Parallel Bible results for "Job 21"

Job 21

New Century Version NCV

1 Then Job answered:

2 "Listen carefully to my words, and let this be the way you comfort me.

3 Be patient while I speak. After I have finished, you may continue to make fun of me.

4 "My complaint is not just against people; I have reason to be impatient.

5 Look at me and be shocked; put your hand over your mouth in shock.

6 When I think about this, I am terribly afraid and my body shakes.

7 Why do evil people live a long time? They grow old and become more powerful.

8 They see their children around them; they watch them grow up.

9 Their homes are safe and without fear; God does not punish them.

10 Their bulls never fail to mate; their cows have healthy calves.

11 They send out their children like a flock; their little ones dance about.

12 They sing to the music of tambourines and harps, and the sound of the flute makes them happy.

13 Evil people enjoy successful lives and then go peacefully to the grave.

14 They say to God, 'Leave us alone! We don't want to know your ways.

15 Who is the Almighty that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?'

16 The success of the wicked is not their own doing. Their way of thinking is different from mine.

17 Yet how often are the lamps of evil people turned off? How often does trouble come to them?

18 How often are they like straw in the wind or like chaff that is blown away by a storm?

19 It is said, 'God saves up a person's punishment for his children.' But God should punish the wicked themselves so they will know it.

20 Their eyes should see their own destruction, and they should suffer the anger of the Almighty.

21 They do not care about the families they leave behind when their lives have come to an end.

22 "No one can teach knowledge to God; he is the one who judges even the most important people.

23 One person dies while he still has all his strength, feeling completely safe and comfortable.

24 His body was well fed, and his bones were strong and healthy.

25 But another person dies with an unhappy heart, never enjoying any happiness.

26 They are buried next to each other, and worms cover them both.

27 "I know very well your thoughts and your plans to wrong me.

28 You ask about me, 'Where is this great man's house? Where are the tents where the wicked live?'

29 Have you never asked those who travel? Have you never listened to their stories?

30 On the day of God's anger and punishment, it is the wicked who are spared.

31 Who will accuse them to their faces? Who will pay them back for the evil they have done?

32 They are carried to their graves, and someone keeps watch over their tombs.

33 The dirt in the valley seems sweet to them. Everybody follows after them, and many people go before them.

34 "So how can you comfort me with this nonsense? Your answers are only lies!"

New International Version NIV

1 Then Job replied:

2 “Listen carefully to my words; let this be the consolation you give me.

3 Bear with me while I speak, and after I have spoken, mock on.

4 “Is my complaint directed to a human being? Why should I not be impatient?

5 Look at me and be appalled; clap your hand over your mouth.

6 When I think about this, I am terrified; trembling seizes my body.

7 Why do the wicked live on, growing old and increasing in power?

8 They see their children established around them, their offspring before their eyes.

9 Their homes are safe and free from fear; the rod of God is not on them.

10 Their bulls never fail to breed; their cows calve and do not miscarry.

11 They send forth their children as a flock; their little ones dance about.

12 They sing to the music of timbrel and lyre; they make merry to the sound of the pipe.

13 They spend their years in prosperity and go down to the grave in peace.

14 Yet they say to God, ‘Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways.

15 Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?’

16 But their prosperity is not in their own hands, so I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.

17 “Yet how often is the lamp of the wicked snuffed out? How often does calamity come upon them, the fate God allots in his anger?

18 How often are they like straw before the wind, like chaff swept away by a gale?

19 It is said, ‘God stores up the punishment of the wicked for their children.’ Let him repay the wicked, so that they themselves will experience it!

20 Let their own eyes see their destruction; let them drink the cup of the wrath of the Almighty.

21 For what do they care about the families they leave behind when their allotted months come to an end?

22 “Can anyone teach knowledge to God, since he judges even the highest?

23 One person dies in full vigor, completely secure and at ease,

24 well nourished in body,bones rich with marrow.

25 Another dies in bitterness of soul, never having enjoyed anything good.

26 Side by side they lie in the dust, and worms cover them both.

27 “I know full well what you are thinking, the schemes by which you would wrong me.

28 You say, ‘Where now is the house of the great, the tents where the wicked lived?’

29 Have you never questioned those who travel? Have you paid no regard to their accounts—

30 that the wicked are spared from the day of calamity, that they are delivered from the day of wrath?

31 Who denounces their conduct to their face? Who repays them for what they have done?

32 They are carried to the grave, and watch is kept over their tombs.

33 The soil in the valley is sweet to them; everyone follows after them, and a countless throng goes before them.

34 “So how can you console me with your nonsense? Nothing is left of your answers but falsehood!”