New King James Version | New Living Translation |
1“Is there not a time of hard service for man on earth? Are not his days also like the days of a hired man? | 1“Is not all human life a struggle? Our lives are like that of a hired hand, |
2Like a servant who earnestly desires the shade, And like a hired man who eagerly looks for his wages, | 2like a worker who longs for the shade, like a servant waiting to be paid. |
3So I have been allotted months of futility, And wearisome nights have been appointed to me. | 3I, too, have been assigned months of futility, long and weary nights of misery. |
4When I lie down, I say, ‘When shall I arise, And the night be ended?’ For I have had my fill of tossing till dawn. | 4Lying in bed, I think, ‘When will it be morning?’ But the night drags on, and I toss till dawn. |
5My flesh is caked with worms and dust, My skin is cracked and breaks out afresh. | 5My body is covered with maggots and scabs. My skin breaks open, oozing with pus. Job Cries Out to God |
6“My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, And are spent without hope. | 6“My days fly faster than a weaver’s shuttle. They end without hope. |
7Oh, remember that my life is a breath! My eye will never again see good. | 7O God, remember that my life is but a breath, and I will never again feel happiness. |
8The eye of him who sees me will see me no more; While your eyes are upon me, I shall no longer be. | 8You see me now, but not for long. You will look for me, but I will be gone. |
9As the cloud disappears and vanishes away, So he who goes down to the grave does not come up. | 9Just as a cloud dissipates and vanishes, those who die will not come back. |
10He shall never return to his house, Nor shall his place know him anymore. | 10They are gone forever from their home— never to be seen again. |
11“Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul. | 11“I cannot keep from speaking. I must express my anguish. My bitter soul must complain. |
12Am I a sea, or a sea serpent, That You set a guard over me? | 12Am I a sea monster or a dragon that you must place me under guard? |
13When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me, My couch will ease my complaint,’ | 13I think, ‘My bed will comfort me, and sleep will ease my misery,’ |
14Then You scare me with dreams And terrify me with visions, | 14but then you shatter me with dreams and terrify me with visions. |
15So that my soul chooses strangling And death rather than my body. | 15I would rather be strangled— rather die than suffer like this. |
16I loathe my life; I would not live forever. Let me alone, For my days are but a breath. | 16I hate my life and don’t want to go on living. Oh, leave me alone for my few remaining days. |
17“What is man, that You should exalt him, That You should set Your heart on him, | 17“What are people, that you should make so much of us, that you should think of us so often? |
18That You should visit him every morning, And test him every moment? | 18For you examine us every morning and test us every moment. |
19How long? Will You not look away from me, And let me alone till I swallow my saliva? | 19Why won’t you leave me alone, at least long enough for me to swallow! |
20Have I sinned? What have I done to You, O watcher of men? Why have You set me as Your target, So that I am a burden to myself? | 20If I have sinned, what have I done to you, O watcher of all humanity? Why make me your target? Am I a burden to you? |
21Why then do You not pardon my transgression, And take away my iniquity? For now I will lie down in the dust, And You will seek me diligently, But I will no longer be.” | 21Why not just forgive my sin and take away my guilt? For soon I will lie down in the dust and die. When you look for me, I will be gone.” |
The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | 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. |
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