Woe to Oppressors

¹Woe to those who devise iniquityand plot evil on their beds!At morning’s light they accomplish itbecause the power is in their hands.

²They covet fields and seize them;they take away houses.They deprive a man of his home,a fellow man of his inheritance.

³Therefore this is what the LORD says:“I am planning against this nation a disasterfrom which you cannot free your necks.Then you will not walk so proudly,for it will be a time of calamity.

⁴In that day they will take up a proverb against youand taunt you with this bitter lamentation:‘We are utterly ruined!He has changed the portion of my people.How He has removed it from me!He has allotted our fields to traitors.’”

⁵Therefore, you will have no one in the assembly of the LORDto divide the land by lot.

Reproof of False Prophets

⁶“Do not preach,” they preach.“Do not preach these things;disgrace will not overtake us.”

⁷Should it be said, O house of Jacob,“Is the Spirit of the LORD impatient?Are these the things He does?”Do not My words bring goodto him who walks uprightly?

⁸But of late My people have risen uplike an enemy:You strip off the splendid robefrom unsuspecting passersbylike men returning from battle.

⁹You drive the women of My peoplefrom their pleasant homes.You take away My blessingfrom their children forever.

¹⁰Arise and depart,for this is not your place of rest,because its defilement brings destruction—a grievous destruction!

¹¹If a man of wind were to comeand say falsely,“I will preach to you of wine and strong drink,”he would be just the preacher for this people!

The Remnant of Israel

¹²I will surely gather all of you, O Jacob;I will collect the remnant of Israel.I will bring them together like sheep in a pen,like a flock in the midst of its pasture—a noisy throng.

¹³One who breaks open the waywill go up before them;they will break through the gate,and go out by it.Their King will pass through before them,the LORD as their leader.

A Ruler from Bethlehem

¹Now, O daughter of troops,mobilize your troops;for a siege is laid against us!With a rod they will strike the cheekof the judge of Israel.

²But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,who are small among the clansof Judah,out of you will come forth for MeOne to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old,from the days of eternity.

³Therefore Israel will be abandoneduntil she who is in labor has given birth;then the rest of His brothers will returnto the children of Israel.

⁴He will stand and shepherd His flockin the strength of the LORD,in the majestic name of the LORD His God.And they will dwell securely,for then His greatness will extendto the ends of the earth.

⁵And He will be our peacewhen Assyria invades our landand tramples our citadels.We will raise against it seven shepherds,even eight leaders of men.

⁶And they will rule the land of Assyria with the sword,and the land of Nimrod with the blade drawn.So He will deliver uswhen Assyria invades our landand marches into our borders.

The Remnant of Jacob

⁷Then the remnant of Jacob will bein the midst of many peopleslike dew from the LORD,like showers on the grass,which do not wait for manor linger for mankind.

⁸Then the remnant of Jacob will be among the nations,in the midst of many peoples,like a lion among the beasts of the forest,like a young lion among flocks of sheep,which tramples and tears as it passes through,with no one to rescue them.

⁹Your hand will be lifted over your foes,and all your enemies will be cut off.

¹⁰“In that day,”declares the LORD,“I will remove your horses from among youand wreck your chariots.

¹¹I will remove the cities of your landand tear down all your strongholds.

¹²I will cut the sorceries from your hand,and you will have no fortune-tellers.

¹³I will also cut off the carved imagesand sacred pillars from among you,so that you will no longer bow downto the work of your own hands.

¹⁴I will root out the Asherah poles from your midstand demolish your cities.

¹⁵I will take vengeance in anger and wrathupon the nations that have not obeyed Me.”

Eliphaz: Job Does Not Fear God

¹Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

²“Does a wise man answer with empty counselor fill his belly with the hot east wind?

³Should he argue with useless wordsor speeches that serve no purpose?

⁴But you even undermine the fear of Godand hinder meditation before Him.

⁵For your iniquity instructs your mouth,and you choose the language of the crafty.

⁶Your own mouth, not mine, condemns you;your own lips testify against you.

⁷Were you the first man ever born?Were you brought forth before the hills?

⁸Do you listen in on the council of Godor limit wisdom to yourself?

⁹What do you know that we do not?What do you understand that is not clear to us?

¹⁰Both the gray-haired and the aged are on our side—men much older than your father.

¹¹Are the consolations of God not enough for you,even words spoken gently to you?

¹²Why has your heart carried you away,and why do your eyes flash,

¹³so that you turn your spirit against Godand pour such words from your mouth?

¹⁴What is man, that he should be pure,or one born of woman, that he should be righteous?

¹⁵If God puts no trust in His holy ones,if even the heavens are not pure in His eyes,

¹⁶how much less man, who is vile and corrupt,who drinks injustice like water?

¹⁷Listen to me and I will inform you.I will describe what I have seen,

¹⁸what was declared by wise menand was not concealed from their fathers,

¹⁹to whom alone the land was givenwhen no foreigner passed among them.

²⁰A wicked man writhes in pain all his days;only a few years are reserved for the ruthless.

²¹Sounds of terror fill his ears;in his prosperity the destroyer attacks him.

²²He despairs of his return from darkness;he is marked for the sword.

²³He wanders about as food for vultures;he knows the day of darkness is at hand.

²⁴Distress and anguish terrify him,overwhelming him like a king poised to attack.

²⁵For he has stretched out his hand against Godand has vaunted himself against the Almighty,

²⁶rushing headlong at Himwith a thick, studded shield.

²⁷Though his face is covered with fatand his waistline bulges with flesh,

²⁸he will dwell in ruined cities,in abandoned houses destined to become rubble.

²⁹He will no longer be rich; his wealth will not endure.His possessions will not overspread the land.

³⁰He will not escape from the darkness;the flame will wither his shoots,and the breath of God’s mouthwill carry him away.

³¹Let him not deceive himself with trust in emptiness,for emptiness will be his reward.

³²It will be paid in full before his time,and his branch will not flourish.

³³He will be like a vine stripped of its unripe grapes,like an olive tree that sheds its blossoms.

³⁴For the company of the godless will be barren,and fire will consume the tents of bribery.

³⁵They conceive trouble and give birth to evil;their womb is pregnant with deceit.”

After the Battle

¹O LORD, the king rejoices in Your strength.How greatly he exults in Your salvation!

²You have granted his heart’s desireand have not withheld the request of his lips.Selah

³For You welcomed him with rich blessings;You placed on his head a crown of pure gold.

⁴He asked You for life, and You granted it—length of days, forever and ever.

⁵Great is his glory in Your salvation;You bestow on him splendor and majesty.

⁶For You grant him blessings forever;You cheer him with joy in Your presence.

⁷For the king trusts in the LORD;through the loving devotion of the Most High,he will not be shaken.

⁸Your hand will apprehend all Your enemies;Your right hand will seize those who hate You.

⁹You will place them in a fiery furnaceat the time of Your appearing.In His wrath the LORD will engulf them,and the fire will consume them.

¹⁰You will wipe their descendants from the earth,and their offspring from the sons of men.

¹¹Though they intend You harm,the schemes they devise will not prevail.

¹²For You will put them to flightwhen Your bow is trained upon them.

¹³Be exalted, O LORD, in Your strength;we will sing and praise Your power.