Job 8

The First Speech of Bildad

8Then 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 look to God.

Make your appeal to the Mighty One.

⁶Be pure and honest.

And he will rise up and help you now.

He’ll return you to the place where you belong.

⁷In the past, things went well with you.

But in days to come, things will get even better.

⁸“Find out what your people who lived long ago 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.

¹⁵A person leans on it, but it falls apart.

He holds on to it, but it gives way.

¹⁶He is 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 a 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.”