Zophar Rebukes Job

1Then Zophar the Naamathite responded,

2“Shall a multitude of words go unanswered,

And a talkative man be acquitted?

3“Shall your boasts silence people?

And will you scoff, and no one rebuke?

4“For you have said, ‘My teaching is pure,

And I am innocent in your eyes.’

5“But if only God would speak,

And open His lips against you,

6And show you the secrets of wisdom!

For sound wisdom [a]has two sides.

Know then that God [b]forgets part of your guilt.

7“Can you discover the depths of God?

Can you discover the limits of the Almighty?

8“They are as high as [c]the heavens; what can you do?

Deeper than [d]Sheol; what can you know?

9“Its measurement is longer than the earth

And broader than the sea.

10“If He passes by or apprehends people,

Or calls an assembly, who can restrain Him?

11“For He knows false people,

And He sees injustice [e]without investigating.

12“[f]An idiot will become intelligent

When a wild donkey is born a human.

13“If you would direct your heart rightly

And spread out your hands to Him,

14If wrongdoing is in your hand, put it far away,

And do not let malice dwell in your tents;

15Then, indeed, you could lift up your face without moral blemish,

And you would be firmly established and not fear.

16“For you would forget your trouble;

Like waters that have passed by, you would remember it.

17“Your [g]life would [h]be brighter than noonday;

Darkness would be like the morning.

18“Then you would trust, because there is hope;

And you would look around and rest securely.

19“You would lie down and none would disturb you,

And many would [i]flatter you.

20“But the eyes of the wicked will fail,

And [j]there will be no escape for them;

And their hope is [k]to breathe their last.”