Job 20

1 Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:

1 Respuesta de Zofar de Namat:

2 “So my anxious thoughts compel me to answer, because of the turmoil within me.

2 «Me apresuro a responder, pues tengo la contestación para ti:

3 I have heard a rebuke that insults me, and my understanding prompts a reply.

3 Has tratado de hacerme avergonzar de mí mismo por llamarte pecador, pero mi espíritu no me permite detenerme.

4 Do you not know that from antiquity, since man was placed on the earth,

4 »Bien sabes tú que desde antaño, desde que Dios puso al hombre en la tierra,

5 the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?

5 el triunfo del malvado ha sido breve, y efímero el gozo del impío.

6 Though his arrogance reaches the heavens, and his head touches the clouds,

6 Aunque el impío sea altivo como los cielos y ande con la nariz levantada,

7 he will perish forever, like his own dung; those who had seen him will ask, ‘Where is he?’

7 perecerá para siempre, arrojado como su propio excremento. Quienes lo conocieron se preguntarán adónde habrá ido a parar.

8 He will fly away like a dream, never to be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night.

8 Se esfumará como un sueño.

9 The eye that saw him will see him no more, and his place will no longer behold him.

9 Ni sus amigos ni su familia lo volverán a ver jamás.

10 His sons will seek the favor of the poor, for his own hands must return his wealth.

10 Sus hijos tendrán que resarcir a los pobres; con duro trabajo pagarán ellos lo que él robó.

11 The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie down with him in the dust.

11 En plena juventud, sus huesos irán al polvo.

12 Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue,

12 »Disfrutó la delicia de su maldad derritiéndola en su boca,

13 though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth,

13 sorbiéndola lentamente para que no se consumiera.

14 yet in his stomach his food sours into the venom of cobras within him.

14 Pero repentinamente los manjares que ha comido se le agrian en su interior.

15 He swallows wealth but vomits it out; God will force it from his stomach.

15 Vomitará los despojos que tragó, Dios no le permitirá que los retenga.

16 He will suck the poison of cobras; the fangs of a viper will kill him.

16 Para él son veneno y muerte.

17 He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream.

17 No disfrutará de los arroyos de aceite y los torrentes de miel y requesón que robó.

18 He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he cannot enjoy the profits of his trading.

18 Sus esfuerzos no tendrán recompensa; la riqueza no le dará dicha.

19 For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor; he has seized houses he did not build.

19 Por cuanto ha oprimido a los pobres y se robó la casa que no construyó, jamás se repondrá.

20 Because his appetite is never satisfied, he cannot escape with his treasure.

20 »Aunque siempre fue codicioso, ahora no tiene nada; de todo cuanto soñó, nada le queda.

21 Nothing is left for him to consume; thus his prosperity will not endure.

21 Por cuanto nada escapó de su voracidad, su bienestar no será duradero.

22 In the midst of his plenty, he will be distressed; the full force of misery will come upon him.

22 »Cuando esté en la cumbre de su poderío, se meterá en dificultades; todos los malvados lo destruirán.

23 When he has filled his stomach, God will vent His fury upon him, raining it down on him as he eats.

23 Cuando esté a punto de llenarse el estómago, Dios derramará su ira sobre él,

24 Though he flees from an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce him.

24 será perseguido y derribado.

25 It is drawn out of his back, the gleaming point from his liver. Terrors come over him.

25 Le sacarán del cuerpo la flecha, cuya punta reluciente goteará bilis. Terrores de muerte lo asaltarán.

26 Total darkness is reserved for his treasures. A fire unfanned will consume him and devour what is left in his tent.

26 Sus tesoros se perderán en la más profunda oscuridad. Un fuego rugiente tragará sus bienes, consumiendo cuanto ha dejado.

27 The heavens will expose his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him.

27 Los cielos revelarán sus pecados y la tierra dará testimonio en su contra.

28 The possessions of his house will be removed, flowing away on the day of God’s wrath.

28 Su riqueza desaparecerá bajo la ira de Dios.

29 This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the inheritance God has appointed him.”

29 Este es el fin que Dios reserva al malvado, tal es la herencia que le asignó».