| New Living Translation | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1Then Job spoke again: | 1Then Job answered: |
| 2“If my misery could be weighed and my troubles be put on the scales, | 2If only my grief could be weighed and my devastation placed with it in the scales. |
| 3they would outweigh all the sands of the sea. That is why I spoke impulsively. | 3For then it would outweigh the sand of the seas! That is why my words are rash. |
| 4For the Almighty has struck me down with his arrows. Their poison infects my spirit. God’s terrors are lined up against me. | 4Surely the arrows of the Almighty have pierced me; my spirit drinks their poison. God's terrors are arrayed against me. |
| 5Don’t I have a right to complain? Don’t wild donkeys bray when they find no grass, and oxen bellow when they have no food? | 5Does a wild donkey bray over fresh grass or an ox low over its fodder? |
| 6Don’t people complain about unsalted food? Does anyone want the tasteless white of an egg? | 6Is bland food eaten without salt? Is there flavor in an egg white? |
| 7My appetite disappears when I look at it; I gag at the thought of eating it! | 7I refuse to touch them; they are like contaminated food. |
| 8“Oh, that I might have my request, that God would grant my desire. | 8If only my request would be granted and God would provide what I hope for: |
| 9I wish he would crush me. I wish he would reach out his hand and kill me. | 9that He would decide to crush me, to unleash His power and cut me off! |
| 10At least I can take comfort in this: Despite the pain, I have not denied the words of the Holy One. | 10It would still bring me comfort, and I would leap for joy in unrelenting pain that I have not denied the words of the Holy One. |
| 11But I don’t have the strength to endure. I have nothing to live for. | 11What strength do I have that I should continue to hope? What is my future, that I should be patient? |
| 12Do I have the strength of a stone? Is my body made of bronze? | 12Is my strength that of stone, or my flesh made of bronze? |
| 13No, I am utterly helpless, without any chance of success. | 13Since I cannot help myself, the hope for success has been banished from me. |
| 14“One should be kind to a fainting friend, but you accuse me without any fear of the Almighty. | 14A despairing man should receive loyalty from his friends, even if he abandons the fear of the Almighty. |
| 15My brothers, you have proved as unreliable as a seasonal brook that overflows its banks in the spring | 15My brothers are as treacherous as a wadi, as seasonal streams that overflow |
| 16when it is swollen with ice and melting snow. | 16and become darkened because of ice, and the snow melts into them. |
| 17But when the hot weather arrives, the water disappears. The brook vanishes in the heat. | 17The wadis evaporate in warm weather; they disappear from their channels in hot weather. |
| 18The caravans turn aside to be refreshed, but there is nothing to drink, so they die. | 18Caravans turn away from their routes, go up into the desert, and perish. |
| 19The caravans from Tema search for this water; the travelers from Sheba hope to find it. | 19The caravans of Tema look for these streams. The traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them. |
| 20They count on it but are disappointed. When they arrive, their hopes are dashed. | 20They are ashamed because they had been confident of finding water. When they arrive there, they are frustrated. |
| 21You, too, have given no help. You have seen my calamity, and you are afraid. | 21So this is what you have now become to me. When you see something dreadful, you are afraid. |
| 22But why? Have I ever asked you for a gift? Have I begged for anything of yours for myself? | 22Have I ever said: "Give me something" or "Pay a bribe for me from your wealth" |
| 23Have I asked you to rescue me from my enemies, or to save me from ruthless people? | 23or "Deliver me from the enemy's power" or "Redeem me from the grasp of the ruthless"? |
| 24Teach me, and I will keep quiet. Show me what I have done wrong. | 24Teach me, and I will be silent. Help me understand what I did wrong. |
| 25Honest words can be painful, but what do your criticisms amount to? | 25How painful honest words can be! But what does your rebuke prove? |
| 26Do you think your words are convincing when you disregard my cry of desperation? | 26Do you think that you can disprove my words or that a despairing man's words are mere wind? |
| 27You would even send an orphan into slavery or sell a friend. | 27No doubt you would cast lots for a fatherless child and negotiate a price to sell your friend. |
| 28Look at me! Would I lie to your face? | 28But now, please look at me; would I lie to your face? |
| 29Stop assuming my guilt, for I have done no wrong. | 29Reconsider; don't be unjust. Reconsider; my righteousness is still the issue. |
| 30Do you think I am lying? Don’t I know the difference between right and wrong? | 30Is there injustice on my tongue or can my palate not taste disaster? |
| Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. |
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