¹Men hør nu Job, på min Tale og lyt til alle mine Ord!

¹And yet, I pray thee, O Job, Hear my speech and [to] all my words give ear.

²Se, jeg har åbnet min Mund, min Tunge taler i Ganen;

²Lo, I pray thee, I have opened my mouth, My tongue hath spoken in the palate.

³mine Ord er talt af oprigtigt Hjerte, mine Læber fører lutret Tale.

³Of the uprightness of my heart [are] my sayings, And knowledge have my lips clearly spoken.

⁴Guds Ånd har skabt mig, den Almægtiges Ånde har givet mig Liv.

⁴The Spirit of God hath made me, And the breath of the Mighty doth quicken me.

⁵Svar mig, i Fald du kan, rust dig imod mig, mød frem!

⁵If thou art able — answer me, Set in array before me — station thyself.

⁶Se, jeg er din Lige for Gud, også jeg er taget af Ler;

⁶Lo, I [am], according to thy word, for God, From the clay I — I also, have been formed.

⁷Rædsel for mig skal ikke skræmme dig, min Hånd skal ej ligge tyngende på dig.

⁷Lo, my terror doth not frighten thee, And my burden on thee is not heavy.

⁸Dog, det har du sagt i mit Påhør, jeg hørte så lydende Ord:

⁸Surely — thou hast said in mine ears, And the sounds of words I hear:

⁹"Jeg er ren og uden Brøde, lydeløs, uden Skyld;

⁹`Pure [am] I, without transgression, Innocent [am] I, and I have no iniquity.

¹⁰men han søger Påskud imod mig, regner mig for sin Fjende;

¹⁰Lo, occasions against me He doth find, He doth reckon me for an enemy to Him,

¹¹han lægger mine Fødder i Blokken, vogter på alle mine Veje."

¹¹He doth put in the stocks my feet, He doth watch all my paths.`

¹²Se, der har du Uret, det er mit Svar, thi Gud er større end Mennesket.

¹²Lo, [in] this thou hast not been righteous, I answer thee, that greater is God than man.

¹³Hvorfor tvistes du med ham, fordi han ej svarer på dine Ord?

¹³Wherefore against Him hast thou striven, When [for] all His matters He answereth not?

¹⁴Thi på een Måde taler Gud, ja på to, men man ænser det ikke:

¹⁴For once doth God speak, and twice, (He doth not behold it.)

¹⁵I Drømme, i natligt Syn, når Dvale falder på Mennesker, når de slumrende hviler på Lejet;

¹⁵In a dream — a vision of night, In the falling of deep sleep on men, In slumberings on a bed.

¹⁶da åbner han Menneskers Øre, gør dem angst med Skræmmebilleder

¹⁶Then He uncovereth the ear of men, And for their instruction sealeth:

¹⁷for at få Mennessket bort fra Uret og udrydde Hovmod af Manden,

¹⁷To turn aside man [from] doing, And pride from man He concealeth.

¹⁸holde hans Sjæl fra Graven, hans Liv fra Våbendød.

¹⁸He keepeth back his soul from corruption, And his life from passing away by a dart.

¹⁹Eller han revses med Smerter på Lejet, uafbrudt sfår der Hamp i hans Ben;

¹⁹And he hath been reproved With pain on his bed, And the strife of his bones [is] enduring.

²⁰Livet i ham væmmes ved Brød og hans Sjæl ved lækker Mad

²⁰And his life hath nauseated bread, And his soul desirable food.

²¹hans Kød svinder hen, så det ikke ses, hans Knogler, som før ikke sås, bliver blottet;

²¹His flesh is consumed from being seen, And high are his bones, they were not seen!

²²hans Sjæl kommer Graven nær, hans Liv de dræbende Magter.

²²And draw near to the pit doth his soul, And his life to those causing death.

²³Hvis da en Engel er på hans Side, een blandt de tusind Talsmænd, som varsler Mennesket Tugt,

²³If there is by him a messenger, An interpreter — one of a thousand, To declare for man his uprightness:

²⁴og den viser ham Nåde og siger: "Fri ham fra at synke i Graven, Løsepenge har jeg fået!"

²⁴Then He doth favour him and saith, `Ransom him from going down to the pit, I have found an atonement.`

²⁵da svulmer hans Legem af Friskhed, han oplever atter sin Ungdom.

²⁵Fresher [is] his flesh than a child`s, He returneth to the days of his youth.

²⁶Han beder til Gud, og han er ham nådig, han skuer med Jubel hans Åsyn, fortæller Mennesker om sin Frelse.

²⁶He maketh supplication unto God, And He accepteth him. And he seeth His face with shouting, And He returneth to man His righteousness.

²⁷Han synger det ud for Folk: "Jeg synded og krænkede Retten og fik dog ej Løn som forskyldt!

²⁷He looketh on men, and saith, `I sinned, And uprightness I have perverted, And it hath not been profitable to me.

²⁸Han har friet min Sjæl fra at fare i Grav, mit Liv ser Lyset med Lyst!"

²⁸He hath ransomed my soul From going over into the pit, And my life on the light looketh.`

²⁹Se, alle disse Ting gør Gud to Gange, ja tre med Mennesket

²⁹Lo, all these doth God work, Twice — thrice with man,

³⁰for at redde hans Sjæl fra Graven, så han skuer Livets Lys!

³⁰To bring back his soul from the pit, To be enlightened with the light of the living.

³¹Lyt til og hør mig, Job, ti stille, så jeg kan tale!

³¹Attend, O Job, hearken to me, Keep silent, and I — I do speak.

³²Har du noget at sige, så svar mig, tal, thi gerne gav jeg dig Ret;

³²If there are words — answer me, Speak, for I have a desire to justify thee.

³³hvis ikke, så høre du på mig, ti stille, at jeg kan lære dig Visdom!

³³If there are not — hearken thou to me, Keep silent, and I teach thee wisdom.