3 No matter how many children are born of a forbidden union, none of them will ever amount to anything. They are illegitimate; they can never lay a firm foundation for themselves, never take deep root.
4 Like trees with shallow roots, they put out leaves for a while, but they sway in the wind, and storms uproot them.
5 Their branches snap off before they mature; their fruit never ripens, and it is good for nothing.
6 On Judgement Day children born of a forbidden union will testify to the sin of their parents and act as witnesses against them.
7 Righteous people, however, will find rest, even if they die young.
8 We honour old age, but not just because a person has lived a long time.
9 Wisdom and righteousness are signs of the maturity that should come with old age.