Job 20
1 Forsothe Sophar Naamathites answeride, and seide,
Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
2 Therfor my thouytis dyuerse comen oon aftir anothir; and the mynde is rauyischid in to dyuerse thingis.
“So my anxious thoughts compel me to answer, because of the turmoil within me.
3 Y schal here the techyng, bi which thou repreuest me; and the spirit of myn vndurstondyng schal answere me.
I have heard a rebuke that insults me, and my understanding prompts a reply.
4 Y woot this fro the bigynnyng, sithen man was set on erthe,
Do you not know that from antiquity, since man was placed on the earth,
5 that the preisyng of wickid men is schort, and the ioie of an ypocrite is at the licnesse of a poynt.
the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?
6 Thouy his pride `stieth in to heuene, and his heed touchith the cloudis,
Though his arrogance reaches the heavens, and his head touches the clouds,
7 he schal be lost in the ende, as a dunghil; and, thei that sien hym, schulen seie, Where is he?
he will perish forever, like his own dung; those who had seen him will ask, ‘Where is he?’
8 As a dreem fleynge awei he schal not be foundun; he schal passe as `a nyytis siyt.
He will fly away like a dream, never to be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night.
9 The iye that siy hym schal not se; and his place schal no more biholde him.
The eye that saw him will see him no more, and his place will no longer behold him.
10 Hise sones schulen be `al to-brokun with nedynesse; and hise hondis schulen yelde to hym his sorewe.
His sons will seek the favor of the poor, for his own hands must return his wealth.
11 Hise boonys schulen be fillid with the vices of his yong wexynge age; and schulen slepe with hym in dust.
The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie down with him in the dust.
12 For whanne yuel was swete in his mouth, he hidde it vndur his tunge.
Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue,
13 He schal spare it, and schal not forsake it; and schal hide in his throte.
though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth,
14 His breed in his wombe schal be turned in to galle of snakis withynne.
yet in his stomach his food sours into the venom of cobras within him.
15 He schal spue out the richessis, whiche he deuouride; and God schal drawe tho ritchessis out of his wombe.
He swallows wealth but vomits it out; God will force it from his stomach.
16 He schal souke the heed of snakis; and the tunge of an addre schal sle hym.
He will suck the poison of cobras; the fangs of a viper will kill him.
17 Se he not the stremys of the flood of the stronde, of hony, and of botere.
He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream.
18 He schal suffre peyne for alle thingis whiche he hath do, netheles he schal not be wastid; aftir the multitude of his fyndyngis, so and `he schal suffre.
He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he cannot enjoy the profits of his trading.
19 For he brake, and made nakid the hows of a pore man; he rauyschide, and bildide it not.
For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor; he has seized houses he did not build.
20 And his wombe was not fillid; and whanne he hath that, that he couetide, he may not holde in possessioun.
Because his appetite is never satisfied, he cannot escape with his treasure.
21 `No thing lefte of his mete; and therfor no thing schal dwelle of his goodis.
Nothing is left for him to consume; thus his prosperity will not endure.
22 Whanne he is fillid, he schal be maad streit; he schal `be hoot, and alle sorewe schal falle in on hym.
In the midst of his plenty, he will be distressed; the full force of misery will come upon him.
23 `Y wolde, that his wombe be fillid, that he sende out in to hym the ire of his strong veniaunce, and reyne his batel on hym.
When he has filled his stomach, God will vent His fury upon him, raining it down on him as he eats.
24 He schal fle yrun armuris, and he schal falle in to a brasun boowe.
Though he flees from an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce him.
25 Led out, and goynge out `of his schethe, and schynynge, `ether smytinge with leit, `in to his bittirnesse; orrible fendis schulen go, and schulen come on hym.
It is drawn out of his back, the gleaming point from his liver. Terrors come over him.
26 Alle derknessis ben hid in hise priuytees; fier, which is not teendid, schal deuoure hym; he schal be turmentid left in his tabernacle.
Total darkness is reserved for his treasures. A fire unfanned will consume him and devour what is left in his tent.
27 Heuenes schulen schewe his wickidnesse; and erthe schal rise togidere ayens hym.
The heavens will expose his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him.
28 The seed of his hows schal be opyn; it schal be drawun doun in the dai of the strong veniaunce of the Lord.
The possessions of his house will be removed, flowing away on the day of God’s wrath.
29 This is the part of a wickid man, `which part is youun of God, and the eritage of hise wordis of the Lord.
This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the inheritance God has appointed him.”
