• Job’s Life Seems Futile

  • 1 “Is a person not forced to labor on earth, And are his days not like the days of a hired worker?
  • 2 “As a slave pants for the shade, And as a hired worker who eagerly waits for his wages,
  • 3 So I am allotted worthless months, And nights of trouble are apportioned to me.
  • 4 “When I lie down, I say, ‘When shall I arise?’ But the night continues, And I am continually tossing until dawn.
  • 5 “My flesh is clothed with maggots and a crust of dirt, My skin hardens and oozes.
  • 6 “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, And they come to an end without hope.
  • 7 “Remember that my life is a mere breath; My eye will not see goodness again.
  • 8 “The eye of him who sees me will no longer look at me; Your eyes will be on me, but I will not exist.
  • 9 “When a cloud vanishes, it is gone; In the same way one who goes down to Sheol does not come up.
  • 10 “He will not return to his house again, Nor will his place know about him anymore.
  • 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.
  • 12 “Am I the sea, or the sea monster, That You set a guard over me?
  • 13 “If I say, ‘My couch will comfort me, My bed will ease my complaint,’
  • 14 Then You frighten me with dreams, And terrify me by visions,
  • 15 So that my soul would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pains.
  • 16 “I waste away; I will not live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are only a breath.
  • 17 “What is man that You exalt him, And that You are concerned about him,
  • 18 That You examine him every morning And put him to the test every moment?
  • 19 “Will You never turn Your gaze away from me, Nor leave me alone until I swallow my spittle?
  • 20 “Have I sinned? What have I done to You, Watcher of mankind? Why have You made me Your target, So that I am a burden to myself?
  • 21 “Why then do You not forgive my wrongdoing And take away my guilt? For now I will lie down in the dust; And You will search for me, but I will no longer exist.”