1 Then Job answered and said:
2 “Oh that my vexation were weighed,and all my calamity laid in the balances!
3 For then it would be heavier than the sand of the sea;therefore my words have been rash.
4 For the arrows of the Almighty are in me;my spirit drinks their poison;the terrors of God are arrayed against me.
5 Does the wild donkey bray when he has grass,or the ox low over his fodder?
6 Can that which is tasteless be eaten without salt,or is there any taste in the juice of the mallow?
7 My appetite refuses to touch them;they are as food that is loathsome to me.
8 “Oh that I might have my request,and that God would fulfill my hope,
9 that it would please God to crush me,that he would let loose his hand and cut me off!
10 This would be my comfort;I would even exult in pain unsparing,for I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
11 What is my strength, that I should wait?And what is my end, that I should be patient?
12 Is my strength the strength of stones, or is my flesh bronze?
13 Have I any help in me,when resource is driven from me?
14 “He who withholds kindness from a friendforsakes the fear of the Almighty.
15 My brothers are treacherous as a torrent-bed,as torrential streams that pass away,
16 which are dark with ice,and where the snow hides itself.
17 When they melt, they disappear;when it is hot, they vanish from their place.
18 The caravans turn aside from their course;they go up into the waste and perish.
19 The caravans of Tema look,the travelers of Sheba hope.
20 They are ashamed because they were confident;they come there and are disappointed.
21 For you have now become nothing;you see my calamity and are afraid.
22 Have I said, ‘Make me a gift’?Or, ‘From your wealth offer a bribe for me’?
23 Or, ‘Deliver me from the adversary’s hand’?Or, ‘Redeem me from the hand of the ruthless’?
24 “Teach me, and I will be silent;make me understand how I have gone astray.
25 How forceful are upright words!But what does reproof from you reprove?
26 Do you think that you can reprove words,when the speech of a despairing man is wind?
27 You would even cast lots over the fatherless,and bargain over your friend.
28 “But now, be pleased to look at me,for I will not lie to your face.
29 Please turn; let no injustice be done.Turn now; my vindication is at stake.
30 Is there any injustice on my tongue?Cannot my palate discern the cause of calamity?