| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1Then Job answered: | 1In response Job replied: |
| 2"Without a doubt you are the people, and wisdom will die with you. | 2"Truly, you are the people and wisdom will die with you! |
| 3I also have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you. Who does not know such things as these? | 3Like you, I also have understanding. I'm not inferior to you; who doesn't know things like this?" |
| 4I am a laughingstock to my friends, I, who called on God and whom he answered--a righteous and blameless man is a laughingstock! | 4"I'm a laughingstock to my friends, someone who called on God. But then he answered this upright and blameless man, and I have become a laughingstock. |
| 5For calamity, there is derision (according to the ideas of the fortunate)--a fate for those whose feet slip! | 5The carefree are thinking, 'I have contempt for misfortune,' Those who are about to stumble deserve it. |
| 6But the tents of robbers are peaceful, and those who provoke God are confident--who carry their god in their hands. | 6The tents of robbers are at rest, and those who provoke God are secure, that is, those who carry their god in their pocket. |
| 7"But now, ask the animals and they will teach you, or the birds of the sky and they will tell you. | 7"Ask the wild animals, and they'll teach you; the birds of the sky will tell you. |
| 8Or speak to the earth and it will teach you, or let the fish of the sea declare to you. | 8Or ask the green plants of the earth and they'll teach you; let the fish in the sea tell you. |
| 9Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this, | 9Who among all of these doesn't know that the LORD's hand made them, |
| 10in whose hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all the human race. | 10and that the life of every living thing rests in his control, along with the breath of every living human being? |
| 11Does not the ear test words, as the tongue tastes food? | 11The ear scrutinizes speech just as the palate tastes food." |
| 12Is not wisdom found among the aged? Does not long life bring understanding? | 12"Wisdom may be found in the company of the aged. Understanding comes with longevity. |
| 13"With God are wisdom and power; counsel and understanding are his. | 13With God is wisdom and strength; counsel and understanding belongs to him. |
| 14If he tears down, it cannot be rebuilt; if he imprisons a person, there is no escape. | 14When he tears down, nobody rebuilds; when he incarcerates, nobody escapes. |
| 15If he holds back the waters, then they dry up; if he releases them, they destroy the land. | 15When he withholds water, rivers dry up; when he lets them loose, they'll flood the land. |
| 16With him are strength and prudence; both the one who goes astray and the one who misleads are his. | 16"With God are strength and sound wisdom; both the deceived and those who deceive are responsible to him. |
| 17He leads counselors away stripped and makes judges into fools. | 17He leads counselors away naked; he turns judges into fools. |
| 18He loosens the bonds of kings and binds a loincloth around their waist. | 18He strips away the authority of kings to punish and puts them in prison clothes instead. |
| 19He leads priests away stripped and overthrows the potentates. | 19He leads away the priests naked and overthrows the ruling class. |
| 20He deprives the trusted advisers of speech and takes away the discernment of elders. | 20He keeps reliable advisors from speaking, and removes discernment from elders. |
| 21He pours contempt on noblemen and disarms the powerful. | 21He pours contempt on nobles and embarrasses the mighty. |
| 22He reveals the deep things of darkness, and brings deep shadows into the light. | 22He uncovers the hidden dimensions from darkness, bringing what is in deep shadow to light. |
| 23He makes nations great, and destroys them; he extends the boundaries of nations and disperses them. | 23He makes nations great, and then destroys them; he enlarges nations, but then sends them away to captivity. |
| 24He deprives the leaders of the earth of their understanding; he makes them wander in a trackless desert waste. | 24He withdraws understanding from national leaders of the world, causing them to wander through uncharted wilderness. |
| 25They grope about in darkness without light; he makes them stagger like drunkards. | 25They grope in the dark without light; he causes them to stagger around like a drunkard." |
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