Job 8

Chapter 8

Bildad’s First Response to Job

1 Then Bildad the Shuhite replied to Job:
2 “How long will you go on like this?
You sound like a blustering wind.3 Does God twist justice?
Does the Almighty twist what is right?4 Your children must have sinned against him,
so their punishment was well deserved.5 But if you pray to God
and seek the favor of the Almighty,6 and if you are pure and live with integrity,
he will surely rise up and restore your happy home.7 And though you started with little,
you will end with much.8 “Just ask the previous generation.
Pay attention to the experience of our ancestors.9 For we were born but yesterday and know nothing.
Our days on earth are as fleeting as a shadow.10 But 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?12 While they are still flowering, not ready to be cut,
they begin to wither more quickly than grass.13 The same happens to all who forget God.
The hopes of the godless evaporate.14 Their confidence hangs by a thread.
They are leaning on a spider’s web.15 They cling to their home for security, but it won’t last.
They try to hold it tight, but it will not endure.16 The godless seem like a lush plant growing in the sunshine,
its branches spreading across the garden.17 Its roots grow down through a pile of stones;
it takes hold on a bed of rocks.18 But when it is uprooted,
it’s as though it never existed!19 That’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.21 He will once again fill your mouth with laughter
and your lips with shouts of joy.22 Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
and the home of the wicked will be destroyed.”

JOB 8

Bildad's First Speech

How Long Will You Talk?

1 Bildad from Shuaht said:

2 How long will you talk
and keep saying nothing?

3 Does God All-Powerful
stand in the way of justice?

4 He made your children pay
for their sins.

5 So why don't you turn to him

6 and start living right?
Then he will decide
to rescue and restore you
to your place of honor.

7 Your future will be brighter
by far than your past.

Our Ancestors Were Wise

8  t Our ancestors were wise,
so learn from them.

9 Our own time has been short,
like a fading shadow,
and we know very little.

10 But they will instruct you
with great understanding.

11 Papyrus reeds grow healthy
only in a swamp,

12 and if the water dries up,
they die sooner than grass.

13 Such is the hopeless future
of all who turn from God

14 and trust in something as frail
as a spider's web—

15 they take hold and fall
because it's so flimsy.

16 Sinful people are like plants
with spreading roots and plenty
of sun and water.

17 They wrap their roots tightly
around rocks.t

18 But once they are pulled up,
they have no more place;

19 their life slips away, t
and other plants grow there.

20 We know God doesn't reject
an innocent person
or help a sinner.

21 And so, he will make you happy
and give you something
to smile about.

22 But your evil enemies
will be put to shame
and disappear forever.