5 Call out! Is there anyone there to answer you? To which of the holy ones will you turn?

² It’s true, the fool is killed by resentment,
and the gullible are put to death by jealousy.
³ I myself have seen a fool putting down roots,
but immediately I pronounced a curse on his home.^[a]
4 His children are far from safety.
They are crushed at the city gate without a defender.
⁵ His harvest is eaten by the hungry,
    who snatch it away, even from among the thorns,
    and the thirsty^[b] swallow his children’s wealth.

⁶ Disaster does not just spring up from the dust,
nor does trouble sprout from the soil.
⁷ No, mankind is born for^[c] trouble as surely as flames fly upward.

⁸ But I want to appeal to God.
I want to present my case to him.^[d]
9 He does great things that are beyond investigation,
and miracles that are too many to be counted.
¹⁰ He provides rain for the earth.
He waters the fields in the countryside.
¹¹ He raises the lowly to the heights,
and he lifts those who mourn to safety.
¹² He foils the plots of clever schemers,
    so that their hands achieve no success.

¹³ He traps the wise in their schemes,
and the plans of the devious come to a swift end.
¹⁴ By day they encounter darkness,
and at noon they grope around as if it were night.

¹⁵ He saves the poor from mouths that cut like a sword
and from the hand of the strong.
¹⁶ He does this so that the helpless will have hope,
and injustice will shut its mouth.

¹⁷ Consider this:
How blessed is the man whom God corrects!
Do not reject the discipline of the Almighty!
¹⁸ For though he may inflict wounds, he also bandages them.
Though he may strike, his hands also heal.
¹⁹ From six calamities he will rescue you.
In seven no harm will touch you.
²⁰ In famine he will redeem you from death,
and in battle he will redeem you from the power of the sword.
²¹ You will be hidden from the lash of the tongue,
and you will not be afraid of devastation when it comes.
²² You will laugh at devastation and hunger.
You will not be afraid of the wild animals of the countryside,
²³ because there will be a covenant between you and the stones in the field,
and the wild animals will be at peace with you.
²⁴ You will know that your tent is secure,
and when you inspect your property, you will find nothing missing.
²⁵ You will know that your offspring will be many,
and your descendants will be like grass from the earth.
²⁶ You will come to the grave at a ripe old age,
    like a stack of sheaves that is gathered in season.
²⁷ Consider this:
We have investigated this carefully, and it is true!
Pay close attention and apply it to yourself!