Job 12

Job Replies: The Lord Has Done This

1 Then Job answered and said:

2 "No doubt you are the people,
And wisdom will die with you! 3 But I have 1 understanding as well as you;
I am not a inferior to you.
Indeed, who does not know such things as these? 4 "I b am one mocked by his friends,
Who c called on God, and He answered him,
The just and blameless who is ridiculed. 5 A 2 lamp is despised in the thought of one who is at ease;
It is made ready for d those whose feet slip. 6 e The tents of robbers prosper,
And those who provoke God are secure -
In what God provides by His hand.

7 "But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you;
And the birds of the air, and they will tell you; 8 Or speak to the earth, and it will teach you;
And the fish of the sea will explain to you. 9 Who among all these does not know
That the hand of the LORD has done this, 10 f In whose hand is the 3 life of every living thing,
And the g breath of 4 all mankind? 11 Does not the ear test words
And the 5 mouth taste its food? 12 Wisdom is with aged men,
And with 6 length of days, understanding.

13 "With Him are h wisdom and strength,
He has counsel and understanding. 14 If i He breaks a thing down, it cannot be rebuilt;
If He imprisons a man, there can be no release. 15 If He j withholds the waters, they dry up;
If He k sends them out, they overwhelm the earth. 16 With Him are strength and prudence.
The deceived and the deceiver are His. 17 He leads counselors away plundered,
And makes fools of the judges. 18 He loosens the bonds of kings,
And binds their waist with a belt. 19 He leads 7 princes away plundered,
And overthrows the mighty. 20 l He deprives the trusted ones of speech,
And takes away the discernment of the elders. 21 m He pours contempt on princes,
And 8 disarms the mighty. 22 He n uncovers deep things out of darkness,
And brings the shadow of death to light. 23 o He makes nations great, and destroys them;
He 9 enlarges nations, and guides them. 24 He takes away the 10 understanding of the chiefs of the people of the earth,
And p makes them wander in a pathless wilderness. 25 q They grope in the dark without light,
And He makes them r stagger like a drunken man.

  1. Cross References
    Job 13:2
    What you know, I also know; I am not inferior to you.
  2. Cross References
    Job 21:3
    Bear with me that I may speak, And after I have spoken, keep mocking.
  3. Cross References
    Psalms 91:15
    He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him.
  4. Cross References
    Proverbs 14:2
    He who walks in his uprightness fears the LORD, But he who is perverse in his ways despises Him.
  5. Cross References
    Job 9:24
    The earth is given into the hand of the wicked. He covers the faces of its judges. If it is not He, who else could it be?
    Job 21:6 - 16
    Even when I remember I am terrified, And trembling takes hold of my flesh.
    Psalms 73:12
    Behold, these are the ungodly, Who are always at ease; They increase in riches.
    Jeremiah 12:1
    Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead with You; Yet let me talk with You about Your judgments. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why are those happy who deal so treacherously?
    Malachi 3:15
    So now we call the proud blessed, For those who do wickedness are raised up; They even tempt God and go free.'
  6. Cross References
    Acts 17:28
    "for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, 'For we are also His offspring.'
  7. Cross References
    Job 27:3
    As long as my breath is in me, And the breath of God in my nostrils.
    Job 33:4
    The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
  8. Cross References
    Job 9:4
    God is wise in heart and mighty in strength. Who has hardened himself against Him and prospered?
    Job 36:5
    Behold, God is mighty, but despises no one; He is mighty in strength of understanding.
  9. Cross References
    Job 11:10
    If He passes by, imprisons, and gathers to judgment, Then who can hinder Him?
    Isaiah 25:2
    For You have made a city a ruin, A fortified city a ruin, A palace of foreigners to be a city no more; It will never be rebuilt.
  10. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 11:17
    Lest the LORD's anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the LORD is giving you.
    1 Kings 8:35
    When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, when they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin because You afflict them.
    1 Kings 8:36
    Then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, that You may teach them the good way in which they should walk; and send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance.
  11. Cross References
    Genesis 7:11 - 24
    In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
  12. Cross References
    Job 32:9
    Great men are not always wise, Nor do the aged always understand justice.
  13. Cross References
    Job 34:19
    Yet He is not partial to princes, Nor does He regard the rich more than the poor; For they are all the work of His hands.
    Psalms 107:40
    He pours contempt on princes, And causes them to wander in the wilderness where there is no way.
    Daniel 2:21
    And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding.
  14. Cross References
    Daniel 2:22
    He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him.
    1 Corinthians 4:5
    Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
  15. Cross References
    Isaiah 9:3
    You have multiplied the nation And increased its joy; They rejoice before You According to the joy of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
    Isaiah 26:15
    You have increased the nation, O LORD, You have increased the nation; You are glorified; You have expanded all the borders of the land.
  16. Cross References
    Psalms 107:4
    They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; They found no city to dwell in.
  17. Cross References
    Job 5:14
    They meet with darkness in the daytime, And grope at noontime as in the night.
    Job 15:30
    He will not depart from darkness; The flame will dry out his branches, And by the breath of His mouth he will go away.
    Job 18:18
    He is driven from light into darkness, And chased out of the world.
  18. Cross References
    Psalms 107:27
    They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits' end.
New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
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