| King James Bible | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said, | 1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied: |
| 2How long wilt thou speak these things? and how long shall the words of thy mouth be like a strong wind? | 2How long will you go on saying these things? Your words are a blast of wind. |
| 3Doth God pervert judgment? or doth the Almighty pervert justice? | 3Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what is right? |
| 4If thy children have sinned against him, and he have cast them away for their transgression; | 4Since your children sinned against Him, He gave them over to their rebellion. |
| 5If thou wouldest seek unto God betimes, and make thy supplication to the Almighty; | 5But if you earnestly seek God and ask the Almighty for mercy, |
| 6If thou wert pure and upright; surely now he would awake for thee, and make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous. | 6if you are pure and upright, then He will move even now on your behalf and restore the home where your righteousness dwells. |
| 7Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase. | 7Then, even if your beginnings were modest, your final days will be full of prosperity. |
| 8For inquire, I pray thee, of the former age, and prepare thyself to the search of their fathers: | 8For ask the previous generation, and pay attention to what their fathers discovered, |
| 9(For we are but of yesterday, and know nothing, because our days upon earth are a shadow:) | 9since we were born only yesterday and know nothing. Our days on earth are but a shadow. |
| 10Shall not they teach thee, and tell thee, and utter words out of their heart? | 10Will they not teach you and tell you and speak from their understanding? |
| 11Can the rush grow up without mire? can the flag grow without water? | 11Does papyrus grow where there is no marsh? Do reeds flourish without water? |
| 12Whilst it is yet in his greenness, and not cut down, it withereth before any other herb. | 12While still uncut shoots, they would dry up quicker than any other plant. |
| 13So are the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite's hope shall perish: | 13Such is the destiny of all who forget God; the hope of the godless will perish. |
| 14Whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider's web. | 14His source of confidence is fragile; what he trusts in is a spider's web. |
| 15He shall lean upon his house, but it shall not stand: he shall hold it fast, but it shall not endure. | 15He leans on his web, but it doesn't stand firm. He grabs it, but it does not hold up. |
| 16He is green before the sun, and his branch shooteth forth in his garden. | 16He is a well-watered plant in the sunshine; his shoots spread out over his garden. |
| 17His roots are wrapped about the heap, and seeth the place of stones. | 17His roots are intertwined around a pile of rocks. He looks for a home among the stones. |
| 18If he destroy him from his place, then it shall deny him, saying, I have not seen thee. | 18If he is uprooted from his place, it will deny knowing him, saying, "I never saw you." |
| 19Behold, this is the joy of his way, and out of the earth shall others grow. | 19Surely this is the joy of his way of life; yet others will sprout from the dust. |
| 20Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man, neither will he help the evil doers: | 20Look, God does not reject a person of integrity, and He will not support evildoers. |
| 21Till he fill thy mouth with laughing, and thy lips with rejoicing. | 21He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with a shout of joy. |
| 22They that hate thee shall be clothed with shame; and the dwelling place of the wicked shall come to nought. | 22Your enemies will be clothed with shame; the tent of the wicked will exist no longer. |
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