| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 1Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said, | 1Then Zophar the Naamathite replied: |
| 2Should not the multitude of words be answered? and should a man full of talk be justified? | 2"Are all these words to go unanswered? Is this talker to be vindicated? |
| 3Should thy lies make men hold their peace? and when thou mockest, shall no man make thee ashamed? | 3Will your idle talk reduce others to silence? Will no one rebuke you when you mock? |
| 4For thou hast said, My doctrine is pure, and I am clean in thine eyes. | 4You say to God, 'My beliefs are flawless and I am pure in your sight.' |
| 5But oh that God would speak, and open his lips against thee; | 5Oh, how I wish that God would speak, that he would open his lips against you |
| 6And that he would shew thee the secrets of wisdom, that they are double to that which is! Know therefore that God exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth. | 6and disclose to you the secrets of wisdom, for true wisdom has two sides. Know this: God has even forgotten some of your sin. |
| 7Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? | 7"Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? |
| 8It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know? | 8They are higher than the heavens above--what can you do? They are deeper than the depths below--what can you know? |
| 9The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea. | 9Their measure is longer than the earth and wider than the sea. |
| 10If he cut off, and shut up, or gather together, then who can hinder him? | 10"If he comes along and confines you in prison and convenes a court, who can oppose him? |
| 11For he knoweth vain men: he seeth wickedness also; will he not then consider it? | 11Surely he recognizes deceivers; and when he sees evil, does he not take note? |
| 12For vain man would be wise, though man be born like a wild ass's colt. | 12But the witless can no more become wise than a wild donkey's colt can be born human. |
| 13If thou prepare thine heart, and stretch out thine hands toward him; | 13"Yet if you devote your heart to him and stretch out your hands to him, |
| 14If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles. | 14if you put away the sin that is in your hand and allow no evil to dwell in your tent, |
| 15For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear: | 15then, free of fault, you will lift up your face; you will stand firm and without fear. |
| 16Because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass away: | 16You will surely forget your trouble, recalling it only as waters gone by. |
| 17And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday; thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning. | 17Life will be brighter than noonday, and darkness will become like morning. |
| 18And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; yea, thou shalt dig about thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety. | 18You will be secure, because there is hope; you will look about you and take your rest in safety. |
| 19Also thou shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid; yea, many shall make suit unto thee. | 19You will lie down, with no one to make you afraid, and many will court your favor. |
| 20But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape, and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost. | 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, and escape will elude them; their hope will become a dying gasp." |
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