2“Should a wise man answer with empty knowledge,
And fill [a]himself with the east wind?
3Should he reason with unprofitable talk,
Or by speeches with which he can do no good?
4Yes, you cast off fear,
And restrain [b]prayer before God.
5For your iniquity teaches your mouth,
And you choose the tongue of the crafty.
6Your own mouth condemns you, and not I;
Yes, your own lips testify against you.

7“Are you the first man who was born?
Or were you made before the hills?
8Have you heard the counsel of God?
Do you limit wisdom to yourself?
9What do you know that we do not know?
What do you understand that is not in us?
10Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us,
Much older than your father.
11Are the consolations of God too small for you,
And the word spoken [c]gently with you?
12Why does your heart carry you away,
And [d]what do your eyes wink at,
13That you turn your spirit against God,
And let such words go out of your mouth?

14“What is man, that he could be pure?
And he who is born of a woman, that he could be righteous?
15If God puts no trust in His saints,
And the heavens are not pure in His sight,
16How much less man, who is abominable and filthy,
Who drinks iniquity like water!

17“I will tell you, hear me;
What I have seen I will declare,
18What wise men have told,
Not hiding anything received from their fathers,
19To whom alone the [e]land was given,
And no alien passed among them:
20The wicked man writhes with pain all his days,
And the number of years is hidden from the oppressor.
21[f]Dreadful sounds are in his ears;
In prosperity the destroyer comes upon him.
22He does not believe that he will return from darkness,
For a sword is waiting for him.
23He wanders about for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’
He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand.
24Trouble and anguish make him afraid;
They overpower him, like a king ready for [g]battle.
25For he stretches out his hand against God,
And acts defiantly against the Almighty,
26Running stubbornly against Him
With his strong, embossed shield.

27“Though he has covered his face with his fatness,
And made his waist heavy with fat,
28He dwells in desolate cities,
In houses which no one inhabits,
Which are destined to become ruins.
29He will not be rich,
Nor will his wealth continue,
Nor will his possessions overspread the earth.
30He will not depart from darkness;
The flame will dry out his branches,
And by the breath of His mouth he will go away.
31Let him not trust in futile things, deceiving himself,
For futility will be his reward.
32It will be accomplished before his time,
And his branch will not be green.
33He will shake off his unripe grape like a vine,
And cast off his blossom like an olive tree.
34For the company of hypocrites will be barren,
And fire will consume the tents of bribery.
35They conceive trouble and bring forth futility;
Their womb prepares deceit.”