| New King James Version | New Living Translation |
| 1Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said: | 1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied to Job: |
| 2“How long will you speak these things, And the words of your mouth be like a strong wind? | 2“How long will you go on like this? You sound like a blustering wind. |
| 3Does God subvert judgment? Or does the Almighty pervert justice? | 3Does God twist justice? Does the Almighty twist what is right? |
| 4If your sons have sinned against Him, He has cast them away for their transgression. | 4Your children must have sinned against him, so their punishment was well deserved. |
| 5If you would earnestly seek God And make your supplication to the Almighty, | 5But if you pray to God and seek the favor of the Almighty, |
| 6If you were pure and upright, Surely now He would awake for you, And prosper your rightful dwelling place. | 6and if you are pure and live with integrity, he will surely rise up and restore your happy home. |
| 7Though your beginning was small, Yet your latter end would increase abundantly. | 7And though you started with little, you will end with much. |
| 8“For inquire, please, of the former age, And consider the things discovered by their fathers; | 8“Just ask the previous generation. Pay attention to the experience of our ancestors. |
| 9For we were born yesterday, and know nothing, Because our days on earth are a shadow. | 9For we were born but yesterday and know nothing. Our days on earth are as fleeting as a shadow. |
| 10Will they not teach you and tell you, And utter words from their heart? | 10But those who came before us will teach you. They will teach you the wisdom of old. |
| 11“Can the papyrus grow up without a marsh? Can the reeds flourish without water? | 11“Can papyrus reeds grow tall without a marsh? Can marsh grass flourish without water? |
| 12While it is yet green and not cut down, It withers before any other plant. | 12While they are still flowering, not ready to be cut, they begin to wither more quickly than grass. |
| 13So are the paths of all who forget God; And the hope of the hypocrite shall perish, | 13The same happens to all who forget God. The hopes of the godless evaporate. |
| 14Whose confidence shall be cut off, And whose trust is a spider’s web. | 14Their confidence hangs by a thread. They are leaning on a spider’s web. |
| 15He leans on his house, but it does not stand. He holds it fast, but it does not endure. | 15They cling to their home for security, but it won’t last. They try to hold it tight, but it will not endure. |
| 16He grows green in the sun, And his branches spread out in his garden. | 16The godless seem like a lush plant growing in the sunshine, its branches spreading across the garden. |
| 17His roots wrap around the rock heap, And look for a place in the stones. | 17Its roots grow down through a pile of stones; it takes hold on a bed of rocks. |
| 18If he is destroyed from his place, Then it will deny him, saying, ‘I have not seen you.’ | 18But when it is uprooted, it’s as though it never existed! |
| 19“Behold, this is the joy of His way, And out of the earth others will grow. | 19That’s the end of its life, and others spring up from the earth to replace it. |
| 20Behold, God will not cast away the blameless, Nor will He uphold the evildoers. | 20“But look, God will not reject a person of integrity, nor will he lend a hand to the wicked. |
| 21He will yet fill your mouth with laughing, And your lips with rejoicing. | 21He will once again fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. |
| 22Those who hate you will be clothed with shame, And the dwelling place of the wicked will come to nothing.” | 22Those who hate you will be clothed with shame, and the home of the wicked will be destroyed.” |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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