| New American Standard Bible 1995 | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1Then Job responded, | 1Then Job answered: |
| 2"Truly then you are the people, And with you wisdom will die! | 2No doubt you are the people, and wisdom will die with you! |
| 3"But I have intelligence as well as you; I am not inferior to you. And who does not know such things as these? | 3But I also have a mind; I am not inferior to you. Who doesn't know the things you are talking about? |
| 4"I am a joke to my friends, The one who called on God and He answered him; The just and blameless man is a joke. | 4I am a laughingstock to my friends, by calling on God, who answers me. The righteous and upright man is a laughingstock. |
| 5"He who is at ease holds calamity in contempt, As prepared for those whose feet slip. | 5The one who is at ease holds calamity in contempt and thinks it is prepared for those whose feet are slipping. |
| 6"The tents of the destroyers prosper, And those who provoke God are secure, Whom God brings into their power. | 6The tents of robbers are safe, and those who provoke God are secure; God's power provides this. |
| 7"But now ask the beasts, and let them teach you; And the birds of the heavens, and let them tell you. | 7But ask the animals, and they will instruct you; ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you. |
| 8"Or speak to the earth, and let it teach you; And let the fish of the sea declare to you. | 8Or speak to the earth, and it will instruct you; let the fish of the sea inform you. |
| 9"Who among all these does not know That the hand of the LORD has done this, | 9Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? |
| 10In whose hand is the life of every living thing, And the breath of all mankind? | 10The life of every living thing is in His hand, as well as the breath of all mankind. |
| 11"Does not the ear test words, As the palate tastes its food? | 11Doesn't the ear test words as the palate tastes food? |
| 12"Wisdom is with aged men, With long life is understanding. | 12Wisdom is found with the elderly, and understanding comes with long life. |
| 13"With Him are wisdom and might; To Him belong counsel and understanding. | 13Wisdom and strength belong to God; counsel and understanding are His. |
| 14"Behold, He tears down, and it cannot be rebuilt; He imprisons a man, and there can be no release. | 14Whatever He tears down cannot be rebuilt; whoever He imprisons cannot be released. |
| 15"Behold, He restrains the waters, and they dry up; And He sends them out, and they inundate the earth. | 15When He withholds the waters, everything dries up, and when He releases them, they destroy the land. |
| 16"With Him are strength and sound wisdom, The misled and the misleader belong to Him. | 16True wisdom and power belong to Him. The deceived and the deceiver are His. |
| 17"He makes counselors walk barefoot And makes fools of judges. | 17He leads counselors away barefoot and makes judges go mad. |
| 18"He loosens the bond of kings And binds their loins with a girdle. | 18He releases the bonds put on by kings and fastens a belt around their waists. |
| 19"He makes priests walk barefoot And overthrows the secure ones. | 19He leads priests away barefoot and overthrows established leaders. |
| 20"He deprives the trusted ones of speech And takes away the discernment of the elders. | 20He deprives trusted advisers of speech and takes away the elders' good judgment. |
| 21"He pours contempt on nobles And loosens the belt of the strong. | 21He pours out contempt on nobles and disarms the strong. |
| 22"He reveals mysteries from the darkness And brings the deep darkness into light. | 22He reveals mysteries from the darkness and brings the deepest darkness into the light. |
| 23"He makes the nations great, then destroys them; He enlarges the nations, then leads them away. | 23He makes nations great, then destroys them; He enlarges nations, then leads them away. |
| 24"He deprives of intelligence the chiefs of the earth's people And makes them wander in a pathless waste. | 24He deprives the world's leaders of reason, and makes them wander in a trackless wasteland. |
| 25"They grope in darkness with no light, And He makes them stagger like a drunken man. | 25They grope around in darkness without light; He makes them stagger like drunken men. |
| New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. |
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