Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said,
Therefore do my thoughts give answer to me,
{Or, And by reason of this my haste is within me}Even by reason of my haste that is in me.
I have heard the reproof which putteth me to shame;
{Or, But out of my understanding my spirit answereth me}And the spirit of my understanding answereth me.
Knowest thou not this of old time,
Since man was placed upon earth,
That the triumphing of the wicked is short,
And the joy of the godless but for a moment?
Though his height mount up to the heavens,
And his head reach unto the clouds;
Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung:
They that have seen him shall say, Where is he?
He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found:
Yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night.
The eye which saw him shall see him no more;
Neither shall his place any more behold him.
{Or, as otherwise read, The poor shall oppress his children}His children shall seek the favor of the poor,
And his hands shall give back his wealth.
His bones are full of his youth,
But it shall lie down with him in the dust.
Though wickedness be sweet in his mouth,
Though he hide it under his tongue,
Though he spare it, and will not let it go,
But keep it still within his mouth;
Yet his food in his bowels is turned,
It is the gall of asps within him.
He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again;
God will cast them out of his belly.
He shall suck the poison of asps:
The viper's tongue shall slay him.
He shall not look upon the rivers,
The flowing streams of honey and butter.
That which he labored for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down;
According to the substance {Hebrew: of his exchange.}that he hath gotten, he shall not rejoice.
For he hath oppressed and forsaken the poor;
He hath violently taken away a house, {Or, which he builded not}and he shall not build it up.
Because he knew no quietness {Or, in his greed Hebrew: in his belly.}within him,
He shall not save aught of that wherein he delighteth.
There was nothing left that he devoured not;
Therefore his prosperity shall not endure.
In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits:
The hand of every one that is in misery shall come upon him.
{Or, Let it be for the filling of his belly that God shall cast &c.}When he is about to fill his belly,
God will cast the fierceness of his wrath upon him,
And will rain it upon him {Or, as his food}while he is eating.
He shall flee from the iron weapon,
And the bow of brass shall strike him through.
He draweth it forth, and it cometh out of his body;
Yea, the glittering point cometh out of his gall:
Terrors are upon him.
All darkness is laid up for his treasures:
A fire not blown by man shall devour him;
{Or, It shall go ill with him that is left}It shall consume that which is left in his tent.
The heavens shall reveal his iniquity,
And the earth shall rise up against him.
The increase of his house shall depart;
His goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.
This is the portion of a wicked man from God,
And the heritage appointed unto him by God.
Querverweise zu Hiob 20,18 Hiob 20,18
{Or, as otherwise read, The poor shall oppress his children}His children shall seek the favor of the poor,And his hands shall give back his wealth.
That the triumphing of the wicked is short,And the joy of the godless but for a moment?
If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great,And because my hand had gotten much;
He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again;God will cast them out of his belly.
Let us swallow them up alive as Sheol, {Or, Even the perfect}And whole, as those that go down into the pit;
If I have rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me,Or lifted up myself when evil found him
Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon hath devoured {Another reading is, us.}me, he hath crushed {Another reading is, us.}me, he hath made {Another reading is, us.}me an empty vessel, he hath, like a monster, swallowed {Another reading is, us.}me up, he hath filled his maw with my delicacies; he hath cast {Another reading is, us.}me out.
The new wine mourneth, the vine languisheth, all the merry-hearted do sigh.
The mirth of tabrets ceaseth, the noise of them that rejoice endeth, the joy of the harp ceaseth.
They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it.
The waste city is broken down; every house is shut up, that no man may come in.
There is a crying in the streets because of the wine; all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is {Hebrew: gone into captivity.}gone.
And I will {Hebrew: visit upon.}execute judgment upon Bel in Babylon, and I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he hath swallowed up; and the nations shall not flow any more unto him: yea, the wall of Babylon shall fall.
What hath my beloved to do in my house, seeing she hath wrought lewdness {The text is obscure. The Septuagint has Shall vows and holy flesh take away from thee thy wickednesses, or shall thou escape by these?}with many, and the holy flesh is passed from thee? {Or, when thine evil cometh}when thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest.
All thine enemies have opened their mouth wide against thee;They hiss and gnash the teeth; they say, We have swallowed her up;Certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it.
Jehovah called thy name, A green olive-tree, fair with goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken.
For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: {Or, it hath no stalk}he hath no standing grain; the blade shall yield no meal; if so be it yield, strangers shall swallow it up.
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; that useth his neighbor's service without wages, and giveth him not his hire;
Israel is swallowed up: now are they among the nations as a vessel wherein none delighteth.
But thine eyes and thy heart are not but for thy {Or, dishonest gain}covetousness, and for shedding innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it.
Hear this, O ye that would swallow up the needy, and cause the poor of the land to fail,
The time is come, the day draweth near: let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn; for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof.
- - -
Rejoice not, O Israel, {Or, unto exulation}for joy, like the peoples; {Or, that }for thou hast played the harlot, departing from thy God; thou hast loved hire upon every grain-floor.
Ye blind guides, that strain out the gnat, and swallow the camel!
Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye doubleminded.
Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.