8“Surely you have spoken [b]in my hearing,
And I have heard the sound of your words, saying,
9‘I am pure, without transgression;
I am innocent, and there is no iniquity in me.
10Yet He finds occasions against me,
He counts me as His enemy;
11He puts my feet in the stocks,
He watches all my paths.’

12“Look, in this you are not righteous.
I will answer you,
For God is greater than man.
13Why do you contend with Him?
For He does not give an accounting of any of His words.
14For God may speak in one way, or in another,
Yet man does not perceive it.
15In a dream, in a vision of the night,
When deep sleep falls upon men,
While slumbering on their beds,
16Then He opens the ears of men,
And seals their instruction.
17In order to turn man from his deed,
And conceal pride from man,
18He keeps back his soul from the Pit,
And his life from [c]perishing by the sword.

19“Man is also chastened with pain on his bed,
And with strong pain in many of his bones,
20So that his life abhors bread,
And his soul [d]succulent food.
21His flesh wastes away from sight,
And his bones stick out which once were not seen.
22Yes, his soul draws near the Pit,
And his life to the executioners.

23“If there is a messenger for him,
A mediator, one among a thousand,
To show man His uprightness,
24Then He is gracious to him, and says,
‘Deliver him from going down to the Pit;
I have found [e]a ransom’;
25His flesh shall be young like a child’s,
He shall return to the days of his youth.
26He shall pray to God, and He will delight in him,
He shall see His face with joy,
For He restores to man His righteousness.
27Then he looks at men and says,
‘I have sinned, and perverted what was right,
And it did not profit me.’
28He will redeem [f]his soul from going down to the Pit,
And his life shall see the light.

29“Behold, God works all these things,
Twice, in fact, three times with a man,
30To bring back his soul from the Pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life.

31“Give ear, Job, listen to me;
Hold your peace, and I will speak.
32If you have anything to say, answer me;
Speak, for I desire to justify you.
33If not, listen to me;
[g]Hold your peace, and I will teach you wisdom.”