The Daily Audio Bible
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Job continues to speak[a]
31 ‘I have made a promise with myself
about how I look at young women.
I will never think that I want to have sex with them.
2 Anyone who does that should expect God to punish them.
Almighty God in heaven above punishes people who do wrong things.
3 He sends trouble to people who do wicked things.
He punishes those people who do evil things.
4 God sees all the things that I do.
He carefully watches how I live my life.
5 He must know that I am an honest man.
I have never tried to deceive people.
6 So he should judge me in a fair way.
He should realize that I am not guilty.
7 God seems to think that I have not lived in the right way.
He may think that I have wanted bad things
when they looked nice to me.
Or perhaps I have done something else that was wrong.
8 If am really guilty of these things,
someone else should eat the crops that I have planted.
They should destroy all the crops in my fields.
9 I have not wanted to love any woman
except my wife.
I have not hidden outside my friend's house
to wait for his wife to be alone.
10 If I had done those things,
my wife should prepare food for another man.
It would be right for other men to have sex with her.
11 I would not have been faithful to my wife.
I would have done a wicked thing
and I would deserve punishment.
12 If I loved another woman,
it would be like a dangerous fire.
It would destroy everything that I have worked hard to get.
13 When my servants complain against me,
I have always been fair to them.
14 If I had been cruel to them,
God would be right to punish me.
When God judges me,
I would have no answer to excuse myself.
15 God made me and he made my servants too.
God brought us all to birth.
16 I have never refused to help people who are poor.
I have always helped widows
to hope for good things.
17 I have never kept all my food for myself.
I have always shared it with children who have no family.
18 Since I was a young man,
I have helped those children like a father.
All my life I have helped widows too.
19 I have seen people without enough clothes to keep them warm,
or without a coat to wear.
20 Then I would give them clothes.
The wool from my sheep would keep them warm.
And they all thanked me.
21 I have not turned against children who have no family,
even when the city judges agreed with me.
22 God should punish me if these things are not true.
I would accept the punishment that I deserve.
23 I was afraid of the trouble that God might bring to me.
So I could not do these bad things,
because God is so great and powerful.
24 I have not trusted in money or in gold.
I have never thought that they would make me strong.
25 When I was very rich,
I was not proud about it.
I did not think that I had worked hard to deserve it.
26 I have looked at the sun when it shines brightly.
And I have seen the moon when it is very beautiful.
27 But I have never wanted to worship them
or to give them honour.
28 If I had done that,
I would not have been faithful to God in heaven.
I would have deserved punishment for that sin.
29 I do not laugh at my enemies
when they suffer.
If my enemy has troubles,
it does not make me happy.
30 I have not cursed my enemies,
to ask God to kill them.
That would have caused a sin to come from my mouth!
31 None of the people who work in my house have ever said,
“Job has not welcomed strangers into his house.
He has not shared his food with them.”
32 Travellers may come to sleep in my house.
They do not have to sleep outside in the street.
33 I do not try to hide my sins,
as some people do.
34 I am not afraid of what people think about me.
Even if a great crowd of people speak against me,
I do not stay inside my house and keep quiet.
35 I want someone to listen to me!
All the things that I say are true.
Almighty God should give me an answer!
I need to know what I have done that is wrong.
He should write down the reason why I am guilty!
36 Then I would show that paper clearly on my shoulders.
I would be proud to wear it like a crown on my head.
37 I would explain to God everything that I have done.
I would stand in front of him without fear, like a ruler.
38 I have not grown crops on land that does not belong to me.
The land itself would accuse me if that were true.
39 I have always paid for the food
that other people have worked to grow.
I have never cheated the farmers
so that they suffered.
40 If I have ever done any of those things,
then may thorn bushes grow in my fields instead of wheat.
May weeds grow in my fields instead of barley.’
That is the end of the things that Job said.
Elihu now speaks to Job[b]
32 Job would not agree that he had done anything that was wrong. So his three friends refused to argue with him any more. 2 Another man was also there. His name was Elihu, Barakel's son. Barakel was a descendant of Buz. He belonged to Ram's clan.
Elihu became very angry with Job. He was angry because Job continued to say that he was not guilty. Job said that God was wrong to punish him. 3 Elihu was also angry with Job's three friends. They had not been able to find an answer to Job's problem. But they still said that Job was guilty. 4 Elihu had waited for Job's three friends to speak before he spoke to Job himself. He waited because he was younger than them. 5 But he became angry when Job's three friends had nothing more to say. So he finally decided to speak.
6 Barakel's son, Elihu, said this:
‘I am young and you are old.
So I was afraid to tell you what I was thinking.
7 I thought, “Older men should speak.
They have lived for many years and they should share their wisdom.”
8 But it is a person's spirit that helps them to understand things.
Almighty God has to put his breath into them.
9 Not all old people are wise.
Old people do not always understand what is right.
10 So I say, “Listen to me.
I too will explain what I know.”
11 Yes, I waited for you all to speak.
I listened to your wise thoughts,
as you tried to find the right words to say.
12 I listened carefully to you,
as you argued with Job.
But none of you could show Job that he was wrong.
None of you was able to answer his problems.
13 So do not say, “We are wise.”
Do not say, “God must show Job that he is wrong.
People cannot do that.”
14 Job was not speaking to me about his problems.
So I will not answer him in the way that you did.
15 Now they are upset!
They have no more answers to give.
There is nothing more that they can say.
16 I have waited for them,
and now they say nothing.
They stand there and they have no more answers.
17 So now I will say what I think.
I, too, will tell you what I know.
18 There are many things that I want to say.
The spirit inside me causes me to speak.
19 I cannot keep quiet any longer!
I am like a bag that is full of new wine.
I am ready to break so that everything pours out!
20 So I have to speak or I will become ill.
I must open my mouth and reply to you.
21 I will be fair in what I say.
I will not give honour to anyone to get their help.
22 I am too honest to do that.
If I am not fair,
God, my Maker, would quickly remove me.’
Elihu continues to speak
33 ‘But now, Job, listen to the things that I will tell you.
Listen carefully to everything that I will say.
2 I will speak to you now.
I am ready to tell you what I think.
3 I am an honest man, so you can believe what I say.
I will tell you what I know is true.
4 The Spirit of Almighty God has made me.
His breath gives me life.
5 Answer me now, Job, if you can.
Prepare yourself.
Be ready to explain your problem to me.
6 Listen! When God looks at us,
we are the same as each other.
God used clay to make both of us.
7 So you should not be afraid of me.
I will not do anything to hurt you.
8 I have heard the things that you have said, Job.
This is what I heard you say:
9 “I am not guilty. I have not done anything that is wrong.
I am pure and clean.
10 But God has decided to punish me!
He attacks me as if I am his enemy.
11 He has tied my feet with chains.
He always watches me to see where I go.”
12 But now I tell you this, Job: You are not right!
God is greater than any human.
13 So you should not argue against him.
You should not say,
“God does not answer any of my questions.”
14 God does speak to people.
He speaks to them in many different ways.
But often people do not recognize his voice.
15 Sometimes God speaks to people in dreams and visions.
He speaks to them at night, while they sleep in bed.
16 He tells them about things that will happen.
He warns them about terrible things,
so that they are afraid.
17 He tells them to turn away from their sins.
He tells them not to be proud.
18 He keeps people safe from death,
so that they do not go to their graves.
19 Or God may warn people with a painful illness.
He may make their bodies hurt all the time.
20 Then they do not want to eat anything.
They cannot eat even the best food.
21 Their bodies become very thin.
People can even see their bones.
22 They will soon die and go to their graves.
Death is waiting to take them away.
23 But perhaps an angel may come
to help one of those people.
He may speak on behalf of God,
as a special angel among the many thousands of God's angels.
The angel may tell that person
how to live in a way that is right.
24 Then God will be kind to that person.
God will say, “Save that person,
so that he does not go to his grave.
I have found someone to pay the price for his life.
So keep him alive.”
25 Then that person's body will become healthy again.
He will be strong, like a young man.
26 When he prays to God,
God will be happy to answer him.
He will again worship God with joy.
And God will give him a good way of life again.
27 That person will say clearly to everyone,
“I did things that were not right.
I did wrong things,
but God did not punish me as I deserved.
28 God rescued me from death,
so that I did not go to my grave.
Now I will enjoy life in the light.”
29 God does all these things for people.
He does them many times.
30 He saves a person from death,
so that he does not go to his grave.
He gives light to that person,
so that he may enjoy his life.
31 Job, listen carefully to me.
Be quiet, and I will speak to you.
32 After that, you may answer me,
if you have something to say.
If I could say that you have not done anything wrong,
that would make me happy.
33 But if you have nothing to say,
then listen to me.
Be quiet and I will teach you how to be wise.’
God's Holy Spirit gives us new life
3 We do not need any more to show that our work is good. Some people need to have letters from other people to say that they do good work. We do not need to show you letters like that. Nor do we need you to write a letter like that for us. 2 You yourselves show that we have done good work. You are like a letter that is written on our lives. Everybody can read that letter and they can understand it. 3 It is clear that you are a like a letter that Christ himself has written. We are the people who brought God's message to you. Now people see what God has done in your lives. That is like a letter that they read. But it is not a letter written on paper with ink. It is the Spirit of the living God who wrote it. He did not write it on pieces of stone. Instead, he wrote it deep inside you.[a]
4 We know that these things are true. Because of what Christ has done, we trust God to help us. 5 We know that we cannot do this work by ourselves. We never think that. But God makes us able to do it. 6 God has made us his servants. So we are able to tell people the message of his new agreement. This new agreement is not about rules. Rules tell people what they must do and they bring death. But God's new agreement comes from his Spirit. And the Spirit brings new life to us, not death.[b]
7 Moses wrote the words of the old agreement on pieces of stone. It showed how great and powerful God was. Moses' face shone brightly after God spoke to him. It did not stay bright, but the Israelite people still could not look at Moses' face. The old agreement that brought death was powerful. 8 So the new agreement, which comes from God's Spirit, will show the power of God even more. 9 The old agreement showed people that they were guilty. God's new agreement makes people right with him. So surely the new agreement shows God's power even more than the old one did!
10 The old agreement was great and powerful at one time. But now God's new agreement has come in its place. The great power of the new agreement shows that the old agreement is no longer powerful. 11 The old agreement was powerful, but it came to an end. God's new agreement will continue always. So it surely shows the power of God even more!
12 So, because we know all this, we speak God's message bravely. 13 We are not like Moses. His face did not continue to be bright with the light from God. So he covered his face with a cloth. He did not want the Israelite people to see that the light was coming to an end. 14 But those Israelite people could not think properly. Even today, they still do not understand the message of God's old agreement. When they read it, they are like people who have a cloth that covers their minds. It continues like that unless they believe in Christ. Then Christ removes the cloth so that they understand. 15 Even today, when the Israelite people read Moses' books, a cloth still covers their minds. 16 But when a person turns to trust the Lord, then God takes the cloth away.[c]
17 The Lord is the same as the Spirit. And when the Lord's Spirit is with anyone, that person is free. 18 We show the power of the Lord to other people. It is like God has removed a cloth from over our faces. He is changing us so that we become more and more like him. We show how great God is more and more clearly. It is the Lord who does all this, by the work of his Spirit.
A prayer when you are in trouble[a]
43 My God, show that I am not guilty.
Make the people who do not respect you
know that I am right.
Rescue me from the evil people
who tell lies about me.
2 God, you are the safe place where I can hide.
Why have you pushed me away?
How much longer must I continue to weep,
because my enemies do cruel things to me?
3 Send to me your light and your truth.
Let them be my guide.
They will take me back to your holy mountain
and to the house where you live.[b]
4 Then I will go to your altar,
to worship you, the God who makes me happy.
You are my God and I will praise you there.
I will sing to thank you, God, with my harp.
5 I ask myself,
‘Why am I so sad and upset?’
I must wait patiently for God to help me.
Then I will praise my God once again,
because he is the one who saves me.
8 If you plant evil things,
your harvest will be trouble.
If you are angry and you hurt people,
it will never help you.
9 If you are kind to poor people and you share your food with them,
God will bless you.
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