Job 24
1 “Why does the Almighty not reserve times for judgment? Why may those who know Him never see His days?
Why are times for judging wicked people not set by the Almighty? Why do not those who are faithful to God see his days of judgment come?
2 Men move boundary stones; they pasture stolen flocks.
There are wicked people who remove boundary markers; there are wicked people who take away flocks by force and put them in their own pastures.
3 They drive away the donkey of the fatherless and take the widow’s ox in pledge.
They drive away the donkey of those without fathers; they take the widow's ox as security.
4 They push the needy off the road and force all the poor of the land into hiding.
They force needy people out of their path; poor people of the earth all hide themselves from them.
5 Indeed, like wild donkeys in the desert, the poor go to work foraging for food; the wasteland is food for their children.
See, these poor people go out to their work like wild donkeys in the wilderness, looking carefully for food; perhaps the Arabah will provide them food for their children.
6 They gather fodder in the fields and glean the vineyards of the wicked.
Poor people reap in the night in other people's fields; they glean grapes from the harvest of those wicked people.
7 Without clothing, they spend the night naked; they have no covering against the cold.
They lie naked all night without clothing; they have no covering in the cold.
8 Drenched by mountain rains, they huddle against the rocks for want of shelter.
They are wet with the showers of the mountains; they lie next to large rocks because they have no shelter.
9 The fatherless infant is snatched from the breast; the nursing child of the poor is seized for a debt.
There are wicked people who pluck orphans from their mothers' breast, and wicked people who take children as security from poor people.
10 Without clothing, they wander about naked. They carry the sheaves, but still go hungry.
But the poor people go about naked without clothing; although they go hungry, they carry bundles of grain belonging to other people.
11 They crush olives within their walls; they tread the winepresses, but go thirsty.
The poor people make oil within the walls of those wicked men; they tread the wicked men's winepresses, but they themselves suffer thirst.
12 From the city, men groan, and the souls of the wounded cry out, yet God charges no one with wrongdoing.
From out of the city the dying groan, and the throat of the wounded cries out for help. But God does not ascribe blame
13 Then there are those who rebel against the light, not knowing its ways or staying on its paths.
Some of these wicked people rebel against the light; they know not its ways, nor do they stay in its paths.
14 When daylight is gone, the murderer rises to kill the poor and needy; in the night he is like a thief.
Before daylight the murderer rises and he kills poor and needy people; in the night he is like a thief.
15 The eye of the adulterer watches for twilight. Thinking, ‘No eye will see me,’ he covers his face.
Also, the eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight; he says, 'No eye will see me.' He disguises his face.
16 In the dark they dig through houses; by day they shut themselves in, never to experience the light.
In the darkness wicked people dig into houses; but they shut themselves up in the daytime; they do not care for the light.
17 For to them, deep darkness is their morning; surely they are friends with the terrors of darkness!
For all of them, thick darkness is like the morning; for they are friends with the terrors of thick darkness.
18 They are but foam on the surface of the water; their portion of the land is cursed, so that no one turns toward their vineyards.
Swiftly they pass away, however, like foam on the surface of the waters; their portion of the land is cursed; no one goes to work in their vineyards.
19 As drought and heat consume the melting snow, so Sheol steals those who have sinned. (Sheol h7585)
As drought and heat melt away the snow into waters, so Sheol takes away those who have sinned. (Sheol h7585)
20 The womb forgets them; the worm feeds on them; they are remembered no more. So injustice is like a broken tree.
The womb that bore him will forget him; the worm will feed sweetly on him; he will be remembered no more; in this way, wickedness will be broken like a tree.
21 They prey on the barren and childless, and show no kindness to the widow.
The wicked one devours the barren women who have not borne children; he does no good to the widow.
22 Yet by His power, God drags away the mighty; though rising up, they have no assurance of life.
Yet God drags away the mighty people by his power; he rises up and does not strengthen them in life.
23 He gives them a sense of security, but His eyes are on their ways.
God allows them to think they are secure, and they are happy about that, but his eyes are on their ways.
24 They are exalted for a moment, then they are gone; they are brought low and gathered up like all others; they are cut off like heads of grain.
These people are exalted; still, in only a little while, they will be gone; indeed, they will be brought low; they will be gathered up like all the others; they will be cut off like the tops of ears of grain.
25 If this is not so, then who can prove me a liar and reduce my words to nothing?”
If it is not so, who can prove me to be a liar; who can make my speech worth nothing?”
