The Holy Bible
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Job 24 : 1 - 25
Chapter 24
1 | "Since times are not hidden from the Almighty, Why do those who know Him see not His days?
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2 | "Some remove landmarks; They seize flocks violently and feed on them;
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3 | They drive away the donkey of the fatherless; They take the widow's ox as a pledge.
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4 | They push the needy off the road; All the poor of the land are forced to hide.
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5 | Indeed, like wild donkeys in the desert, They go out to their work, searching for food. The wilderness yields food for them and for their children.
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6 | They gather their fodder in the field And glean in the vineyard of the wicked.
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7 | They spend the night naked, without clothing, And have no covering in the cold.
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8 | They are wet with the showers of the mountains, And huddle around the rock for want of shelter.
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9 | "Some snatch the fatherless from the breast, And take a pledge from the poor.
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10 | They cause the poor to go naked, without clothing; And they take away the sheaves from the hungry.
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11 | They press out oil within their walls, And tread winepresses, yet suffer thirst.
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12 | The dying groan in the city, And the souls of the wounded cry out; Yet God does not charge them with wrong.
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13 | "There are those who rebel against the light; They do not know its ways Nor abide in its paths.
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14 | The murderer rises with the light; He kills the poor and needy; And in the night he is like a thief.
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15 | The eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight, Saying, "No eye will see me'; And he disguises his face.
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16 | In the dark they break into houses Which they marked for themselves in the daytime; They do not know the light.
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17 | For the morning is the same to them as the shadow of death; If someone recognizes them, They are in the terrors of the shadow of death.
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18 | "They should be swift on the face of the waters, Their portion should be cursed in the earth, So that no one would turn into the way of their vineyards.
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19 | As drought and heat consume the snow waters, So the grave consumes those who have sinned.
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20 | The womb should forget him, The worm should feed sweetly on him; He should be remembered no more, And wickedness should be broken like a tree.
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21 | For he preys on the barren who do not bear, And does no good for the widow.
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22 | "But God draws the mighty away with His power; He rises up, but no man is sure of life.
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23 | He gives them security, and they rely on it; Yet His eyes are on their ways.
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24 | They are exalted for a little while, Then they are gone. They are brought low; They are taken out of the way like all others; They dry out like the heads of grain.
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25 | "Now if it is not so, who will prove me a liar, And make my speech worth nothing?"
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Acknowledgement
Opening page