Jó 22

¹ ELIPHAZ THE TEMANITE ANSWERED:

² »Can a mortal man be of use to God? Can even the wisest be of service to him?

³ »Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous? Is it profitable to him if you make your ways blameless?

⁴ »Is it for your reverence that he reproves you, and enters into judgment with you?

⁵ »Is not your wickedness great? There is no end to your iniquities.

⁶ »You have indeed exacted pledges from your family for no reason, and stripped the naked of their clothing.

⁷ »You have given no water to the weary to drink. You have withheld bread from the hungry.

⁸ »The powerful possess the land, and the favored live in it.

⁹ »You have sent widows away empty-handed. You crush the arms of the orphans.

¹⁰ »Therefore snares are around you, and sudden terror overwhelms you!

¹¹ »There is darkness so you cannot see. A flood of water covers you.

¹² »Is not God high in the heavens? See the highest stars, how eminent they are!

¹³ »So you say: ‘What does God know? Can he judge through the thick darkness?

¹⁴ »‘Thick clouds enwrap him, so that he does not see, and he walks on the dome of the heavens.’«

¹⁵ »Will you keep to the old way that the wicked have trod?

¹⁶ »They were snatched away before their time. Their foundation is washed away by flood.

¹⁷ »They said to God: ‘Leave us alone.’ They asked: ‘What can the Almighty do to us?’

¹⁸ »Yet he filled their houses with good things. Yet the plans of the wicked are repugnant.

¹⁹ »The righteous see it and are glad and the innocent laugh them to scorn.

²⁰ »They say: ‘Our adversaries are cut off and the fire consumed what they left.’

²¹ »Agree with God, and be at peace. In this way good will come to you.

²² »Receive instruction from his mouth, and lay up his words in your heart.

²³ »If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored. You must remove unrighteousness from your tents,

²⁴ »If you treat gold like dust, and gold of Ophir like the stones of the torrent-bed,

²⁵ and if the Almighty is your gold and your precious silver,

²⁶ you will delight yourself in the Almighty, and lift up your face to God.

²⁷ »You will pray to him and he will hear you! You will pay your vows.

²⁸ »You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you. The light of God’s favor will shine on your ways.

²⁹ »When others are humiliated, you say it is pride for he saves the humble.

³⁰ »He will deliver even those who are guilty. They will escape because of the cleanness of your hands.«