² “You upset me, so I must answer you.
    I must tell you what I am thinking.
³ You insulted me with your answers!
    But I am wise and know how to answer you.

^4-5 “You know that the joy of the wicked does not last long.
    That has been true a long time, ever since Adam was^[a] put on earth.
    Those who don’t know God are happy for only a short time.
⁶ Maybe an evil man’s pride will reach up to the sky,
    and his head will touch the clouds.
⁷ But he will be gone forever like his own body waste.
    People who knew him will say, ‘Where is he?’
⁸ Like a dream, he will fly away, never to be found.
    He will be chased away like a bad dream.^[b]
9 Those who knew him before will not see him again.
    His family will never again get to see him.
¹⁰ His children will have to give back what he took from the poor.
    His own hands will give up his wealth.
¹¹ When he was young, his bones were strong,
    but, like the rest of his body, they will soon lie in the dirt.

¹² “Evil tastes sweet in his mouth.
    He keeps it under his tongue to enjoy it fully.
¹³ He hates to let it go
    and holds it in his mouth.
¹⁴ But that evil will turn sour in his stomach.
    It will be like a snake’s bitter poison inside him.
¹⁵ The evil man will spit out the riches he has swallowed.
    God will make him vomit them up.
¹⁶ What he drank will be like a snake’s poison;
    it will kill him like the bite of a deadly snake.
¹⁷ He will never again enjoy so much wealth—
    rivers flowing with honey and cream.^[c]
18 He will be forced to give back his profits.
    He will not be allowed to enjoy what he worked for,
¹⁹ because he hurt the poor and left them with nothing.
    He took houses he did not build.

²⁰ “The evil man is never satisfied.
    But the things he wants cannot save him.
²¹ After filling himself, there is nothing left.
    His success will not continue.
²² Even while he has plenty, he will be pressed down with trouble.
    His problems will come down on him!
²³ If he does get all he wants,
    God will throw his burning anger against him.
    God will attack him and rain down punishment on him.
²⁴ Maybe he will run away from an iron sword,
    but then a bronze arrow^[d] will strike him down.
²⁵ It will go through his body
    and stick out of his back.
Its shining point will pierce his liver,
    and he will be shocked with terror.
²⁶ All his treasures will be lost in darkness.
    He will be destroyed by a fire, a fire that no human started.
    It will destroy everything left in his house.
²⁷ Heaven will prove that he is guilty.
    The earth will be a witness against him.
²⁸ His house and everything in it will be carried away
    in the flood of God’s anger.
²⁹ That is what God will do to those who are evil.
    That is what he plans to give them.”

² “Listen to what I say.
    Let this be your way of comforting me.
³ Be patient while I speak.
    Then after I have finished speaking, you may make fun of me.

⁴ “My complaint is not against people.
    There is a good reason why I am not patient.
⁵ Look at me and be shocked.
    Put your hand over your mouth, and stare at me in shock!
⁶ When I think about what happened to me,
    I feel afraid and my body shakes!
⁷ Why do evil people live long lives?
    Why do they grow old and successful?
⁸ They watch their children grow up
    and live to see their grandchildren.
⁹ Their homes are safe and free from fear.
    God does not punish them.
¹⁰ Their bulls never fail to mate.
    Their cows have healthy calves.
¹¹ They send their children out to play like lambs.
    Their children dance around.
¹² They sing and dance to the sound of harps and flutes.
¹³ Evil people enjoy success during their lives
    and then go to the grave without suffering.
¹⁴ They say to God, ‘Leave us alone!
    We don’t care what you want us to do!’
¹⁵ And they say, ‘Who is God All-Powerful?
    We don’t need to serve him!
    It will not help to pray to him!’

¹⁶ “Of course, evil people don’t make their own success.
    I would never follow their advice.
¹⁷ But how often does God blow out their light?
    How often does trouble come to them?
    How often does God get angry with them and punish them?
¹⁸ Does God blow them away, as the wind blows straw
    or as strong winds blow the grain husks?
¹⁹ But you say, ‘God is saving their punishment for their children.’
    No! Let God punish the evil people themselves so that they will know what they have done!
²⁰ Let them see their own punishment.
    Let them feel the anger of God All-Powerful.
²¹ When their life is finished and they are dead,
    they will not care about the family they leave behind.

²² “No one can teach God anything he doesn’t already know.
    God judges even those in high places.
²³ One person dies after living a full and successful life,
    a life completely safe and comfortable,
²⁴ with a body that was well fed
    and bones that were still strong.
²⁵ But another person dies after a hard life that has made them bitter,
    never having enjoyed anything good.
²⁶ In the end, both of these people will lie together in the dirt.
    The worms will cover them both.

²⁷ “But I know what you are thinking,
    and I know you want to hurt me.
²⁸ You might say, ‘Show me a good man’s house.
    Now, show me where evil people live.’^[e]

²⁹ “Surely you have talked with travelers.
    Surely you will accept their stories.
³⁰ Evil people are spared when disaster comes.
    They survive when God shows his anger.
³¹ No one criticizes them to their faces for how they lived.
    No one punishes them for the evil they have done.
³² When they are carried to the grave,
    they will have someone to watch over the place they are buried.
³³ So even the soil in the valley will be pleasant for them,
    and thousands of people will join their funeral procession.

³⁴ “So your empty words are no comfort to me.
    There is no truth at all in your answers!”