14 ¹Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble. ²He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not. ³And doth thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee? ⁴Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one. ⁵Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass; ⁶Turn from him, that he may rest, till he shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day. ⁷For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease. ⁸Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground; ⁹Yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant. ¹⁰But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? ¹¹As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up: ¹²So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep. ¹³O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me! ¹⁴If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. ¹⁵Thou shalt call, and I will answer thee: thou wilt have a desire to the work of thine hands. ¹⁶For now thou numberest my steps: dost thou not watch over my sin? ¹⁷My transgression is sealed up in a bag, and thou sewest up mine iniquity. ¹⁸And surely the mountains falling cometh to nought, and the rock is removed out of his place. ¹⁹The waters wear the stones: thou washest away the things which grow out of the dust of the earth; and thou destroyest the hope of man. ²⁰Thou prevailest for ever against him, and he passeth: thou changest his countenance, and sendest him away. ²¹His sons come to honour, and he knoweth it not; and they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them. ²²But his flesh upon him shall have pain, and his soul within him shall mourn.

15 ¹Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said, ²Should a wise man utter vain knowledge, and fill his belly with the east wind? ³Should he reason with unprofitable talk? or with speeches wherewith he can do no good? ⁴Yea, thou castest off fear, and restrainest prayer before God. ⁵For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity, and thou choosest the tongue of the crafty. ⁶Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I: yea, thine own lips testify against thee. ⁷Art thou the first man that was born? or wast thou made before the hills? ⁸Hast thou heard the secret of God? and dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself? ⁹What knowest thou, that we know not? what understandest thou, which is not in us? ¹⁰With us are both the grayheaded and very aged men, much elder than thy father. ¹¹Are the consolations of God small with thee? is there any secret thing with thee? ¹²Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes wink at, ¹³That thou turnest thy spirit against God, and lettest such words go out of thy mouth? ¹⁴What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? ¹⁵Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight. ¹⁶How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water? ¹⁷I will shew thee, hear me; and that which I have seen I will declare; ¹⁸Which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid it: ¹⁹Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them. ²⁰The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, and the number of years is hidden to the oppressor. ²¹A dreadful sound is in his ears: in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him. ²²He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness, and he is waited for of the sword. ²³He wandereth abroad for bread, saying, Where is it? he knoweth that the day of darkness is ready at his hand. ²⁴Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid; they shall prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle. ²⁵For he stretcheth out his hand against God, and strengtheneth himself against the Almighty. ²⁶He runneth upon him, even on his neck, upon the thick bosses of his bucklers: ²⁷Because he covereth his face with his fatness, and maketh collops of fat on his flanks. ²⁸And he dwelleth in desolate cities, and in houses which no man inhabiteth, which are ready to become heaps. ²⁹He shall not be rich, neither shall his substance continue, neither shall he prolong the perfection thereof upon the earth. ³⁰He shall not depart out of darkness; the flame shall dry up his branches, and by the breath of his mouth shall he go away. ³¹Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity: for vanity shall be his recompence. ³²It shall be accomplished before his time, and his branch shall not be green. ³³He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine, and shall cast off his flower as the olive. ³⁴For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate, and fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery. ³⁵They conceive mischief, and bring forth vanity, and their belly prepareth deceit.

16 ¹Then Job answered and said, ²I have heard many such things: miserable comforters are ye all. ³Shall vain words have an end? or what emboldeneth thee that thou answerest? ⁴I also could speak as ye do: if your soul were in my soul's stead, I could heap up words against you, and shake mine head at you. ⁵But I would strengthen you with my mouth, and the moving of my lips should asswage your grief. ⁶Though I speak, my grief is not asswaged: and though I forbear, what am I eased? ⁷But now he hath made me weary: thou hast made desolate all my company. ⁸And thou hast filled me with wrinkles, which is a witness against me: and my leanness rising up in me beareth witness to my face. ⁹He teareth me in his wrath, who hateth me: he gnasheth upon me with his teeth; mine enemy sharpeneth his eyes upon me. ¹⁰They have gaped upon me with their mouth; they have smitten me upon the cheek reproachfully; they have gathered themselves together against me. ¹¹God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and turned me over into the hands of the wicked. ¹²I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: he hath also taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces, and set me up for his mark. ¹³His archers compass me round about, he cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare; he poureth out my gall upon the ground. ¹⁴He breaketh me with breach upon breach, he runneth upon me like a giant. ¹⁵I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and defiled my horn in the dust. ¹⁶My face is foul with weeping, and on my eyelids is the shadow of death; ¹⁷Not for any injustice in mine hands: also my prayer is pure. ¹⁸O earth, cover not thou my blood, and let my cry have no place. ¹⁹Also now, behold, my witness is in heaven, and my record is on high. ²⁰My friends scorn me: but mine eye poureth out tears unto God. ²¹O that one might plead for a man with God, as a man pleadeth for his neighbour! ²²When a few years are come, then I shall go the way whence I shall not return.