¹Ipapo Bhiridhadhi muShuhi akapindura akati,

¹And Bildad the Shuhite answereth and saith: —

²Ucharamba uchitaura mashoko awa kusvikira rinhiko?

²Till when dost thou speak these things? And a strong wind — sayings of thy mouth?

³Ko Mwari angakanganisa pakutonga here WaMasimbaose angakanganisa zvakarurama here?

³Doth God pervert judgment? And doth the Mighty One pervert justice?

⁴Kana vana vako vakanga vamutadzira iye, Akavaisa pakudarika kwavo;

⁴If thy sons have sinned before Him, And He doth send them away, By the hand of their transgression,

⁵Kana iwe ukashingaira kutsvaka Mwari, Ukakumbira kuna waMasimbaose;

⁵If thou dost seek early unto God, And unto the Mighty makest supplication,

⁶Kana ukava akanaka, akaruruma; Iye angadai aimuka zvino nokuda kwako, Akafambisa zvakanaka imba yako yakarurama.

⁶If pure and upright thou [art], Surely now He waketh for thee, And hath completed The habitation of thy righteousness.

⁷Kunyange kutanga kwako kwaiva kuduku, Asi kuguma kwako kwaiva kukuru kwazvo.

⁷And thy beginning hath been small, And thy latter end is very great.

⁸nekuti chidobvunza hako rudzi rwakare, Ucherekedze zvakanzverwa namadzibaba avo.

⁸For, ask I pray thee of a former generation, And prepare to a search of their fathers,

⁹(Nokuti isu tiri vazuro hedu, hatizivi chinhu, nekuti mazuva edu panyika akafanana nemumvuri;)

⁹(For of yesterday we [are], and we know not, For a shadow [are] our days on earth.)

¹⁰Ivo havangakudzidzisi here, nokukuudza, Nokureva mashoko anobva pamoyo yavo here?

¹⁰Do they not shew thee — speak to thee, And from their heart bring forth words?

¹¹Ko nhokwe ingamera pasine nhope here? Ko rutsanga rungamera pasine mvura here?

¹¹`Doth a rush wise without mire? A reed increase without water?

¹²Ruchiri runyoro, rusati rwatemwa, Runosvava mimwe miriwo ichigere.

¹²While it [is] in its budding — uncropt, Even before any herb it withereth.

¹³Ndizvo zvakaita nzira dzavose vanokangamwa Mwari; Uye tariro yomunhu asingadi Mwari ichapera;

¹³So [are] the paths of all forgetting God, And the hope of the profane doth perish,

¹⁴Chaakatarira chichaputsanyiwa, Chaakatenda chakafanana namambure edandemutande

¹⁴Whose confidence is loathsome, And the house of a spider his trust.

¹⁵Uchasendamira paimba yake, asi haingamiri; Uchaibata, asi haingagari.

¹⁵He leaneth on his house — and it standeth not: He taketh hold on it — and it abideth not.

¹⁶Iye muti mutema pamushana, Matavi ake anotandavarira pamunda wake.

¹⁶Green he [is] before the sun, And over his garden his branch goeth out.

¹⁷Midzi yake yakapombera patsime, Unoona nzvimbo yorukangarabwe.

¹⁷By a heap his roots are wrapped, A house of stones he looketh for.

¹⁸Kana akaparadzwa panzvimbo yake, Ichamuramba, ichiti, Handina kukuona,

¹⁸If [one] doth destroy him from his place, Then it hath feigned concerning him, I have not seen thee!

¹⁹Tarira, ndiwo mufaro wenzira yake; Paguruva panobuda vamwe.

¹⁹Lo, this [is] the joy of his way, And from the dust others spring up.`

²⁰Tarira, Mwari haangarashi munhu wakarurama, Haangabatsiri vanoita zvakaipa.

²⁰Lo, God doth not reject the perfect, Nor taketh hold on the hand of evil doers.

²¹Achazozadza hake muromo wako nokuseka, Nemiromo yako nokupururudza.

²¹While he filleth with laughter thy mouth, And thy lips with shouting,

²²Vanokuvenga vachafukidza nokunyara; Uye tende ravakaipa haringazovipo.

²²Those hating thee do put on shame, And the tent of the wicked is not!