Job’s Former Blessings 1 UST Job kept speaking to his three friends. He said, BSB BSB: And Job continued his discourse:
2 UST “I wish that I could be as I was previously during the time when God was taking care of me. BSB BSB: “How I long for the months gone by, for the days when God watched over me,
3 UST During that time, it was if God was shining a light on me so that I could see where I was going even in the darkness. BSB BSB: when His lamp shone above my head, and by His light I walked through the darkness,
4 UST At that time I was young and strong. Because God was my friend, he protected where I lived. BSB BSB: when I was in my prime, when the friendship of God rested on my tent,
5 UST Shaddai was still present with me during that time when all my children were still alive and living near me. BSB BSB: when the Almighty was still with me and my children were around me,
6 UST My herds provided me with plenty of milk. My olive trees provided me with plenty of oil. BSB BSB: when my steps were bathed in cream and the rock poured out for me streams of oil!
7 UST I used to go to the place where the elders gathered at the city gate. The people had reserved a seat for me there, and I would sit in it. BSB BSB: When I went out to the city gate and took my seat in the public square,
8 UST When young men saw me, they stepped aside respectfully. When older men saw me, they stood up respectfully. BSB BSB: the young men saw me and withdrew, and the old men rose to their feet.
9 UST The leaders of the people used to stop talking when I arrived. They made sure they did not say anything{, because they knew it would not be as good as what I was going to say}. BSB BSB: The princes refrained from speaking and covered their mouths with their hands.
10 UST Even the most important leaders became quiet. It was as if they were not even able to speak. BSB BSB: The voices of the nobles were hushed, and their tongues stuck to the roofs of their mouths.
11 UST When people heard what I had to say, they said good things about me. They recognized that I had given wise counsel, and they approved of me BSB BSB: For those who heard me called me blessed, and those who saw me commended me,
12 UST { They approved of me} because I had helped those who were poor and who were calling for help.{ They also approved of me because} I aided orphans who had no fathers to help them. BSB BSB: because I rescued the poor who cried out and the fatherless who had no helper.
13 UST People who had been suffering and were about to die praised me{ for rescuing them}. I made widows very happy by helping them. BSB BSB: The dying man blessed me, and I made the widow’s heart sing for joy.
14 UST It was in my character to make sure that I and others did what was right. Yes, it was in my character to make sure that people treated one another in a way that was just. BSB BSB: I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; justice was my robe and my turban.
15 UST I helped people who could not see, as if I were seeing for them. I helped people who could not walk, as if I were walking for them. BSB BSB: I served as eyes to the blind and as feet to the lame.
16 UST I protected poor people the way a father protects his children. In the courts, I defended even people who were strangers to me. BSB BSB: I was a father to the needy, and I took up the case of the stranger.
17 UST I made wicked people stop oppressing others. It was as if I were breaking the jaws of a wild animal to make it drop its victim from its teeth. BSB BSB: I shattered the fangs of the unjust and snatched the prey from his teeth.
18 UST At that time I thought,‘I am certainly going to live a long life, and then I will die at home with my family. BSB BSB: So I thought: ‘I will die in my nest and multiply my days as the sand.
19 UST I am like a tree whose roots reach down into the water and whose branches become wet with dew each night. BSB BSB: My roots will spread out to the waters, and the dew will rest nightly on my branches.
20 UST People continually honor me, and I stay strong like a new bow.’ BSB BSB: My glory is ever new within me, and my bow is renewed in my hand.’
21 UST When I spoke, people waited to hear what I would say. They remained silent until I advised them what they should do. BSB BSB: Men listened to me with expectation, waiting silently for my counsel.
22 UST After I finished speaking, they did not say anything, because what I had said was so satisfying. BSB BSB: After my words, they spoke no more; my speech settled on them like dew.
23 UST They were as eager to hear me speak as farmers are for it to rain. They listened to me with great appreciation, just as the ground seems to welcome the rain that falls in the spring. BSB BSB: They waited for me as for rain and drank in my words like spring showers.
24 UST I helped people who felt discouraged. I remained cheerful even as I helped them deal with difficult situations. BSB BSB: If I smiled at them, they did not believe it; the light of my countenance was precious.
25 UST As their leader, I decided what things would be good for them to do. They respected me, just as soldiers respect the king who commands their army. I was kind and sympathetic, like someone who comforts people who are mourning. BSB BSB: I chose their course and presided as chief. So I dwelt as a king among his troops, as a comforter of the mourners.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.