that my soul chooseth strangling,And death rather than these my bones.
{Or, I waste away}I loathe my life; I {Or, shall}would not live alway:Let me alone; for my days are {Or, as a breath}vanity.
What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him,And that thou shouldest set thy mind upon him,
And that thou shouldest visit him every morning,And try him every moment?
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.
Then Job answered and said,
Oh that my vexation were but weighed,And all my calamity laid in the balances!
For now it would be heavier than the sand of the seas:Therefore have my words been rash.
For the arrows of the Almighty are within me,The poison whereof my spirit drinketh up:The terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.
Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass?Or loweth the ox over his fodder?
Can that which hath no savor be eaten without salt?Or is there any taste in {Or, the juice of purslain}the white of an egg?
{Or, What things my soul refused to touch, these are as my loathsome food}My soul refuseth to touch them;They are as loathsome food to me.
Oh that I might have my request;And that God would grant me the thing that I long for!
Even that it would please God to crush me;That he would let loose his hand, and cut me off!
And be it still my consolation, {Or, Though I shrink back}Yea, let me {Or, harden myself}exult in pain {Or, though he spare not}that spareth not,That I have not {Or, concealed}denied the words of the Holy One.
What is my strength, that I should wait?And what is mine end, that I should be patient?
Is my strength the strength of stones?Or is my flesh of brass?
Is it not that I have no help in me,And that wisdom is driven quite from me?
To him that is ready to faint kindness should be showed from his friend; {Or, Else might he forsake Or, But he forsaketh}Even to him that forsaketh the fear of the Almighty.
My brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook,As the channel of brooks that pass away;
Which are black by reason of the ice,And wherein the snow hideth itself:
What time they {Or, shrink}wax warm, they vanish;When it is hot, they are consumed out of their place.
{Or, The paths of their way are turned aside}The caravans that travel by the way of them turn aside;They go up into the waste, and perish.
The caravans of Tema looked,The companies of Sheba waited for them.
They were put to shame because they had hoped;They came thither, and were confounded.
For now ye {Another reading is, are like thereto.}are nothing;Ye see a terror, and are afraid.
Did I say, Give unto me?Or, Offer a present for me of your substance?
Or, Deliver me from the adversary's hand?Or, Redeem me from the hand of the oppressors?
Teach me, and I will hold my peace;And cause me to understand wherein I have erred.
How forcible are words of uprightness!But your reproof, what doth it reprove?
Do ye think to reprove words,Seeing that the speeches of one that is desperate are {Or, for the wind}as wind?
Yea, ye would cast lots upon the fatherless,And make merchandise of your friend.
Now therefore be pleased to look upon me; {Or, And it will be evident unto you if I lie}For surely I shall not lie to your face.
Return, I pray you, let there be no injustice;Yea, return again, {Hebrew: my righteousness is in it.}my cause is righteous.
Is there injustice on my tongue?Cannot my taste discern mischievous things?
Is there not a {Or, time of service}warfare to man upon earth?And are not his days like the days of a hireling?
As a servant that earnestly desireth the shadow,And as a hireling that looketh for his wages:
So am I made to possess months of misery,And wearisome nights are appointed to me.
When I lie down, I say,When shall I arise, and the night be gone?And I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day.
My flesh is clothed with worms and clods of dust;My skin {Or, is broken and become loathsome}closeth up, and breaketh out afresh.
My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle,And are spent without hope.
Oh remember that my life is a breath:Mine eye shall no more see good.
The eye of him that seeth me shall behold me no more;Thine eyes shall be upon me, but I shall not be.
As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away,So he that goeth down to Sheol shall come up no more.
He shall return no more to his house,Neither shall his place know him any more.
Therefore I will not refrain my mouth;I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Am I a sea, or a sea-monster,That thou settest a watch over me?
When I say, My bed shall comfort me,My couch shall ease my complaint;
Then thou scarest me with dreams,And terrifiest me through visions:
So that my soul chooseth strangling,And death rather than these my bones.
{Or, I waste away}I loathe my life; I {Or, shall}would not live alway:Let me alone; for my days are {Or, as a breath}vanity.
What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him,And that thou shouldest set thy mind upon him,
And that thou shouldest visit him every morning,And try him every moment?
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.
Then Job answered and said,
Oh that my vexation were but weighed,And all my calamity laid in the balances!
For now it would be heavier than the sand of the seas:Therefore have my words been rash.
For the arrows of the Almighty are within me,The poison whereof my spirit drinketh up:The terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.
Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass?Or loweth the ox over his fodder?
Can that which hath no savor be eaten without salt?Or is there any taste in {Or, the juice of purslain}the white of an egg?
{Or, What things my soul refused to touch, these are as my loathsome food}My soul refuseth to touch them;They are as loathsome food to me.
Oh that I might have my request;And that God would grant me the thing that I long for!
Even that it would please God to crush me;That he would let loose his hand, and cut me off!
And be it still my consolation, {Or, Though I shrink back}Yea, let me {Or, harden myself}exult in pain {Or, though he spare not}that spareth not,That I have not {Or, concealed}denied the words of the Holy One.
What is my strength, that I should wait?And what is mine end, that I should be patient?
Is my strength the strength of stones?Or is my flesh of brass?
Is it not that I have no help in me,And that wisdom is driven quite from me?
To him that is ready to faint kindness should be showed from his friend; {Or, Else might he forsake Or, But he forsaketh}Even to him that forsaketh the fear of the Almighty.
My brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook,As the channel of brooks that pass away;
Which are black by reason of the ice,And wherein the snow hideth itself:
What time they {Or, shrink}wax warm, they vanish;When it is hot, they are consumed out of their place.
{Or, The paths of their way are turned aside}The caravans that travel by the way of them turn aside;They go up into the waste, and perish.
The caravans of Tema looked,The companies of Sheba waited for them.
They were put to shame because they had hoped;They came thither, and were confounded.
For now ye {Another reading is, are like thereto.}are nothing;Ye see a terror, and are afraid.
Did I say, Give unto me?Or, Offer a present for me of your substance?
Or, Deliver me from the adversary's hand?Or, Redeem me from the hand of the oppressors?
Teach me, and I will hold my peace;And cause me to understand wherein I have erred.
How forcible are words of uprightness!But your reproof, what doth it reprove?
Do ye think to reprove words,Seeing that the speeches of one that is desperate are {Or, for the wind}as wind?
Yea, ye would cast lots upon the fatherless,And make merchandise of your friend.
Now therefore be pleased to look upon me; {Or, And it will be evident unto you if I lie}For surely I shall not lie to your face.
Return, I pray you, let there be no injustice;Yea, return again, {Hebrew: my righteousness is in it.}my cause is righteous.
Is there injustice on my tongue?Cannot my taste discern mischievous things?
Is there not a {Or, time of service}warfare to man upon earth?And are not his days like the days of a hireling?
As a servant that earnestly desireth the shadow,And as a hireling that looketh for his wages:
So am I made to possess months of misery,And wearisome nights are appointed to me.
When I lie down, I say,When shall I arise, and the night be gone?And I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day.
My flesh is clothed with worms and clods of dust;My skin {Or, is broken and become loathsome}closeth up, and breaketh out afresh.
My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle,And are spent without hope.
Oh remember that my life is a breath:Mine eye shall no more see good.
The eye of him that seeth me shall behold me no more;Thine eyes shall be upon me, but I shall not be.
As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away,So he that goeth down to Sheol shall come up no more.
He shall return no more to his house,Neither shall his place know him any more.
Therefore I will not refrain my mouth;I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Am I a sea, or a sea-monster,That thou settest a watch over me?
When I say, My bed shall comfort me,My couch shall ease my complaint;
Then thou scarest me with dreams,And terrifiest me through visions:
So that my soul chooseth strangling,And death rather than these my bones.
{Or, I waste away}I loathe my life; I {Or, shall}would not live alway:Let me alone; for my days are {Or, as a breath}vanity.
What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him,And that thou shouldest set thy mind upon him,
And that thou shouldest visit him every morning,And try him every moment?
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.
But now it is come unto thee, and thou {Or, art grieved}faintest;It toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.
For our light affliction, which is for the moment, worketh for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory;
looking unto Jesus the {Or, captain}author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising shame, and hath sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
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.
Therefore I will not refrain my mouth;I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Am I a sea, or a sea-monster,That thou settest a watch over me?
When I say, My bed shall comfort me,My couch shall ease my complaint;
Then thou scarest me with dreams,And terrifiest me through visions:
So that my soul chooseth strangling,And death rather than these my bones.
{Or, I waste away}I loathe my life; I {Or, shall}would not live alway:Let me alone; for my days are {Or, as a breath}vanity.
What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him,And that thou shouldest set thy mind upon him,
And that thou shouldest visit him every morning,And try him every moment?
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.
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.
{Or, Though he slay me, yet will I wait for him}Behold, he will slay me; I have no hope:Nevertheless I will {Hebrew: argue.}maintain my ways before him.
This also shall be my salvation,That a godless man shall not come before him.
Hear diligently my speech,And let my declaration be in your ears.
Behold now, I have set my cause in order;I know that I {Or, shall be justified}am righteous.
Who is he that will contend with me?For then {Or, if I hold my peace, I shall give up &c.}would I hold my peace and give up the ghost.
Only do not two things unto me;Then will I not hide myself from thy face:
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:
{Hebrew: And he is like.}Though I am like a rotten thing that consumeth,Like a garment that is moth-eaten.
Count it all joy, my brethren, when ye fall into manifold {Or, trials}temptations;
Wherefore we faint not; but though our outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by day.
For our light affliction, which is for the moment, worketh for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory;
while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
And not only so, but {Or, let us also rejoice}we also {Greek: glory. Verse 11; Hebrew 3:6.}rejoice in our tribulations: knowing that tribulation worketh stedfastness;
Wherefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.