| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 1Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said, | 1Then the LORD spoke to Job out of the storm. He said: |
| 2Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? | 2"Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge? |
| 3Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me. | 3Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. |
| 4Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. | 4"Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand. |
| 5Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? | 5Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? |
| 6Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; | 6On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone-- |
| 7When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? | 7while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy? |
| 8Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? | 8"Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, |
| 9When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddlingband for it, | 9when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, |
| 10And brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors, | 10when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place, |
| 11And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed? | 11when I said, 'This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt'? |
| 12Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days; and caused the dayspring to know his place; | 12"Have you ever given orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place, |
| 13That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, that the wicked might be shaken out of it? | 13that it might take the earth by the edges and shake the wicked out of it? |
| 14It is turned as clay to the seal; and they stand as a garment. | 14The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features stand out like those of a garment. |
| 15And from the wicked their light is withholden, and the high arm shall be broken. | 15The wicked are denied their light, and their upraised arm is broken. |
| 16Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? or hast thou walked in the search of the depth? | 16"Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? |
| 17Have the gates of death been opened unto thee? or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death? | 17Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness? |
| 18Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth? declare if thou knowest it all. | 18Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this. |
| 19Where is the way where light dwelleth? and as for darkness, where is the place thereof, | 19"What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside? |
| 20That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof, and that thou shouldest know the paths to the house thereof? | 20Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings? |
| 21Knowest thou it, because thou wast then born? or because the number of thy days is great? | 21Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years! |
| 22Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, | 22"Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, |
| 23Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war? | 23which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle? |
| 24By what way is the light parted, which scattereth the east wind upon the earth? | 24What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed, or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth? |
| 25Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder; | 25Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain, and a path for the thunderstorm, |
| 26To cause it to rain on the earth, where no man is; on the wilderness, wherein there is no man; | 26to water a land where no one lives, an uninhabited desert, |
| 27To satisfy the desolate and waste ground; and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth? | 27to satisfy a desolate wasteland and make it sprout with grass? |
| 28Hath the rain a father? or who hath begotten the drops of dew? | 28Does the rain have a father? Who fathers the drops of dew? |
| 29Out of whose womb came the ice? and the hoary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it? | 29From whose womb comes the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens |
| 30The waters are hid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen. | 30when the waters become hard as stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen? |
| 31Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion? | 31"Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades? Can you loosen Orion's belt? |
| 32Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons? | 32Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs? |
| 33Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? | 33Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set up God's dominion over the earth? |
| 34Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? | 34"Can you raise your voice to the clouds and cover yourself with a flood of water? |
| 35Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are? | 35Do you send the lightning bolts on their way? Do they report to you, 'Here we are'? |
| 36Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart? | 36Who gives the ibis wisdom or gives the rooster understanding? |
| 37Who can number the clouds in wisdom? or who can stay the bottles of heaven, | 37Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens |
| 38When the dust groweth into hardness, and the clods cleave fast together? | 38when the dust becomes hard and the clods of earth stick together? |
| 39Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill the appetite of the young lions, | 39"Do you hunt the prey for the lioness and satisfy the hunger of the lions |
| 40When they couch in their dens, and abide in the covert to lie in wait? | 40when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in a thicket? |
| 41Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat. | 41Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food? |
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