Job 15:17-35
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
17 “I will show you; listen to me;
what I have seen I will declare—
18 what sages have told
and their ancestors have not hidden,(A)
19 to whom alone the land was given,
and no stranger passed among them.
20 The wicked writhe in pain all their days,
through all the years that are laid up for the ruthless.(B)
21 Terrifying sounds are in their ears;
in prosperity the destroyer will come upon them.(C)
22 They despair of returning from darkness,
and they are destined for the sword.(D)
23 They wander abroad for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’
They know that a day of darkness is ready at hand;(E)
24 distress and anguish terrify them;
they prevail against them like a king prepared for battle.
25 Because they stretched out their hands against God
and bid defiance to the Almighty,[a](F)
26 running stubbornly against him
with a thickly bossed shield;
27 because they have covered their faces with their fat
and gathered fat upon their loins,(G)
28 they will live in desolate cities,
in houses that no one should inhabit,
houses destined to become heaps of ruins;
29 they will not be rich, and their wealth will not endure,
nor will they strike root in the earth;[b](H)
30 they will not escape from darkness;
the flame will dry up their shoots,
and their blossom[c] will be swept away by the wind.(I)
31 Let them not trust in emptiness, deceiving themselves,
for emptiness will be their recompense.(J)
32 It will be paid in full before their time,
and their branch will not be green.(K)
33 They will shake off their unripe grape, like the vine,
and cast off their blossoms, like the olive tree.(L)
34 For the company of the godless is barren,
and fire consumes the tents of bribery.(M)
35 They conceive mischief and bring forth evil,
and their belly prepares deceit.”(N)
Job 15:17-35
Lexham English Bible
17 “I will show you, listen to me;
and what I have seen, I will tell[a]—
18 what wise men have told,
and they have not hidden that which is from their ancestors,
19 to whom alone[b] the land was given,
and no stranger passed through their midst.
20 “All of the wicked one’s days he is writhing,
even[c] through the number of years that are laid up for the tyrant.
21 Sounds of terror are in his ears;
in prosperity the destroyer will come against him.
22 He cannot trust that he will return[d] from darkness,
and he himself[e] is destined for the sword.
23 “He is wandering for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’
He knows that a day of darkness is ready at hand.[f]
24 Anguish and distress terrify him;
they[g] overpower him like a king ready for the battle.
25 Because he stretched out his hand against God,
and he was arrogant to Shaddai;
26 he stubbornly[h] runs against him
with his thick-bossed shield.[i]
27 “Because he has covered his face with his fat
and has gathered fat upon his loins,
28 he will dwell[j] in desolate cities,
in houses that they should not inhabit,
which are destined for rubble.
29 He will not become rich, and his wealth will not endure,
and their possessions will not stretch across the earth.[k]
30 “He will not escape from darkness;
a flame will dry up his new shoot,
and by the wind of his mouth he shall be removed.
31 Let him not trust in emptiness—he will be deceiving himself—
for worthlessness will be his recompense.
32 It will be paid in full before his time,[l]
and his branch will not flourish.
33 “He will shake off his unripe fruit like the vine,
and he will cast off his blossom like the olive tree;
34 for the company of the godless is barren,
and fire consumes the tents of those who accept bribes.
35 They conceive trouble and bring forth mischief,
and their womb prepares deceit.”
Footnotes
- Job 15:17 Literally “and I will tell”
- Job 15:19 Literally “to them to alone them”
- Job 15:20 Hebrew “and”
- Job 15:22 Literally “He cannot trust to return,” or “He is not certain to return,” or “He cannot be sure to return” (compare NJPS)
- Job 15:22 Emphatic personal pronoun
- Job 15:23 Hebrew “at his hand”; the meaning seems to be, “his ruin is certain”
- Job 15:24 Hebrew “it”
- Job 15:26 Literally “with neck”
- Job 15:26 Literally “with the thickness of the boss of his shield”
- Job 15:28 Hebrew “and he will dwell”
- Job 15:29 See HCSB, ESV; or “will not reach to the earth”; perhaps “his possessions will not go to the underworld”
- Job 15:32 Literally “in not his day,” or “without his day”
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