Job’s final word to his friends
1And Job continued his discourse:
2‘As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice,
the Almighty, who has made my life bitter,
3as long as I have life within me,
the breath of God in my nostrils,
4my lips will not say anything wicked,
and my tongue will not utter lies.
5I will never admit you are in the right;
till I die, I will not deny my integrity.
6I will maintain my innocence and never let go of it;
my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.
7‘May my enemy be like the wicked,
my adversary like the unjust!
8For what hope have the godless when they are cut off,
when God takes away their life?
9Does God listen to their cry
when distress comes upon them?
10Will they find delight in the Almighty?
Will they call on God at all times?
11‘I will teach you about the power of God;
the ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.
12You have all seen this yourselves.
Why then this meaningless talk?
13‘Here is the fate God allots to the wicked,
the heritage a ruthless man receives from the Almighty:
14However many his children, their fate is the sword;
his offspring will never have enough to eat.
15The plague will bury those who survive him,
and their widows will not weep for them.
16Though he heaps up silver like dust
and clothes like piles of clay,
17what he lays up the righteous will wear,
and the innocent will divide his silver.
18The house he builds is like a moth’s cocoon,
like a hut made by a watchman.
19He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more;
when he opens his eyes, all is gone.
20Terrors overtake him like a flood;
a tempest snatches him away in the night.
21The east wind carries him off, and he is gone;
it sweeps him out of his place.
22It hurls itself against him without mercy
as he flees headlong from its power.
23It claps its hands in derision
and hisses him out of his place.’
1约伯接着说：
2“我凭不给我公道的永恒上帝，
凭使我灵魂陷入痛苦的全能者起誓，
3只要我一息尚存，
鼻中还有上帝之气，
4我的嘴唇决不说恶语，
舌头决不讲谎话。
5我决不承认你们有理，
我至死坚信自己无辜。
6我坚守自己的公义，决不放弃，
我有生之年都问心无愧。
7“愿我仇敌的下场和恶人一样，
愿我对头的结局和罪人相同。
8因为不敬虔的人将被铲除，上帝将夺去他的性命。
那时，他还有何指望？
9患难临到他时，
上帝岂会垂听他的呼求？
10他岂会以全能者为乐，
时时求告上帝？
11“我要教导你们有关上帝的能力，
我不会隐瞒全能者的作为。
12其实你们也曾亲眼目睹，
为何还讲这些虚妄之言？
13“以下是上帝给恶人定的结局，
全能者赐给残暴之徒的归宿。
14他的儿女再多也难逃杀戮，
他的子孙永远吃不饱。
15他幸存的后人被瘟疫吞噬，
生还的寡妇也不哀哭。
16尽管他堆积的银子多如尘沙，
储存的衣服高若土堆，
17但义人将穿他储存的衣服，
清白的人将分他堆积的银子。
18他建的房子像蛾茧，
像守望者搭的草棚。
19他睡前还是富翁，
醒来后财富已空。
20恐惧如洪水般淹没他，
暴风在夜间把他卷去。
21东风把他刮走，
吹得无影无踪。
22狂风27:22 “狂风”希伯来文指代不清，也可译作“祂”，指上帝，23节同。毫不留情地击打他，
他拼命地逃离风的威力。
23狂风向他拍掌，
呼啸着吹走他。
