| 1 | Then Job answered: |
| 2 | “O that my vexation were weighed, and all my calamity laid in the balances! |
| 3 | For then it would be heavier than the sand of the sea; therefore my words have been rash. |
| 4 | For the arrows of the Almighty are in me; my spirit drinks their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me. |
| 5 | Does the wild ass bray over its grass, or the ox low over its fodder? |
| 6 | Can that which is tasteless be eaten without salt, or is there any flavor in the juice of mallows? |
| 7 | My appetite refuses to touch them; they are like food that is loathsome to me. |
| 8 | “O that I might have my request, and that God would grant my desire; |
| 9 | that it would please God to crush me, that he would let loose his hand and cut me off! |
| 10 | This would be my consolation; I would even exult in unrelenting pain; for I have not denied the words of the Holy One. |
| 11 | What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that I should be patient? |
| 12 | Is my strength the strength of stones, or is my flesh bronze? |
| 13 | In truth I have no help in me, and any resource is driven from me. |
| 14 | “Those who withhold kindness from a friend forsake the fear of the Almighty. |
| 15 | My companions are treacherous like a torrent-bed, like freshets that pass away, |
| 16 | that run dark with ice, turbid with melting snow. |
| 17 | In time of heat they disappear; when it is hot, they vanish from their place. |
| 18 | The caravans turn aside from their course; they go up into the waste, and perish. |
| 19 | The caravans of Tema look, the travelers of Sheba hope. |
| 20 | They are disappointed because they were confident; they come there and are confounded. |
| 21 | Such you have now become to me; you see my calamity, and are afraid. |
| 22 | Have I said, ‘Make me a gift’? Or, ‘From your wealth offer a bribe for me’? |
| 23 | Or, ‘Save me from an opponent’s hand’? Or, ‘Ransom me from the hand of oppressors’? |
| 24 | “Teach me, and I will be silent; make me understand how I have gone wrong. |
| 25 | How forceful are honest words! But your reproof, what does it reprove? |
| 26 | Do you think that you can reprove words, as if the speech of the desperate were wind? |
| 27 | You would even cast lots over the orphan, and bargain over your friend. |
| 28 | “But now, be pleased to look at me; for I will not lie to your face. |
| 29 | Turn, I pray, let no wrong be done. Turn now, my vindication is at stake. |
| 30 | Is there any wrong on my tongue? Cannot my taste discern calamity? |