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21:1  Job replied,
21:2  “Listen carefully to what I’m saying. Let that be the comfort you people give me.
21:3  Put up with me while I speak. After I’ve spoken, you can make fun of me!
21:4  “I’m not arguing with mere human beings. So why shouldn’t I be angry and uneasy?
21:5  Look at me and be shocked. Put your hand over your mouth and stop talking!
21:6  When I think about these things, I’m terrified. My whole body trembles.
21:7  Why do sinful people keep on living? The older they grow, the richer they get.
21:8  They see their children grow up around them. They watch their family grow larger.
21:9  Their homes are safe. They don’t have to be afraid. God isn’t punishing them.
21:10  Every time their bulls mate, their cows become pregnant. And the calves don’t die before they are born.
21:11  Sinful people send their children out like a flock of lambs. Their little ones dance around.
21:12  They sing to the music of tambourines and lyres. They have a good time while flutes are being played.
21:13  Those who are evil spend their years living well. They go down to their graves in peace.
21:14  But they say to God, ‘Leave us alone! We don’t want to know how you want us to live.
21:15  Who is the Mighty One? Why should we serve him? What would we get if we prayed to him?’
21:16  But they aren’t in control of their own success. So I don’t pay any attention to their plans.
21:17  “How often are their lamps blown out? How often does trouble come on them? How often does God punish them when he’s angry?
21:18  How often are they like straw blowing in the wind? How often are they like tumbleweeds swept away by a storm?
21:19  People say, ‘God stores up the punishment of evil people for their children.’ But let God punish the evil people themselves. Then they’ll learn a lesson from it.
21:20  Let their own eyes see how they are destroyed. Let them drink the wine of the Mighty One’s anger.
21:21  What do they care about the families they leave behind? What do they care about them when their lives come to an end?
21:22  “Can anyone teach God anything? After all, he judges even the angels in heaven.
21:23  Some people die while they are still very strong. They are completely secure. They have an easy life.
21:24  They are well fed. Their bodies are healthy.
21:25  Others die while their spirits are bitter. They’ve never enjoyed anything good.
21:26  Side by side they lie in the dust of death. The worms in their graves cover all of them.
21:27  “I know exactly what you people are thinking. I know you are planning to do bad things to me.
21:28  You are saying to yourselves, ‘Where is the great man’s house now? Where are the tents where his evil family lived?’
21:29  Haven’t you ever asked questions of those who travel? Haven’t you paid any attention to their stories?
21:30  They’ll tell you that sinful people are spared from the day of trouble. They’ll say that those people are saved from the day when God will judge.
21:31  Who speaks against them for the way they act? Who pays them back for what they’ve done?
21:32  Their bodies will be carried to their graves. Guards will watch over their tombs.
21:33  The soil in the valley will be pleasant to those who have died. Many people will walk along behind their bodies. Many others will walk in front of them.
21:34  “So how can you comfort me with your speeches? They don’t make any sense at all. Your answers are nothing but lies!”