New English Translation

Job 15:1-13

1 1Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:

2“Does a wise man answer with blustery knowledge, or fill his belly with the east wind?

3Does he argue with useless talk, with words that have no value in them?

4But you even break off piety, and hinder meditation before God.

5Your sin inspires your mouth; you choose the language of the crafty.

6Your own mouth condemns you, not I; your own lips testify against you.

7“Were you the first man ever born? Were you brought forth before the hills?

8Do you listen in on God’s secret council? Do you limit wisdom to yourself?

9What do you know that we don’t know? What do you understand that we don’t understand?

10The gray-haired and the aged are on our side, men far older than your father.

11Are God’s consolations too trivial for you; or a word spoken in gentleness to you?

12Why has your heart carried you away, and why do your eyes flash,

13when you turn your rage against God and allow such words to escape from your mouth?

Notes

1. Job 15:1 In the first round of speeches, Eliphaz had emphasized the moral perfection of God, Bildad his unwavering justice, and Zophar his omniscience. Since this did not bring the expected response from Job, the friends see him as a menace to true religion, and so they intensify their approach. Eliphaz, as dignified as ever, rebukes Job for his arrogance and warns about the judgment the wicked bring on themselves. The speech of Eliphaz falls into three parts: the rebuke of Job for his irreverence (2-6); the analysis of Job’s presumption about wisdom (7-16), and his warning about the fate of the wicked (17-35). ↩