Job 20

1 And Zophar the Naamathite answereth and saith: —

Then Sophar the Naamathite answered, and said:

2 Therefore my thoughts cause me to answer, And because of my sensations in me.

Therefore various thoughts succeed one another in me, and my mind is hurried away to different things.

3 The chastisement of my shame I hear, And the spirit of mine understanding Doth cause me to answer:

The doctrine with which thou reprovest me, I will hear, and the spirit of my understanding shall answer for me.

4 This hast thou known from antiquity? Since the placing of man on earth?

This I know from the beginning, since man was placed upon the earth,

5 That the singing of the wicked [is] short, And the joy of the profane for a moment,

That the praise of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment.

6 Though his excellency go up to the heavens, And his head against a cloud he strike —

If his pride mount up even to heaven, and his head touch the clouds:

7 As his own dung for ever he doth perish, His beholders say: 'Where [is] he?'

In the end he shall be destroyed like a dunghill, and they that has seen him shall say: Where is he?

8 As a dream he fleeth, and they find him not, And he is driven away as a vision of the night,

As a dream that fleeth away he shall not be found, he shall pass as a vision of the night:

9 The eye hath not seen him, and addeth not. And not again doth his place behold him.

The eyes that had seen him, shall see him no more, neither shall his place any more behold him.

10 His sons do the poor oppress, And his hands give back his wealth.

His children shall be oppressed with want, and his hands shall render him his sorrow.

11 His bones have been full of his youth, And with him on the dust it lieth down.

His bones shall be filled with the vices of his youth, and they shall sleep with him in the dust.

12 Though he doth sweeten evil in his mouth, Doth hide it under his tongue,

For when evil shall be sweet in his mouth, he will hide it under his tongue.

13 Hath pity on it, and doth not forsake it, And keep it back in the midst of his palate,

He will spare it, and not leave it, and will hide it in his throat.

14 His food in his bowels is turned, The bitterness of asps [is] in his heart.

His bread in his belly shall be turned into the gall of asps within him.

15 Wealth he hath swallowed, and doth vomit it. From his belly God driveth it out.

The riches which he hath swallowed; he shall vomit up, and God shall draw them out of his belly.

16 Gall of asps he sucketh, Slay him doth the tongue of a viper.

He shall suck the head of asps, and the viper’s tongue shall kill him.

17 He looketh not on rivulets, Flowing of brooks of honey and butter.

(Let him not see the streams of the river, the brooks of honey and of butter.)

18 He is giving back [what] he laboured for, And doth not consume [it]; As a bulwark [is] his exchange, and he exults not.

He shall be punished for all that he did, and yet shall not be consumed: according to the multitude of his devices so also shall he suffer.

19 For he oppressed — he forsook the poor, A house he hath taken violently away, And he doth not build it.

Because he broke in and stripped the poor: he hath violently taken away a house which he did not build.

20 For he hath not known ease in his belly. With his desirable thing he delivereth not himself.

And yet his belly was not filled: and when he hath the things he coveted, he shall not be able to possess them.

21 There is not a remnant to his food, Therefore his good doth not stay.

There was nothing left of his meat, and therefore nothing shall continue of his goods:

22 In the fulness of his sufficiency he is straitened. Every perverse hand doth meet him.

When he shall be filled, he shall be straitened, he shall burn, and every sorrow shall fall upon him.

23 It cometh to pass, at the filling of his belly, He sendeth forth against him The fierceness of His anger, Yea, He raineth on him in his eating.

May his belly be filled, that God may send forth the wrath of his indignation upon him, and rain down his war upon him.

24 He fleeth from an iron weapon, Pass through him doth a bow of brass.

He shall flee from weapons of iron, and shall fall upon a bow of brass.

25 One hath drawn, And it cometh out from the body, And a glittering weapon from his gall proceedeth. On him [are] terrors.

The sword is drawn out, and cometh forth from its scabbard, and glittereth in his bitterness: the terrible ones shall go and come upon him.

26 All darkness is hid for his treasures, Consume him doth a fire not blown, Broken is the remnant in his tent.

All darkness is hid in his secret places: a fire that is not kindled shall devour him, he shall be afflicted when left in his tabernacle.

27 Reveal do the heavens his iniquity, And earth is raising itself against him.

The heavens shall reveal his iniquity, and the earth shall rise up against him.

28 Remove doth the increase of his house, Poured forth in a day of His anger.

The offspring of his house shall be exposed, he shall be pulled down in the day of God’s wrath.

29 This [is] the portion of a wicked man from God. And an inheritance appointed him by God.

This is the portion of a wicked man from God, and the inheritance of his doings from the Lord.