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Job chapter 20

English Standard Version

1Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
2“Therefore my thoughts answer me, because of my haste within me. 3I hear censure that insults me, and out of my understanding a spirit answers me. 4Do you not know this from of old, since man was placed on earth, 5that the exulting of the wicked is short, and the joy of the godless but for a moment? 6Though his height mount up to the heavens, and his head reach to the clouds, 7he will perish forever like his own dung; those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’ 8He will fly away like a dream and not be found; he will be chased away like a vision of the night. 9The eye that saw him will see him no more, nor will his place any more behold him. 10His children will seek the favor of the poor, and his hands will give back his wealth. 11His bones are full of his youthful vigor, but it will lie down with him in the dust. 12“Though evil is sweet in his mouth, though he hides it under his tongue, 13though he is loath to let it go and holds it in his mouth, 14yet his food is turned in his stomach; it is the venom of cobras within him. 15He swallows down riches and vomits them up again; God casts them out of his belly. 16He will suck the poison of cobras; the tongue of a viper will kill him. 17He will not look upon the rivers, the streams flowing with honey and curds. 18He will give back the fruit of his toil and will not swallow it down; from the profit of his trading he will get no enjoyment. 19For he has crushed and abandoned the poor; he has seized a house that he did not build. 20“Because he knew no contentment in his belly, he will not let anything in which he delights escape him. 21There was nothing left after he had eaten; therefore his prosperity will not endure. 22In the fullness of his sufficiency he will be in distress; the hand of everyone in misery will come against him. 23To fill his belly to the full, God will send his burning anger against him and rain it upon him into his body. 24He will flee from an iron weapon; a bronze arrow will strike him through. 25It is drawn forth and comes out of his body; the glittering point comes out of his gallbladder; terrors come upon him. 26Utter darkness is laid up for his treasures; a fire not fanned will devour him; what is left in his tent will be consumed. 27The heavens will reveal his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him. 28The possessions of his house will be carried away, dragged off in the day of God’s wrath. 29This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the heritage decreed for him by God.”
New International Version

1Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
2My troubled thoughts prompt me to answer because I am greatly disturbed.
3I hear a rebuke that dishonors me, and my understanding inspires me to reply. 4Surely you know how it has been from of old, ever since mankind was placed on the earth, 5that the mirth of the wicked is brief, the joy of the godless lasts but a moment. 6Though the pride of the godless person reaches to the heavens and his head touches the clouds, 7he will perish forever, like his own dung; those who have seen him will say, 'Where is he?' 8Like a dream he flies away, no more to be found, banished like a vision of the night. 9The eye that saw him will not see him again; his place will look on him no more. 10His children must make amends to the poor; his own hands must give back his wealth.
11The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie with him in the dust. 12Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he hides it under his tongue, 13though he cannot bear to let it go and lets it linger in his mouth, 14yet his food will turn sour in his stomach; it will become the venom of serpents within him. 15He will spit out the riches he swallowed; God will make his stomach vomit them up. 16He will suck the poison of serpents; the fangs of an adder will kill him. 17He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream. 18What he toiled for he must give back uneaten; he will not enjoy the profit from his trading.
19For he has oppressed the poor and left them destitute; he has seized houses he did not build. 20Surely he will have no respite from his craving; he cannot save himself by his treasure. 21Nothing is left for him to devour; his prosperity will not endure. 22In the midst of his plenty, distress will overtake him; the full force of misery will come upon him. 23When he has filled his belly, God will vent his burning anger against him and rain down his blows on him. 24Though he flees from an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow pierces him. 25He pulls it out of his back, the gleaming point out of his liver. Terrors will come over him; 26total darkness lies in wait for his treasures. A fire unfanned will consume him and devour what is left in his tent. 27The heavens will expose his guilt; the earth will rise up against him. 28A flood will carry off his house, rushing waters on the day of God's wrath. 29Such is the fate God allots the wicked, the heritage appointed for them by God.'
New American Standard Bible

1Then Zophar the Naamathite responded,
2'Therefore my disquieting thoughts make me respond, Even because of my inward agitation. 3I listened to the reprimand which insults me, And the spirit of my understanding makes me answer. 4Do you know this from ancient times, From the establishment of mankind on earth, 5That the rejoicing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the godless momentary? 6Though his arrogance reaches the heavens, And his head touches the clouds, 7He perishes forever like his refuse; Those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’ 8He flies away like a dream, and they cannot find him; Like a vision of the night he is chased away. 9The eye which saw him sees him no longer, And his place no longer beholds him. 10His sons favor the poor, And his hands give back his wealth. 11His bones are full of his youthful strength, But it lies down with him in the dust. 12'Though evil tastes sweet in his mouth And he hides it under his tongue, 13 Though he desires it and will not let it go, But holds it in his mouth, 14 Yet his food in his stomach is changed To the venom of cobras within him. 15He swallows riches, But will vomit them up; God will expel them from his belly. 16He sucks the poison of cobras; The viper’s tongue kills him. 17He does not look at the streams, The rivers flowing with honey and curds. 18He returns the product of his labor And cannot swallow it; As to the riches of his trading, He cannot even enjoy them. 19For he has oppressed and neglected the poor; He has seized a house which he has not built. 20'Because he knew no quiet within him, He does not retain anything he desires. 21Nothing remains for him to devour, Therefore his prosperity does not endure. 22In the fullness of his excess he will be cramped; The hand of everyone who suffers will come against him. 23When he fills his belly, God will send His fierce anger on him And rain it on him while he is eating. 24He may flee from the iron weapon, But the bronze bow will pierce him. 25It is drawn and comes out of his back, Even the flashing point from his gallbladder; Terrors come upon him, 26Complete darkness is held in reserve for his treasures, And unfanned fire will devour him; It will consume the survivor in his tent. 27The heavens will reveal his guilt, And the earth will rise up against him. 28The increase of his house will disappear; His possessions will flow away on the day of His anger. 29This is a wicked person’s portion from God, The inheritance decreed to him by God.'
Christian Standard Bible

1Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
2This is why my unsettling thoughts compel me to answer, because I am upset!
3I have heard a rebuke that insults me, and my understanding makes me reply. 4Don't you know that ever since antiquity, from the time a human was placed on earth, 5the joy of the wicked has been brief and the happiness of the godless has lasted only a moment? 6Though his arrogance reaches heaven, and his head touches the clouds, 7he will vanish forever like his own dung. Those who know him will ask, "Where is he? " 8He will fly away like a dream and never be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night. 9The eye that saw him will see him no more, and his household will no longer see him. 10His children will beg from the poor, for his own hands must give back his wealth.
11His frame may be full of youthful vigor, but it will lie down with him in dust. 12Though evil tastes sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue, 13though he cherishes it and will not let it go but keeps it in his mouth, 14yet the food in his stomach turns into cobras' venom inside him. 15He swallows wealth but must vomit it up; God will force it from his stomach. 16He will suck the poison of cobras; a viper's fangs will kill him. 17He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and curds. 18He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he doesn't enjoy the profits from his trading.
19For he oppressed and abandoned the poor; he seized a house he did not build. 20Because his appetite is never satisfied, he does not let anything he desires escape. 21Nothing is left for him to consume; therefore, his prosperity will not last. 22At the height of his success distress will come to him; the full weight of misery will crush him. 23When he fills his stomach, God will send his burning anger against him, raining it down on him while he is eating. 24If he flees from an iron weapon, an arrow from a bronze bow will pierce him. 25He pulls it out of his back, the flashing tip out of his liver. Terrors come over him. 26Total darkness is reserved for his treasures. A fire unfanned by human hands will consume him; it will feed on what is left in his tent. 27The heavens will expose his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him. 28The possessions in his house will be removed, flowing away on the day of God's anger. 29This is the wicked person's lot from God, the inheritance God ordained for him.
New Living Translation

1Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
2'I must reply because I am greatly disturbed. 3I’ve had to endure your insults, but now my spirit prompts me to reply.
4'Don’t you realize that from the beginning of time, ever since people were first placed on the earth, 5the triumph of the wicked has been short lived and the joy of the godless has been only temporary? 6Though the pride of the godless reaches to the heavens and their heads touch the clouds, 7yet they will vanish forever, thrown away like their own dung. Those who knew them will ask, ‘Where are they?’ 8They will fade like a dream and not be found. They will vanish like a vision in the night. 9Those who once saw them will see them no more. Their families will never see them again. 10Their children will beg from the poor, for they must give back their stolen riches. 11Though they are young, their bones will lie in the dust.
12'They enjoyed the sweet taste of wickedness, letting it melt under their tongue. 13They savored it, holding it long in their mouths. 14But suddenly the food in their bellies turns sour, a poisonous venom in their stomach. 15They will vomit the wealth they swallowed. God won’t let them keep it down. 16They will suck the poison of cobras. The viper will kill them. 17They will never again enjoy streams of olive oil or rivers of milk and honey. 18They will give back everything they worked for. Their wealth will bring them no joy. 19For they oppressed the poor and left them destitute. They foreclosed on their homes. 20They were always greedy and never satisfied. Nothing remains of all the things they dreamed about. 21Nothing is left after they finish gorging themselves. Therefore, their prosperity will not endure.
22'In the midst of plenty, they will run into trouble and be overcome by misery. 23May God give them a bellyful of trouble. May God rain down his anger upon them. 24When they try to escape an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce them. 25The arrow is pulled from their back, and the arrowhead glistens with blood. The terrors of death are upon them. 26Their treasures will be thrown into deepest darkness. A wildfire will devour their goods, consuming all they have left. 27The heavens will reveal their guilt, and the earth will testify against them. 28A flood will sweep away their house. God’s anger will descend on them in torrents. 29This is the reward that God gives the wicked. It is the inheritance decreed by God.'
King James Version

1Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said, 2Therefore do my thoughts cause me to answer, and for this I make haste. 3I have heard the check of my reproach, and the spirit of my understanding causeth me to answer. 4Knowest thou not this of old, since man was placed upon earth, 5That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment? 6Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds; 7Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he? 8He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night. 9The eye also which saw him shall see him no more; neither shall his place any more behold him.
10His children shall seek to please the poor, and his hands shall restore their goods. 11His bones are full of the sin of his youth, which shall lie down with him in the dust. 12Though wickedness be sweet in his mouth, though he hide it under his tongue; 13Though he spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth: 14Yet his meat in his bowels is turned, it is the gall of asps within him. 15He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again: God shall cast them out of his belly. 16He shall suck the poison of asps: the viper's tongue shall slay him. 17He shall not see the rivers, the floods, the brooks of honey and butter. 18That which he laboured for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down: according to his substance shall the restitution be, and he shall not rejoice therein. 19Because he hath oppressed and hath forsaken the poor; because he hath violently taken away an house which he builded not; 20Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired. 21There shall none of his meat be left; therefore shall no man look for his goods. 22In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: every hand of the wicked shall come upon him.
23When he is about to fill his belly, God shall cast the fury of his wrath upon him, and shall rain it upon him while he is eating. 24He shall flee from the iron weapon, and the bow of steel shall strike him through. 25It is drawn, and cometh out of the body; yea, the glittering sword cometh out of his gall: terrors are upon him. 26All darkness shall be hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle. 27The heaven shall reveal his iniquity; and the earth shall rise up against him. 28The increase of his house shall depart, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath. 29This is the portion of a wicked man from God, and the heritage appointed unto him by God.

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