Job 24:1-25 GW

[1] "Why doesn't the Almighty set aside times for punishment? Why don't those who are close to him see his days of judgment? [2] "People move boundary markers. They steal flocks and tend them as shepherds. [3] They drive away the orphan's donkey. They take the widow's ox as security for a loan. [4] They force needy people off the road. All the poor people of the country go into hiding. [5] Like wild donkeys in the desert, poor people go out to do their work, looking for food. The plains provide food for their children. [6] They harvest animal food in the field to feed themselves. They pick the leftover grapes in the wicked person's vineyard. [7] All night they lie naked without a covering from the cold. [8] They are drenched by the rainstorms in the mountains. They hug the rocks because they can't find shelter. [9] "People snatch the nursing orphan from a breast and take a poor woman's baby as security for a loan. [10] That is why the poor go around naked. They are hungry, yet they carry bundles of grain. [11] They press out olive oil between rows of olive trees. They stomp on grapes in wine vats, yet they are thirsty. [12] Those dying in the city groan. Wounded people cry for help, but God pays no attention to their prayers. [13] "Such people are among those who rebel against the light. They are not acquainted with its ways. They do not stay on its paths. [14] At dawn murderers rise; they kill the poor and needy. At night they become thieves. [15] Adulterers watch for twilight. They say, 'No one is watching us,' as they cover their faces. [16] In the dark, they break into houses, but by day they lock themselves in. They do not even know the light, [17] because morning and deep darkness are the same to them, because they are familiar with the terrors of deep darkness. [18] Such people are like scum on the surface of the water. Their property is cursed in the land. People do not travel the road that goes to their vineyards. [19] Just as drought and heat steal water from snow, so the grave steals people who sin. [20] The womb forgets them. Worms feast on them. No one remembers them anymore, and wickedness is snapped like a twig. [21] These men take advantage of childless women. These men show no kindness to widows. [22] God will drag away these mighty men by his power. These people may prosper, but they will never feel secure about life. [23] God may let them feel confident and self-reliant, but his eyes are on their ways. [24] Such people may be prosperous for a little while, but then they're gone. They are brought down low and disappear like everything else. They wither like heads of grain. [25] "If it isn't so, who can prove I'm a liar and show that my words are worthless?"