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"Should a wise man answer with empty knowledge, And fill himself with the east wind?
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Should he reason with unprofitable talk, Or by speeches with which he can do no good?
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Yes, you cast off fear, And restrain prayer before God.
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For your iniquity teaches your mouth, And you choose the tongue of the crafty.
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Your own mouth condemns you, and not I; Yes, your own lips testify against you.
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"Are you the first man who was born? Or were you made before the hills?
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Have you heard the counsel of God? Do you limit wisdom to yourself?
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What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not in us?
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Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us, Much older than your father.
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Are the consolations of God too small for you, And the word spoken gently with you?
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Why does your heart carry you away, And what do your eyes wink at,
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That you turn your spirit against God, And let such words go out of your mouth?
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"What is man, that he could be pure? And he who is born of a woman, that he could be righteous?
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If God puts no trust in His saints, And the heavens are not pure in His sight,
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How much less man, who is abominable and filthy, Who drinks iniquity like water!
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"I will tell you, hear me; What I have seen I will declare,
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What wise men have told, Not hiding anything received from their fathers,
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To whom alone the land was given, And no alien passed among them:
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The wicked man writhes with pain all his days, And the number of years is hidden from the oppressor.
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Dreadful sounds are in his ears; In prosperity the destroyer comes upon him.
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He does not believe that he will return from darkness, For a sword is waiting for him.
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He wanders about for bread, saying, 'Where is it?' He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand.
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Trouble and anguish make him afraid; They overpower him, like a king ready for battle.
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For he stretches out his hand against God, And acts defiantly against the Almighty,
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Running stubbornly against Him With his strong, embossed shield.
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"Though he has covered his face with his fatness, And made his waist heavy with fat,
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He dwells in desolate cities, In houses which no one inhabits, Which are destined to become ruins.
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He will not be rich, Nor will his wealth continue, Nor will his possessions overspread the earth.
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He will not depart from darkness; The flame will dry out his branches, And by the breath of His mouth he will go away.
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Let him not trust in futile things, deceiving himself, For futility will be his reward.
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It will be accomplished before his time, And his branch will not be green.