Job 15
1 Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said:
And Eliphaz the Temanite answereth and saith: —
2 Should a wise man make answer with windy knowledge, and fill his belly with the east wind?
Doth a wise man answer [with] vain knowledge? And fill [with] an east wind his belly?
3 Should he reason with unprofitable talk, or with speeches wherewith he can do no good?
To reason with a word not useful? And speeches — no profit in them?
4 Yea, thou doest away with fear, and impairest devotion before God.
Yea, thou dost make reverence void, And dost diminish meditation before God.
5 For thine iniquity teacheth thy mouth, and thou choosest the tongue of the crafty.
For thy mouth teacheth thine iniquity, And thou chooseth the tongue of the subtile.
6 Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I; yea, thine own lips testify against thee.
Thy mouth declareth thee wicked, and not I, And thy lips testify against thee.
7 Art thou the first man that was born? Or wast thou brought forth before the hills?
The first man art thou born? And before the heights wast thou formed?
8 Dost thou hearken in the council of God? And dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself?
Of the secret counsel of God dost thou hear? And withdrawest thou unto thee wisdom?
9 What knowest thou, that we know not? What understandest thou, which is not in us?
What hast thou known, and we know not? Understandest thou — and it is not with us?
10 With us are both the gray-headed and the very aged men, much older than thy father.
Both the gray-headed And the very aged [are] among us — Greater than thy father [in] days.
11 Are the consolations of God too small for thee, and the word that dealeth gently with thee?
Too few for thee are the comforts of God? And a gentle word [is] with thee,
12 Why doth thy heart carry thee away? And why do thine eyes wink?
What — doth thine heart take thee away? And what — are thine eyes high?
13 That thou turnest thy spirit against God, and lettest such words go out of thy mouth.
For thou turnest against God thy spirit? And hast brought out words from thy mouth:
14 What is man, that he should be clean? And he that is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?
What [is] man that he is pure, And that he is righteous, one born of woman?
15 Behold, He putteth no trust in His holy ones; yea, the heavens are not clean in His sight.
Lo, in His holy ones He putteth no credence, And the heavens have not been pure in His eyes.
16 How much less one that is abominable and impure, man who drinketh iniquity like water!
Also — surely abominable and filthy Is man drinking as water perverseness.
17 I will tell thee, hear thou me; and that which I have seen I will declare —
I shew thee — hearken to me — And this I have seen and declare:
18 Which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid it;
Which the wise declare — And have not hid — from their fathers.
19 Unto whom alone the land was given, and no stranger passed among them.
To them alone was the land given, And a stranger passed not over into their midst:
20 The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, even the number of years that are laid up for the oppressor.
'All days of the wicked he is paining himself, And few years have been laid up for the terrible one.
21 A sound of terrors is in his ears: in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him.
A fearful voice [is] in his ears, In peace doth a destroyer come to him.
22 He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness, and he is waited for of the sword.
He believeth not to return from darkness, And watched [is] he for the sword.
23 He wandereth abroad for bread: 'Where is it?' He knoweth that the day of darkness is ready at his hand.
He is wandering for bread — 'Where [is] it?' He hath known that ready at his hand Is a day of darkness.
24 Distress and anguish overwhelm him; they prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle.
Terrify him do adversity and distress, They prevail over him As a king ready for a boaster.
25 Because he hath stretched out his hand against God, and behaveth himself proudly against the Almighty;
For he stretched out against God his hand, And against the Mighty he maketh himself mighty.
26 He runneth upon him with a stiff neck, with the thick bosses of his bucklers.
He runneth unto Him with a neck, With thick bosses of his shields.
27 Because he hath covered his face with his fatness, and made collops of fat on his loins;
For he hath covered his face with his fat, And maketh vigour over [his] confidence.
28 And he hath dwelt in desolate cities, in houses which no man would inhabit, which were ready to become heaps.
And he inhabiteth cities cut off, houses not dwelt in, That have been ready to become heaps.
29 He shall not be rich, neither shall his substance continue, neither shall their produce bend to the earth.
He is not rich, nor doth his wealth rise, Nor doth he stretch out on earth their continuance.
30 He shall not depart out of darkness; the flame shall dry up his branches, and by the breath of His mouth shall he go away.
He turneth not aside from darkness, His tender branch doth a flame dry up, And he turneth aside at the breath of His mouth!
31 Let him not trust in vanity, deceiving himself; for vanity shall be his recompense.
Let him not put credence in vanity, He hath been deceived, For vanity is his recompence.
32 It shall be accomplished before his time, and his branch shall not be leafy.
Not in his day is it completed, And his bending branch is not green.
33 He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine, and shall cast off his flower as the olive.
He shaketh off as a vine his unripe fruit, And casteth off as an olive his blossom.
34 For the company of the godless shall be desolate, and fire shall consume the tents of bribery.
For the company of the profane [is] gloomy, And fire hath consumed tents of bribery.
35 They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity, and their belly prepareth deceit.
To conceive misery, and to bear iniquity, Even their heart doth prepare deceit.
