In verses 16-17, the writer continues to use parallelism, conveying a single idea using two different statements to picture the stony, temporary foundation of the godless. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-parallelism]])

## Under the sun he is green, and his shoots go out over his entire garden ##

Here Bildad compares the godless to plants that flourish in the daytime; both initially look alive, fresh, and healthy. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

## His roots are wrapped about the heaps of stone ##

The godless person's roots cling not to fertile soil but to rocks. Rocky ground cannot help plants grow. This person's roots will soon die. "His roots cling to rocky ground." (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

## they look for good places among the rocks ##

The word "they" refers to the godless person's roots. "they look for fertile ground among the rocks" or "they look for rich soil among the rocks" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

## if this person is destroyed out of his place, then that place will deny him and say, 'I never saw you' ##

The godless person is compared to a plant which, when removed from its rocky foundation, is unrecognizable elsewhere because it cannot flourish in any fertile place. "If he is uprooted from his place, it will disown him saying,'I have never seen you.'" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

## that place will deny him and say ##

The human ability to deny and to speak is applied to the rocky ground.  (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-personification]] and [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]]))

## his place ##

"the rocky ground"