Jó 29

¹ And Job again took up his parable, and said: ² Oh that I were as in the months of old, As in the days when God watched over me; ³ When His lamp shined above my head, And by His light I walked through darkness; ⁴ As I was in the days of my youth, When the converse of God was upon my tent; ⁵ When the Almighty was yet with me, And my children were about me; ⁶ When my steps were washed with butter, And the rock poured me out rivers of oil! ⁷ When I went forth to the gate unto the city, When I prepared my seat in the broad place, ⁸ The young men saw me and hid themselves, And the aged rose up and stood; ⁹ The princes refrained talking, And laid their hand on their mouth; ¹⁰ The voice of the nobles was hushed, And their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth. ¹¹ For when the ear heard me, then it blessed me, And when the eye saw me, it gave witness unto me; ¹² Because I delivered the poor that cried, The fatherless also, that had none to help him. ¹³ The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me; and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy. ¹⁴ I put on righteousness, and it clothed itself with me; My justice was as a robe and a diadem. ¹⁵ I was eyes to the blind, And feet was I to the lame. ¹⁶ I was a father to the needy; And the cause of him that I knew not I searched out. ¹⁷ And I broke the jaws of the unrighteous, And plucked the prey out of his teeth. ¹⁸ Then I said: "I shall die with my nest, And I shall multiply my days as the phoenix; ¹⁹ My root shall be spread out to the waters, And the dew shall lie all night upon my branch; ²⁰ My glory shall be fresh in me, And my bow shall be renewed in my hand." ²¹ Unto me men gave ear, and waited, And kept silence for my counsel. ²² After my words they spoke not again; And my speech dropped upon them. ²³ And they waited for me as for the rain; And they opened their mouth wide as for the latter rain. ²⁴ If I laughed on them, they believed it not; And the light of my countenance they cast not down. ²⁵ I chose out their way, and sat as chief, And dwelt as a king in the army, As one that comforteth the mourners.