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Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
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"Therefore my anxious thoughts make me answer, Because of the turmoil within me.
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I have heard the rebuke that reproaches me, And the spirit of my understanding causes me to answer.
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"Do you not know this of old, Since man was placed on earth,
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That the triumphing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment?
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Though his haughtiness mounts up to the heavens, And his head reaches to the clouds,
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Yet he will perish forever like his own refuse; Those who have seen him will say, 'Where is he?'
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He will fly away like a dream, and not be found; Yes, he will be chased away like a vision of the night.
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The eye that saw him will see him no more, Nor will his place behold him anymore.
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His children will seek the favor of the poor, And his hands will restore his wealth.
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His bones are full of his youthful vigor, But it will lie down with him in the dust.
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"Though evil is sweet in his mouth, And he hides it under his tongue,
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Though he spares it and does not forsake it, But still keeps it in his mouth,
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Yet his food in his stomach turns sour; It becomes cobra venom within him.
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He swallows down riches And vomits them up again; God casts them out of his belly.
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He will suck the poison of cobras; The viper's tongue will slay him.
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He will not see the streams, The rivers flowing with honey and cream.
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He will restore that for which he labored, And will not swallow it down; From the proceeds of business He will get no enjoyment.
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For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor, He has violently seized a house which he did not build.
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"Because he knows no quietness in his heart, He will not save anything he desires.
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Nothing is left for him to eat; Therefore his well-being will not last.
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In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress; Every hand of misery will come against him.
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When he is about to fill his stomach, God will cast on him the fury of His wrath, And will rain it on him while he is eating.