Books

Nehemiah 7

Amplified Bible, 2015 (AMP)

Switch Version:

¹ "You will also decide and decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And the light [of God's favor] will shine upon your ways.

² "When you are cast down and humbled, you will speak with confidence, And the humble person He will lift up and save.

³ "He will even rescue the one [for whom you intercede] who is not innocent; And he will be rescued through the cleanness of your hands."

⁴ Then Job answered and said,

⁵ "Even today my complaint is contentious; His hand is heavy despite my groaning.

⁶ "Oh, that I knew where I might find Him, That I might [even] come to His seat!

⁷ "I would present my cause before Him And fill my mouth with arguments.

⁸ "I would learn the words which He would answer, And understand what He would say to me.

⁹ "Would He contend against me with His great power? No, surely He would give attention to me.

¹⁰ "There the righteous and upright could reason with Him; So I would be acquitted forever by my Judge.

¹¹ "Behold, I go forward (to the east), but He is not there; I go backward (to the west), but I cannot perceive Him;

¹² To the left (north) He turns, but I cannot behold Him; He turns to the right hand (south), but I cannot see Him.

¹³ "But He knows the way that I take [and He pays attention to it]. When He has tried me, I will come forth as [refined] gold [pure and luminous].

¹⁴ "My feet have carefully followed His steps; I have kept His ways and not turned aside.

¹⁵ "I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have kept the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.

¹⁶ "But He is unique and unchangeable, and who can turn Him? And what His soul desires, that He does.

¹⁷ "For He performs what is planned (appointed) for me, And He is mindful of many such things.

¹⁸ "Therefore I would be terrified at His presence; When I consider [all of this], I tremble in dread of Him.

¹⁹ "For God has made my heart faint, And the Almighty has terrified me,

²⁰ But I am not silenced by the darkness [of these woes that fell on me], Nor by the thick darkness which covers my face.

²¹ "Why does the Almighty not set seasons for judgment? Why do those who know Him not see His days [for punishment of the wicked]?

²² "Some remove the landmarks; They [violently] seize and pasture flocks [appropriating land and flocks openly].

²³ "They drive away the donkeys of the orphans; They take the widow's ox for a pledge.

²⁴ "They crowd the needy off the road; The poor of the land all hide themselves.

²⁵ "Behold, as wild donkeys in the desert, The poor go to their work, diligently seeking food; As bread for their children in the desert.

²⁶ "They harvest their fodder in a field [that is not their own], And glean the vineyard of the wicked.

²⁷ "They spend the night naked, without clothing, And have no covering against the cold.

²⁸ "They are wet from the rain of the mountains And cling to the rock for lack of shelter.

²⁹ "Others snatch the fatherless [infants] from the breast [to sell or make them slaves], And against the poor they take a pledge [of clothing].

³⁰ "They cause the poor to go about naked without clothing, And they take away the sheaves [of grain] from the hungry.

³¹ "Within the walls [of the wicked] the poor make [olive] oil; They tread [the grapes in] the wine presses, but thirst.

³² "From the [populous and crowded] city men groan, And the souls of the wounded cry out for help; Yet God [seemingly] does not pay attention to the wrong [done to them].

³³ "Others have been with those who rebel against the light; They do not want to know its ways Nor stay in its paths.

³⁴ "The murderer rises at dawn; He kills the poor and the needy, And at night he becomes a thief.

³⁵ "The eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight, Saying, 'No eye will see me,' And he covers his face.

³⁶ "In the dark they dig into [the penetrable walls of] houses; They shut themselves up by day; They do not know the light [of day].

³⁷ "For the morning is the same to him as the thick darkness [of midnight]; For he is familiar with the terrors of thick darkness.

³⁸ "They are insignificant on the surface of the water; Their portion is cursed on the earth; They do not turn toward the vineyards.

³⁹ "Drought and heat consume the snow waters; So does Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) [consume] those who have sinned.

⁴⁰ "A mother will forget him; The worm feeds on him until he is no longer remembered. And wickedness will be broken like a tree [which cannot be restored].

⁴¹ "He preys on the barren (childless) woman And does no good for the widow.

⁴² "Yet God draws away the mighty by His power; He rises, but no one has assurance of life.

⁴³ "God gives them security, and they are supported; And His eyes are on their ways.

⁴⁴ "They are exalted for a little while, and then they are gone; Moreover, they are brought low and like everything [they are] gathered up and taken out of the way; Even like the heads of grain they are cut off.

⁴⁵ "And if this is not so, who can prove me a liar And make my speech worthless?"

⁴⁶ Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,

⁴⁷ "Dominion and awe belong to God; He establishes peace and order in His high places.

⁴⁸ "Is there any number to His [vast celestial] armies? And upon whom does His light not rise?

⁴⁹ "How then can man be justified and righteous with God? Or how can he who is born of a woman be pure and clean?

⁵⁰ "Behold, even the moon has no brightness [compared to God's majesty and glory] And the stars are not pure in His sight,

⁵¹ How much less man, that maggot, And the son of man, that worm!"

⁵² But Job answered and said,

⁵³ "What a help you are to the weak (powerless)! How you have saved the arm that is without strength!

⁵⁴ "How you have counseled the one who has no wisdom! And how abundantly you have provided sound wisdom and helpful insight!

⁵⁵ "To whom have you uttered [these] words? And whose spirit [inspired what] came forth from you?

⁵⁶ "The spirits of the dead tremble Underneath the waters and their inhabitants.

⁵⁷ "Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) is naked before God, And Abaddon (the place of destruction) has no covering [from His eyes].

⁵⁸ "It is He who spreads out the north over emptiness And[1] hangs the earth on nothing.

⁵⁹ "He wraps the waters in His clouds [which otherwise would spill on earth all at once], And the cloud does not burst under them.

⁶⁰ "He covers the face of the[2] full moon And spreads His cloud over it.

⁶¹ "He has inscribed a circular limit (the horizon) on the face of the waters At the boundary between light and darkness.

⁶² "The pillars of the heavens tremble And are terrified at His rebuke.

⁶³ "He stirred up the sea by His power, And by His understanding He smashed [proud][3] Rahab.

⁶⁴ "By His breath the heavens are cleared; His hand has pierced the [swiftly] fleeing serpent.

⁶⁵ "Yet these are just the fringes of His ways [mere samples of His power], The faintest whisper of His voice! Who can contemplate the thunder of His [full] mighty power?"

⁶⁶ Job continued his discourse and said,

⁶⁷ "As God lives, who has taken away my right and denied me justice, And the Almighty, who has caused bitterness and grief for my soul,

⁶⁸ As long as my life is within me, And the breath of God is [still] in my nostrils,

⁶⁹ My lips will not speak unjustly, Nor will my tongue utter deceit.

⁷⁰ "Far be it from me that I should admit you are right [in your accusations against me]; Until I die, I will not remove my integrity from me.

⁷¹ "I hold fast my uprightness and my right standing with God and I will not let them go; My heart does not reproach me for any of my days.

⁷² "May my enemy be as the wicked, And he who rises up against me be as the unrighteous (unjust).

⁷³ "For what is the hope of the godless, even though he has gained [in this world], When God takes his life?

#	AMP
1	"You will also decide and decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And the light [of God's favor] will shine upon your ways.
2	"When you are cast down and humbled, you will speak with confidence, And the humble person He will lift up and save.
3	"He will even rescue the one [for whom you intercede] who is not innocent; And he will be rescued through the cleanness of your hands."
4	Then Job answered and said,
5	"Even today my complaint is contentious; His hand is heavy despite my groaning.
6	"Oh, that I knew where I might find Him, That I might [even] come to His seat!
7	"I would present my cause before Him And fill my mouth with arguments.
8	"I would learn the words which He would answer, And understand what He would say to me.
9	"Would He contend against me with His great power? No, surely He would give attention to me.
10	"There the righteous and upright could reason with Him; So I would be acquitted forever by my Judge.
11	"Behold, I go forward (to the east), but He is not there; I go backward (to the west), but I cannot perceive Him;
12	To the left (north) He turns, but I cannot behold Him; He turns to the right hand (south), but I cannot see Him.
13	"But He knows the way that I take [and He pays attention to it]. When He has tried me, I will come forth as [refined] gold [pure and luminous].
14	"My feet have carefully followed His steps; I have kept His ways and not turned aside.
15	"I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have kept the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.
16	"But He is unique and unchangeable, and who can turn Him? And what His soul desires, that He does.
17	"For He performs what is planned (appointed) for me, And He is mindful of many such things.
18	"Therefore I would be terrified at His presence; When I consider [all of this], I tremble in dread of Him.
19	"For God has made my heart faint, And the Almighty has terrified me,
20	But I am not silenced by the darkness [of these woes that fell on me], Nor by the thick darkness which covers my face.
21	"Why does the Almighty not set seasons for judgment? Why do those who know Him not see His days [for punishment of the wicked]?
22	"Some remove the landmarks; They [violently] seize and pasture flocks [appropriating land and flocks openly].
23	"They drive away the donkeys of the orphans; They take the widow's ox for a pledge.
24	"They crowd the needy off the road; The poor of the land all hide themselves.
25	"Behold, as wild donkeys in the desert, The poor go to their work, diligently seeking food; As bread for their children in the desert.
26	"They harvest their fodder in a field [that is not their own], And glean the vineyard of the wicked.
27	"They spend the night naked, without clothing, And have no covering against the cold.
28	"They are wet from the rain of the mountains And cling to the rock for lack of shelter.
29	"Others snatch the fatherless [infants] from the breast [to sell or make them slaves], And against the poor they take a pledge [of clothing].
30	"They cause the poor to go about naked without clothing, And they take away the sheaves [of grain] from the hungry.
31	"Within the walls [of the wicked] the poor make [olive] oil; They tread [the grapes in] the wine presses, but thirst.
32	"From the [populous and crowded] city men groan, And the souls of the wounded cry out for help; Yet God [seemingly] does not pay attention to the wrong [done to them].
33	"Others have been with those who rebel against the light; They do not want to know its ways Nor stay in its paths.
34	"The murderer rises at dawn; He kills the poor and the needy, And at night he becomes a thief.
35	"The eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight, Saying, 'No eye will see me,' And he covers his face.
36	"In the dark they dig into [the penetrable walls of] houses; They shut themselves up by day; They do not know the light [of day].
37	"For the morning is the same to him as the thick darkness [of midnight]; For he is familiar with the terrors of thick darkness.
38	"They are insignificant on the surface of the water; Their portion is cursed on the earth; They do not turn toward the vineyards.
39	"Drought and heat consume the snow waters; So does Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) [consume] those who have sinned.
40	"A mother will forget him; The worm feeds on him until he is no longer remembered. And wickedness will be broken like a tree [which cannot be restored].
41	"He preys on the barren (childless) woman And does no good for the widow.
42	"Yet God draws away the mighty by His power; He rises, but no one has assurance of life.
43	"God gives them security, and they are supported; And His eyes are on their ways.
44	"They are exalted for a little while, and then they are gone; Moreover, they are brought low and like everything [they are] gathered up and taken out of the way; Even like the heads of grain they are cut off.
45	"And if this is not so, who can prove me a liar And make my speech worthless?"
46	Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,
47	"Dominion and awe belong to God; He establishes peace and order in His high places.
48	"Is there any number to His [vast celestial] armies? And upon whom does His light not rise?
49	"How then can man be justified and righteous with God? Or how can he who is born of a woman be pure and clean?
50	"Behold, even the moon has no brightness [compared to God's majesty and glory] And the stars are not pure in His sight,
51	How much less man, that maggot, And the son of man, that worm!"
52	But Job answered and said,
53	"What a help you are to the weak (powerless)! How you have saved the arm that is without strength!
54	"How you have counseled the one who has no wisdom! And how abundantly you have provided sound wisdom and helpful insight!
55	"To whom have you uttered [these] words? And whose spirit [inspired what] came forth from you?
56	"The spirits of the dead tremble Underneath the waters and their inhabitants.
57	"Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) is naked before God, And Abaddon (the place of destruction) has no covering [from His eyes].
58	"It is He who spreads out the north over emptiness And[1] hangs the earth on nothing.
59	"He wraps the waters in His clouds [which otherwise would spill on earth all at once], And the cloud does not burst under them.
60	"He covers the face of the[2] full moon And spreads His cloud over it.
61	"He has inscribed a circular limit (the horizon) on the face of the waters At the boundary between light and darkness.
62	"The pillars of the heavens tremble And are terrified at His rebuke.
63	"He stirred up the sea by His power, And by His understanding He smashed [proud][3] Rahab.
64	"By His breath the heavens are cleared; His hand has pierced the [swiftly] fleeing serpent.
65	"Yet these are just the fringes of His ways [mere samples of His power], The faintest whisper of His voice! Who can contemplate the thunder of His [full] mighty power?"
66	Job continued his discourse and said,
67	"As God lives, who has taken away my right and denied me justice, And the Almighty, who has caused bitterness and grief for my soul,
68	As long as my life is within me, And the breath of God is [still] in my nostrils,
69	My lips will not speak unjustly, Nor will my tongue utter deceit.
70	"Far be it from me that I should admit you are right [in your accusations against me]; Until I die, I will not remove my integrity from me.
71	"I hold fast my uprightness and my right standing with God and I will not let them go; My heart does not reproach me for any of my days.
72	"May my enemy be as the wicked, And he who rises up against me be as the unrighteous (unjust).
73	"For what is the hope of the godless, even though he has gained [in this world], When God takes his life?

Previous Chapter

Next Chapter

Holy Bible

Nehemiah 7

Select Commentary