GodsWord - Job - 9

9:1  Then Job replied to his friends,

9:2  "Yes, I know that this is true. But how can a mortal be declared righteous to God?

9:3  If he wished to debate with God, he wouldn't be able to answer one question in a thousand.

9:4  "God is wise in heart and mighty in power. Who could oppose him and win?

9:5  He moves mountains without their knowing it, and he topples them in his anger.

9:6  He shakes the earth from its place, and its pillars tremble.

9:7  He commands the sun not to rise. He doesn't let the stars come out.

9:8  He stretches out the heavens by himself and walks on the waves of the sea.

9:9  He made the constellations Ursa Major, Orion, and the Pleiades, and the clusters of stars in the south.

9:10  He does great things that are unsearchable and miracles that cannot be numbered.

9:11  He passes alongside of me, and I don't even see him. He goes past me, and I don't even notice him.

9:12  He takes something away, but who can stop him? Who is going to ask him, 'What are you doing?'

9:13  God does not hold back his anger. Even Rahab's helpers bow humbly in front of him.

9:14  "How can I possibly answer God? How can I find the right words to speak with him?

9:15  Even if I were right, I could not answer him. I would have to plead for mercy from my judge.

9:16  If I cried out and he answered me, I do not believe that he would listen to me.

9:17  He would knock me down with a storm and bruise me without a reason.

9:18  He would not let me catch my breath. He fills me with bitterness.

9:19  If it is a matter of strength, then he is the mighty one. If it is about justice, who will charge me with a crime?

9:20  If I am righteous, my own mouth would condemn me. It would declare that I am corrupt even if I am a man of integrity.

9:21  If I am a man of integrity, I have no way of knowing it. I hate my life!

9:22  It is all the same. That is why I say, 'He destroys both the man of integrity and the wicked.'

9:23  When a sudden disaster brings death, he makes fun of the despair of innocent people.

9:24  The earth is handed over to the wicked. He covers the faces of its judges. If he isn't the one doing this, who is?

9:25  "My days go by more quickly than a runner. They sprint away. They don't see anything good.

9:26  They pass by quickly like boats made from reeds, like an eagle swooping down on its prey.

9:27  Even if I say, 'I will forget my complaining; I will change my expression and smile,'

9:28  I still dread everything I must suffer. I know that you won't declare me innocent.

9:29  I've already been found guilty. Why should I work so hard for nothing?

9:30  If I wash myself with lye soap and cleanse my hands with bleach,

9:31  then you would plunge me into a muddy pit, and my own clothes would find me disgusting.

9:32  A human like me cannot answer God, 'Let's take our case to court.'

9:33  There is no mediator between us to put his hand on both of us.

9:34  God should take his rod away from me, and he should not terrify me.

9:35  Then I would speak and not be afraid of him. But I know that I am not like that.