while I wander about from house to house and labour as a slave?  Behold, my sons and my daughters, whom I brought up with labour and pain, are perished and gone, and thou sittest under the open heaven filled with corruption, and I have to work day and night to get bread to keep thy soul in thy body.  Lo, now have I sold the hair of my head for bread.  Who would believe that I am Sitis, the wife of Job, who was clothed in fine linen woven with gold, that washed her feet in basins of silver and gold, that lay softly and was nurtured in plenty; but now I go barefoot, in rags, and sell my hair for bread.  One thing only remains, for my bones are broken with very weariness of spirit.  Arise and eat this bread, and satisfy thy hunger, and then speak a word against the Lord, and die; and I shall be freed from my misery and labour, and have rest.”

But I answered her, “Lo, now these many years have I been set in the plague, enduring sickness of body and grief of heart, but my soul has never been so heavy in me as when I heard thee say, ’Speak a word against the Lord, and die.’  Shall we have borne the loss of our possessions, and the death of our children, and at the end lose the true riches?  Remember all the good things which we enjoyed aforetime.  Shall we receive those at the hands of the Lord, and not bear to receive hard things likewise?  But I perceive now why thou so speakest.  Come forth, thou that standest behind her to pervert her heart and make her speak as one of the foolish women.  Hide thyself no longer; come forth and withstand me to the face.”  Then Satan came forth from behind my wife, and stood before me ashamed, and even weeping in the bitterness of his heart; and he said, “Job, thou hast prevailed:  thou art flesh and I am a spirit, but I can do no more against thee.”  And he departed from me in confusion.  And I, my children, thought of fighters whom I had seen:  one had thrown the other on the ground and filled his mouth with sand, and bruised every limb of his body, yet still he kept his hold; and of a sudden the one that was uppermost could endure the grip no longer, and gave in, so that the undermost won the crown.  Thus was it with me and Satan; and, my children, I counsel you to be long-suffering in all that may come upon you; for there is nothing that is stronger than patience.

Now it was not until many years had passed that the tidings of my affliction came to the ears of the kings who were of old time my friends—­for Satan caused the matter to be kept from them.  But when they heard, they set forth from their countries and came to visit me, even Eliphaz of Teman, and Bildad, and Zophar, and Elihu; all of them with great trains of followers.  When they were come into my land they inquired, “Where is Jobab, the ruler of Uz?” And it was told them, “He sitteth upon a dunghill without the city.”  And they asked what was become of my wealth—­for I was aforetime richer than all the princes of the East—­and they were informed of all that