The First Speech of Bildad
1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied,
2“Job, how long will you talk like that?
Your words don’t have any meaning.
3Does God ever treat people unfairly?
Does the Mighty One make what is wrong
appear to be right?
4Your children sinned against him.
So he punished them for their sin.
5But seek God with all your heart.
Make your appeal to the Mighty One.
6Be pure and honest.
And he will rise up and help you now.
He’ll give you everything you had before.
7In the past, things went well with you.
But in days to come, things will get even better.
8“Find out what our parents taught.
Discover what those who lived before them learned.
9After all, we were born only yesterday.
So we don’t know anything.
Our days on this earth are like a shadow that disappears.
10Won’t your people of long ago teach you and tell you?
Won’t the things they said help you understand?
11Can grass grow tall where there isn’t any swamp?
Can plants grow well where there isn’t any water?
12While they are still growing and haven’t been cut,
they dry up faster than grass does.
13The same thing happens to everyone who forgets God.
The hope of ungodly people dies out.
14What they trust in is very weak.
What they depend on is like a spider’s web.
15They lean on it, but it falls apart.
They hold on to it, but it gives way.
16They are like a plant in the sunshine
that receives plenty of water.
It spreads its new growth all over the garden.
17It wraps its roots around a pile of rocks.
It tries to find places to grow among the stones.
18But when the plant is pulled up from its spot,
that place says, ‘I never saw you.’
19The life of that plant is sure to dry up.
But from the same soil other plants will grow.
20“I’m sure God doesn’t turn his back on anyone who is honest.
And he doesn’t help those who do what is evil.
21He will fill your mouth with laughter.
Shouts of joy will come from your lips.
22Your enemies will put on shame as if it were clothes.
The tents of sinful people will be gone.”
Bildad
1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied:
2“How long will you say such things?
Your words are a blustering wind.
3Does God pervert justice?
Does the Almighty pervert what is right?
4When your children sinned against him,
he gave them over to the penalty of their sin.
5But if you will seek God earnestly
and plead with the Almighty,
6if you are pure and upright,
even now he will rouse himself on your behalf
and restore you to your prosperous state.
7Your beginnings will seem humble,
so prosperous will your future be.
8“Ask the former generation
and find out what their ancestors learned,
9for we were born only yesterday and know nothing,
and our days on earth are but a shadow.
10Will they not instruct you and tell you?
Will they not bring forth words from their understanding?
11Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh?
Can reeds thrive without water?
12While still growing and uncut,
they wither more quickly than grass.
13Such is the destiny of all who forget God;
so perishes the hope of the godless.
14What they trust in is fragile8:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.;
what they rely on is a spider’s web.
15They lean on the web, but it gives way;
they cling to it, but it does not hold.
16They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine,
spreading its shoots over the garden;
17it entwines its roots around a pile of rocks
and looks for a place among the stones.
18But when it is torn from its spot,
that place disowns it and says, ‘I never saw you.’
19Surely its life withers away,
and8:19 Or Surely all the joy it has / is that from the soil other plants grow.
20“Surely God does not reject one who is blameless
or strengthen the hands of evildoers.
21He will yet fill your mouth with laughter
and your lips with shouts of joy.
22Your enemies will be clothed in shame,
and the tents of the wicked will be no more.”
