| New International Version | NET Bible |
| 1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied: | 1Then Bildad the Shuhite spoke up and said: |
| 2"How long will you say such things? Your words are a blustering wind. | 2"How long will you speak these things, seeing that the words of your mouth are like a great wind? |
| 3Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what is right? | 3Does God pervert justice? Or does the Almighty pervert what is right? |
| 4When your children sinned against him, he gave them over to the penalty of their sin. | 4If 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, | 5But if you will look to God, and make your supplication to the Almighty, |
| 6if you are pure and upright, even now he will rouse himself on your behalf and restore you to your prosperous state. | 6if you become pure and upright, even now he will rouse himself for you, and will restore your righteous abode. |
| 7Your beginnings will seem humble, so prosperous will your future be. | 7Your beginning will seem so small, since your future will flourish. |
| 8"Ask the former generation and find out what their ancestors learned, | 8"For inquire now of the former generation, and pay attention to the findings of their ancestors; |
| 9for we were born only yesterday and know nothing, and our days on earth are but a shadow. | 9For we were born yesterday and do not have knowledge, since 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? | 10Will they not instruct you and speak to you, and bring forth words from their understanding? |
| 11Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh? Can reeds thrive without water? | 11Can the papyrus plant grow tall where there is no marsh? Can reeds flourish without water? |
| 12While still growing and uncut, they wither more quickly than grass. | 12While they are still beginning to flower and not ripe for cutting, they can wither away faster than any grass! |
| 13Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so perishes the hope of the godless. | 13Such is the destiny of all who forget God; the hope of the godless perishes, |
| 14What they trust in is fragile; what they rely on is a spider's web. | 14whose trust is in something futile, whose security is a spider's web. |
| 15They lean on the web, but it gives way; they cling to it, but it does not hold. | 15He leans against his house but it does not hold up, he takes hold of it but it does not stand. |
| 16They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine, spreading its shoots over the garden; | 16He is a well-watered plant in the sun, its shoots spread over its garden. |
| 17it entwines its roots around a pile of rocks and looks for a place among the stones. | 17It wraps its roots around a heap of stones and it looks for a place among stones. |
| 18But when it is torn from its spot, that place disowns it and says, 'I never saw you.' | 18If he is uprooted from his place, then that place will disown him, saying, 'I have never seen you!' |
| 19Surely its life withers away, and from the soil other plants grow. | 19Indeed, this is the joy of his way, and out of the earth others spring up. |
| 20"Surely God does not reject one who is blameless or strengthen the hands of evildoers. | 20"Surely, God does not reject a blameless man, nor does he grasp the hand of the evildoers. |
| 21He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. | 21He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with gladness. |
| 22Your enemies will be clothed in shame, and the tents of the wicked will be no more." | 22Those who hate you will be clothed with shame, and the tent of the wicked will be no more." |
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