New International Version NIV
Good News Translation GNT
1 Then Bildad the Shuhite replied:
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Are you finally through with your windy speech?
2 “How long will you say such things? Your words are a blustering wind.
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3 Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what is right?
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God never twists justice; he never fails to do what is right.
4 When your children sinned against him, he gave them over to the penalty of their sin.
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Your children must have sinned against God, and so he punished them as they deserved.
5 But if you will seek God earnestly and plead with the Almighty,
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But turn now and plead with Almighty God;
6 if you are pure and upright, even now he will rouse himself on your behalf and restore you to your prosperous state.
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if you are so honest and pure, then God will come and help you and restore your household as your reward.
7 Your beginnings will seem humble, so prosperous will your future be.
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All the wealth you lost will be nothing compared with what God will give you then.
8 “Ask the former generation and find out what their ancestors learned,
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Look for a moment at ancient wisdom; consider the truths our ancestors learned.
9 for we were born only yesterday and know nothing, and our days on earth are but a shadow.
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Our life is short, we know nothing at all; we pass like shadows across the earth.
10 Will they not instruct you and tell you? Will they not bring forth words from their understanding?
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But let the ancient wise people teach you; listen to what they had to say:
11 Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh? Can reeds thrive without water?
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"Reeds can't grow where there is no water; they are never found outside a swamp.
12 While still growing and uncut, they wither more quickly than grass.
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If the water dries up, they are the first to wither, while still too small to be cut and used.
13 Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so perishes the hope of the godless.
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Godless people are like those reeds; their hope is gone, once God is forgotten.
14 What they trust in is fragile ; what they rely on is a spider’s web.
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They trust a thread - a spider's web.
15 They lean on the web, but it gives way; they cling to it, but it does not hold.
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If they lean on a web, will it hold them up? If they grab for a thread, will it help them stand?"
16 They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine, spreading its shoots over the garden;
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Evil people sprout like weeds in the sun, like weeds that spread all through the garden.
17 it entwines its roots around a pile of rocks and looks for a place among the stones.
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Their roots wrap around the stones and hold fast to every rock.
18 But when it is torn from its spot, that place disowns it and says, ‘I never saw you.’
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But then pull them up - no one will ever know they were there.
19 Surely its life withers away, and from the soil other plants grow.
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Yes, that's all the joy evil people have; others now come and take their places.
20 “Surely God does not reject one who is blameless or strengthen the hands of evildoers.
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But God will never abandon the faithful or ever give help to evil people.
21 He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy.
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He will let you laugh and shout again,
22 Your enemies will be clothed in shame, and the tents of the wicked will be no more.”
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but he will bring disgrace on those who hate you, and the homes of the wicked will vanish.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.