Job 21

NEW AMERICAN BIBLE	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Then Job said in reply:	1 Then Job responded by saying:
2 At least listen to my words, and let that be the consolation you offer.	2 I beseech you to hear my words and to do penance.
3 Bear with me while I speak; and after I have spoken, you can mock!	3 Permit me, and I will speak, and afterwards, if you see fit, you can laugh at my words.
4 Is my complaint toward man? And why should I not be impatient?	4 Is my dispute against man, so that I would have no reason to be discouraged?
5 Look at me and be astonished, put your hands over your mouths.	5 Listen to me and be astonished, and place a finger over your mouth.
6 When I think of it, I am dismayed, and horror takes hold on my flesh.	6 As for me, when I think it over, I am afraid, and trembling convulses my body.
7 Why do the wicked survive, grow old, become mighty in power?	7 Why then do the impious live, having been lifted up and strengthened with riches?
8 Their progeny is secure in their sight; they see before them their kinsfolk and their offspring.	8 They see their offspring continue before them: a commotion of close relatives and of children’s children in their sight.
9 Their homes are safe and without fear, nor is the scourge of God upon them.	9 Their houses have been secure and peaceable, and there is no staff of God over them.
10 Their bulls gender without fail; their cows calve and do not miscarry.	10 Their cattle have conceived and have not miscarried; their cow has given birth and is not deprived of her newborn.
11 These folk have infants numerous as lambs, and their children dance.	11 Their little ones go out like a flock, and their children jump around playfully.
12 They sing to the timbrel and harp, and make merry to the sound of the flute.	12 They take up the timbrel and the lyre, and they rejoice at the sound of the organ.
13 They live out their days in prosperity, and tranquilly go down to the nether world.	13 Their days are prolonged in wealth, yet, in an instant, they descend into hell.
14 Yet they say to God, "Depart from us, for we have no wish to learn your ways!	14 Who has said to God, “Depart from us, for we do not want the knowledge of your ways.
15 What is the Almighty that we should serve him? And what gain shall we have if we pray to him?"	15 Who is the Almighty that we should serve him? And how is it helpful to us if we pray to him?”
16 If their happiness is not in their own hands and if the counsel of the wicked is repulsive to God,	16 It is true that their good things are not in their power. May the counsel of the impious be far from me!
17 How often is the lamp of the wicked put out? How often does destruction come upon them, the portion he allots in his anger?	17 How often will the lamp of the wicked be extinguished, and a deluge overtake them, and how often will he distribute the afflictions of his wrath?
18 Let them be like straw before the wind, and like chaff which the storm snatches away!	18 They will be like chaff before the face of the wind, and like ashes that the whirlwind scatters.
19 May God not store up the man's misery for his children; let him requite the man himself so that he feels it,	19 God will preserve the grief of the father for his sons, and, when he repays, then he will understand.
20 Let his own eyes see the calamity, and the wrath of the Almighty let him drink!	20 His eyes will see his own destruction, and he will drink from the wrath of the Almighty.
21 For what interest has he in his family after him, when the number of his months is finished?	21 For what does he care what happens to his house after him, or if the number of its months are reduced by half?
22 Can anyone teach God knowledge, seeing that he judges those on high?	22 Can anyone teach holy knowledge to God, who judges the exalted?
23 One dies in his full vigor, wholly at ease and content;	23 This one dies strong and healthy, rich and happy.
24 His figure is full and nourished, and his bones are rich in marrow.	24 His gut is full of fat and his bones are moistened with marrow.
25 Another dies in bitterness of soul, having never tasted happiness.	25 In truth, another dies in bitterness of soul, without any resources.
26 Alike they lie down in the dust, and worms cover them both.	26 And yet they will sleep together in the dust, and worms will cover them.
27 Behold, I know your thoughts, and the arguments you rehearse against me.	27 Surely, I know your thoughts and your sinful judgments against me.
28 For you say, "Where is the house of the magnate, and where the dwelling place of the wicked?"	28 For you say, “Where is the house of the ruler, and where are the tabernacles of the impious?”
29 Have you not asked the wayfarers and do you not recognize their monuments?	29 Ask any passerby whom you wish, and you will realize that he understands these same things:
30 Nay, the evil man is spared calamity when it comes;	30 that the evil-doer is reserved for the day of destruction, and he will be led to the day of wrath.
31 Who will charge him with his conduct to his face, and for what he has done who will repay him?	31 Who will reprove his way to his face, and who will repay him for what he has done?
32 and on the day he is carried to the grave	32 He will be led to the tomb, and he will remain awake in the chaos of the dead.
33 Sweet to him are the clods of the valley, and over him the funeral mound keeps watch, While all the line of mankind follows him, and the countless others who have gone before.	33 He has been found acceptable to the banks of the River of Lamentation, and he will draw any man towards him, and there are countless before him.
34 How then can you offer me vain comfort, while in your answers perfidy remains?	34 Therefore, how long will you console me in vain, when your answer is shown to be repugnant to truth?