¹ Then Bildad the Shuhite answered, ² “How long will you say these things,
And the words of your mouth be a mighty wind? ³ “Does God pervert justice?
Or does the Almighty pervert what is right? ⁴ “If your sons sinned against Him,
Then He delivered them into the power of their transgression. ⁵ “If you would seek God
And implore the compassion of the Almighty, ⁶ If you are pure and upright,
Surely now He would rouse Himself for you
And restore your righteous estate. ⁷ “Though your beginning was insignificant,
Yet your end will increase greatly. ⁸ “Please inquire of past generations,
And consider the things searched out by their fathers. ⁹ “For we are only of yesterday and know nothing,
Because our days on earth are as a shadow. ¹⁰ “Will they not teach you and tell you,
And bring forth words from their minds? ¹¹ “Can the papyrus grow up without a marsh?
Can the rushes grow without water? ¹² “While it is still green and not cut down,
Yet it withers before any other plant. ¹³ “So are the paths of all who forget God;
And the hope of the godless will perish, ¹⁴ Whose confidence is fragile,
And whose trust a spider’s web. ¹⁵ “He trusts in his house, but it does not stand;
He holds fast to it, but it does not endure. ¹⁶ “He thrives before the sun,
And his shoots spread out over his garden. ¹⁷ “His roots wrap around a rock pile,
He grasps a house of stones. ¹⁸ “If he is removed from his place,
Then it will deny him, saying, ‘I never saw you.’ ¹⁹ “Behold, this is the joy of His way;
And out of the dust others will spring. ²⁰ “Lo, God will not reject a man of integrity,
Nor will He support the evildoers. ²¹ “He will yet fill your mouth with laughter
And your lips with shouting. ²² “Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
And the tent of the wicked will be no longer.”