Job 4:3-21
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 4
3Behold, you have taught many, And you have strengthened weak hands. 4Your words have helped the stumbling to stand, And you have strengthened feeble knees. 5But now it comes to you, and you are impatient; It touches you, and you are horrified. 6Is your fear of God not your confidence, And the integrity of your ways your hope? 7'Remember now, who ever perished being innocent? Or where were the upright destroyed? 8According to what I have seen, those who plow wrongdoing And those who sow trouble harvest it. 9By the breath of God they perish, And by the blast of His anger they come to an end. 10The roaring of the lion and the voice of the fierce lion, And the teeth of the young lions are broken out. 11The lion perishes for lack of prey, And the cubs of the lioness are scattered. 12'Now a word was brought to me secretly, And my ear received a whisper of it. 13Amid disquieting thoughts from visions of the night, When deep sleep falls on people, 14Dread came upon me, and trembling, And made all my bones shake. 15Then a spirit passed by my face; The hair of my flesh stood up. 16 Something was standing still, but I could not recognize its appearance; A form was before my eyes; There was silence, then I heard a voice: 17‘Can mankind be righteous before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker? 18He puts no trust even in His servants; And He accuses His angels of error. 19How much more those who live in houses of clay, Whose foundation is in the dust, Who are crushed before the moth! 20Between morning and evening they are broken in pieces; Unregarded, they perish forever. 21Is their tent-cord not pulled out within them? They die, yet without wisdom.’King James Version
Chapter 4
3Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands. 4Thy words have upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble knees. 5But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled. 6Is not this thy fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?
7Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous cut off?
8Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.
9By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed.
10The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, and the teeth of the young lions, are broken.
11The old lion perisheth for lack of prey, and the stout lion's whelps are scattered abroad.
12Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof.
13In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,
14Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.
15Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:
16It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image was before mine eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying,
17Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
18Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly:
19How much less in them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth?
20They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it.
21Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom.
Christian Standard Bible
Chapter 4
3Indeed, you have instructed many and have strengthened weak hands. 4Your words have steadied the one who was stumbling and braced the knees that were buckling. 5But now that this has happened to you, you have become exhausted. It strikes you, and you are dismayed. 6Isn't your piety your confidence, and the integrity of your life your hope? 7Consider: Who has perished when he was innocent? Where have the honest been destroyed? 8In my experience, those who plow injustice and those who sow trouble reap the same. 9They perish at a single blast from God and come to an end by the breath of his nostrils. 10The lion may roar and the fierce lion growl, but the teeth of young lions are broken.
11The strong lion dies if it catches no prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
12A word was brought to me in secret; my ears caught a whisper of it.
13Among unsettling thoughts from visions in the night, when deep sleep comes over men,
14fear and trembling came over me and made all my bones shake.
15I felt a draft on my face, and the hair on my body stood up.
16A figure stood there, but I could not recognize its appearance; a form loomed before my eyes. I heard a whispering voice:
17"Can a mortal be righteous before God? Can a man be more pure than his Maker? "
18If God puts no trust in his servants and he charges his angels with foolishness,
19how much more those who dwell in clay houses, whose foundation is in the dust, who are crushed like a moth!
20They are smashed to pieces from dawn to dusk; they perish forever while no one notices.
21Are their tent cords not pulled up? They die without wisdom.
New Living Translation
Chapter 4
3'In the past you have encouraged many people; you have strengthened those who were weak. 4Your words have supported those who were falling; you encouraged those with shaky knees. 5But now when trouble strikes, you lose heart. You are terrified when it touches you. 6Doesn’t your reverence for God give you confidence? Doesn’t your life of integrity give you hope?
7'Stop and think! Do the innocent die? When have the upright been destroyed?
8My experience shows that those who plant trouble and cultivate evil will harvest the same.
9A breath from God destroys them. They vanish in a blast of his anger.
10The lion roars and the wildcat snarls, but the teeth of strong lions will be broken.
11The fierce lion will starve for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness will be scattered.
12'This truth was given to me in secret, as though whispered in my ear.
13It came to me in a disturbing vision at night, when people are in a deep sleep.
14Fear gripped me, and my bones trembled.
15A spirit swept past my face, and my hair stood on end.
16The spirit stopped, but I couldn’t see its shape. There was a form before my eyes. In the silence I heard a voice say,
17‘Can a mortal be innocent before God? Can anyone be pure before the Creator?’
18'If God does not trust his own angels and has charged his messengers with foolishness,
19how much less will he trust people made of clay! They are made of dust, crushed as easily as a moth.
20They are alive in the morning but dead by evening, gone forever without a trace.
21Their tent-cords are pulled and the tent collapses, and they die in ignorance.
English Standard Version
Chapter 4
3Behold, you have instructed many, and you have strengthened the weak hands. 4Your words have upheld him who was stumbling, and you have made firm the feeble knees. 5But now it has come to you, and you are impatient; it touches you, and you are dismayed. 6Is not your fear of God your confidence, and the integrity of your ways your hope? 7“Remember: who that was innocent ever perished? Or where were the upright cut off? 8As I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same. 9By the breath of God they perish, and by the blast of his anger they are consumed. 10The roar of the lion, the voice of the fierce lion, the teeth of the young lions are broken. 11The strong lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered. 12“Now a word was brought to me stealthily; my ear received the whisper of it. 13Amid thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, 14dread came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones shake. 15A spirit glided past my face; the hair of my flesh stood up. 16It stood still, but I could not discern its appearance. A form was before my eyes; there was silence, then I heard a voice: 17‘Can mortal man be in the right before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker? 18Even in his servants he puts no trust, and his angels he charges with error; 19how much more those who dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, who are crushed like the moth. 20Between morning and evening they are beaten to pieces; they perish forever without anyone regarding it. 21Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them, do they not die, and that without wisdom?’New International Version
Chapter 4
3Think how you have instructed many, how you have strengthened feeble hands. 4Your words have supported those who stumbled; you have strengthened faltering knees. 5But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged; it strikes you, and you are dismayed.
6Should not your piety be your confidence and your blameless ways your hope?
7Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished? Where were the upright ever destroyed?
8As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it.
9At the breath of God they perish; at the blast of his anger they are no more.
10The lions may roar and growl, yet the teeth of the great lions are broken.
11The lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
12A word was secretly brought to me, my ears caught a whisper of it.
13Amid disquieting dreams in the night, when deep sleep falls on people,
14fear and trembling seized me and made all my bones shake.
15A spirit glided past my face, and the hair on my body stood on end.
16It stopped, but I could not tell what it was. A form stood before my eyes, and I heard a hushed voice:
17Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker?
18If God places no trust in his servants, if he charges his angels with error,
19how much more those who live in houses of clay, whose foundations are in the dust, who are crushed more readily than a moth!
20Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces; unnoticed, they perish forever.
21Are not the cords of their tent pulled up, so that they die without wisdom?'
New King James Version
