THE BOOK OF JOB
King James Version
1 ¶ There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was
Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared
God, and eschewed evil.
2 And there were
born unto him seven sons and three daughters.
3 His substance
also was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke
of oxen, and five hundred she asses, and a very great household; so that this
man was the greatest of all the men of the east.
4 ¶ And his sons went and feasted in
their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to
eat and to drink with them.
5 And it was so,
when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified
them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according
to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually.
6 ¶ Now there was a day when the sons of God came to
present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.
7 And the LORD
said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said,
From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down
in it.
8 And the LORD
said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like
him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and
escheweth evil?
9 Then Satan
answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?
10
Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about
all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and
his substance is increased in the land.
11 But put forth
thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
12
And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power;
only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the
presence of the LORD.
13 ¶ And there was a day when his sons and his daughters
were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house:
14
And there came a messenger unto Job, and said, The oxen were plowing,
and the asses feeding beside them:
15 And the
Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the servants
with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
16 While he was
yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The fire of God is fallen from heaven, and hath burned up the sheep, and the
servants, and consumed them; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
17 While he was
yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The Chaldeans made out three
bands, and fell upon the camels, and have carried them away, yea, and slain the
servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
18 While he was
yet speaking, there came also another, and said, Thy sons and thy daughters
were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house:
19 And, behold,
there came a great wind from the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the
house, and it fell upon the young men, and they are dead; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
20 ¶ Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his
head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,
21 And said,
Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the
LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the
LORD.
22 In all this
Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
1 ¶ Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present
themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself
before the LORD.
2
And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan
answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from
walking up and down in it.
3 And the LORD
said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like
him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity,
although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.
4 And Satan
answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he
give for his life.
5 But put forth
thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.
6 And the LORD
said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.
7 ¶ So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD,
and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown.
8 And he took him
a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes.
9 Then said his
wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.
10 But he said
unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we
receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.
11 ¶ Now when Job's three friends heard of all this evil
that was come upon him, they came every one from his own place; Eliphaz the
Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite: for they had made
an appointment together to come to mourn with him and to comfort him.
12
And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they
lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and
sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven.
13 So they sat
down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a
word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great.
1 ¶ After this opened Job his mouth, and cursed his day.
2 And Job spake,
and said,
3 Let the day
perish wherein I was born, and the night in which it was said, There is a man
child conceived.
4
Let that day be darkness; let not God regard it from above, neither let
the light shine upon it.
5 Let darkness
and the shadow of death stain it; let a cloud dwell upon it; let the blackness
of the day terrify it.
6 As for that
night, let darkness seize upon it; let it not be joined unto the days of the year, let it not come into the number of the months.
7 Lo, let that
night be solitary, let no joyful voice come therein.
8 Let them curse
it that curse the day, who are ready to raise up their mourning.
9 Let the stars
of the twilight thereof be dark; let it look for light, but have none; neither
let it see the dawning of the day:
10
Because it shut not up the doors of my mother's womb, nor hid sorrow
from mine eyes.
11 ¶ Why died I not from the womb? why did I not give up the
ghost when I came out of the belly?
12 Why did the
knees prevent me? or why the breasts that I should suck?
13
For now should I have lain still and been quiet, I should have slept:
then had I been at rest,
14 With kings and
counsellors of the earth, which built desolate places for themselves;
15 Or with
princes that had gold, who filled their houses with silver:
16
Or as an hidden untimely birth I had not been; as infants which never
saw light.
17 There the
wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary be at rest.
18 There the
prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor.
19 The small and
great are there; and the servant is free from his master.
20 ¶ Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery,
and life unto the bitter in soul;
21
Which long for death, but it cometh not; and dig for it more than for
hid treasures;
22 Which rejoice
exceedingly, and are glad, when they can find the grave?
23 Why is light
given to a man whose way is hid, and whom God hath hedged in?
24 For my sighing
cometh before I eat, and my roarings are poured out like the waters.
25 For the thing
which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come
unto me.
26 I was not in
safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet; yet trouble came.
1 ¶ Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered
and said,
2 If we assay to
commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved? but who can withhold himself from speaking?
3 Behold, thou
hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands.
4 Thy words have
upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble
knees.
5 But now it is
come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.
6 Is not this thy
fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?
7 ¶ Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being
innocent? or where were the righteous cut off?
8 Even as I have seen,
they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.
9 By the blast of
God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed.
10 The roaring of
the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, and the teeth of the young
lions, are broken.
11 The old lion
perisheth for lack of prey, and the stout lion's whelps are scattered abroad.
12 ¶ Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear
received a little thereof.
13 In thoughts
from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,
14
Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.
15 Then a spirit
passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:
16 It 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,
17 Shall mortal
man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
18 Behold, he put
no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly:
19 How much less
in them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which
are crushed before the moth?
20 They are
destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it.
21 Doth not their
excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom.
1 ¶ Call now, if there be any that will answer thee; and
to which of the saints wilt thou turn?
2 For wrath
killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.
3 I have seen the
foolish taking root: but suddenly I cursed his habitation.
4 His children
are far from safety, and they are crushed in the gate, neither is there any to
deliver them.
5
Whose harvest the hungry eateth up, and taketh it even out of the
thorns, and the robber swalloweth up their substance.
6 ¶ Although affliction cometh not forth of the dust,
neither doth trouble spring out of the ground;
7 Yet man is born
unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.
8
I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause:
9 Which doeth
great things and unsearchable; marvellous things without number:
10 Who giveth
rain upon the earth, and sendeth waters upon the fields:
11 To set up on
high those that be low; that those which mourn may be exalted to safety.
12
He disappointeth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot
perform their enterprise.
13 He taketh the
wise in their own craftiness: and the counsel of the froward is carried
headlong.
14 They meet with
darkness in the daytime, and grope in the noonday as in the night.
15 But he saveth
the poor from the sword, from their mouth, and from the hand of the mighty.
16 So the poor
hath hope, and iniquity stoppeth her mouth.
17 ¶ Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth:
therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty:
18 For he maketh
sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole.
19 He shall
deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.
20 In famine he
shall redeem thee from death: and in war from the power of the sword.
21
Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue: neither shalt thou be
afraid of destruction when it cometh.
22 At destruction
and famine thou shalt laugh: neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the
earth.
23 For thou shalt
be in league with the stones of the field: and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee.
24 And thou shalt
know that thy tabernacle shall be in peace; and thou shalt visit thy habitation,
and shalt not sin.
25 Thou shalt
know also that thy seed shall be great, and thine offspring as the grass of the
earth.
26
Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age, like as a shock of corn
cometh in in his season.
27 Lo this, we
have searched it, so it is; hear it, and know thou it for thy good.
1 ¶ But Job answered and said,
2
Oh that my grief were throughly weighed, and my calamity laid in the balances
together!
3 For now it
would be heavier than the sand of the sea: therefore my words are swallowed up.
4 For the arrows
of the Almighty are within me, the poison whereof drinketh up my spirit:
the terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.
5 Doth the wild
ass bray when he hath grass? or loweth the ox over his fodder?
6 Can that which
is unsavoury be eaten without salt? or is there any taste in the white of an
egg?
7 The things that
my soul refused to touch are as my sorrowful meat.
8 ¶ Oh that I might have my request; and
that God would grant me the thing that I long for!
9 Even that it
would please God to destroy me; that he would let loose his hand, and cut me
off!
10 Then should I
yet have comfort; yea, I would harden myself in sorrow: let him not
spare; for I have not concealed the words of the Holy One.
11 What is my
strength, that I should hope? and what is mine end, that I should prolong my
life?
12 Is my strength
the strength of stones? or is my flesh of brass?
13 Is not my help
in me? and is wisdom driven quite from me?
14 ¶ To him that is afflicted pity
should be shewed from his friend; but he forsaketh the fear of the Almighty.
15 My brethren
have dealt deceitfully as a brook, and as the stream of brooks they pass away;
16 Which are
blackish by reason of the ice, and wherein the snow is hid:
17
What time they wax warm, they vanish: when it is hot, they are consumed
out of their place.
18 The paths of
their way are turned aside; they go to nothing, and perish.
19 The troops of
Tema looked, the companies of Sheba waited for them.
20 They were
confounded because they had hoped; they came thither, and were ashamed.
21 For now ye are
nothing; ye see my casting down, and are afraid.
22 ¶ Did I say, Bring unto me? or, Give a reward for me
of your substance?
23 Or, Deliver me
from the enemy's hand? or, Redeem me from the hand of the mighty?
24
Teach me, and I will hold my tongue: and cause me to understand wherein
I have erred.
25 How forcible
are right words! but what doth your arguing reprove?
26 Do ye imagine
to reprove words, and the speeches of one that is desperate, which are as wind?
27
Yea, ye overwhelm the fatherless, and ye dig a pit for your friend.
28 Now therefore
be content, look upon me; for it is evident unto you if I lie.
29 Return, I pray
you, let it not be iniquity; yea, return again, my righteousness is in it.
30 Is there
iniquity in my tongue? cannot my taste discern perverse things?
1 ¶ Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? are
not his days also like the days of an hireling?
2 As a servant
earnestly desireth the shadow, and as an hireling looketh for the reward of his
work:
3
So am I made to possess months of vanity, and wearisome nights are
appointed to me.
4 When I lie
down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? and I am full of
tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day.
5 My flesh is
clothed with worms and clods of dust; my skin is broken, and become loathsome.
6 My days are
swifter than a weaver's shuttle, and are spent without hope.
7 ¶ O remember that my life is wind: mine eye shall no
more see good.
8 The eye of him
that hath seen me shall see me no more: thine eyes are upon me, and I am not.
9
As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away: so he that goeth down to
the grave shall come up no more.
10 He shall
return no more to his house, neither shall his place know him any more.
11 Therefore I
will not refrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will
complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12
Am I a sea, or a whale, that thou settest a watch over me?
13 When I say, My
bed shall comfort me, my couch shall ease my complaint;
14 Then thou
scarest me with dreams, and terrifiest me through visions:
15 So that my
soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life.
16 I loathe it; I
would not live alway: let me alone; for my days are vanity.
17 ¶ What is man, that thou shouldest
magnify him? and that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him?
18 And that thou
shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment?
19 How long wilt
thou not depart from me, nor let me alone till I swallow down my spittle?
20
I have sinned; what shall I do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? why
hast thou set me as a mark against thee, so that I am a burden to myself?
21 And why dost
thou not pardon my transgression, and take away mine iniquity? for now shall I
sleep in the dust; and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I shall not be.
1 ¶ Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said,
2 How long wilt thou
speak these things? and how long shall the words of thy mouth be like a strong
wind?
3 Doth God
pervert judgment? or doth the Almighty pervert justice?
4
If thy children have sinned against him, and he have cast them away for
their transgression;
5 If thou
wouldest seek unto God betimes, and make thy supplication to the Almighty;
6 If thou wert
pure and upright; surely now he would awake for thee, and make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous.
7 Though thy
beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.
8 ¶ For enquire, I pray thee, of the former age, and
prepare thyself to the search of their fathers:
9 (For we are but
of yesterday, and know nothing, because our days upon earth are a
shadow:)
10 Shall not they
teach thee, and tell thee, and utter words out of their heart?
11 Can the rush
grow up without mire? can the flag grow without water?
12 Whilst it is
yet in his greenness, and not cut down, it withereth before any other herb.
13
So are the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite's hope shall
perish:
14 Whose hope
shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider's web.
15 He shall lean
upon his house, but it shall not stand: he shall hold it fast, but it shall not
endure.
16 He is green
before the sun, and his branch shooteth forth in his garden.
17
His roots are wrapped about the heap, and seeth the place of stones.
18 If he destroy
him from his place, then it shall deny him, saying, I have not seen thee.
19 Behold, this
is the joy of his way, and out of the earth shall others grow.
20 ¶ Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man,
neither will he help the evil doers:
21 Till he fill
thy mouth with laughing, and thy lips with rejoicing.
22 They that hate
thee shall be clothed with shame; and the dwelling place of the wicked shall
come to nought.
1 ¶ Then Job answered and said,
2 I know it is so
of a truth: but how should man be just with God?
3 If he will
contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.
4 He is wise in
heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath
prospered?
5
Which removeth the mountains, and they know not: which overturneth them
in his anger.
6 Which shaketh
the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble.
7 Which
commandeth the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the stars.
8 Which alone
spreadeth out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea.
9
Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the
south.
10 Which doeth
great things past finding out; yea, and wonders without number.
11 Lo, he goeth
by me, and I see him not: he passeth on also, but I perceive him not.
12 Behold, he
taketh away, who can hinder him? who will say unto him, What doest thou?
13
If God will not withdraw his anger, the proud helpers do stoop under
him.
14 ¶ How much less shall I answer him, and choose out my
words to reason with him?
15 Whom, though I
were righteous, yet would I not answer, but I would make supplication to my
judge.
16
If I had called, and he had answered me; yet would I not believe that he
had hearkened unto my voice.
17 For he
breaketh me with a tempest, and multiplieth my wounds without cause.
18 He will not
suffer me to take my breath, but filleth me with bitterness.
19 If I speak of
strength, lo, he is strong: and if of judgment, who shall set me a time to plead?
20 If I justify
myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: if I say, I am perfect, it shall also
prove me perverse.
21 Though I were
perfect, yet would I not know my soul: I would despise my life.
22 ¶ This is one thing, therefore I said it, He
destroyeth the perfect and the wicked.
23
If the scourge slay suddenly, he will laugh at the trial of the
innocent.
24 The earth is
given into the hand of the wicked: he covereth the faces of the judges thereof;
if not, where, and who is he?
25 ¶ Now my days are swifter than a post: they flee away,
they see no good.
26 They are passed
away as the swift ships: as the eagle that hasteth to the prey.
27
If I say, I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my heaviness, and
comfort myself:
28 I am afraid of
all my sorrows, I know that thou wilt not hold me innocent.
29 If I be wicked,
why then labour I in vain?
30 If I wash
myself with snow water, and make my hands never so clean;
31
Yet shalt thou plunge me in the ditch, and mine own clothes shall abhor
me.
32 For he is not
a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in
judgment.
33 Neither is
there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both.
34 Let him take
his rod away from me, and let not his fear terrify me:
35
Then would I speak, and not fear him; but it is not so with me.
1 ¶ My soul is weary of my life; I will leave my
complaint upon myself; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
2 I will say unto
God, Do not condemn me; shew me wherefore thou contendest with
me.
3 Is it good unto
thee that thou shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of thine
hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?
4 Hast thou eyes
of flesh? or seest thou as man seeth?
5 Are thy days as
the days of man? are thy years as man's days,
6
That thou enquirest after mine iniquity, and searchest after my sin?
7 Thou knowest
that I am not wicked; and there is none that can deliver out of thine hand.
8 ¶ Thine hands have made me and fashioned me together
round about; yet thou dost destroy me.
9
Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; and wilt
thou bring me into dust again?
10 Hast thou not
poured me out as milk, and curdled me like cheese?
11 Thou hast
clothed me with skin and flesh, and hast fenced me with bones and sinews.
12
Thou hast granted me life and favour, and thy visitation hath preserved
my spirit.
13 And these
things hast thou hid in thine heart: I know that this is with thee.
14 ¶ If I sin, then thou markest me, and thou wilt not
acquit me from mine iniquity.
15 If I be
wicked, woe unto me; and if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head. I am full of confusion; therefore see thou mine affliction;
16 For it
increaseth. Thou huntest me as a fierce lion: and again thou shewest thyself
marvellous upon me.
17 Thou renewest
thy witnesses against me, and increasest thine indignation upon me; changes and
war are against me.
18
Wherefore then hast thou brought me forth out of the womb? Oh that I had
given up the ghost, and no eye had seen me!
19 I should have
been as though I had not been; I should have been carried from the womb to the
grave.
20 Are not my
days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,
21 Before I go
whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of
death;
22 A land of
darkness, as darkness itself; and of the shadow of death, without any order,
and where the light is as darkness.