1
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Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied: |
2
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"A wise man wouldn't answer with such empty talk! You are nothing but a windbag. |
3
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The wise don't engage in empty chatter. What good are such words? |
4
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Have you no fear of God, no reverence for him? |
5
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Your sins are telling your mouth what to say. Your words are based on clever deception. |
6
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Your own mouth condemns you, not I. Your own lips testify against you. |
7
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"Were you the first person ever born? Were you born before the hills were made? |
8
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Were you listening at God's secret council? Do you have a monopoly on wisdom? |
9
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What do you know that we don't? What do you understand that we do not? |
10
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On our side are aged, gray-haired men much older than your father! |
11
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"Is God's comfort too little for you? Is his gentle word not enough? |
12
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What has taken away your reason? What has weakened your vision, |
13
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that you turn against God and say all these evil things? |
14
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Can any mortal be pure? Can anyone born of a woman be just? |
15
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Look, God does not even trust the angels. Even the heavens are not absolutely pure in his sight. |
16
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How much less pure is a corrupt and sinful person with a thirst for wickedness! |
17
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"If you will listen, I will show you. I will answer you from my own experience. |
18
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And it is confirmed by the reports of wise men who have heard the same thing from their fathers-- |
19
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from those to whom the land was given long before any foreigners arrived. |
20
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"The wicked writhe in pain throughout their lives. Years of trouble are stored up for the ruthless. |
21
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The sound of terror rings in their ears, and even on good days they fear the attack of the destroyer. |
22
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They dare not go out into the darkness for fear they will be murdered. |
23
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They wander around, saying, 'Where can I find bread?' They know their day of destruction is near. |
24
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That dark day terrifies them. They live in distress and anguish, like a king preparing for battle. |
25
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For they shake their fists at God, defying the Almighty. |
26
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Holding their strong shields, they defiantly charge against him. |
27
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"These wicked people are heavy and prosperous; their waists bulge with fat. |
28
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But their cities will be ruined. They will live in abandoned houses that are ready to tumble down. |
29
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Their riches will not last, and their wealth will not endure. Their possessions will no longer spread across the horizon. |
30
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"They will not escape the darkness. The burning sun will wither their shoots, and the breath of God will destroy them. |
31
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Let them no longer fool themselves by trusting in empty riches, for emptiness will be their only reward. |
32
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Like trees, they will be cut down in the prime of life; their branches will never again be green. |
33
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They will be like a vine whose grapes are harvested too early, like an olive tree that loses its blossoms before the fruit can form. |
34
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For the godless are barren. Their homes, enriched through bribery, will burn. |
35
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They conceive trouble and give birth to evil. Their womb produces deceit." |
Job 15:1 English Language Bible Words basic statistical display
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