Basic English Version : Read the Bible in 1 Year

Job 34 / Basic English

1. And Elihu made answer and said,
2. Give ear, you wise, to my words; and you who have knowledge, give attention to me;
3. For words are tested by the ear, as food is tasted by the mouth.
4. Let us make the decision for ourselves as to what is right; let us have the knowledge among ourselves of what is good.
5. For Job has said, I am upright, and it is God who has taken away my right;
6. Though I am right, still I am in pain; my wound may not be made well, though I have done no wrong.
7. What man is like Job, a man who freely makes sport of God,
8. And goes in the company of evil-doers, walking in the way of sinners?
9. For he has said, It is no profit to a man to take delight in God.
10. Now then, you wise, take note; you men of knowledge, give ear to me. Let it be far from God to do evil, and from the Ruler of all to do wrong.
11. For he gives to every man the reward of his work, and sees that he gets the fruit of his ways.
12. Truly, God does not do evil, and the Ruler of all is not a false judge.
13. Who put the earth into his care, or made him responsible for the world?
14. If he made his spirit come back to him, taking his breath into himself again,
15. All flesh would come to an end together, and man would go back to the dust.
16. If you are wise, take note of this; give ear to the voice of my words.
17. How may a hater of right be a ruler? and will you say that the upright Ruler of all is evil?
18. He who says to a king, You are an evil-doer; and to rulers, You are sinners;
19. Who has no respect for rulers, and who gives no more attention to those who have wealth than to the poor, for they are all the work of his hands.
20. Suddenly they come to an end, even in the middle of the night: the blow comes on the men of wealth, and they are gone, and the strong are taken away without the hand of man.
21. For his eyes are on the ways of a man, and he sees all his steps.
22. There is no dark place, and no thick cloud, in which the workers of evil may take cover.
23. For he does not give man a fixed time to come before him to be judged.
24. He sends the strong to destruction without searching out their cause, and puts others in their place.
25. For he has knowledge of their works, overturning them in the night, so that they are crushed.
26. The evil-doers are broken by his wrath, he puts his hand on them with force before the eyes of all onlookers.
27. Because they did not go after him, and took no note of his ways,
28. So that the cry of the poor might come up to him, and the prayer of those in need come to his ears.
29. ...
30. ...
31. ...
32. ...
33. ...
34. Men of knowledge, and all wise men, hearing me, will say,
35. Job's words do not come from knowledge; they are not the fruit of wisdom.
36. May Job be tested to the end, because his answers have been like those of evil men.
37. For in addition to his sin, he is uncontrolled in heart; before our eyes he makes sport of God, increasing his words against him.

Job 35 / Basic English

1. And Elihu made answer and said,
2. Does it seem to you to be right, and righteousness before God, to say,
3. What profit is it to me, and how am I better off than if I had done wrong?
4. I will make answer to you and to your friends:
5. Let your eyes be turned to the heavens, and lifted up to see the skies; they are higher than you.
6. If you have done wrong, is he any the worse for it? and if your sins are great in number, what is it to him?
7. If you are upright, what do you give to him? or what does he take from your hand?
8. Your evil-doing may have an effect on a man like yourself, or your righteousness on a son of man.
9. Because the hand of the cruel is hard on them, men are making sounds of grief; they are crying out for help because of the arm of the strong.
10. But no one has said, Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night;
11. Who gives us more knowledge than the beasts of the earth, and makes us wiser than the birds of the heaven?
12. There they are crying out because of the pride of the evil-doers, but he gives them no answer.
13. But God will not give ear to what is false, or the Ruler of all take note of it;
14. How much less when you say that you do not see him; that the cause is before him, and you are waiting for him.
15. And now ... ;
16. And Job's mouth is open wide to give out what is of no profit, increasing words without knowledge.

Romans 15 / Basic English

1. We who are strong have to be a support to the feeble, and not give pleasure to ourselves.
2. Let every one of us give pleasure to his neighbour for his good, to make him strong.
3. For Christ did not give pleasure to himself, but, as it is said, The bitter words of those who were angry with you came on me.
4. Now those things which were put down in writing before our time were for our learning, so that through quiet waiting and through the comfort of the holy Writings we might have hope.
5. Now may the God who gives comfort and strength in waiting make you of the same mind with one another in harmony with Christ Jesus:
6. So that with one mouth you may give glory to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7. So then, take one another to your hearts, as Christ took us, to the glory of God.
8. Now I say that Christ has been made a servant of the circumcision to give effect to the undertakings given by God to the fathers,
9. And so that the Gentiles might give glory to God for his mercy; as it is said, For this reason I will give praise to you among the Gentiles, and I will make a song to your name.
10. And again he says, Take part, you Gentiles, in the joy of his people.
11. And again, Give praise to the Lord, all you Gentiles; and let all the nations give praise to him.
12. And again Isaiah says, There will be the root of Jesse, and he who comes to be the ruler over the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles put their hope.
13. Now may the God of hope make you full of joy and peace through faith, so that all hope may be yours in the power of the Holy Spirit.
14. And I myself am certain of you, brothers, that you are full of what is good, complete in all knowledge, able to give direction to one another.
15. But I have, in some measure, less fear in writing to you to put these things before you again, because of the grace which was given to me by God,
16. To be a servant of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, doing the work of a priest in the good news of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles might be pleasing to God, being made holy by the Holy Spirit.
17. So I have pride in Christ Jesus in the things which are God's.
18. And I will keep myself from talking of anything but those things which Christ has done by me to put the Gentiles under his rule in word and in act,
19. By signs and wonders, in the power of the Holy Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and round about as far as Illyricum I have given all the good news of Christ;
20. Making it my purpose not to take the good news where Christ was named, so that my work might not be resting on that of others;
21. But as it is said in the holy Writings, They will see, to whom the news of him had not been given, and those to whose ears it had not come will have knowledge.
22. For which reason I was frequently kept from coming to you:
23. But now, having no longer any place in these parts and having had for a number of years a great desire to come to you,
24. Whenever I go to Spain (for it is my hope to see you on my way, and to be sent on there by you, if first I may in some measure have been comforted by your company)--
25. But now I go to Jerusalem, taking help for the saints.
26. For it has been the good pleasure of those of Macedonia and Achaia to send a certain amount of money for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem.
27. Yes, it has been their good pleasure; and they are in their debt. For if the Gentiles have had a part in the things of the Spirit which were theirs, it is right for them, in the same way, to give them help in the things of the flesh.
28. So when I have done this, and have given them this fruit of love, I will go on by you into Spain.
29. And I am certain that when I come, I will be full of the blessing of Christ.
30. Now I make request to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the love of the Spirit, that you will be working together with me in your prayers to God for me;
31. So that I may be kept safe from those in Judaea who have not put themselves under the rule of God, and that the help which I am taking for Jerusalem may be pleasing to the saints;
32. So that I may come to you in joy by the good pleasure of God, and have rest with you.
33. Now may the God of peace be with you all. So be it.