<p class="poetry">Does he argue<n id="1" /> with useless<n id="2" /> talk,p> <p class="poetry">with words that have no value in them?p>

<p class="poetry">If God places no trust in his holy ones,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">if even the heavens<n id="2" /> are not pure in his eyes,p>

<p class="poetry">For he knows no satisfaction in his appetite;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">he does not let anything he desires<n id="2" /> escape.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">He preys on<n id="1" /> the barren and childless woman,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">and does not treat the widow well.p>

<p class="poetry">Proud beasts<n id="1" /> have not set foot on it,p> <p class="poetry">and no lion has passed along it.p>

<p class="poetry">The topaz of Cush<n id="1" /> cannot be compared with it;p> <p class="poetry">it cannot be purchased with pure gold.p>

<p class="poetry">If I smiled at them, they hardly believed it;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and they did not cause the light of my face to darken.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">Therefore no fear of me should terrify you,p> <p class="poetry">nor should my pressure<n id="1" /> be heavy on you.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">that<n id="1" /> Job speaks without knowledgep> <p class="poetry">and his words are without understanding.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">Surely it is an empty cry<n id="1" /> &#8211; God does not hear it;p> <p class="poetry">the Almighty does not take notice of it.p>

<p class="poetry">Or why<n id="1" /> was<n id="2" /> I not buried<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">like a stillborn infant,<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">like infants<n id="5" /> who have never seen the light?<n id="6" />p>

<p class="poetry">For evil does not come up from the dust,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">nor does trouble spring up from the ground,p>

<p class="poetry">Then I would yet have my comfort,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">then<n id="2" /> I would rejoice,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">in spite of pitiless pain,<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">for<n id="5" /> I have not concealed the words<n id="6" /> of the Holy One.<n id="7" />p>

<p class="poetry">Will you never<n id="1" /> look away from me,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">will you not let me alone<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">long enough to swallow my spittle?p>

<t /><p class="poetry">&#8220;Why are times not appointed by<n id="1" /> the Almighty?<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Why do those who know him not see his days?p>

<p class="poetry">if<n id="1" /> the members of my household<n id="2" /> have never said,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;If only there were<n id="4" /> someonep> <p class="poetry">who has not been satisfied from Job&#8217;s<n id="5" /> meat!&#8217; &#8211;p>

<p class="poetry">And I have waited.<n id="1" /> But because they do not speak,p> <p class="poetry">because they stand there and answer no more,p>

<p class="poetry">Indeed, in truth, God does not act wickedly,p> <p class="poetry">and the Almighty does not pervert justice.p>

<p class="poetry">As for the Almighty,<n id="1" /> we cannot attain to him!p> <p class="poetry">He is great in power,p> <p class="poetry">but justice<n id="2" /> and abundant righteousness he does not oppress.p>

<p class="poetry">to cause it to rain on an uninhabited land,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">a desert where there are no human beings,<n id="2" />p>