Becker Bible Teacher Resources

Eliphaz reproves Job

1 Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said, 2 Should a wise man utter vain knowledge, and fill his belly with the east wind? 3 Should he reason with unprofitable talk? or with speeches wherewith he can do no good? 4 Yea, thou castest off fear, and restrainest prayer before God. 5 For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity, and thou choosest the tongue of the crafty. 6 Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I: yea, thine own lips testify against thee. 7 [Art] thou the first man [that] was born? or wast thou made before the hills? 8 Hast thou heard the secret of God? and dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself? 9 What knowest thou, that we know not? [what] understandest thou, which [is] not in us? 10 With us [are] both the grayheaded and very aged men, much elder than thy father. 11 [Are] the consolations of God small with thee? is there any secret thing with thee? 12 Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes wink at, 13 That thou turnest thy spirit against God, and lettest [such] words go out of thy mouth? 14 What [is] man, that he should be clean? and [he which is] born of a woman, that he should be righteous? 15 Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight. 16 How much more abominable and filthy [is] man, which drinketh iniquity like water?

17 I will shew thee, hear me; and that [which] I have seen I will declare; 18 Which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid [it]: 19 Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them. 20 The wicked man travaileth with pain all [his] days, and the number of years is hidden to the oppressor. 21 A dreadful sound [is] in his ears: in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him. 22 He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness, and he is waited for of the sword. 23 He wandereth abroad for bread, [saying], Where [is it]? he knoweth that the day of darkness is ready at his hand. 24 Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid; they shall prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle. 25 For he stretcheth out his hand against God, and strengtheneth himself against the Almighty. 26 He runneth upon him, [even] on [his] neck, upon the thick bosses of his bucklers: 27 Because he covereth his face with his fatness, and maketh collops of fat on [his] flanks. 28 And he dwelleth in desolate cities, [and] in houses which no man inhabiteth, which are ready to become heaps. 29 He shall not be rich, neither shall his substance continue, neither shall he prolong the perfection thereof upon the earth. 30 He shall not depart out of darkness; the flame shall dry up his branches, and by the breath of his mouth shall he go away. 31 Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity: for vanity shall be his recompence. 32 It shall be accomplished before his time, and his branch shall not be green. 33 He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine, and shall cast off his flower as the olive. 34 For the congregation of hypocrites [shall be] desolate, and fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery. 35 They conceive mischief, and bring forth vanity, and their belly prepareth deceit. (Job 15:1-35 AV)
 

Job complains of God's dealings

1 Then Job answered and said, 2 I have heard many such things: miserable comforters [are] ye all. 3 Shall vain words have an end? or what emboldeneth thee that thou answerest? 4 I also could speak as ye [do]: if your soul were in my soul's stead, I could heap up words against you, and shake mine head at you. 5 [But] I would strengthen you with my mouth, and the moving of my lips should asswage [your grief].

6 Though I speak, my grief is not asswaged: and [though] I forbear, what am I eased? 7 But now he hath made me weary: thou hast made desolate all my company. 8 And thou hast filled me with wrinkles, [which] is a witness [against me]: and my leanness rising up in me beareth witness to my face. 9 He teareth [me] in his wrath, who hateth me: he gnasheth upon me with his teeth; mine enemy sharpeneth his eyes upon me. 10 They have gaped upon me with their mouth; they have smitten me upon the cheek reproachfully; they have gathered themselves together against me. 11 God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and turned me over into the hands of the wicked. 12 I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: he hath also taken [me] by my neck, and shaken me to pieces, and set me up for his mark. 13 His archers compass me round about, he cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare; he poureth out my gall upon the ground. 14 He breaketh me with breach upon breach, he runneth upon me like a giant. 15 I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and defiled my horn in the dust. 16 My face is foul with weeping, and on my eyelids [is] the shadow of death;

17 Not for [any] injustice in mine hands: also my prayer [is] pure. 18 O earth, cover not thou my blood, and let my cry have no place. 19 Also now, behold, my witness [is] in heaven, and my record [is] on high. 20 My friends scorn me: [but] mine eye poureth out [tears] unto God. 21 O that one might plead for a man with God, as a man [pleadeth] for his neighbour! 22 When a few years are come, then I shall go the way [whence] I shall not return. (Job 16:1-22 AV)
 

Job appeals to God

1 My breath is corrupt, my days are extinct, the graves [are ready] for me. 2 [Are there] not mockers with me? and doth not mine eye continue in their provocation? 3 Lay down now, put me in a surety with thee; who [is] he [that] will strike hands with me? 4 For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: therefore shalt thou not exalt [them]. 5 He that speaketh flattery to [his] friends, even the eyes of his children shall fail. 6 He hath made me also a byword of the people; and aforetime I was as a tabret. 7 Mine eye also is dim by reason of sorrow, and all my members [are] as a shadow. 8 Upright [men] shall be astonied at this, and the innocent shall stir up himself against the hypocrite. 9 The righteous also shall hold on his way, and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger.

10 But as for you all, do ye return, and come now: for I cannot find [one] wise [man] among you. 11 My days are past, my purposes are broken off, [even] the thoughts of my heart. 12 They change the night into day: the light [is] short because of darkness. 13 If I wait, the grave [is] mine house: I have made my bed in the darkness. 14 I have said to corruption, Thou [art] my father: to the worm, [Thou art] my mother, and my sister. 15 And where [is] now my hope? as for my hope, who shall see it? 16 They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when [our] rest together [is] in the dust. (Job 17:1-16 AV)
 

Bildad speaks of the plight of the wicked

1 Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said, 2 How long [will it be ere] ye make an end of words? mark, and afterwards we will speak. 3 Wherefore are we counted as beasts, [and] reputed vile in your sight? 4 He teareth himself in his anger: shall the earth be forsaken for thee? and shall the rock be removed out of his place?

5 Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, and the spark of his fire shall not shine. 6 The light shall be dark in his tabernacle, and his candle shall be put out with him. 7 The steps of his strength shall be straitened, and his own counsel shall cast him down. 8 For he is cast into a net by his own feet, and he walketh upon a snare. 9 The gin shall take [him] by the heel, [and] the robber shall prevail against him. 10 The snare [is] laid for him in the ground, and a trap for him in the way.

11 Terrors shall make him afraid on every side, and shall drive him to his feet. 12 His strength shall be hungerbitten, and destruction [shall be] ready at his side. 13 It shall devour the strength of his skin: [even] the firstborn of death shall devour his strength. 14 His confidence shall be rooted out of his tabernacle, and it shall bring him to the king of terrors. 15 It shall dwell in his tabernacle, because [it is] none of his: brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation. 16 His roots shall be dried up beneath, and above shall his branch be cut off. 17 His remembrance shall perish from the earth, and he shall have no name in the street. 18 He shall be driven from light into darkness, and chased out of the world. 19 He shall neither have son nor nephew among his people, nor any remaining in his dwellings. 20 They that come after [him] shall be astonied at his day, as they that went before were affrighted. 21 Surely such [are] the dwellings of the wicked, and this [is] the place [of him that] knoweth not God. (Job 18:1-21 AV)

Job speaks of his friends' cruelty
Job seeks pity
Job states his faith

1 Then Job answered and said, 2 How long will ye vex my soul, and break me in pieces with words? 3 These ten times have ye reproached me: ye are not ashamed [that] ye make yourselves strange to me. 4 And be it indeed [that] I have erred, mine error remaineth with myself. 5 If indeed ye will magnify [yourselves] against me, and plead against me my reproach: 6 Know now that God hath overthrown me, and hath compassed me with his net. 7 Behold, I cry out of wrong, but I am not heard: I cry aloud, but [there is] no judgment.

8 He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass, and he hath set darkness in my paths. 9 He hath stripped me of my glory, and taken the crown [from] my head. 10 He hath destroyed me on every side, and I am gone: and mine hope hath he removed like a tree. 11 He hath also kindled his wrath against me, and he counteth me unto him as [one of] his enemies. 12 His troops come together, and raise up their way against me, and encamp round about my tabernacle. 13 He hath put my brethren far from me, and mine acquaintance are verily estranged from me. 14 My kinsfolk have failed, and my familiar friends have forgotten me. 15 They that dwell in mine house, and my maids, count me for a stranger: I am an alien in their sight. 16 I called my servant, and he gave [me] no answer; I intreated him with my mouth. 17 My breath is strange to my wife, though I intreated for the children's [sake] of mine own body. 18 Yea, young children despised me; I arose, and they spake against me. 19 All my inward friends abhorred me: and they whom I loved are turned against me. 20 My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth. 21 Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends; for the hand of God hath touched me. 22 Why do ye persecute me as God, and are not satisfied with my flesh?

23 Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book! 24 That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever! 25 For I know [that] my redeemer liveth, and [that] he shall stand at the latter [day] upon the earth: 26 And [though] after my skin [worms] destroy this [body], yet in my flesh shall I see God: 27 Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; [though] my reins be consumed within me. 28 But ye should say, Why persecute we him, seeing the root of the matter is found in me? 29 Be ye afraid of the sword: for wrath [bringeth] the punishments of the sword, that ye may know [there is] a judgment. (Job 19:1-29 AV)

Zophar speaks of the wicked

1 Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said, 2 Therefore do my thoughts cause me to answer, and for [this] I make haste. 3 I have heard the check of my reproach, and the spirit of my understanding causeth me to answer. 4 Knowest thou [not] this of old, since man was placed upon earth, 5 That the triumphing of the wicked [is] short, and the joy of the hypocrite [but] for a moment? 6 Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds; 7 [Yet] he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where [is] he? 8 He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night. 9 The eye also [which] saw him shall [see him] no more; neither shall his place any more behold him.

10 His children shall seek to please the poor, and his hands shall restore their goods. 11 His bones are full [of the sin] of his youth, which shall lie down with him in the dust. 12 Though wickedness be sweet in his mouth, [though] he hide it under his tongue; 13 [Though] he spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth: 14 [Yet] his meat in his bowels is turned, [it is] the gall of asps within him. 15 He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again: God shall cast them out of his belly. 16 He shall suck the poison of asps: the viper's tongue shall slay him. 17 He shall not see the rivers, the floods, the brooks of honey and butter. 18 That which he laboured for shall he restore, and shall not swallow [it] down: according to [his] substance [shall] the restitution [be], and he shall not rejoice [therein]. 19 Because he hath oppressed [and] hath forsaken the poor; [because] he hath violently taken away an house which he builded not; 20 Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired. 21 There shall none of his meat be left; therefore shall no man look for his goods. 22 In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: every hand of the wicked shall come upon him.

23 [When] he is about to fill his belly, [God] shall cast the fury of his wrath upon him, and shall rain [it] upon him while he is eating. 24 He shall flee from the iron weapon, [and] the bow of steel shall strike him through. 25 It is drawn, and cometh out of the body; yea, the glittering sword cometh out of his gall: terrors [are] upon him. 26 All darkness [shall be] hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle. 27 The heaven shall reveal his iniquity; and the earth shall rise up against him. 28 The increase of his house shall depart, [and his goods] shall flow away in the day of his wrath. 29 This [is] the portion of a wicked man from God, and the heritage appointed unto him by God. (Job 20:1-29 AV)
 

Job bemoans the prosperity of the wicked

1 But Job answered and said, 2 Hear diligently my speech, and let this be your consolations. 3 Suffer me that I may speak; and after that I have spoken, mock on. 4 As for me, [is] my complaint to man? and if [it were so], why should not my spirit be troubled? 5 Mark me, and be astonished, and lay [your] hand upon [your] mouth. 6 Even when I remember I am afraid, and trembling taketh hold on my flesh.

7 Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power? 8 Their seed is established in their sight with them, and their offspring before their eyes. 9 Their houses [are] safe from fear, neither [is] the rod of God upon them. 10 Their bull gendereth, and faileth not; their cow calveth, and casteth not her calf. 11 They send forth their little ones like a flock, and their children dance. 12 They take the timbrel and harp, and rejoice at the sound of the organ. 13 They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave. 14 Therefore they say unto God, Depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways. 15 What [is] the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him? 16 Lo, their good [is] not in their hand: the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

17 How oft is the candle of the wicked put out! and [how oft] cometh their destruction upon them! [God] distributeth sorrows in his anger. 18 They are as stubble before the wind, and as chaff that the storm carrieth away. 19 God layeth up his iniquity for his children: he rewardeth him, and he shall know [it]. 20 His eyes shall see his destruction, and he shall drink of the wrath of the Almighty. 21 For what pleasure [hath] he in his house after him, when the number of his months is cut off in the midst? 22 Shall [any] teach God knowledge? seeing he judgeth those that are high. 23 One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet. 24 His breasts are full of milk, and his bones are moistened with marrow. 25 And another dieth in the bitterness of his soul, and never eateth with pleasure. 26 They shall lie down alike in the dust, and the worms shall cover them.

27 Behold, I know your thoughts, and the devices [which] ye wrongfully imagine against me. 28 For ye say, Where [is] the house of the prince? and where [are] the dwelling places of the wicked? 29 Have ye not asked them that go by the way? and do ye not know their tokens, 30 That the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath. 31 Who shall declare his way to his face? and who shall repay him [what] he hath done? 32 Yet shall he be brought to the grave, and shall remain in the tomb. 33 The clods of the valley shall be sweet unto him, and every man shall draw after him, as [there are] innumerable before him. 34 How then comfort ye me in vain, seeing in your answers there remaineth falsehood? (Job 21:1-34 AV)
 

Eliphaz accuses Job of sin
Job implored to repent

1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said, 2 Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself? 3 [Is it] any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or [is it] gain [to him], that thou makest thy ways perfect? 4 Will he reprove thee for fear of thee? will he enter with thee into judgment?

5 [Is] not thy wickedness great? and thine iniquities infinite? 6 For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their clothing. 7 Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withholden bread from the hungry. 8 But [as for] the mighty man, he had the earth; and the honourable man dwelt in it. 9 Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken. 10 Therefore snares [are] round about thee, and sudden fear troubleth thee; 11 Or darkness, [that] thou canst not see; and abundance of waters cover thee. 12 [Is] not God in the height of heaven? and behold the height of the stars, how high they are! 13 And thou sayest, How doth God know? can he judge through the dark cloud? 14 Thick clouds [are] a covering to him, that he seeth not; and he walketh in the circuit of heaven.

15 Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have trodden? 16 Which were cut down out of time, whose foundation was overflown with a flood: 17 Which said unto God, Depart from us: and what can the Almighty do for them? 18 Yet he filled their houses with good [things]: but the counsel of the wicked is far from me. 19 The righteous see [it], and are glad: and the innocent laugh them to scorn. 20 Whereas our substance is not cut down, but the remnant of them the fire consumeth.

21 Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee. 22 Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart. 23 If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacles. 24 Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust, and the [gold] of Ophir as the stones of the brooks. 25 Yea, the Almighty shall be thy defence, and thou shalt have plenty of silver. 26 For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God. 27 Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows. 28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways. 29 When [men] are cast down, then thou shalt say, [There is] lifting up; and he shall save the humble person. 30 He shall deliver the island of the innocent: and it is delivered by the pureness of thine hands. (Job 22:1-30 AV)
 

Job desires to plead before God
God knows men's ways

1 Then Job answered and said, 2 Even to day [is] my complaint bitter: my stroke is heavier than my groaning. 3 Oh that I knew where I might find him! [that] I might come [even] to his seat! 4 I would order [my] cause before him, and fill my mouth with arguments. 5 I would know the words [which] he would answer me, and understand what he would say unto me. 6 Will he plead against me with [his] great power? No; but he would put [strength] in me. 7 There the righteous might dispute with him; so should I be delivered for ever from my judge.

8 Behold, I go forward, but he [is] not [there]; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: 9 On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold [him]: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see [him]: 10 But he knoweth the way that I take: [when] he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. 11 My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined. 12 Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary [food].

13 But he [is] in one [mind], and who can turn him? and [what] his soul desireth, even [that] he doeth. 14 For he performeth [the thing that is] appointed for me: and many such [things are] with him. 15 Therefore am I troubled at his presence: when I consider, I am afraid of him. 16 For God maketh my heart soft, and the Almighty troubleth me: 17 Because I was not cut off before the darkness, [neither] hath he covered the darkness from my face. (Job 23:1-17 AV)

Job complains of God's indifference to wicked
Secret judgment for the wicked

1 Why, seeing times are not hidden from the Almighty, do they that know him not see his days? 2 [Some] remove the landmarks; they violently take away flocks, and feed [thereof]. 3 They drive away the ass of the fatherless, they take the widow's ox for a pledge. 4 They turn the needy out of the way: the poor of the earth hide themselves together. 5 Behold, [as] wild asses in the desert, go they forth to their work; rising betimes for a prey: the wilderness [yieldeth] food for them [and] for [their] children. 6 They reap [every one] his corn in the field: and they gather the vintage of the wicked. 7 They cause the naked to lodge without clothing, that [they have] no covering in the cold. 8 They are wet with the showers of the mountains, and embrace the rock for want of a shelter. 9 They pluck the fatherless from the breast, and take a pledge of the poor. 10 They cause [him] to go naked without clothing, and they take away the sheaf [from] the hungry; 11 [Which] make oil within their walls, [and] tread [their] winepresses, and suffer thirst. 12 Men groan from out of the city, and the soul of the wounded crieth out: yet God layeth not folly [to them].

13 They are of those that rebel against the light; they know not the ways thereof, nor abide in the paths thereof. 14 The murderer rising with the light killeth the poor and needy, and in the night is as a thief. 15 The eye also of the adulterer waiteth for the twilight, saying, No eye shall see me: and disguiseth [his] face. 16 In the dark they dig through houses, [which] they had marked for themselves in the daytime: they know not the light. 17 For the morning [is] to them even as the shadow of death: if [one] know [them, they are in] the terrors of the shadow of death.

18 He [is] swift as the waters; their portion is cursed in the earth: he beholdeth not the way of the vineyards. 19 Drought and heat consume the snow waters: [so doth] the grave [those which] have sinned. 20 The womb shall forget him; the worm shall feed sweetly on him; he shall be no more remembered; and wickedness shall be broken as a tree. 21 He evil entreateth the barren [that] beareth not: and doeth not good to the widow. 22 He draweth also the mighty with his power: he riseth up, and no [man] is sure of life. 23 [Though] it be given him [to be] in safety, whereon he resteth; yet his eyes [are] upon their ways. 24 They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all [other], and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn. 25 And if [it be] not [so] now, who will make me a liar, and make my speech nothing worth? (Job 24:1-25 AV)