Job 21:1-16

1Then Job answered and said,

2“Listen carefully to my speech, And let this be the consolation.

3Bear with me, and I also will speak; And after I have spoken, you may [continue to] mock [me].

4As for me, is my complaint to man or about him? And why should I not be impatient and my spirit troubled?

5Look at me and be astonished and appalled; And put your hand over your mouth.

6Even when I remember, I am troubled and afraid; Horror and trembling take hold of my flesh.

7Why do the wicked still live, Become old, and become mighty in power?

8Their children and descendants are established with them in their sight, And their offspring before their eyes.

9Their houses are safe from fear; And the rod of God is not on them.

10His bull breeds and does not fail; His cow calves and does not miscarry.

11They send forth their little ones like a flock, And their children skip about.

12They lift up their voices and sing to the tambourine and the lyre And rejoice to the sound of the flute.

13They fully enjoy their days in prosperity, And so go down to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) in a [peaceful] moment.

14Yet they say to God, ‘Depart from us, For we do not desire the knowledge of Your ways.

15Who [and what] is the Almighty, that we should serve Him? And what would we gain if we plead with Him?’

16But notice, the prosperity of the wicked is not in their hand (in their power); The counsel of the wicked [and the mystery of God’s dealings with the ungodly] is far from my comprehension.