The Book of Job
22: 1Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said,
22:2Can a man be profitable unto God?
Surely he that is wise is profitable unto himself.
22:3Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous?
Or is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect?
22:4Is it for thy fear of him that he reproveth thee,
That he entereth with thee into judgment?
22:5Is not thy wickedness great?
Neither is there any end to thine iniquities.
22:6For thou hast taken pledges of thy brother for nought,
And stripped the naked of their clothing.
22:7Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink,
And thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.
22:8But as for the mighty man, he had the earth;
And the honorable man, he dwelt in it.
22:9Thou hast sent widows away empty,
And the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
22:10Therefore snares are round about thee,
And sudden fear troubleth thee,
22:11Or darkness, so that thou canst not see,
And abundance of waters cover thee.
22:12Is not God in the height of heaven?
And behold the height of the stars, how high they are!
22:13And thou sayest, What doth God know?
Can he judge through the thick darkness?
22:14Thick clouds are a covering to him, so that he seeth not;
And he walketh on the vault of heaven.
22:15Wilt thou keep the old way
Which wicked men have trodden?
22:16Who were snatched away before their time,
Whose foundation was poured out as a stream,
22:17Who said unto God, Depart from us;
And, What can the Almighty do for us?
22:18Yet he filled their houses with good things:
But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
22:19The righteous see it, and are glad;
And the innocent laugh them to scorn,
22:20Saying, Surely they that did rise up against us are cut off,
And the remnant of them the fire hath consumed.
22:21Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace:
Thereby good shall come unto thee.
22:22Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth,
And lay up his words in thy heart.
22:23If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up,
If thou put away unrighteousness far from thy tents.
22:24And lay thou thy treasure in the dust,
And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks;
22:25And the Almighty will be thy treasure,
And precious silver unto thee.
22:26For then shalt thou delight thyself in the Almighty,
And shalt lift up thy face unto God.
22:27Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he will hear thee;
And thou shalt pay thy vows.
22:28Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee;
And light shall shine upon thy ways.
22:29When they cast thee down, thou shalt say, There is lifting up;
And the humble person he will save.
22:30He will deliver even him that is not innocent:
Yea, he shall be delivered through the cleanness of thy hands.