9 For
a we
were born yesterday, and know
1 nothing,
Because our days on earth
are a shadow.
‡
10 Will they not teach you and tell you,
And utter words from their heart?
11 “Can the papyrus grow up without a marsh?
Can the reeds flourish without water?
12 a While it
is yet green
and not cut down,
It withers before any
other plant.
‡
13 So
are the paths of all who
a forget God;
And the hope of the
b hypocrite shall perish,
‡
14 Whose confidence shall be cut off,
And whose trust
is1 a spider’s web.
‡
15 a He leans on his house, but it does not stand.
He holds it fast, but it does not endure.
‡
16 He grows green in the sun,
And his branches spread out in his garden.
17 His roots wrap around the rock heap,
And look for a place in the stones.
18 a If he is destroyed from his place,
Then
it will deny him,
saying, ‘I have not seen you.’
‡
19 “Behold, this is the joy of His way,
And
a out of the earth others will grow.
‡
20 Behold,
a God will not cast away the blameless,
Nor will He uphold the evildoers.
‡
21 He will yet fill your mouth with laughing,
And your lips with
1 rejoicing.
‡
New King James Version®, Copyright© 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
