New American Bible, Revised Edition

Job 12:14-25 New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE)

14. If he knocks a thing down, there is no rebuilding;if he imprisons, there is no release.

15. He holds back the waters and there is drought;he sends them forth and they overwhelm the land.

16. With him are strength and prudence;the misled and the misleaders are his.

17. He sends counselors away barefoot,makes fools of judges.

18. He loosens the belt of kings,ties a waistcloth on their loins.

19. He sends priests away barefoot,leads the powerful astray.

20. He silences the trusted adviser,takes discretion from the elders.

21. He pours shame on nobles,the waistband of the strong he loosens.

22. He uncovers deep things from the darkness,brings the gloom into the light.

23. He makes nations great and destroys them,spreads peoples abroad and abandons them.

24. He takes understanding from the leaders of the land,makes them wander in a pathless desert.

25. They grope in the darkness without light;he makes them wander like drunkards.