| 1 | Job continued his discourse: | |
| 2 | "How I long for the months gone by, for the days when God watched over me, | |
| 3 | when his lamp shone upon my head and by his light I walked through darkness! | |
| 4 | Oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God's intimate friendship blessed my house, | |
| 5 | when the Almighty was still with me and my children were around me, | |
| 6 | when my path was drenched with cream and the rock poured out for me streams of olive oil. | |
| 7 | "When I went to the gate of the city and took my seat in the public square, | |
| 8 | the young men saw me and stepped aside and the old men rose to their feet; | |
| 9 | the chief men refrained from speaking and covered their mouths with their hands; | |
| 10 | the voices of the nobles were hushed, and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths. | |
| 11 | Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me commended me, | |
| 12 | because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist him. | |
| 13 | The man who was dying blessed me; I made the widow's heart sing. | |
| 14 | I put on righteousness as my clothing; justice was my robe and my turban. | |
| 15 | I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. | |
| 16 | I was a father to the needy; I took up the case of the stranger. | |
| 17 | I broke the fangs of the wicked and snatched the victims from their teeth. | |
| 18 | "I thought, 'I will die in my own house, my days as numerous as the grains of sand. | |
| 19 | My roots will reach to the water, and the dew will lie all night on my branches. | |
| 20 | My glory will remain fresh in me, the bow ever new in my hand.' | |
| 21 | "Men listened to me expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel. | |
| 22 | After I had spoken, they spoke no more; my words fell gently on their ears. | |
| 23 | They waited for me as for showers and drank in my words as the spring rain. | |
| 24 | When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it; the light of my face was precious to them. | |
| 25 | I chose the way for them and sat as their chief; I dwelt as a king among his troops; I was like one who comforts mourners. | |