1Then Bildad the Shuhite replied to Job:
2“How long will you go on like this?You sound like a blustering wind.
3Does God twist justice?Does the Almighty twist what is right?
4Your children must have sinned against him,so their punishment was well deserved.
5But if you pray to Godand seek the favor of the Almighty,
6and if you are pure and live with integrity,he will surely rise up and restore your happy home.
7And though you started with little,you will end with much.
8“Just ask the previous generation.Pay attention to the experience of our ancestors.
9For we were born but yesterday and know nothing.Our days on earth are as fleeting as a shadow.
10But those who came before us will teach you.They will teach you the wisdom of old.
11“Can papyrus reeds grow tall without a marsh?Can marsh grass flourish without water?
12While they are still flowering, not ready to be cut,they begin to wither more quickly than grass.
13The same happens to all who forget God.The hopes of the godless evaporate.
14Their confidence hangs by a thread.They are leaning on a spider’s web.
15They cling to their home for security, but it won’t last.They try to hold it tight, but it will not endure.
16The godless seem like a lush plant growing in the sunshine,its branches spreading across the garden.
17Its roots grow down through a pile of stones;it takes hold on a bed of rocks.
18But when it is uprooted,it’s as though it never existed!
19That’s the end of its life,and others spring up from the earth to replace it.
20“But look, God will not reject a person of integrity,nor will he lend a hand to the wicked.
21He will once again fill your mouth with laughterand your lips with shouts of joy.
22Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,and the home of the wicked will be destroyed.”