JOB 25

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Bildad Speaks: Man Cannot Be Righteous  25:1 Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:
2

“Dominion and fear are with God;

he makes peace in his high heaven. 3

Is there any number to his armies?

Upon whom does his light not arise? 4

How then can man be in the right before God?

How can he who is born of woman be pure? 5

Behold, even the moon is not bright,

and the stars are not pure in his eyes; 6

how much less man, who is a maggot,

and the son of man, who is a worm!”

JOB 26

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Job Replies: God’s Majesty Is Unsearchable  26:1 Then Job answered and said:
2

“How you have helped him who has no power!

How you have saved the arm that has no strength! 3

How you have counseled him who has no wisdom,

and plentifully declared sound knowledge! 4

With whose help have you uttered words,

and whose breath has come out from you? 5

The dead tremble

under the waters and their inhabitants. 6

Sheol is naked before God,

and Abaddon has no covering. 7

He stretches out the north over the void

and hangs the earth on nothing. 8

He binds up the waters in his thick clouds,

and the cloud is not split open under them. 9

He covers the face of the full moon

and spreads over it his cloud. 10

He has inscribed a circle on the face of the waters

at the boundary between light and darkness. 11

The pillars of heaven tremble

and are astounded at his rebuke. 12

By his power he stilled the sea;

by his understanding he shattered Rahab. 13

By his wind the heavens were made fair;

his hand pierced the fleeing serpent. 14

Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways,

and how small a whisper do we hear of him!

But the thunder of his power who can understand?”

PROVERBS 14

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14:1

The wisest of women builds her house,

but folly with her own hands tears it down. 2

Whoever walks in uprightness fears the Lord,

but he who is devious in his ways despises him. 3

By the mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back,

but the lips of the wise will preserve them. 4

Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean,

but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. 5

A faithful witness does not lie,

but a false witness breathes out lies. 6

A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,

but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding. 7

Leave the presence of a fool,

for there you do not meet words of knowledge. 8

The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way,

but the folly of fools is deceiving. 9

Fools mock at the guilt offering,

but the upright enjoy acceptance. 10

The heart knows its own bitterness,

and no stranger shares its joy. 11

The house of the wicked will be destroyed,

but the tent of the upright will flourish. 12

There is a way that seems right to a man,

but its end is the way to death. 13

Even in laughter the heart may ache,

and the end of joy may be grief. 14

The backslider in heart will be filled with the fruit of his ways,

and a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways. 15

The simple believes everything,

but the prudent gives thought to his steps. 16

One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil,

but a fool is reckless and careless. 17

A man of quick temper acts foolishly,

and a man of evil devices is hated. 18

The simple inherit folly,

but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. 19

The evil bow down before the good,

the wicked at the gates of the righteous. 20

The poor is disliked even by his neighbor,

but the rich has many friends. 21

Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner,

but blessed is he who is generous to the poor. 22

Do they not go astray who devise evil?

Those who devise good meet steadfast love and faithfulness. 23

In all toil there is profit,

but mere talk tends only to poverty. 24

The crown of the wise is their wealth,

but the folly of fools brings folly. 25

A truthful witness saves lives,

but one who breathes out lies is deceitful. 26

In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,

and his children will have a refuge. 27

The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,

that one may turn away from the snares of death. 28

In a multitude of people is the glory of a king,

but without people a prince is ruined. 29

Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding,

but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. 30

A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh,

but envy makes the bones rot. 31

Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker,

but he who is generous to the needy honors him. 32

The wicked is overthrown through his evildoing,

but the righteous finds refuge in his death. 33

Wisdom rests in the heart of a man of understanding,

but it makes itself known even in the midst of fools. 34

Righteousness exalts a nation,

but sin is a reproach to any people. 35

A servant who deals wisely has the king’s favor,

but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.

PSALM 94

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The Lord Will Not Forsake His People94:1

O Lord, God of vengeance,

O God of vengeance, shine forth! 2

Rise up, O judge of the earth;

repay to the proud what they deserve! 3

O Lord, how long shall the wicked,

how long shall the wicked exult? 4

They pour out their arrogant words;

all the evildoers boast. 5

They crush your people, O Lord,

and afflict your heritage. 6

They kill the widow and the sojourner,

and murder the fatherless; 7

and they say, “The Lord does not see;

the God of Jacob does not perceive.”
8

Understand, O dullest of the people!

Fools, when will you be wise? 9

He who planted the ear, does he not hear?

He who formed the eye, does he not see? 10

He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke?

He who teaches man knowledge— 11

the Lord—knows the thoughts of man,

that they are but a breath.
12

Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O Lord,

and whom you teach out of your law, 13

to give him rest from days of trouble,

until a pit is dug for the wicked. 14

For the Lord will not forsake his people;

he will not abandon his heritage; 15

for justice will return to the righteous,

and all the upright in heart will follow it.
16

Who rises up for me against the wicked?

Who stands up for me against evildoers? 17

If the Lord had not been my help,

my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence. 18

When I thought, “My foot slips,”

your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. 19

When the cares of my heart are many,

your consolations cheer my soul. 20

Can wicked rulers be allied with you,

those who frame injustice by statute? 21

They band together against the life of the righteous

and condemn the innocent to death. 22

But the Lord has become my stronghold,

and my God the rock of my refuge. 23

He will bring back on them their iniquity

and wipe them out for their wickedness;

the Lord our God will wipe them out.