JOB 36

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Elihu Extols God’s Greatness  36:1 And Elihu continued, and said:
2

“Bear with me a little, and I will show you,

for I have yet something to say on God’s behalf. 3

I will get my knowledge from afar

and ascribe righteousness to my Maker. 4

For truly my words are not false;

one who is perfect in knowledge is with you.
5

“Behold, God is mighty, and does not despise any;

he is mighty in strength of understanding. 6

He does not keep the wicked alive,

but gives the afflicted their right. 7

He does not withdraw his eyes from the righteous,

but with kings on the throne

he sets them forever, and they are exalted. 8

And if they are bound in chains

and caught in the cords of affliction, 9

then he declares to them their work

and their transgressions, that they are behaving arrogantly. 10

He opens their ears to instruction

and commands that they return from iniquity. 11

If they listen and serve him,

they complete their days in prosperity,

and their years in pleasantness. 12

But if they do not listen, they perish by the sword

and die without knowledge.
13

“The godless in heart cherish anger;

they do not cry for help when he binds them. 14

They die in youth,

and their life ends among the cult prostitutes. 15

He delivers the afflicted by their affliction

and opens their ear by adversity. 16

He also allured you out of distress

into a broad place where there was no cramping,

and what was set on your table was full of fatness.
17

“But you are full of the judgment on the wicked;

judgment and justice seize you. 18

Beware lest wrath entice you into scoffing,

and let not the greatness of the ransom turn you aside. 19

Will your cry for help avail to keep you from distress,

or all the force of your strength? 20

Do not long for the night,

when peoples vanish in their place. 21

Take care; do not turn to iniquity,

for this you have chosen rather than affliction. 22

Behold, God is exalted in his power;

who is a teacher like him? 23

Who has prescribed for him his way,

or who can say, ‘You have done wrong’?
24

“Remember to extol his work,

of which men have sung. 25

All mankind has looked on it;

man beholds it from afar. 26

Behold, God is great, and we know him not;

the number of his years is unsearchable. 27

For he draws up the drops of water;

they distill his mist in rain, 28

which the skies pour down

and drop on mankind abundantly. 29

Can anyone understand the spreading of the clouds,

the thunderings of his pavilion? 30

Behold, he scatters his lightning about him

and covers the roots of the sea. 31

For by these he judges peoples;

he gives food in abundance. 32

He covers his hands with the lightning

and commands it to strike the mark. 33

Its crashing declares his presence;

the cattle also declare that he rises.

PSALM 44

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Come to Our HelpTo the choirmaster. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah.
44:1

O God, we have heard with our ears,

our fathers have told us,

what deeds you performed in their days,

in the days of old: 2

you with your own hand drove out the nations,

but them you planted;

you afflicted the peoples,

but them you set free; 3

for not by their own sword did they win the land,

nor did their own arm save them,

but your right hand and your arm,

and the light of your face,

for you delighted in them.
4

You are my King, O God;

ordain salvation for Jacob! 5

Through you we push down our foes;

through your name we tread down those who rise up against us. 6

For not in my bow do I trust,

nor can my sword save me. 7

But you have saved us from our foes

and have put to shame those who hate us. 8

In God we have boasted continually,

and we will give thanks to your name forever. Selah
9

But you have rejected us and disgraced us

and have not gone out with our armies. 10

You have made us turn back from the foe,

and those who hate us have gotten spoil. 11

You have made us like sheep for slaughter

and have scattered us among the nations. 12

You have sold your people for a trifle,

demanding no high price for them. 13

You have made us the taunt of our neighbors,

the derision and scorn of those around us. 14

You have made us a byword among the nations,

a laughingstock among the peoples. 15

All day long my disgrace is before me,

and shame has covered my face 16

at the sound of the taunter and reviler,

at the sight of the enemy and the avenger.
17

All this has come upon us,

though we have not forgotten you,

and we have not been false to your covenant. 18

Our heart has not turned back,

nor have our steps departed from your way; 19

yet you have broken us in the place of jackals

and covered us with the shadow of death. 20

If we had forgotten the name of our God

or spread out our hands to a foreign god, 21

would not God discover this?

For he knows the secrets of the heart. 22

Yet for your sake we are killed all the day long;

we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.
23

Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord?

Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever! 24

Why do you hide your face?

Why do you forget our affliction and oppression? 25

For our soul is bowed down to the dust;

our belly clings to the ground. 26

Rise up; come to our help!

Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love!

PSALM 45

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Your Throne, O God, Is ForeverTo the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah; a love song.
45:1

My heart overflows with a pleasing theme;

I address my verses to the king;

my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.
2

You are the most handsome of the sons of men;

grace is poured upon your lips;

therefore God has blessed you forever. 3

Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one,

in your splendor and majesty!
4

In your majesty ride out victoriously

for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness;

let your right hand teach you awesome deeds! 5

Your arrows are sharp

in the heart of the king’s enemies;

the peoples fall under you.
6

Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.

The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness; 7

you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.

Therefore God, your God, has anointed you

with the oil of gladness beyond your companions; 8

your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia.

From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad; 9

daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor;

at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
10

Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear:

forget your people and your father’s house, 11

and the king will desire your beauty.

Since he is your lord, bow to him. 12

The people of Tyre will seek your favor with gifts,

the richest of the people.
13

All glorious is the princess in her chamber, with robes interwoven with gold. 14

In many-colored robes she is led to the king,

with her virgin companions following behind her. 15

With joy and gladness they are led along

as they enter the palace of the king.
16

In place of your fathers shall be your sons;

you will make them princes in all the earth. 17

I will cause your name to be remembered in all generations;

therefore nations will praise you forever and ever.

PROVERBS 16

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16:1

The plans of the heart belong to man,

but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. 2

All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes,

but the Lord weighs the spirit. 3

Commit your work to the Lord,

and your plans will be established. 4

The Lord has made everything for its purpose,

even the wicked for the day of trouble. 5

Everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the Lord;

be assured, he will not go unpunished. 6

By steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for,

and by the fear of the Lord one turns away from evil. 7

When a man’s ways please the Lord,

he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. 8

Better is a little with righteousness

than great revenues with injustice. 9

The heart of man plans his way,

but the Lord establishes his steps. 10

An oracle is on the lips of a king;

his mouth does not sin in judgment. 11

A just balance and scales are the Lord’s;

all the weights in the bag are his work. 12

It is an abomination to kings to do evil,

for the throne is established by righteousness. 13

Righteous lips are the delight of a king,

and he loves him who speaks what is right. 14

A king’s wrath is a messenger of death,

and a wise man will appease it. 15

In the light of a king’s face there is life,

and his favor is like the clouds that bring the spring rain. 16

How much better to get wisdom than gold!

To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver. 17

The highway of the upright turns aside from evil;

whoever guards his way preserves his life. 18

Pride goes before destruction,

and a haughty spirit before a fall. 19

It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor

than to divide the spoil with the proud. 20

Whoever gives thought to the word will discover good,

and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord. 21

The wise of heart is called discerning,

and sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness. 22

Good sense is a fountain of life to him who has it,

but the instruction of fools is folly. 23

The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious

and adds persuasiveness to his lips. 24

Gracious words are like a honeycomb,

sweetness to the soul and health to the body. 25

There is a way that seems right to a man,

but its end is the way to death. 26

A worker’s appetite works for him;

his mouth urges him on. 27

A worthless man plots evil,

and his speech is like a scorching fire. 28

A dishonest man spreads strife,

and a whisperer separates close friends. 29

A man of violence entices his neighbor

and leads him in a way that is not good. 30

Whoever winks his eyes plans dishonest things;

he who purses his lips brings evil to pass. 31

Gray hair is a crown of glory;

it is gained in a righteous life. 32

Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty,

and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. 33

The lot is cast into the lap,

but its every decision is from the Lord.