1 Job said:

2 * What you say is true.

No human is innocent

in the sight of God.

3 Not once in a thousand times

could we win our case

if we took him to court.

4 God is wise and powerful—

who could possibly

oppose him and win?

5 When God becomes angry,

he can move mountains

before they even know it.

6 God can shake the earth loose

from its foundations

7 * or command the sun and stars

to hold back their light.

8 God alone stretched out the sky,

stepped on the sea,*

9 * and set the stars in place—

the Big Dipper and Orion,

the Pleiades and the stars

in the southern sky.

10 Of all the miracles God works,

we cannot understand a one.

11 God walks right past me,

without making a sound.

12 And if he grabs something,

who can stop him

or raise a question?

13 When God showed his anger,

the servants of the sea monster*

fell at his feet.

14 How, then, could I possibly

argue my case with God?

15 Even though I am innocent,

I can only beg for mercy.

16 And if God came into court

when I called him,

he would not hear my case.

17 He would strike me with a storm*

and increase my injuries

for no reason at all.

18 Before I could get my breath,

my miseries would multiply.

19 God is much stronger than I am,

and who would call me into court

to give me justice?

20 Even if I were innocent,

God would prove me wrong.*

21 I am not guilty,

but I no longer care

what happens to me.

22 What difference does it make?

God destroys the innocent

along with the guilty.

23 When a good person dies

a sudden death,

God sits back and laughs.

24 And who else but God

blindfolds the judges,

then lets the wicked

take over the earth?

25 My life is speeding by,

without a hope of happiness.

26 Each day passes swifter

than a sailing ship

or an eagle swooping down.

27 Sometimes I try to be cheerful

and to stop complaining,

28 but my sufferings frighten me,

because I know that God

still considers me guilty.

29 So what's the use of trying

to prove my innocence?

30 Even if I washed myself

with the strongest soap,

31 God would throw me into a pit

of stinking slime, leaving me

disgusting to my clothes.

32 God isn't a mere human like me.

I can't put him on trial.

33 Who could possibly judge

between the two of us?

34 Can someone snatch away

the stick God carries

to frighten me?

35 Then I could speak up

without fear of him,

but for now, I cannot speak.*