1 E ntonces Zofar, el Naamatita respondió:

Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said,

2 “ Por esto mis pensamientos me hacen responder, A causa de mi inquietud interior.

Therefore do my thoughts give answer to me, Even by reason of my haste that is in me.

3 H e escuchado la reprensión que me insulta, Y el espíritu de mi entendimiento me hace responder.

I have heard the reproof which putteth me to shame; And the spirit of my understanding answereth me.

4 ¿ Acaso sabes esto, que desde la antigüedad, Desde que el hombre fue puesto sobre la tierra,

Knowest thou not this of old time, Since man was placed upon earth,

5 E s breve el júbilo de los malvados, Y un instante dura la alegría del impío ?

That the triumphing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the godless but for a moment?

6 A unque su orgullo llegue a los cielos, Y su cabeza toque las nubes,

Though his height mount up to the heavens, And his head reach unto the clouds;

7 C omo su propio estiércol perece para siempre; Los que lo han visto dirán: ‘¿Dónde está ?’

Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: They that have seen him shall say, Where is he?

8 H uye como un sueño, y no lo pueden encontrar, Y como visión nocturna es ahuyentado.

He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: Yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night.

9 E l ojo que lo veía, ya no lo ve, Y su lugar no lo contempla más.

The eye which saw him shall see him no more; Neither shall his place any more behold him.

10 S us hijos favorecen a los pobres, Y sus manos devuelven sus riquezas.

His children shall seek the favor of the poor, And his hands shall give back his wealth.

11 S us huesos están llenos de vigor juvenil, Pero yacen con él en el polvo.

His bones are full of his youth, But it shall lie down with him in the dust.

12 A unque el mal sea dulce en su boca, Y lo oculte bajo su lengua,

Though wickedness be sweet in his mouth, Though he hide it under his tongue,

13 a unque lo desee y no lo deje ir, Sino que lo retenga en su paladar,

Though he spare it, and will not let it go, But keep it still within his mouth;

14 C on todo la comida en sus entrañas se transforma En veneno de cobras dentro de él.

Yet his food in his bowels is turned, It is the gall of asps within him.

15 T raga riquezas, Pero las vomitará; De su vientre se las hará echar Dios.

He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again; God will cast them out of his belly.

16 C hupa veneno de cobras, Lengua de víbora lo mata.

He shall suck the poison of asps: The viper's tongue shall slay him.

17 N o mira a los arroyos, A los ríos que fluyen miel y cuajada.

He shall not look upon the rivers, The flowing streams of honey and butter.

18 D evuelve lo que ha ganado, No lo puede tragar; En cuanto a las riquezas de su comercio, No las puede disfrutar.

That which he labored for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down; According to the substance that he hath gotten, he shall not rejoice.

19 P ues ha oprimido y abandonado a los pobres; Se ha apoderado de una casa que no construyó.

For he hath oppressed and forsaken the poor; He hath violently taken away a house, and he shall not build it up.

20 P orque no conoció quietud en su interior, No retiene nada de lo que desea.

Because he knew no quietness within him, He shall not save aught of that wherein he delighteth.

21 N ada le quedó por devorar, Por eso no dura su prosperidad.

There was nothing left that he devoured not; Therefore his prosperity shall not endure.

22 E n la plenitud de su abundancia estará en estrechez; La mano de todo el que sufre vendrá contra él.

In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: The hand of every one that is in misery shall come upon him.

23 C uando llene su vientre, Dios enviará contra él el ardor de Su ira Y la hará llover sobre él mientras come.

When he is about to fill his belly, God will cast the fierceness of his wrath upon him, And will rain it upon him while he is eating.

24 T al vez huya del arma de hierro, Pero el arco de bronce lo atravesará.

He shall flee from the iron weapon, And the bow of brass shall strike him through.

25 L a flecha lo traspasa y sale por su espalda, Y la punta relumbrante por su hiel. Vienen sobre él terrores,

He draweth it forth, and it cometh out of his body; Yea, the glittering point cometh out of his gall: Terrors are upon him.

26 C ompletas tinieblas están reservadas para sus tesoros; Fuego no atizado lo devorará, Y consumirá al que quede en su tienda.

All darkness is laid up for his treasures: A fire not blown by man shall devour him; It shall consume that which is left in his tent.

27 L os cielos revelarán su iniquidad, Y la tierra se levantará contra él.

The heavens shall reveal his iniquity, And the earth shall rise up against him.

28 L as riquezas de su casa se perderán; Serán arrasadas en el día de Su ira.

The increase of his house shall depart; His goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.

29 E sta es la porción de Dios para el hombre impío, Y la herencia decretada por Dios para él.”

This is the portion of a wicked man from God, And the heritage appointed unto him by God.