1-2Be patient and listen a little longer

to what I am saying on God's behalf.

3My knowledge is wide; I will use what I know

to show that God, my Creator, is just.

4Nothing I say to you is false;

you see before you a truly wise man.

5How strong God is! He despises no one;

there is nothing he doesn't understand.

6He does not let sinners live on,

and he always treats the poor with justice.

7He protects those who are righteous;

he allows them to rule like kings

and lets them be honored forever.

8But if people are bound in chains,

suffering for what they have done,

9God shows them their sins and their pride.

10He makes them listen to his warning

to turn away from evil.

11If they obey God and serve him,

they live out their lives in peace and prosperity.

12But if not, they will die in ignorance

and cross the stream into the world of the dead.

13Those who are godless keep on being angry,

and even when punished, they don't pray for help.

14They die while they are still young,

worn out by a life of disgrace.

15But God teaches people through suffering

and uses distress to open their eyes.

16God brought you out of trouble,

and let you enjoy security;

your table was piled high with food.

17But now you are being punished as you deserve.

18Be careful not to let bribes deceive you,

or riches lead you astray.

19It will do you no good to cry out for help;

all your strength can't help you now.

20Don't wish for night to come,

the time when nations will perish.

21Be careful not to turn to evil;

your suffering was sent to keep you from it.

22Remember how great is God's power;

he is the greatest teacher of all.

23No one can tell God what to do

or accuse him of doing evil.

24He has always been praised for what he does;

you also must praise him.

25Everyone has seen what he has done;

but we can only watch from a distance.+

26We cannot fully know his greatness

or count the number of his years.

27It is God who takes water from the earth

and turns it into drops of rain.

28He lets the rain pour from the clouds

in showers for all human beings.

29No one knows how the clouds move

or how the thunder roars

through the sky, where God dwells.

30He sends lightning through all the sky,

but the depths of the sea remain dark.

31This is how he feeds+ the people

and provides an abundance of food.

32He seizes the lightning with his hands

and commands it to hit the mark.

33Thunder announces the approaching storm,

and the cattle know it is coming.