Christian Standard Bible

New Living Translation

1But now they mock me, men younger than I am, whose fathers I would have refused to put with my sheep dogs.

1“But now I am mocked by people younger than I, by young men whose fathers are not worthy to run with my sheepdogs.

2What use to me was the strength of their hands? Their vigor had left them.

2A lot of good they are to me— those worn-out wretches!

3Emaciated from poverty and hunger, they gnawed the dry land, the desolate wasteland by night.

3They are gaunt from poverty and hunger. They claw the dry ground in desolate wastelands.

4They plucked mallow among the shrubs, and the roots of the broom tree were their food.

4They pluck wild greens from among the bushes and eat from the roots of broom trees.

5They were banished from human society; people shouted at them as if they were thieves.

5They are driven from human society, and people shout at them as if they were thieves.

6They are living on the slopes of the wadis, among the rocks and in holes in the ground.

6So now they live in frightening ravines, in caves and among the rocks.

7They bray among the shrubs; they huddle beneath the thistles.

7They sound like animals howling among the bushes, huddled together beneath the nettles.

8Foolish men, without even a name. They were forced to leave the land.

8They are nameless fools, outcasts from society.

9Now I am mocked by their songs; I have become an object of scorn to them.

9“And now they mock me with vulgar songs! They taunt me!

10They despise me and keep their distance from me; they do not hesitate to spit in my face.

10They despise me and won’t come near me, except to spit in my face.

11Because God has loosened my bowstring and oppressed me, they have cast off restraint in my presence.

11For God has cut my bowstring. He has humbled me, so they have thrown off all restraint.

12The rabble rise up at my right; they trap my feet and construct their siege ramp against me.

12These outcasts oppose me to my face. They send me sprawling and lay traps in my path.

13They tear up my path; they contribute to my destruction, without anyone to help them.

13They block my road and do everything they can to destroy me. They know I have no one to help me.

14They advance as through a gaping breach; they keep rolling in through the ruins.

14They come at me from all directions. They jump on me when I am down.

15Terrors are turned loose against me; they chase my dignity away like the wind, and my prosperity has passed by like a cloud.

15I live in terror now. My honor has blown away in the wind, and my prosperity has vanished like a cloud.

16Now my life is poured out before me, and days of suffering have seized me.

16“And now my life seeps away. Depression haunts my days.

17Night pierces my bones, but my gnawing pains never rest.

17At night my bones are filled with pain, which gnaws at me relentlessly.

18My clothing is distorted with great force; he chokes me by the neck of my garment.

18With a strong hand, God grabs my shirt. He grips me by the collar of my coat.

19He throws me into the mud, and I have become like dust and ashes.

19He has thrown me into the mud. I’m nothing more than dust and ashes.

20I cry out to you for help, but you do not answer me; when I stand up, you merely look at me.

20“I cry to you, O God, but you don’t answer. I stand before you, but you don’t even look.

21You have turned against me with cruelty; you harass me with your strong hand.

21You have become cruel toward me. You use your power to persecute me.

22You lift me up on the wind and make me ride it; you scatter me in the storm.

22You throw me into the whirlwind and destroy me in the storm.

23Yes, I know that you will lead me to death--the place appointed for all who live.

23And I know you are sending me to my death— the destination of all who live.

24Yet no one would stretch out his hand against a ruined person when he cries out to him for help because of his distress.

24“Surely no one would turn against the needy when they cry for help in their trouble.

25Have I not wept for those who have fallen on hard times? Has my soul not grieved for the needy?

25Did I not weep for those in trouble? Was I not deeply grieved for the needy?

26But when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, darkness came.

26So I looked for good, but evil came instead. I waited for the light, but darkness fell.

27I am churning within and cannot rest; days of suffering confront me.

27My heart is troubled and restless. Days of suffering torment me.

28I walk about blackened, but not by the sun. I stood in the assembly and cried out for help.

28I walk in gloom, without sunlight. I stand in the public square and cry for help.

29I have become a brother to jackals and a companion of ostriches.

29Instead, I am considered a brother to jackals and a companion to owls.

30My skin blackens and flakes off, and my bones burn with fever.

30My skin has turned dark, and my bones burn with fever.

31My lyre is used for mourning and my flute for the sound of weeping.

31My harp plays sad music, and my flute accompanies those who weep.

The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.