The wicked man writhes in pain all his days,
through all the years that are laid up for the ruthless.
21 Dreadful sounds are in his ears;
in prosperity the destroyer will come upon him.
22 He does not believe that he will return out of darkness,
and he is marked for the sword.
23 He wanders abroad for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’
He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand;
24 distress and anguish terrify him;
they prevail against him, like a king ready for battle.
25 Because he has stretched out his hand against God
and defies the Almighty,
26 running stubbornly against him
with a thickly bossed shield;
27 because he has covered his face with his fat
and gathered fat upon his waist
28 and has lived in desolate cities,
in houses that none should inhabit,
which were ready to become heaps of ruins;
29 he will not be rich, and his wealth will not endure,
nor will his possessions spread over the earth;[c]
30 he will not depart from darkness;
the flame will dry up his shoots,
and by the breath of his mouth he will depart.
31 Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself,
for emptiness will be his payment.
32 It will be paid in full before his time,
and his branch will not be green.
33 He will shake off his unripe grape like the vine,
and cast off his blossom like the olive tree.
34 For the company of the godless is barren,
and fire consumes the tents of bribery.
35 They conceive trouble and give birth to evil,
and their womb prepares deceit.” Job 15:20-35
1. They endure purposeless pain: Job 15:20
But in Christ and His Gospel: Purposeful Pain: 2 Cor. 12:7-10
2. They experience gripping uncertainties: Job 15:21
But in Christ and His Gospel: Sure future: Phil. 4:4-7, Job 19:25-26
3. They feel paralyzing fear of death: Job 15:22-24
But in Christ and His Gospel: Conquering resurrection: Heb. 2:14-15, 1 John 3:8, 1 Cor. 15:54-57
4. They drift in aimless emptiness: Job 15:23, 31
But in Christ and His Gospel: Soul Satisfaction: Ps. 107:9, Matt. 5:6, John 4:13-14, John 6:48-51
5. They produce barren lives: Job 15:33-34
But in Christ and His Gospel: Faithful Legacy: John 15:4-5, Ps. 1:1-3