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15:1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded, 15:2 "Should a wise man answer with windy knowledge, And fill himself with the east wind? 15:3 "Should he argue with useless talk, Or with words which are not profitable? 15:4 "Indeed, you do away with reverence, And hinder meditation before God. 15:5 "For your guilt teaches your mouth, And you choose the language of the crafty. 15:6 "Your own mouth condemns you, and not I; And your own lips testify against you. 15:7 "Were you the first man to be born, Or were you brought forth before the hills? 15:8 "Do you hear the secret counsel of God, And limit wisdom to yourself? 15:9 "What do you know that we do not know? [What] do you understand that we do not? 15:10 "Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us, Older than your father. 15:11 "Are the consolations of God too small for you, Even the word [spoken] gently with you? 15:12 "Why does your heart carry you away? And why do your eyes flash, 15:13 That you should turn your spirit against God, And allow [such] words to go out of your mouth? 15:14 "What is man, that he should be pure, Or he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? 15:15 "Behold, He puts no trust in His holy ones, And the heavens are not pure in His sight; 15:16 How much less one who is detestable and corrupt, Man, who drinks iniquity like water! 15:17 "I will tell you, listen to me; And what I have seen I will also declare; 15:18 What wise men have told, And have not concealed from their fathers, 15:19 To whom alone the land was given, And no alien passed among them. 15:20 "The wicked man writhes in pain all [his] days, And numbered are the years stored up for the ruthless. 15:21 "Sounds of terror are in his ears, While at peace the destroyer comes upon him. 15:22 "He does not believe that he will return from darkness, And he is destined for the sword. 15:23 "He wanders about for food, saying, 'Where is it?' He knows that a day of darkness is at hand. 15:24 "Distress and anguish terrify him, They overpower him like a king ready for the attack, 15:25 Because he has stretched out his hand against God, And conducts himself arrogantly against the Almighty. 15:26 "He rushes headlong at Him With his massive shield. 15:27 "For he has covered his face with his fat, And made his thighs heavy with flesh. 15:28 "And he has lived in desolate cities, In houses no one would inhabit, Which are destined to become ruins. 15:29 "He will not become rich, nor will his wealth endure; And his grain will not bend down to the ground. 15:30 "He will not escape from darkness; The flame will wither his shoots, And by the breath of His mouth he will go away. 15:31 "Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself; For emptiness will be his reward. 15:32 "It will be accomplished before his time, And his palm branch will not be green. 15:33 "He will drop off his unripe grape like the vine, And will cast off his flower like the olive tree. 15:34 "For the company of the godless is barren, And fire consumes the tents of the corrupt. 15:35 "They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity, And their mind prepares deception."