18 They float[a] on the surface of the water.
Their section of the land is cursed,
so that they never go to their vineyards.
19 As dry ground and heat snatch away the melted snow,
so Sheol(A) steals those who have sinned.
20 The womb forgets them;
worms feed on them;
they are remembered(B) no more.
So injustice is broken like a tree.
21 They prey on[b] the childless woman who is unable to conceive,
and do not deal kindly with the widow.
22 Yet God drags away[c] the mighty by his power;
when he rises up, they have no assurance of life.
23 He gives them a sense of security, so they can rely on it,(C)
but his eyes(D) watch over their ways.
24 They are exalted for a moment, then gone;
they are brought low and shrivel up like everything else.[d]
They wither like heads of grain.(E)

25 If this is not true, then who can prove me a liar(F)
and show that my speech is worthless?

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Footnotes

  1. 24:18 Lit are insignificant
  2. 24:21 LXX, Tg read They harm
  3. 24:22 Or God prolongs the life of
  4. 24:24 LXX reads like a mallow plant in the heat

18 “Yet they are foam(A) on the surface of the water;(B)
    their portion of the land is cursed,(C)
    so that no one goes to the vineyards.(D)
19 As heat and drought snatch away the melted snow,(E)
    so the grave(F) snatches away those who have sinned.
20 The womb forgets them,
    the worm(G) feasts on them;(H)
the wicked are no longer remembered(I)
    but are broken like a tree.(J)
21 They prey on the barren and childless woman,
    and to the widow they show no kindness.(K)
22 But God drags away the mighty by his power;(L)
    though they become established,(M) they have no assurance of life.(N)
23 He may let them rest in a feeling of security,(O)
    but his eyes(P) are on their ways.(Q)
24 For a little while they are exalted, and then they are gone;(R)
    they are brought low and gathered up like all others;(S)
    they are cut off like heads of grain.(T)

25 “If this is not so, who can prove me false
    and reduce my words to nothing?”(U)

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