Job, 24

¹ “Why is it that times have not been stored up by the Almighty himself, And the very ones knowing him have not beheld his days?

² There are those who move back boundary marks; A drove they have snatched away, that they may shepherd [it].^*1

³ They drive off even the male ass of fatherless boys; They seize the widow’s bull as a pledge.

⁴ They turn aside the poor ones from the way; At the same time the afflicted of the earth have kept themselves hidden.

⁵ Look! [As] zebras in the wilderness They have gone forth in their activity, looking for food. The desert plain [gives] to each one bread for the boys.

⁶ In the field its fodder they harvest, And the vineyard of the wicked one they hastily despoil.

⁷ Naked, they pass the night without a garment, And without any covering in the cold.

⁸ From the rainstorm of the mountains they get drenched, And because there is no shelter they have to hug a rock.

⁹ They snatch away a fatherless boy even from the breast, And what is on the afflicted one they take as a pledge.

¹⁰ Naked, they have to go about without a garment, And, hungry, they have to carry the reaped ears.

¹¹ Between the terrace walls they pass the noontime;^*1 Winepresses they have to tread, and yet they go thirsty.

¹² From out of the city the dying keep groaning, And the soul of deadly wounded ones cries for help; And God^*1 himself considers [it] not as anything improper.

¹³ As for them, they proved to be among the rebels against light; They did not recognize its ways, And they did not dwell in its roadways.

¹⁴ At daylight the murderer gets up, He proceeds to slay the afflicted and the poor one; And during the night he becomes a regular thief.^*1

¹⁵ As for the eye of the adulterer, it has watched for evening darkness, Saying, ‘No eye will behold me!’ And over his face he puts a covering.

¹⁶ In the darkness he has dug into houses; By day they must keep themselves locked in. They have not known daylight.

¹⁷ For morning is the same as deep shadow for them, For they recognize what the sudden terrors of deep shadow are.

¹⁸ He is swift on the surface of the waters. Their tract of land will be cursed in the earth. He will not turn toward the way of the vineyards.

¹⁹ The drought, also the heat, snatch away the snow waters; So does Sheʹol those who have sinned!

²⁰ The womb will forget him, the maggot will sweetly suck him, He will be remembered no more. And unrighteousness will be broken just like a tree.

²¹ He is having dealings with a barren woman who does not bear, And with a widow, to whom he does no good.

²² And he will certainly draw away strong people by his power; He will rise up and not be sure of his life.^*1

²³ He will grant him to become confident that he may support himself; And his eyes will be upon their ways.

²⁴ They have become high up a little while, then they are no more, And they have been brought low; like everyone else they are plucked off, And like the head of an ear of grain they are cut off.

²⁵ So really now, who will make me out a liar Or reduce my word to nothing?”