Job 40:1-24 VOICE

[1] The Eternal continued speaking to Job. [2] Eternal One: Have you heard enough? Will the one who finds fault with the Highest One now make his case? Let God's accuser answer Him! [3] Job answered the Eternal. [4] Job: Oh, I am so small. How can I reply to You? I'll cover my mouth with my hand, for I've already said too much. [5] One time I have spoken, and I have no answer to give- two times, and I have nothing more to add. [6] The Eternal spoke to Job from the raging storm. [7] Eternal One: Now, prepare yourself and gather your courage like a warrior. Prepare yourself for the task at hand. I'll be asking the questions, now- you will supply the answers. [8] Let Me ask you a new question: Would you go so far as to call into question My judgment? Would you imagine Me guilty merely in order to justify yourself? [9] Do you have an arm just as powerful as God's and does your voice thunder as His does? [10] Then dress yourself up in majesty and dignity. Deck yourself out in honor and splendor [11] And indulge your anger. Unleash your wrath! Look down on each and every proud soul, and cut him low. [12] Look down on all who are proud, and humiliate them. Raise your mighty foot, and stomp the wicked where they stand. [13] Bury them all together in the dirt, and shroud their frozen faces in the secret recesses of the grave. [14] If you can execute all this, then I-yes, even I-will praise you, for your great and mighty right hand earned you the victory! [15] But before you undertake My challenge, turn your attention to Behemoth, The beast which I fashioned along with you. Eternal One: It eats grass like an ox. [16] Look carefully: it has a sturdy, muscular base and draws its power from its brawny core. [17] Its bends like a cedar, the sinews of its powerful thighs are woven tightly. [18] Its bones, unbreakable, are like tubes of bronze; its whole skeletal structure is like a framework of iron. [19] It is one of My most marvelous creations; only I, its Maker, can threaten its existence. [20] The hillsides offer it food as it grazes near where the wild animals bustle and play. [21] It lies beside the river under the shade of the lotus, hidden by the reeds of the marsh; [22] The lotus trees cover it with their shadows; the willows of the stream surround it. [23] It is not alarmed when the river rises and rages; it stands confident, firmly fixed, Even when the Jordan swells and rushes against it. [24] Can anyone capture this beast while it is watching or trap it and pierce its nose to haul it off ?