17"I'll tell you; listen to me! I'll relate what I have seen.
18I'll tell you what wise people have declared and what was not kept secret from their ancestors.
19(The land was given to them alone, and no stranger passed through their land.)
20"The wicked person is tortured all his days. Only a few years are reserved for the ruthless person.
21Terrifying sounds are in his ears. While he enjoys peace, the destroyer comes to him.
22He doesn't believe he'll return from the dark. He is destined [to be killed] with a sword.
23He wanders around for food and asks, 'Where is it?' He knows that his ruin is close at hand.
24"The day of darkness troubles him. Distress and anguish terrify him like a king ready for battle.
25He stretches out his hand against God and attacks the Almighty like a warrior.
26He stubbornly charges at him with a thick shield.
27"His face is bloated with fat, and he is fat around the waist.
28He lives in ruined cities where no one dwells, in houses that are doomed to be piles of rubble.
29He won't get rich, and his wealth won't last. His possessions won't spread out over the land.
30"He won't escape the darkness. A flame will shrivel his branches. He will be blown away by his own breath.
31He shouldn't trust in worthless things and deceive himself because he will get worthless things in return.
32It will happen before his time has come, and his branch will not become green.
33He will drop his unripened grapes like a vine and throw off his blossoms like an olive tree
34because a mob of godless people produces nothing, and fire burns up the tents of those who offer bribes.
35They conceive trouble and give birth to evil. Their wombs produce deception."
