Job 29
New International Version - Job 29 << | >> 123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142 29:1 Job continued his discourse: 29:2 'How I long for the months gone by, for the days when God watched over me, 29:3 when his lamp shone upon my head and by his light I walked through darkness! 29:4 Oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God's intimate friendship blessed my house, 29:5 when the Almighty was still with me and my children were around me, 29:6 when my path was drenched with cream and the rock poured out for me streams of olive oil. 29:7 'When I went to the gate of the city and took my seat in the public square, 29:8 the young men saw me and stepped aside and the old men rose to their feet; 29:9 the chief men refrained from speaking and covered their mouths with their hands; 29:10 the voices of the nobles were hushed, and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths. 29:11 Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me commended me, 29:12 because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist him. 29:13 The man who was dying blessed me; I made the widow's heart sing. 29:14 I put on righteousness as my clothing; justice was my robe and my turban. 29:15 I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. 29:16 I was a father to the needy; I took up the case of the stranger. 29:17 I broke the fangs of the wicked and snatched the victims from their teeth. 29:18 'I thought, 'I will die in my own house, my days as numerous as the grains of sand. 29:19 My roots will reach to the water, and the dew will lie all night on my branches. 29:20 My glory will remain fresh in me, the bow ever new in my hand.' 29:21 'Men listened to me expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel. 29:22 After I had spoken, they spoke no more; my words fell gently on their ears. 29:23 They waited for me as for showers and drank in my words as the spring rain. 29:24 When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it; the light of my face was precious to them. 29:25 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.