“Pity me, pity me, O you my friends,
For the hand of God has struck me.

“If you say, ‘How shall we persecute him?’
And ‘What pretext for a case against him can we find?’

“Then be afraid of the sword for yourselves,
For wrath brings the punishment of the sword,
So that you may know there is judgment.”

“Therefore my disquieting thoughts make me respond,
Even because of my inward agitation.

“I listened to the reproof which insults me,
And the spirit of my understanding makes me answer.

“Do you know this from of old,
From the establishment of man on earth,

That the triumphing of the wicked is short,
And the joy of the godless momentary?

“He flies away like a dream, and they cannot find him;
Even like a vision of the night he is chased away.

“His bones are full of his youthful vigor,
But it lies down with him in the dust.

Yet his food in his stomach is changed
To the venom of cobras within him.

“He sucks the poison of cobras;
The viper’s tongue slays him.

“He returns what he has attained
And cannot swallow it;
As to the riches of his trading,
He cannot even enjoy them.

“In the fullness of his plenty he will be cramped;
The hand of everyone who suffers will come against him.

“It is drawn forth and comes out of his back,
Even the glittering point from his gall.
Terrors come upon him,

“The increase of his house will depart;
His possessions will flow away in the day of His anger.

“Listen carefully to my speech,
And let this be your way of consolation.

“Even when I remember, I am disturbed,
And horror takes hold of my flesh.

Their houses are safe from fear,
And the rod of God is not on them.

“They sing to the timbrel and harp
And rejoice at the sound of the flute.

“They say to God, ‘Depart from us!
We do not even desire the knowledge of Your ways.

‘Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him,
And what would we gain if we entreat Him?’

“Behold, their prosperity is not in their hand;
The counsel of the wicked is far from me.

“How often is the lamp of the wicked put out,
Or does their calamity fall on them?
Does God apportion destruction in His anger?

“Let his own eyes see his decay,
And let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty.

“For what does he care for his household after him,
When the number of his months is cut off?

His sides are filled out with fat,
And the marrow of his bones is moist,

“For you say, ‘Where is the house of the nobleman,
And where is the tent, the dwelling places of the wicked?’

“For the wicked is reserved for the day of calamity;
They will be led forth at the day of fury.

“The clods of the valley will gently cover him;
Moreover, all men will follow after him,
While countless ones go before him.

“How then will you vainly comfort me,
For your answers remain full of falsehood?”

“Can a vigorous man be of use to God,
Or a wise man be useful to himself?

“Is there any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous,
Or profit if you make your ways perfect?

“Is it because of your reverence that He reproves you,
That He enters into judgment against you?

“For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause,
And stripped men naked.

“You have sent widows away empty,
And the strength of the orphans has been crushed.

Or darkness, so that you cannot see,
And an abundance of water covers you.

“Is not God in the height of heaven?
Look also at the distant stars, how high they are!

‘Clouds are a hiding place for Him, so that He cannot see;
And He walks on the vault of heaven.’

“Yet He filled their houses with good things;
But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

Saying, ‘Truly our adversaries are cut off,
And their abundance the fire has consumed.’

“If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored;
If you remove unrighteousness far from your tent,

And place your gold in the dust,
And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks,

“He will deliver one who is not innocent,
And he will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.”

“Would He contend with me by the greatness of His power?
No, surely He would pay attention to me.

“I have not departed from the command of His lips;
I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.

“Therefore, I would be dismayed at His presence;
When I consider, I am terrified of Him.

“They drive away the donkeys of the orphans;
They take the widow’s ox for a pledge.

“They push the needy aside from the road;
The poor of the land are made to hide themselves altogether.

“They harvest their fodder in the field
And glean the vineyard of the wicked.

“They are wet with the mountain rains
And hug the rock for want of a shelter.

“From the city men groan,
And the souls of the wounded cry out;
Yet God does not pay attention to folly.

“The eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight,
Saying, ‘No eye will see me.’
And he disguises his face.

“For the morning is the same to him as thick darkness,
For he is familiar with the terrors of thick darkness.

“They are insignificant on the surface of the water;
Their portion is cursed on the earth.
They do not turn toward the vineyards.

“But He drags off the valiant by His power;
He rises, but no one has assurance of life.

“They are exalted a little while, then they are gone;
Moreover, they are brought low and like everything gathered up;
Even like the heads of grain they are cut off.

“Now if it is not so, who can prove me a liar,
And make my speech worthless?”

“How then can a man be just with God?
Or how can he be clean who is born of woman?

“If even the moon has no brightness
And the stars are not pure in His sight,

How much less man, that maggot,
And the son of man, that worm!”

“He obscures the face of the full moon
And spreads His cloud over it.

“He has inscribed a circle on the surface of the waters
At the boundary of light and darkness.

“The pillars of heaven tremble
And are amazed at His rebuke.

“Behold, these are the fringes of His ways;
And how faint a word we hear of Him!
But His mighty thunder, who can understand?”

For as long as life is in me,
And the breath of God is in my nostrils,

“I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go.
My heart does not reproach any of my days.

“For what is the hope of the godless when he is cut off,
When God requires his life?

“I will instruct you in the power of God;
What is with the Almighty I will not conceal.

“Behold, all of you have seen it;
Why then do you act foolishly?

“This is the portion of a wicked man from God,
And the inheritance which tyrants receive from the Almighty.

“His survivors will be buried because of the plague,
And their widows will not be able to weep.

“Its rocks are the source of sapphires,
And its dust contains gold.

“The path no bird of prey knows,
Nor has the falcon’s eye caught sight of it.

“But where can wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?

“Man does not know its value,
Nor is it found in the land of the living.

“It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
In precious onyx, or sapphire.

“Gold or glass cannot equal it,
Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.

“Coral and crystal are not to be mentioned;
And the acquisition of wisdom is above that of pearls.

“The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it,
Nor can it be valued in pure gold.

“Where then does wisdom come from?
And where is the place of understanding?

“Thus it is hidden from the eyes of all living
And concealed from the birds of the sky.

“Abaddon and Death say,
‘With our ears we have heard a report of it.’

“For He looks to the ends of the earth
And sees everything under the heavens.

“And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
And to depart from evil is understanding.’”

As I was in the prime of my days,
When the friendship of God was over my tent;

When my steps were bathed in butter,
And the rock poured out for me streams of oil!

“When I went out to the gate of the city,
When I took my seat in the square,

The voice of the nobles was hushed,
And their tongue stuck to their palate.

“For when the ear heard, it called me blessed,
And when the eye saw, it gave witness of me,

“The blessing of the one ready to perish came upon me,
And I made the widow’s heart sing for joy.

“I broke the jaws of the wicked
And snatched the prey from his teeth.

“I smiled on them when they did not believe,
And the light of my face they did not cast down.

“But now those younger than I mock me,
Whose fathers I disdained to put with the dogs of my flock.

“Indeed, what good was the strength of their hands to me?
Vigor had perished from them.

Who pluck mallow by the bushes,
And whose food is the root of the broom shrub.

So that they dwell in dreadful valleys,
In holes of the earth and of the rocks.

“Because He has loosed His bowstring and afflicted me,
They have cast off the bridle before me.

“On the right hand their brood arises;
They thrust aside my feet and build up against me their ways of destruction.

“And now my soul is poured out within me;
Days of affliction have seized me.

“By a great force my garment is distorted;
It binds me about as the collar of my coat.