Job 24
1 “(Why does Almighty [God] not set a time when he will judge [evil people]?/I do not understand why Almighty [God does] not set a time when he will judge [evil people].) [RHQ] Those who know him never [RHQ] see him do that!
Why are times for judging wicked people not set by the Almighty? Why do not those who are faithful to God see his days of judgment come?
2 [Some evil people] remove the markers of boundaries of [other people’s] land, [in order to steal their land]; they seize/steal [other people’s] sheep and put them in their own pastures.
There are wicked people who remove boundary markers; there are wicked people who take away flocks by force and put them in their own pastures.
3 [Some] (take away/steal) the donkeys that belong to orphans, and they take widow’s oxen to guarantee that the widows will pay back the money that they loaned to those widows.
They drive away the donkey of those without fathers; they take the widow's ox as security.
4 [Some] shove poor people off the road (OR, prevent poor people from (obtaining their rights/being treated justly)), and they force poor people to find places to hide from them.
They force needy people out of their path; poor people of the earth all hide themselves from them.
5 The result is that poor people have to search for food in the desert like wild donkeys do.
See, these poor people go out to their work like wild donkeys in the wilderness, looking carefully for food; perhaps the Arabah will provide them food for their children.
6 The poor people harvest left-over grain in other people’s fields, and gather grapes from vineyards that belong to wicked men.
Poor people reap in the night in other people's fields; they glean grapes from the harvest of those wicked people.
7 During the night they have nothing to cover their bodies, nothing to keep them warm.
They lie naked all night without clothing; they have no covering in the cold.
8 When it rains on the mountains, the poor people become very wet, so they huddle under the rock ledges to be protected [from the rain].
They are wet with the showers of the mountains; they lie next to large rocks because they have no shelter.
9 [Some evil men] snatch infants away from their widowed mothers [SYN], and they say ‘I will return your babies to you when you repay the money that I lent to you.’
There are wicked people who pluck orphans from their mothers' breast, and wicked people who take children as security from poor people.
10 But the poor people walk around with no clothes on; they are hungry while they are working to carry [other people’s] bundles of grain [to the places where their grain will be threshed].
But the poor people go about naked without clothing; although they go hungry, they carry bundles of grain belonging to other people.
11 Poor people press olives to make [olive] oil; they tread on grapes [to make juice for wine], but [they are not allowed to drink any of it when] they become thirsty.
The poor people make oil within the walls of those wicked men; they tread the wicked men's winepresses, but they themselves suffer thirst.
12 In the cities, people who are wounded and dying cry out [to God for help], but God does not heed their prayers.
From out of the city the dying groan, and the throat of the wounded cries out for help. But God does not ascribe blame
13 Some wicked people avoid the light [because they do evil things in the dark]; they do not walk on roads that are lighted.
Some of these wicked people rebel against the light; they know not its ways, nor do they stay in its paths.
14 Murderers steal things during the night, and then they arise before dawn in order that they may [go out again and] kill needy [DOU] people.
Before daylight the murderer rises and he kills poor and needy people; in the night he is like a thief.
15 Those who want to commit adultery wait for twilight/evening; they say ‘I do not want anyone to see me,’ so they keep their faces covered.
Also, the eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight; he says, 'No eye will see me.' He disguises his face.
16 It is during the night that robbers break into houses [to steal things], but during the day they hide because they want to avoid [being seen in] the light.
In the darkness wicked people dig into houses; but they shut themselves up in the daytime; they do not care for the light.
17 All of those [people] want to do their evil things at night, not in the morning [when it is light], because they are not afraid of [the things that happen during the] night that terrify others.”
For all of them, thick darkness is like the morning; for they are friends with the terrors of thick darkness.
18 “[But it is wicked people] who are swept/carried away by floods, and God curses the land that they own, and no one goes to work in their vineyards.
Swiftly they pass away, however, like foam on the surface of the waters; their portion of the land is cursed; no one goes to work in their vineyards.
19 Just like the snow melts away when it is hot and there is no rain, those who have sinned disappear into the place where dead people are. (Sheol h7585)
As drought and heat melt away the snow into waters, so Sheol takes away those who have sinned. (Sheol h7585)
20 Not even their mothers remember them now; wicked people are destroyed like trees that are cut down, and maggots eat their corpses.
The womb that bore him will forget him; the worm will feed sweetly on him; he will be remembered no more; in this way, wickedness will be broken like a tree.
21 They mistreat women who have been unable to give birth to children and women who no longer have children [to take care of them], and they never do good things for widows.
The wicked one devours the barren women who have not borne children; he does no good to the widow.
22 But God, by his power, gets rid of mighty/influential people. God acts and causes the wicked people to die.
Yet God drags away the mighty people by his power; he rises up and does not strengthen them in life.
23 God allows them to think that they are secure and safe, but he is watching [MTY] them all the time.
God allows them to think they are secure, and they are happy about that, but his eyes are on their ways.
24 They prosper for a little while, and then [suddenly] they are gone; they disappear like weeds wither and die; they are like [SIM] stalks of grain that have been cut off.
These people are exalted; still, in only a little while, they will be gone; indeed, they will be brought low; they will be gathered up like all the others; they will be cut off like the tops of ears of grain.
25 If this is not true, is there [RHQ] anyone who will show that I am a liar and prove that what I have said is not true?”
If it is not so, who can prove me to be a liar; who can make my speech worth nothing?”
