Job 13-20
Skip Heitzig
| Job 13 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | "Behold, my eye has seen all this, My ear has heard and understood it. |
| 2 | What you know, I also know; I am not inferior to you. |
| 3 | But I would speak to the Almighty, And I desire to reason with God. |
| 4 | But you forgers of lies, You are all worthless physicians. |
| 5 | Oh, that you would be silent, And it would be your wisdom! |
| 6 | Now hear my reasoning, And heed the pleadings of my lips. |
| 7 | Will you speak wickedly for God, And talk deceitfully for Him? |
| 8 | Will you show partiality for Him? Will you contend for God? |
| 9 | Will it be well when He searches you out? Or can you mock Him as one mocks a man? |
| 10 | He will surely rebuke you If you secretly show partiality. |
| 11 | Will not His excellence make you afraid, And the dread of Him fall upon you? |
| 12 | Your platitudes are proverbs of ashes, Your defenses are defenses of clay. |
| 13 | "Hold your peace with me, and let me speak, Then let come on me what may! |
| 14 | Why do I take my flesh in my teeth, And put my life in my hands? |
| 15 | Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. Even so, I will defend my own ways before Him. |
| 16 | He also shall be my salvation, For a hypocrite could not come before Him. |
| 17 | Listen carefully to my speech, And to my declaration with your ears. |
| 18 | See now, I have prepared my case, I know that I shall be vindicated. |
| 19 | Who is he who will contend with me? If now I hold my tongue, I perish. |
| 20 | "Only two things do not do to me, Then I will not hide myself from You: |
| 21 | Withdraw Your hand far from me, And let not the dread of You make me afraid. |
| 22 | Then call, and I will answer; Or let me speak, then You respond to me. |
| 23 | How many are my iniquities and sins? Make me know my transgression and my sin. |
| 24 | Why do You hide Your face, And regard me as Your enemy? |
| 25 | Will You frighten a leaf driven to and fro? And will You pursue dry stubble? |
| 26 | For You write bitter things against me, And make me inherit the iniquities of my youth. |
| 27 | You put my feet in the stocks, And watch closely all my paths. You set a limit for the soles of my feet. |
| 28 | "Man decays like a rotten thing, Like a garment that is moth-eaten. |
| Job 14 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | "Man who is born of woman Is of few days and full of trouble. |
| 2 | He comes forth like a flower and fades away; He flees like a shadow and does not continue. |
| 3 | And do You open Your eyes on such a one, And bring me to judgment with Yourself? |
| 4 | Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? No one! |
| 5 | Since his days are determined, The number of his months is with You; You have appointed his limits, so that he cannot pass. |
| 6 | Look away from him that he may rest, Till like a hired man he finishes his day. |
| 7 | "For there is hope for a tree, If it is cut down, that it will sprout again, And that its tender shoots will not cease. |
| 8 | Though its root may grow old in the earth, And its stump may die in the ground, |
| 9 | Yet at the scent of water it will bud And bring forth branches like a plant. |
| 10 | But man dies and is laid away; Indeed he breathes his last And where is he? |
| 11 | As water disappears from the sea, And a river becomes parched and dries up, |
| 12 | So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more, They will not awake Nor be roused from their sleep. |
| 13 | "Oh, that You would hide me in the grave, That You would conceal me until Your wrath is past, That You would appoint me a set time, and remember me! |
| 14 | If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait, Till my change comes. |
| 15 | You shall call, and I will answer You; You shall desire the work of Your hands. |
| 16 | For now You number my steps, But do not watch over my sin. |
| 17 | My transgression is sealed up in a bag, And You cover my iniquity. |
| 18 | "But as a mountain falls and crumbles away, And as a rock is moved from its place; |
| 19 | As water wears away stones, And as torrents wash away the soil of the earth; So You destroy the hope of man. |
| 20 | You prevail forever against him, and he passes on; You change his countenance and send him away. |
| 21 | His sons come to honor, and he does not know it; They are brought low, and he does not perceive it. |
| 22 | But his flesh will be in pain over it, And his soul will mourn over it." |
| Job 15 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said: |
| 2 | "Should a wise man answer with empty knowledge, And fill himself with the east wind? |
| 3 | Should he reason with unprofitable talk, Or by speeches with which he can do no good? |
| 4 | Yes, you cast off fear, And restrain prayer before God. |
| 5 | For your iniquity teaches your mouth, And you choose the tongue of the crafty. |
| 6 | Your own mouth condemns you, and not I; Yes, your own lips testify against you. |
| 7 | "Are you the first man who was born? Or were you made before the hills? |
| 8 | Have you heard the counsel of God? Do you limit wisdom to yourself? |
| 9 | What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not in us? |
| 10 | Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us, Much older than your father. |
| 11 | Are the consolations of God too small for you, And the word spoken gently with you? |
| 12 | Why does your heart carry you away, And what do your eyes wink at, |
| 13 | That you turn your spirit against God, And let such words go out of your mouth? |
| 14 | "What is man, that he could be pure? And he who is born of a woman, that he could be righteous? |
| 15 | If God puts no trust in His saints, And the heavens are not pure in His sight, |
| 16 | How much less man, who is abominable and filthy, Who drinks iniquity like water! |
| 17 | "I will tell you, hear me; What I have seen I will declare, |
| 18 | What wise men have told, Not hiding anything received from their fathers, |
| 19 | To whom alone the land was given, And no alien passed among them: |
| 20 | The wicked man writhes with pain all his days, And the number of years is hidden from the oppressor. |
| 21 | Dreadful sounds are in his ears; In prosperity the destroyer comes upon him. |
| 22 | He does not believe that he will return from darkness, For a sword is waiting for him. |
| 23 | He wanders about for bread, saying, 'Where is it?' He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand. |
| 24 | Trouble and anguish make him afraid; They overpower him, like a king ready for battle. |
| 25 | For he stretches out his hand against God, And acts defiantly against the Almighty, |
| 26 | Running stubbornly against Him With his strong, embossed shield. |
| 27 | "Though he has covered his face with his fatness, And made his waist heavy with fat, |
| 28 | He dwells in desolate cities, In houses which no one inhabits, Which are destined to become ruins. |
| 29 | He will not be rich, Nor will his wealth continue, Nor will his possessions overspread the earth. |
| 30 | He will not depart from darkness; The flame will dry out his branches, And by the breath of His mouth he will go away. |
| 31 | Let him not trust in futile things, deceiving himself, For futility will be his reward. |
| 32 | It will be accomplished before his time, And his branch will not be green. |
| 33 | He will shake off his unripe grape like a vine, And cast off his blossom like an olive tree. |
| 34 | For the company of hypocrites will be barren, And fire will consume the tents of bribery. |
| 35 | They conceive trouble and bring forth futility; Their womb prepares deceit." |
| Job 16 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | Then Job answered and said: |
| 2 | "I have heard many such things; Miserable comforters are you all! |
| 3 | Shall words of wind have an end? Or what provokes you that you answer? |
| 4 | I also could speak as you do, If your soul were in my soul's place. I could heap up words against you, And shake my head at you; |
| 5 | But I would strengthen you with my mouth, And the comfort of my lips would relieve your grief. |
| 6 | "Though I speak, my grief is not relieved; And if I remain silent, how am I eased? |
| 7 | But now He has worn me out; You have made desolate all my company. |
| 8 | You have shriveled me up, And it is a witness against me; My leanness rises up against me And bears witness to my face. |
| 9 | He tears me in His wrath, and hates me; He gnashes at me with His teeth; My adversary sharpens His gaze on me. |
| 10 | They gape at me with their mouth, They strike me reproachfully on the cheek, They gather together against me. |
| 11 | God has delivered me to the ungodly, And turned me over to the hands of the wicked. |
| 12 | I was at ease, but He has shattered me; He also has taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces; He has set me up for His target, |
| 13 | His archers surround me. He pierces my heart and does not pity; He pours out my gall on the ground. |
| 14 | He breaks me with wound upon wound; He runs at me like a warrior. |
| 15 | "I have sewn sackcloth over my skin, And laid my head in the dust. |
| 16 | My face is flushed from weeping, And on my eyelids is the shadow of death; |
| 17 | Although no violence is in my hands, And my prayer is pure. |
| 18 | "O earth, do not cover my blood, And let my cry have no resting place! |
| 19 | Surely even now my witness is in heaven, And my evidence is on high. |
| 20 | My friends scorn me; My eyes pour out tears to God. |
| 21 | Oh, that one might plead for a man with God, As a man pleads for his neighbor! |
| 22 | For when a few years are finished, I shall go the way of no return. |
| Job 17 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | "My spirit is broken, My days are extinguished, The grave is ready for me. |
| 2 | Are not mockers with me? And does not my eye dwell on their provocation? |
| 3 | "Now put down a pledge for me with Yourself. Who is he who will shake hands with me? |
| 4 | For You have hidden their heart from understanding; Therefore You will not exalt them. |
| 5 | He who speaks flattery to his friends, Even the eyes of his children will fail. |
| 6 | "But He has made me a byword of the people, And I have become one in whose face men spit. |
| 7 | My eye has also grown dim because of sorrow, And all my members are like shadows. |
| 8 | Upright men are astonished at this, And the innocent stirs himself up against the hypocrite. |
| 9 | Yet the righteous will hold to his way, And he who has clean hands will be stronger and stronger. |
| 10 | "But please, come back again, all of you, For I shall not find one wise man among you. |
| 11 | My days are past, My purposes are broken off, Even the thoughts of my heart. |
| 12 | They change the night into day; 'The light is near,' they say, in the face of darkness. |
| 13 | If I wait for the grave as my house, If I make my bed in the darkness, |
| 14 | If I say to corruption, 'You are my father,' And to the worm, 'You are my mother and my sister,' |
| 15 | Where then is my hope? As for my hope, who can see it? |
| 16 | Will they go down to the gates of Sheol? Shall we have rest together in the dust?" |
| Job 18 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said: |
| 2 | "How long till you put an end to words? Gain understanding, and afterward we will speak. |
| 3 | Why are we counted as beasts, And regarded as stupid in your sight? |
| 4 | You who tear yourself in anger, Shall the earth be forsaken for you? Or shall the rock be removed from its place? |
| 5 | "The light of the wicked indeed goes out, And the flame of his fire does not shine. |
| 6 | The light is dark in his tent, And his lamp beside him is put out. |
| 7 | The steps of his strength are shortened, And his own counsel casts him down. |
| 8 | For he is cast into a net by his own feet, And he walks into a snare. |
| 9 | The net takes him by the heel, And a snare lays hold of him. |
| 10 | A noose is hidden for him on the ground, And a trap for him in the road. |
| 11 | Terrors frighten him on every side, And drive him to his feet. |
| 12 | His strength is starved, And destruction is ready at his side. |
| 13 | It devours patches of his skin; The firstborn of death devours his limbs. |
| 14 | He is uprooted from the shelter of his tent, And they parade him before the king of terrors. |
| 15 | They dwell in his tent who are none of his; Brimstone is scattered on his dwelling. |
| 16 | His roots are dried out below, And his branch withers above. |
| 17 | The memory of him perishes from the earth, And he has no name among the renowned. |
| 18 | He is driven from light into darkness, And chased out of the world. |
| 19 | He has neither son nor posterity among his people, Nor any remaining in his dwellings. |
| 20 | Those in the west are astonished at his day, As those in the east are frightened. |
| 21 | Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked, And this is the place of him who does not know God." |
| Job 19 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | Then Job answered and said: |
| 2 | "How long will you torment my soul, And break me in pieces with words? |
| 3 | These ten times you have reproached me; You are not ashamed that you have wronged me. |
| 4 | And if indeed I have erred, My error remains with me. |
| 5 | If indeed you exalt yourselves against me, And plead my disgrace against me, |
| 6 | Know then that God has wronged me, And has surrounded me with His net. |
| 7 | "If I cry out concerning wrong, I am not heard. If I cry aloud, there is no justice. |
| 8 | He has fenced up my way, so that I cannot pass; And He has set darkness in my paths. |
| 9 | He has stripped me of my glory, And taken the crown from my head. |
| 10 | He breaks me down on every side, And I am gone; My hope He has uprooted like a tree. |
| 11 | He has also kindled His wrath against me, And He counts me as one of His enemies. |
| 12 | His troops come together And build up their road against me; They encamp all around my tent. |
| 13 | "He has removed my brothers far from me, And my acquaintances are completely estranged from me. |
| 14 | My relatives have failed, And my close friends have forgotten me. |
| 15 | Those who dwell in my house, and my maidservants, Count me as a stranger; I am an alien in their sight. |
| 16 | I call my servant, but he gives no answer; I beg him with my mouth. |
| 17 | My breath is offensive to my wife, And I am repulsive to the children of my own body. |
| 18 | Even young children despise me; I arise, and they speak against me. |
| 19 | All my close friends abhor me, And those whom I love have turned against me. |
| 20 | My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, And I have escaped by the skin of my teeth. |
| 21 | "Have pity on me, have pity on me, O you my friends, For the hand of God has struck me! |
| 22 | Why do you persecute me as God does, And are not satisfied with my flesh? |
| 23 | "Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! |
| 24 | That they were engraved on a rock With an iron pen and lead, forever! |
| 25 | For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; |
| 26 | And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God, |
| 27 | Whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me! |
| 28 | If you should say, 'How shall we persecute him?'--Since the root of the matter is found in me, |
| 29 | Be afraid of the sword for yourselves; For wrath brings the punishment of the sword, That you may know there is a judgment." |
| Job 20 (NKJV™) | |
| 1 | Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said: |
| 2 | "Therefore my anxious thoughts make me answer, Because of the turmoil within me. |
| 3 | I have heard the rebuke that reproaches me, And the spirit of my understanding causes me to answer. |
| 4 | "Do you not know this of old, Since man was placed on earth, |
| 5 | That the triumphing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment? |
| 6 | Though his haughtiness mounts up to the heavens, And his head reaches to the clouds, |
| 7 | Yet he will perish forever like his own refuse; Those who have seen him will say, 'Where is he?' |
| 8 | He will fly away like a dream, and not be found; Yes, he will be chased away like a vision of the night. |
| 9 | The eye that saw him will see him no more, Nor will his place behold him anymore. |
| 10 | His children will seek the favor of the poor, And his hands will restore his wealth. |
| 11 | His bones are full of his youthful vigor, But it will lie down with him in the dust. |
| 12 | "Though evil is sweet in his mouth, And he hides it under his tongue, |
| 13 | Though he spares it and does not forsake it, But still keeps it in his mouth, |
| 14 | Yet his food in his stomach turns sour; It becomes cobra venom within him. |
| 15 | He swallows down riches And vomits them up again; God casts them out of his belly. |
| 16 | He will suck the poison of cobras; The viper's tongue will slay him. |
| 17 | He will not see the streams, The rivers flowing with honey and cream. |
| 18 | He will restore that for which he labored, And will not swallow it down; From the proceeds of business He will get no enjoyment. |
| 19 | For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor, He has violently seized a house which he did not build. |
| 20 | "Because he knows no quietness in his heart, He will not save anything he desires. |
| 21 | Nothing is left for him to eat; Therefore his well-being will not last. |
| 22 | In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress; Every hand of misery will come against him. |
| 23 | When he is about to fill his stomach, God will cast on him the fury of His wrath, And will rain it on him while he is eating. |
| 24 | He will flee from the iron weapon; A bronze bow will pierce him through. |
| 25 | It is drawn, and comes out of the body; Yes, the glittering point comes out of his gall. Terrors come upon him; |
| 26 | Total darkness is reserved for his treasures. An unfanned fire will consume him; It shall go ill with him who is left in his tent. |
| 27 | The heavens will reveal his iniquity, And the earth will rise up against him. |
| 28 | The increase of his house will depart, And his goods will flow away in the day of His wrath. |
| 29 | This is the portion from God for a wicked man, The heritage appointed to him by God." |
New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved.
The book of Job asks the great questions of life: What is the reason for suffering? Where is God when I suffer? Skip Heitzig takes us through this timeless book on God's sovereignty.
FREE - Download Entire Series (MP3) (Help)
| Buy audiobook
