International Standard Version | New International Version |
1Then in response, Bildad from Shuah said: | 1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied: |
2"How long will you keep talking like this? How long will you keep talking like a wind storm? | 2"How long will you say such things? Your words are a blustering wind. |
3Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what's right? | 3Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what is right? |
4"If your children sin against him, he'll make them a prisoner of their sins. | 4When your children sinned against him, he gave them over to the penalty of their sin. |
5If you seek God, if you ask the Almighty for mercy, | 5But if you will seek God earnestly and plead with the Almighty, |
6if you are clean and upright, surely then, he'll act on your behalf and restore your rightful place. | 6if you are pure and upright, even now he will rouse himself on your behalf and restore you to your prosperous state. |
7Your beginning may be small, but later years will be very great. | 7Your beginnings will seem humble, so prosperous will your future be. |
8"Inquire of the previous generation, won't you please? Consider what their forefathers searched out. | 8"Ask the former generation and find out what their ancestors learned, |
9Because we are of yesterday and we know nothing, for our time on earth is only a shadow. | 9for we were born only yesterday and know nothing, and our days on earth are but a shadow. |
10Won't they instruct you, and tell you, and bring out words from the heart? | 10Will they not instruct you and tell you? Will they not bring forth words from their understanding? |
11"Can papyrus grow where there's no marsh? Can reeds flourish without water? | 11Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh? Can reeds thrive without water? |
12While they are still green and not yet ready to be harvested, they wither before any plant. | 12While still growing and uncut, they wither more quickly than grass. |
13Such are the paths of everyone who forgets God— the hope of the godless will be destroyed: | 13Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so perishes the hope of the godless. |
14his confidence is shattered; his trust is in a spider's web. | 14What they trust in is fragile; what they rely on is a spider's web. |
15He leans against his house, but it won't stand; he grabs hold of it firmly, but it doesn't last. | 15They lean on the web, but it gives way; they cling to it, but it does not hold. |
16He is a fresh sapling planted in the sunlight, spreading out its branches over its garden. | 16They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine, spreading its shoots over the garden; |
17Its roots weave around a pile of stones, seeking to entrench itself among the rocks. | 17it entwines its roots around a pile of rocks and looks for a place among the stones. |
18If he is uprooted from his place, then it will deny him: 'I never saw you.' | 18But when it is torn from its spot, that place disowns it and says, 'I never saw you.' |
19"Indeed, this is the benefit of God's way: from the soil other plants will sprout. | 19Surely its life withers away, and from the soil other plants grow. |
20Surely God won't reject those who are blameless or hold hands with those who practice evil. | 20"Surely God does not reject one who is blameless or strengthen the hands of evildoers. |
21He will soon fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips will shout with joy. | 21He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. |
22Those who hate you will be clothed with shame, and the tent of the wicked will no longer exist. | 22Your enemies will be clothed in shame, and the tents of the wicked will be no more." |
The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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