Job 15:20–35

²⁰A wicked man writhes in pain all his days;

only a few years are reserved for the ruthless.

²¹Sounds of terror fill his ears;

in his prosperity the destroyer attacks him.

²²He despairs of his return from darkness;

he is marked for the sword.

²³He wanders about as food for vultures;

he knows the day of darkness is at hand.

²⁴Distress and anguish terrify him,

overwhelming him like a king poised to attack.

²⁵For he has stretched out his hand against God

and has vaunted himself against the Almighty,

²⁶rushing headlong at Him

with a thick, studded shield.

²⁷Though his face is covered with fat

and his waistline bulges with flesh,

²⁸he will dwell in ruined cities,

in abandoned houses destined to become rubble.

²⁹He will no longer be rich; his wealth will not endure.

His possessions will not overspread the land.

³⁰He will not escape from the darkness;

the flame will wither his shoots,

and the breath of God’s mouth

will carry him away.

³¹Let him not deceive himself with trust in emptiness,

for emptiness will be his reward.

³²It will be paid in full before his time,

and his branch will not flourish.

³³He will be like a vine stripped of its unripe grapes,

like an olive tree that sheds its blossoms.

³⁴For the company of the godless will be barren,

and fire will consume the tents of bribery.

³⁵They conceive trouble and give birth to evil;

their womb is pregnant with deceit.”