Job 33 — Legacy Standard Bible

Elihu Asks Job to Hear and Respond

33“However now, Job, please ^ahear my speech,And give ear to all my words.²“Behold now, I open my mouth;My tongue in my ¹mouth speaks.³“My words are from the uprightness of my heart,And my lips speak ^aknowledge sincerely.⁴“The ^aSpirit of God has made me,And the ^bbreath of ¹the Almighty gives me life.⁵“^aRespond to me if you can;Arrange yourselves before me, take your stand.⁶“Behold, I belong to God like you;I too have been ¹formed out of the ^aclay.⁷“Behold, ^ano dread of me should terrify you,Nor should my pressure weigh heavily on you.⁸“Surely you have spoken in my hearing,And I have heard the sound of your speech:⁹‘I am ^apure, ^bwithout transgression;I am innocent, and there ^cis no guilt in me.¹⁰‘Behold, He finds reasons for opposition against me;He ^acounts me as His enemy.¹¹‘He ^aputs my feet in the stocks;He keeps watch over all my paths.’¹²“Behold, let me answer you; ^ayou are not right in this,For God is greater than mortal man.¹³“Why do you ^acontend against Him?For He does not give an answer for all His doings.¹⁴“Indeed ^aGod speaks once,Or twice, yet no one perceives it.¹⁵“In a ^adream, a vision of the night,When deep sleep falls on men,While they slumber in their beds,¹⁶Then ^aHe opens the ears of men,And seals in their discipline,¹⁷That He may turn man aside from his conduct,And ¹keep man from pride;¹⁸He ^aholds back his soul from the pit,And his life from passing over ¹to death ^bby a weapon.¹⁹“¹Man is also reproved with ^apain on his bed,And with unceasing contention in his bones,²⁰So that his life ^aloathes bread,And his soul favorite food.²¹“His ^aflesh wastes away from sight,And his ^bbones which were not seen stick out.²²“Then ^ahis soul draws near to the pit,And his life to those who bring death.²³“If there is an angel as ^amediator for him,One out of a thousand,To declare to a man what is ¹right for him,²⁴Then let him be gracious to him, and say,‘Deliver him from ^agoing down to the pit;I have found ^batonement’;²⁵Let his flesh become fresher than in youth,Let him return to the days of his youthful vigor;²⁶Then he will ^aentreat God, and He will accept him,And ^bhe will see His face with joyful shouts,And He may restore His righteousness to man.²⁷“He will sing to men and say,‘I ^ahave sinned and perverted what is right,But He has not done ^bwhat is due to me.²⁸‘He has redeemed my soul from passing into the pit,And my life shall ^asee the light.’²⁹“Behold, God does ^aall these things twice, three times with men,³⁰To ^abring back his soul from the pit,That he may be enlightened with the light of life.³¹“Pay attention, O Job, listen to me;Keep silent, and I will speak.³²“Then if ¹you have any speech, respond to me;Speak, for I desire to prove you righteous.³³“If not, ^alisten to me;Keep silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”