Chapter 27

Job’s Final Speech

Job continued speaking:

2 “I vow by the living God, who has taken away my rights,

by the Almighty who has embittered my soul—

3 As long as I live,

while I have breath from God,

4 my lips will speak no evil,

and my tongue will speak no lies.

5 I will never concede that you are right;

I will defend my integrity until I die.

6 I will maintain my innocence without wavering.

My conscience is clear for as long as I live.

7 “May my enemy be punished like the wicked,

my adversary like those who do evil.

8 For what hope do the godless have when God cuts them off

and takes away their life?

9 Will God listen to their cry

when trouble comes upon them?

10 Can they take delight in the Almighty?

Can they call to God at any time?

11 I will teach you about God’s power.

I will not conceal anything concerning the Almighty.

12 But you have seen all this,

yet you say all these useless things to me.

13 “This is what the wicked will receive from God;

this is their inheritance from the Almighty.

14 They may have many children,

but the children will die in war or starve to death.

15 Those who survive will die of a plague,

and not even their widows will mourn them.

16 “Evil people may have piles of money

and may store away mounds of clothing.

17 But the righteous will wear that clothing,

and the innocent will divide that money.

18 The wicked build houses as fragile as a spider’s web,*

as flimsy as a shelter made of branches.

19 The wicked go to bed rich

but wake to find that all their wealth is gone.

20 Terror overwhelms them like a flood,

and they are blown away in the storms of the night.

21 The east wind carries them away, and they are gone.

It sweeps them away.

22 It whirls down on them without mercy.

They struggle to flee from its power.

23 But everyone jeers at them

and mocks them.

Chapter 28

Job Speaks of Wisdom and Understanding

1 “People know where to mine silver

and how to refine gold.

2 They know where to dig iron from the earth

and how to smelt copper from rock.

3 They know how to shine light in the darkness

and explore the farthest regions of the earth

as they search in the dark for ore.

4 They sink a mine shaft into the earth

far from where anyone lives.

They descend on ropes, swinging back and forth.

5 Food is grown on the earth above,

but down below, the earth is melted as by fire.

6 Here the rocks contain precious lapis lazuli,

and the dust contains gold.

7 These are treasures no bird of prey can see,

no falcon’s eye observe.

8 No wild animal has walked upon these treasures;

no lion has ever set his paw there.

9 People know how to tear apart flinty rocks

and overturn the roots of mountains.

10 They cut tunnels in the rocks

and uncover precious stones.

11 They dam up the trickling streams

and bring to light the hidden treasures.

12 “But do people know where to find wisdom?

Where can they find understanding?

13 No one knows where to find it,*

for it is not found among the living.

14 ‘It is not here,’ says the ocean.

‘Nor is it here,’ says the sea.

15 It cannot be bought with gold.

It cannot be purchased with silver.

16 It’s worth more than all the gold of Ophir,

greater than precious onyx or lapis lazuli.

17 Wisdom is more valuable than gold and crystal.

It cannot be purchased with jewels mounted in fine gold.

18 Coral and jasper are worthless in trying to get it.

The price of wisdom is far above rubies.

19 Precious peridot from Ethiopia* cannot be exchanged for it.

It’s worth more than the purest gold.

20 “But do people know where to find wisdom?

Where can they find understanding?

21 It is hidden from the eyes of all humanity.

Even the sharp-eyed birds in the sky cannot discover it.

22 Destruction* and Death say,

‘We’ve heard only rumors of where wisdom can be found.’

23 “God alone understands the way to wisdom;

he knows where it can be found,

24 for he looks throughout the whole earth

and sees everything under the heavens.

25 He decided how hard the winds should blow

and how much rain should fall.

26 He made the laws for the rain

and laid out a path for the lightning.

27 Then he saw wisdom and evaluated it.

He set it in place and examined it thoroughly.

28 And this is what he says to all humanity:

‘The fear of the Lord is true wisdom;

to forsake evil is real understanding.’ ”

Chapter 29

Job Speaks of His Former Blessings

Job continued speaking:

2 “I long for the years gone by

when God took care of me,

3 when he lit up the way before me

and I walked safely through the darkness.

4 When I was in my prime,

God’s friendship was felt in my home.

5 The Almighty was still with me,

and my children were around me.

6 My steps were awash in cream,

and the rocks gushed olive oil for me.

7 “Those were the days when I went to the city gate

and took my place among the honored leaders.

8 The young stepped aside when they saw me,

and even the aged rose in respect at my coming.

9 The princes stood in silence

and put their hands over their mouths.

10 The highest officials of the city stood quietly,

holding their tongues in respect.

11 “All who heard me praised me.

All who saw me spoke well of me.

12 For I assisted the poor in their need

and the orphans who required help.

13 I helped those without hope, and they blessed me.

And I caused the widows’ hearts to sing for joy.

14 Everything I did was honest.

Righteousness covered me like a robe,

and I wore justice like a turban.

15 I served as eyes for the blind

and feet for the lame.

16 I was a father to the poor

and assisted strangers who needed help.

17 I broke the jaws of godless oppressors

and plucked their victims from their teeth.

18 “I thought, ‘Surely I will die surrounded by my family

after a long, good life.*

19 For I am like a tree whose roots reach the water,

whose branches are refreshed with the dew.

20 New honors are constantly bestowed on me,

and my strength is continually renewed.’

21 “Everyone listened to my advice.

They were silent as they waited for me to speak.

22 And after I spoke, they had nothing to add,

for my counsel satisfied them.

23 They longed for me to speak as people long for rain.

They drank my words like a refreshing spring rain.

24 When they were discouraged, I smiled at them.

My look of approval was precious to them.

25 Like a chief, I told them what to do.

I lived like a king among his troops

and comforted those who mourned.