[1] Call out, Job. See if anyone answers. Is there any angel to whom you can turn? [2] To worry yourself to death with resentment would be a foolish, senseless thing to do. [3] I have seen fools who looked secure, but I called down a sudden curse on their homes. [4] Their children can never find safety; no one stands up to defend them in court. [5] Hungry people will eat the fool's crops- even the grain growing among thorns - and thirsty people will envy his wealth. [6] Evil does not grow in the soil, nor does trouble grow out of the ground. [7] No indeed! We bring trouble on ourselves, as surely as sparks fly up from a fire. [8] If I were you, I would turn to God and present my case to him. [9] We cannot understand the great things he does, and to his miracles there is no end. [10] He sends rain on the land and he waters the fields. [11] Yes, it is God who raises the humble and gives joy to all who mourn. [12] He upsets the plans of cunning people, and traps the wise in their own schemes, so that nothing they do succeeds; [14] even at noon they grope in darkness. [15] But God saves the poor from death; he saves the needy from oppression. [16] He gives hope to the poor and silences the wicked. [17] Happy is the person whom God corrects! Do not resent it when he rebukes you. [18] God bandages the wounds he makes; his hand hurts you, and his hand heals. [19] Time after time he will save you from harm; [20] when famine comes, he will keep you alive, and in war protect you from death. [21] God will rescue you from slander; he will save you when destruction comes. [22] You will laugh at violence and hunger and not be afraid of wild animals. [23] The fields you plow will be free of rocks; wild animals will never attack you. [24] Then you will live at peace in your tent; when you look at your sheep, you will find them safe. [25] You will have as many children as there are blades of grass in a pasture. [26] Like wheat that ripens till harvest time, you will live to a ripe old age. [27] Job, we have learned this by long study. It is true, so now accept it.
