Job 21
Job's Reply to Zophar
If You Want To Offer Comfort

1Job said: 2If you want to offer comfort, then listen to me. 3And when I have finished, you can start your insults all over again. 4My complaint is against God; that's why I am impatient. 5Just looking at me is enough to make you sick, 6and the very thought of myself fills me with disgust.

7Why do evil people live so long and gain such power? 8Why are they allowed to see their children grow up? 9They have no worries at home, and God never punishes them. 10Their cattle have lots of calves without ever losing one; 11their children play and dance safely by themselves. 12These people sing and celebrate to the sound of tambourines, small harps, and flutes, 13and they are successful, without a worry, until the day they die.

Leave Us Alone!

14Those who are evil say to God All-Powerful, "Leave us alone! Don't bother us with your teachings. 15What do we gain from praying and worshiping you? 16We succeeded all on our own." And so, I keep away from them and their evil schemes.

Job 24
Job Continues
Why Doesn't God Set a Time?

1Why doesn't God set a time for court? Why don't his people know where he can be found? 2Sinners remove boundary markers and take care of sheep they have stolen. 3They cheat orphans and widows by taking their donkeys and oxen. 4The poor are trampled and forced to hide 5in the desert, where they and their children must live like wild donkeys and search for food. 6If they want grain or grapes, they must go to the property of these sinners. 7They sleep naked in the cold, because they have no cover, 8and during a storm their only shelters are caves among the rocky cliffs.

9Children whose fathers have died are taken from their mothers as payment for a debt. 10Then they are forced to work naked in the grain fields because they have no clothes, and they go hungry. 11They crush olives to make oil and grapes to make wine--but still they go thirsty. 12And along the city streets, the wounded and dying cry out, yet God does nothing.

Some Reject the Light

13Some rebel and refuse to follow the light. 14Soon after sunset they murder the poor and the needy, and at night they steal. 15Others wait for the dark, thinking they won't be seen if they sleep with the wife or husband of someone else. 16Robbers hide during the day, then break in after dark because they reject the light. 17They prefer night to day, since the terrors of the night are their friends.

Job 36
Elihu Continues
Be Patient a While Longer

1Elihu said: 2Be patient a while longer; I have something else to say in God's defense. 3God always does right--and this knowledge comes straight from God. 4You can rest assured that what I say is true. 5Although God is mighty, he cares about everyone and makes fair decisions. 6The wicked are cut down, and those who are wronged receive justice. 7God watches over good people and places them in positions of power and honor forever. 8But when people are prisoners of suffering and pain, 9God points out their sin and their pride, 10then he warns them to turn back to him. 11And if they obey, they will be successful and happy from then on. 12But if they foolishly refuse, they will be rewarded with a violent death.

Godless People Are Too Angry

13Godless people are too angry to ask God for help when he punishes them. 14So they die young in shameful disgrace. 15Hard times and trouble are God's way of getting our attention! 16And at this very moment, God deeply desires to lead you from trouble and to spread your table with your favorite food. 17Now that the judgment for your sins has fallen upon you, 18don't let your anger and the pain you endured make you sneer at God. 19Your reputation and riches cannot protect you from distress, 20nor can you find safety in the dark world below. 21Be on guard! Don't turn to evil as a way of escape. 22God's power is unlimited. He needs no teachers 23to guide or correct him. 

Others Have Praised God

24Others have praised God for what he has done, so join with them. 25From down here on earth, everyone has looked up and seen 26how great God is--God is more than we imagine; no one can count the years he has lived.

Matthew 7:13-14
The Narrow Gate
(Luke 13.24)

13Go in through the narrow gate. The gate to destruction is wide, and the road that leads there is easy to follow. A lot of people go through that gate. 14But the gate to life is very narrow. The road that leads there is so hard to follow that only a few people find it.