Job 27

1 Job replied again [to his three friends],

Job resumed speaking and he said,

2 “Almighty God has refused to treat me justly/fairly. He has caused me to feel bitter/resentful. But [just as surely] as he lives,

“As surely as God lives, who has taken away my justice, the Almighty, who made my life bitter,

3 as long as God’s Spirit enables me to breathe,

while my life is yet in me, and the breath from God is in my nostrils, this is what I will do.

4 I will not lie; I [SYN] will not say anything to deceive anyone.

My lips will not speak wickedness, neither will my tongue speak deceit;

5 I will never admit that what you [three] have said is true; until the day that I die, I will insist that I have not done things that are wrong.

I will never admit that you three are right; until I die I will never deny my integrity.

6 I will say that I am innocent, and never (say anything different/change what I say); my conscience will never reproach me as long as I live.

I hold fast to my righteousness and will not let it go; my thoughts will not reproach me so long as I live.

7 “I want my enemies to be [punished] like all wicked [people are punished]; I want [God to punish] those who oppose me like [he punishes all] unrighteous [people].

Let my enemy be like a wicked man; let him who rises up against me be like an unrighteous man.

8 When [it is time for] God [to] get rid of godless/wicked people and [to] cause them to die, there is absolutely nothing good [RHQ] that they can confidently expect [to happen to them].

For what is the hope of a godless man when God cuts him off, when God takes away his life?

9 When they experience troubles, (will God hear them call [out to him for help]?/God certainly will not hear them call out [to him for help].) [RHQ]

Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him?

10 (Will they be happy about what Almighty [God] does?/They certainly will not be happy about what Almighty [God] does.) [RHQ] (Will they [begin to] pray to him frequently?/They certainly will not [begin to] pray to him frequently.) [RHQ] [Certainly not!]

Will he delight himself in the Almighty and call upon God at all times?

11 “I will teach you [three] something about the power [MTY] of Almighty God [MTY]; I will reveal what he is thinking.

I will teach you concerning the hand of God; I will not conceal the thoughts of the Almighty.

12 But you [three] have seen for yourselves [what God has done]; so (why are you saying such nonsense?/you should not be saying such nonsense.) [RHQ]

See, all of you have seen this yourselves; why then have you spoken all this nonsense?

13 “[I will tell you] what Almighty God does to wicked people, the things that he does to people who oppress others.

This is the portion of a wicked man with God, the heritage of the oppressor that he receives from the Almighty:

14 [Even] if they have many children, [many of] those children will die in wars [MTY], and their [other] children will [die because they do] not have enough food to eat.

If his children multiply, it is for the sword; his offspring will never have enough food.

15 Their children who are still alive will die from diseases, and their widows will not [even] mourn for them.

Those who survive him will be buried by plague, and their widows will make no lament for them.

16 Sometimes [wicked people] accumulate a huge amount [SIM] of silver and pile up clothes like [SIM] those clothes were a pile of clay,

Though the wicked man heaps up silver like the dust, and heaps up clothing like clay,

17 but [those wicked people will die, and then] righteous people will wear those clothes, and honest/innocent people will get their silver and divide it [among themselves].

he may heap up clothing, but righteous people will put it on, and innocent people will divide up the silver among themselves.

18 The houses that they build are [as frail/fragile] as [SIM] spider webs, or they are like flimsy huts that watchmen live in [while they guard people’s fields].

He builds his house like a spider, like a hut that a guard makes.

19 Wicked people are rich when they lie down [at night], but when they wake up [in the morning, they find out that] their money has disappeared.

He lies down in bed rich, but he will not keep doing so; he opens his eyes, and everything is gone.

20 “Things that terrify them [PRS] strike them like a flood [SIM]; during the night a whirlwind carries them away.

Terrors overtake him like waters; a storm takes him away in the night.

21 [It is as though] the wind from the east picks them up and carries them away from their homes, and they disappear.

The east wind carries him away, and he leaves; it sweeps him out of his place.

22 That wind strikes them without pitying them while they are running away, trying to escape from its force/power [MTY].

It throws itself at him and does not stop; he tries to flee out of its hand.

23 That wind [is like someone] clapping his hands [MET] at them [to ridicule them], howling at them wherever they run to.”

It claps its hands at him in mockery; it hisses him out of his place.