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<2> "Listen to what I say.
Let that be your way of comforting me.
<3> Be patient while I speak.
Then after I have finished speaking,
you may make fun of me.
<4> "I am not complaining against people.
There is a good reason
why I am not patient.
<5> Look at me and be shocked.
Put your hand over your mouth,
and stare at me in shock!
<6> When I think about what happened to me
I feel afraid, and my body shakes!
<7> Why do evil people live long lives?
Why do they grow old and successful?
<8> Evil people watch their children grow up.
Evil people live to see their grandchildren.
<9> Their homes are safe, and they are not afraid.
God does not use a stick to punish evil people.
<10> Their bulls never fail to mate.
Their cows have healthy calves.
<11> Evil people send their children out
to play like lambs.
Their children dance around.
<12> They sing and dance
to the sound of harps and flutes.
<13> Evil people enjoy success during their lives
and then go to their grave without suffering.
<14> But evil people say to God,
'Leave us alone!
We don't care what you want us to do!'
<15> They also say,
'Who is God All-Powerful?
We don't need to serve him!
It will not help to pray to him!'
<16> "True, evil people don't make their own success.
I cannot follow their advice.
<17> But how often does God blow out the light of evil people?
How often does trouble come to them?
When does God become angry with them and punish them?
<18> Does God blow the evil people away,
like the wind blows straw,
like strong winds blow the grain husks?
<19> But you say,
'God punishes a child for their father's sins.'
No! Let God punish the evil people himself.
Then those evil people will know that they are being punished for their own sins!
<20> Let them see their own punishment.
Let them feel the anger of God All-Powerful.
<21> When their life is finished, and they are dead,
they will not care about the family they leave behind.
<22> "No one can teach knowledge to God.
God judges even those in high places.
<23> One person dies after living a full and successful life,
a life completely safe and comfortable,
<24> with a body that was well fed
and bones that were still strong.
<25> But someone else dies after a hard life, with a bitter soul,
never having enjoyed anything good.
<26> In the end, both of these people
will lie together in the dirt.
The worms will cover them both.
<27> "But I know what you are thinking,
and I know you want to hurt me.
<28> You might say:
'Show me a good man's house.
Now, show me where evil people live.'[46]
<29> "Surely you have talked with travelers.
Surely you will accept their stories.
<30> Evil people are spared when disaster comes.
They survive when God shows his anger.
<31> No one criticizes evil people
to their faces for the bad things they have done.
No one punishes them for the evil they have done.
<32> When those evil people are carried to the grave,
they will have someone to watch over their graves.
<33> So even the soil in the valley will be pleasant for them,
and thousands of people will join the march to their graves.
<34> "So you cannot comfort me with your empty words.
Your answers don't help at all!"
© Copyright 2004 World Bible Translation Center.