Now that I have prepared my case, I know I will be vindicated.
though you know that I am not guilty and that no one can rescue me from your hand?
“I have become a laughingstock to my friends, though I called on God and he answered— a mere laughingstock, though righteous and blameless!
Listen carefully to what I say; let my words ring in your ears.
on behalf of a man he pleads with God as one pleads for a friend.
I would state my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments.
I will maintain my innocence and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.
So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.
‘I am pure, I have done no wrong; I am clean and free from sin.
“Job says, ‘I am innocent, but God denies me justice.
Relent, do not be unjust; reconsider, for my integrity is at stake.
Even if I were innocent, my mouth would condemn me; if I were blameless, it would pronounce me guilty.
“Although I am blameless, I have no concern for myself; I despise my own life.
Review the past for me, let us argue the matter together; state the case for your innocence.
Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace.