1  “I have made a covenant with my ^beyes;

how then could I gaze at a virgin?

2  What would be ^cmy portion from God above

and ^cmy heritage from the Almighty on high?

3  Is not calamity for the unrighteous,

and disaster for the workers of iniquity?

4  ^dDoes not he see my ways

and ^enumber all my steps?

5  “If I have walked with falsehood

and my foot has hastened to deceit;

6  (Let me be ^fweighed in a just balance,

and let God know my integrity!)

7  if my step has turned aside from the way

and ^gmy heart has gone after my eyes,

and if any ^hspot has stuck to my hands,

8  then let me ⁱsow, and another eat,

and let what grows for me¹ be rooted out.

9  “If my heart has been enticed toward a woman,

and I have ^jlain in wait at my neighbor’s door,

10  then let my wife ^kgrind for another,

and let others ^lbow down on her.

11  For that would be a heinous crime;

that would be an iniquity ^mto be punished by the judges;

12  for that would be a fire ⁿthat consumes as far as Abaddon,

and it would burn to the root all my increase.

13  “If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or my maidservant,

when they brought a complaint against me,

14  what then shall I do when God rises up?

When he ^omakes inquiry, what shall I answer him?

15  Did ^pnot he who made me in the womb make him?

And did not one fashion us in the womb?

16  “If I have ^qwithheld anything that the poor desired,

or have ^rcaused the eyes of the widow to fail,

17  or have eaten my morsel alone,

and the fatherless has not eaten of it

18  (for from my youth the fatherless² grew up with me as with a father,

and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow³),

19  if I have seen anyone ^sperish for ^tlack of clothing,

or the needy without ^tcovering,

20  if his body has not ^ublessed me,⁴

and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep,

21  if I have raised my hand against ^vthe fatherless,

because I saw my help in ^wthe gate,

22  then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder,

and let my arm be broken from its socket.

23  For I was ^xin terror of calamity from God,

and I could not have faced his ^xmajesty.

24  ^y“If I have made gold my ^ztrust

or called ^afine gold my confidence,

25  if I have ^brejoiced because my wealth was abundant

or because ^cmy hand had found much,

26  ^dif I have looked at the sun⁵ when it shone,

or ^ethe moon moving in splendor,

27  and my heart has been secretly enticed,

and my mouth has kissed my hand,

28  this also would be ^fan iniquity to be punished by the judges,

for I would have been false to God above.

29  “If I have ^grejoiced at the ruin of him who hated me,

or exulted when evil overtook him

30  (^hI have not let my mouth sin

by asking for his life with a curse),

31  if the men of my tent have not said,

‘Who is there that has not been filled with his ⁱmeat?’

32  (^jthe sojourner has not lodged in the street;

I have opened my doors to the traveler),

33  if I ^khave concealed my transgressions ^las others do⁶

by hiding my iniquity in my heart,

34  because I stood in great fear of ^mthe multitude,

and the contempt of families terrified me,

so that I kept silence, and did not go out of doors—

35  Oh, that I had one to hear me!

(Here is my signature! Let the Almighty ⁿanswer me!)

Oh, that I had ^othe indictment written by my adversary!

36  Surely I would carry it on my ^pshoulder;

I would ^qbind it on me as ^ra crown;

37  I would give him an account of all my steps;

like a prince I would approach him.

38  “If my land has cried out against me

and its furrows have wept together,

39  ^sif I have eaten its yield without payment

and made its owners ^tbreathe their last,

40  let ^uthorns grow instead of wheat,

and foul weeds instead of barley.”

“I am young in years,

and you are ^zaged;

therefore I was timid and afraid

to declare my opinion to you.

7  I said, ‘Let days speak,

and many years teach wisdom.’

8  But it is ^athe spirit in man,

^bthe breath of the Almighty, that makes him ^cunderstand.

9  ^dIt is not the old¹ who are wise,

nor the aged who understand what is right.

10  Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me;

let me also declare my opinion.’

11  “Behold, I waited for your words,

I listened for your wise sayings,

while you searched out what to say.

12  I gave you my attention,

and, behold, there was none among you who refuted Job

or who answered his words.

13  Beware ^elest you say, ‘We have found wisdom;

God may vanquish him, not a man.’

14  He has not directed his words against me,

and I will not answer him with your speeches.

15  “They are dismayed; they answer no more;

they have not a word to say.

16  And shall I wait, because they do not speak,

because they stand there, and answer no more?

17  I also will answer with my share;

I also will declare my opinion.

18  For I am full of words;

the spirit within me constrains me.

19  Behold, my belly is like wine that has no vent;

like new ^fwineskins ready to burst.

20  ^gI must speak, that I may find ^hrelief;

I must open my lips and answer.

21  I will not ⁱshow partiality to any man

or use flattery toward any person.

22  For I do not know how to flatter,

else my Maker would soon take me away.