“But if I speak, my pain is not relieved, and if I refrain from speaking – how much of it goes away?

There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job. And that man was pure and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.

Is it of any special benefit to the Almighty that you should be righteous, or is it any gain to him that you make your ways blameless?

He leans against his house but it does not hold up, he takes hold of it but it does not stand.

If I have sinned – what have I done to you, O watcher of men? Why have you set me as your target? Have I become a burden to you?

He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return there. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. May the name of the Lord be blessed!”

In the north when he is at work, I do not see him; when he turns to the south, I see no trace of him.

and if God is gracious to him and says, ‘Spare him from going down to the place of corruption, I have found a ransom for him,’

So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite spoke up: “I am young, but you are elderly; that is why I was fearful, and afraid to explain to you what I know.

She is harsh with her young, as if they were not hers; she is unconcerned about the uselessness of her labor.

Have you not made a hedge around him and his household and all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his livestock have increased in the land.

and suddenly a great wind swept across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people, and they died! And I – only I alone – escaped to tell you!”

So the Lord said to Satan, “All right then, everything he has is in your power. Only do not extend your hand against the man himself!” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

So they came to him, all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and they dined with him in his house. They comforted him and consoled him for all the trouble the Lord had brought on him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.

But he replied, “You’re talking like one of the godless women would do! Should we receive what is good from God, and not also receive what is evil?” In all this Job did not sin by what he said.

Now his sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one in turn, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

But when they gazed intently from a distance but did not recognize him, they began to weep loudly. Each of them tore his robes, and they threw dust into the air over their heads.

While this one was still speaking, another messenger arrived and said, “The fire of God has fallen from heaven and has burned up the sheep and the servants – it has consumed them! And I – only I alone – escaped to tell you!”

When Job’s three friends heard about all this calamity that had happened to him, each of them came from his own country – Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They met together to come to show sympathy for him and to console him.

Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind: