22:1 Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said:
22:2 Can a man be profitable unto God? Or can he that is wise be profitable unto Him?
22:3 Is it any advantage to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? Or is it gain to Him, that thou makest thy ways blameless?
22:4 Is it for thy fear of Him that He reproveth thee, that He entereth with thee into judgment?
22:5 Is not thy wickedness great? And are not thine iniquities without end?
22:6 For thou hast taken pledges of thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their clothing.
22:7 Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.
22:8 And as a mighty man, who hath the earth, and as a man of rank, who dwelleth in it,
22:9 Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
22:10 Therefore snares are round about thee, and sudden dread affrighted thee,
22:11 Or darkness, that thou canst not see, and abundance of waters cover thee.
22:12 Is not God in the height of heaven? And behold the topmost of the stars, how high they are!
22:13 And thou sayest: 'What doth God know? Can He judge through the dark cloud?
22:14 Thick clouds are a covering to Him, that He seeth not; and He walketh in the circuit of heaven.'
22:15 Wilt thou keep the old way which wicked men have trodden?
22:16 Who were snatched away before their time, whose foundation was poured out as a stream;
22:17 Who said unto God: 'Depart from us'; and what could the Almighty do unto them?
22:18 Yet He filled their houses with good things--but the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
22:19 The righteous saw it, and were glad, and the innocent laugh them to scorn:
22:20 'Surely their substance is cut off, and their abundance the fire hath consumed.'
22:21 Acquaint now thyself with Him, and be at peace; thereby shall thine increase be good.
22:22 Receive, I pray thee, instruction from His mouth, and lay up His words in thy heart.
22:23 If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up--if thou put away unrighteousness far from thy tents,
22:24 And lay thy treasure in the dust, and the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks;
22:25 And the Almighty be thy treasure, and precious silver unto thee;
22:26 Then surely shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God.
22:27 Thou shalt make thy prayer unto Him, and He will hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows;
22:28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee, and light shall shine upon thy ways.
22:29 When they cast thee down, thou shalt say: 'There is lifting up'; for the humble person He saveth.
22:30 He delivereth him that is innocent, yea, thou shalt be delivered through the cleanness of thy hands.