Job 27

I Hold Fast My Righteousness

1 Then Job continued to lift up his ^{▼▼Lit proverb}discourse and said,

2 “As God lives, who has removed my justice,
And the Almighty, who has embittered my soul,
3 For as long as breath is in me,
And the spirit from God is in my nostrils,
4 My lips certainly will not speak unrighteousness,
Nor will my tongue utter deceit.
5 “Far be it from me that I should declare you right;
Till I breathe my last I will not remove my integrity from me.
6 “I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go.
My heart does not reproach any of my days.
7 “May my enemy be as the wicked
And the one who rises against me as the unjust.
8 “For what is the hope of the godless ^{▼▼Or though he gains}when he is cut off,
When God requires his ^{▼▼Or life}soul?
9 “Will God hear his cry
When distress comes upon him?
10 “Will he take delight in the Almighty?
Will he call on God at all times?
11 “I will instruct you in the ^{▼▼Lit hand}power of God;
What is with the Almighty I will not conceal.
12 “Behold, all of you have seen it;
Why then do you speak with utter vanity?
13 “This is the portion of a wicked man from God,
And the inheritance which the ruthless receive from the Almighty.
14 “Though his sons are many, ^{▼▼Lit the sword is for them}they are destined for the sword;
And his offspring will not be satisfied with bread.
15 “His survivors will be buried because of the plague,
And ^{▼▼As in ancient versions; Heb his}their widows will not be able to weep.
16 “Though he piles up silver like dust
And prepares garments as plentiful as the clay,
17 He may prepare it, but the righteous will wear it,
And the innocent will divide the silver.
18 “He has built his house like the ^{▼▼Ancient versions spider’s web}moth,
Or as a hut which the watchman has made.
19 “He lies down rich, but never ^{▼▼As in ancient versions; Heb will be gathered}again;
He opens his eyes, and it is no longer.
20 “Terrors overtake him like many waters;
A tempest steals him away in the night.
21 “The east wind carries him away, and he goes,
And it whirls him away from his place.
22 “For it will hurl at him without sparing;
He will surely try to flee from its ^{▼▼Lit hand}power.
23 “Men will clap their hands at him
And will hiss him from his place.