7 “Do not mortals have hard service^(A) on earth?^(B)
    Are not their days like those of hired laborers?^(C)
2 Like a slave longing for the evening shadows,^(D)
    or a hired laborer waiting to be paid,^(E)
3 so I have been allotted months of futility,
    and nights of misery have been assigned to me.^(F)
4 When I lie down I think, ‘How long before I get up?’^(G)
    The night drags on, and I toss and turn until dawn.^(H)
5 My body is clothed with worms^(I) and scabs,
    my skin is broken and festering.^(J)

⁶ “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,^(K)
    and they come to an end without hope.^(L)
7 Remember, O God, that my life is but a breath;^(M)
    my eyes will never see happiness again.^(N)
8 The eye that now sees me will see me no longer;
    you will look for me, but I will be no more.^(O)
9 As a cloud vanishes^(P) and is gone,
    so one who goes down to the grave^(Q) does not return.^(R)
10 He will never come to his house again;
    his place^(S) will know him no more.^(T)

¹¹ “Therefore I will not keep silent;^(U)
    I will speak out in the anguish^(V) of my spirit,
    I will complain^(W) in the bitterness of my soul.^(X)
12 Am I the sea,^(Y) or the monster of the deep,^(Z)
    that you put me under guard?^(AA)
13 When I think my bed will comfort me
    and my couch will ease my complaint,^(AB)
14 even then you frighten me with dreams
    and terrify^(AC) me with visions,^(AD)
15 so that I prefer strangling and death,^(AE)
    rather than this body of mine.^(AF)
16 I despise my life;^(AG) I would not live forever.^(AH)
    Let me alone;^(AI) my days have no meaning.^(AJ)

¹⁷ “What is mankind that you make so much of them,
    that you give them so much attention,^(AK)
18 that you examine them every morning^(AL)
    and test them^(AM) every moment?^(AN)
19 Will you never look away from me,^(AO)
    or let me alone even for an instant?^(AP)
20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you,^(AQ)
    you who see everything we do?
Why have you made me your target?^(AR)
    Have I become a burden to you?^[a](AS)
21 Why do you not pardon my offenses
    and forgive my sins?^(AT)
For I will soon lie down in the dust;^(AU)
    you will search for me, but I will be no more.”^(AV)

² “How long will you say such things?^(AX)
    Your words are a blustering wind.^(AY)
3 Does God pervert justice?^(AZ)
    Does the Almighty pervert what is right?^(BA)
4 When your children sinned against him,
    he gave them over to the penalty of their sin.^(BB)
5 But if you will seek God earnestly
    and plead^(BC) with the Almighty,^(BD)
6 if you are pure and upright,
    even now he will rouse himself on your behalf^(BE)
    and restore you to your prosperous state.^(BF)
7 Your beginnings will seem humble,
    so prosperous^(BG) will your future be.^(BH)

⁸ “Ask the former generation^(BI)
    and find out what their ancestors learned,
⁹ for we were born only yesterday and know nothing,^(BJ)
    and our days on earth are but a shadow.^(BK)
10 Will they not instruct^(BL) you and tell you?
    Will they not bring forth words from their understanding?^(BM)
11 Can papyrus grow tall where there is no marsh?^(BN)
    Can reeds^(BO) thrive without water?
¹² While still growing and uncut,
    they wither more quickly than grass.^(BP)
13 Such is the destiny^(BQ) of all who forget God;^(BR)
    so perishes the hope of the godless.^(BS)
14 What they trust in is fragile^[b];
    what they rely on is a spider’s web.^(BT)
15 They lean on the web,^(BU) but it gives way;
    they cling to it, but it does not hold.^(BV)
16 They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine,
    spreading its shoots^(BW) over the garden;^(BX)
17 it entwines its roots around a pile of rocks
    and looks for a place among the stones.
¹⁸ But when it is torn from its spot,
    that place disowns^(BY) it and says, ‘I never saw you.’^(BZ)
19 Surely its life withers^(CA) away,
    and^[c] from the soil other plants grow.^(CB)

²⁰ “Surely God does not reject one who is blameless^(CC)
    or strengthen the hands of evildoers.^(CD)
21 He will yet fill your mouth with laughter^(CE)
    and your lips with shouts of joy.^(CF)
22 Your enemies will be clothed in shame,^(CG)
    and the tents^(CH) of the wicked will be no more.”^(CI)

² “Indeed, I know that this is true.
    But how can mere mortals prove their innocence before God?^(CJ)
3 Though they wished to dispute with him,^(CK)
    they could not answer him one time out of a thousand.^(CL)
4 His wisdom^(CM) is profound, his power is vast.^(CN)
    Who has resisted^(CO) him and come out unscathed?^(CP)
5 He moves mountains^(CQ) without their knowing it
    and overturns them in his anger.^(CR)
6 He shakes the earth^(CS) from its place
    and makes its pillars tremble.^(CT)
7 He speaks to the sun and it does not shine;^(CU)
    he seals off the light of the stars.^(CV)
8 He alone stretches out the heavens^(CW)
    and treads on the waves of the sea.^(CX)
9 He is the Maker^(CY) of the Bear^[d] and Orion,
    the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.^(CZ)
10 He performs wonders^(DA) that cannot be fathomed,
    miracles that cannot be counted.^(DB)
11 When he passes me, I cannot see him;
    when he goes by, I cannot perceive him.^(DC)
12 If he snatches away, who can stop him?^(DD)
    Who can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’^(DE)
13 God does not restrain his anger;^(DF)
    even the cohorts of Rahab^(DG) cowered at his feet.

¹⁴ “How then can I dispute with him?
    How can I find words to argue with him?^(DH)
15 Though I were innocent, I could not answer him;^(DI)
    I could only plead^(DJ) with my Judge^(DK) for mercy.^(DL)
16 Even if I summoned him and he responded,
    I do not believe he would give me a hearing.^(DM)
17 He would crush me^(DN) with a storm^(DO)
    and multiply^(DP) my wounds for no reason.^(DQ)
18 He would not let me catch my breath
    but would overwhelm me with misery.^(DR)
19 If it is a matter of strength, he is mighty!^(DS)
    And if it is a matter of justice, who can challenge him^[e]?^(DT)
20 Even if I were innocent, my mouth would condemn me;
    if I were blameless, it would pronounce me guilty.^(DU)

²¹ “Although I am blameless,^(DV)
    I have no concern for myself;^(DW)
    I despise my own life.^(DX)
22 It is all the same; that is why I say,
    ‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’^(DY)
23 When a scourge^(DZ) brings sudden death,
    he mocks the despair of the innocent.^(EA)
24 When a land falls into the hands of the wicked,^(EB)
    he blindfolds its judges.^(EC)
    If it is not he, then who is it?^(ED)

²⁵ “My days are swifter than a runner;^(EE)
    they fly away without a glimpse of joy.^(EF)
26 They skim past^(EG) like boats of papyrus,^(EH)
    like eagles swooping down on their prey.^(EI)
27 If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,^(EJ)
    I will change my expression, and smile,’
²⁸ I still dread^(EK) all my sufferings,
    for I know you will not hold me innocent.^(EL)
29 Since I am already found guilty,
    why should I struggle in vain?^(EM)
30 Even if I washed myself with soap^(EN)
    and my hands^(EO) with cleansing powder,^(EP)
31 you would plunge me into a slime pit^(EQ)
    so that even my clothes would detest me.^(ER)

³² “He is not a mere mortal^(ES) like me that I might answer him,^(ET)
    that we might confront each other in court.^(EU)
33 If only there were someone to mediate between us,^(EV)
    someone to bring us together,^(EW)
34 someone to remove God’s rod from me,^(EX)
    so that his terror would frighten me no more.^(EY)
35 Then I would speak up without fear of him,^(EZ)
    but as it now stands with me, I cannot.^(FA)

10 “I loathe my very life;^(FB)
    therefore I will give free rein to my complaint
    and speak out in the bitterness of my soul.^(FC)
2 I say to God:^(FD) Do not declare me guilty,
    but tell me what charges^(FE) you have against me.^(FF)
3 Does it please you to oppress me,^(FG)
    to spurn the work of your hands,^(FH)
    while you smile on the plans of the wicked?^(FI)
4 Do you have eyes of flesh?
    Do you see as a mortal sees?^(FJ)
5 Are your days like those of a mortal
    or your years like those of a strong man,^(FK)
6 that you must search out my faults
    and probe after my sin^(FL)—
⁷ though you know that I am not guilty^(FM)
    and that no one can rescue me from your hand?^(FN)

⁸ “Your hands shaped^(FO) me and made me.
    Will you now turn and destroy me?^(FP)
9 Remember that you molded me like clay.^(FQ)
    Will you now turn me to dust again?^(FR)
10 Did you not pour me out like milk
    and curdle me like cheese,
¹¹ clothe me with skin and flesh
    and knit me together^(FS) with bones and sinews?
¹² You gave me life^(FT) and showed me kindness,^(FU)
    and in your providence^(FV) watched over^(FW) my spirit.

¹³ “But this is what you concealed in your heart,
    and I know that this was in your mind:^(FX)
14 If I sinned, you would be watching me^(FY)
    and would not let my offense go unpunished.^(FZ)
15 If I am guilty^(GA)—woe to me!^(GB)
    Even if I am innocent, I cannot lift my head,^(GC)
for I am full of shame
    and drowned in^[f] my affliction.^(GD)
16 If I hold my head high, you stalk me like a lion^(GE)
    and again display your awesome power against me.^(GF)
17 You bring new witnesses against me^(GG)
    and increase your anger toward me;^(GH)
    your forces come against me wave upon wave.^(GI)

¹⁸ “Why then did you bring me out of the womb?^(GJ)
    I wish I had died before any eye saw me.^(GK)
19 If only I had never come into being,
    or had been carried straight from the womb to the grave!^(GL)
20 Are not my few days^(GM) almost over?^(GN)
    Turn away from me^(GO) so I can have a moment’s joy^(GP)
21 before I go to the place of no return,^(GQ)
    to the land of gloom and utter darkness,^(GR)
22 to the land of deepest night,
    of utter darkness^(GS) and disorder,
    where even the light is like darkness.”^(GT)

² “Are all these words to go unanswered?^(GV)
    Is this talker to be vindicated?^(GW)
3 Will your idle talk^(GX) reduce others to silence?
    Will no one rebuke you when you mock?^(GY)
4 You say to God, ‘My beliefs are flawless^(GZ)
    and I am pure^(HA) in your sight.’
⁵ Oh, how I wish that God would speak,^(HB)
    that he would open his lips against you
⁶ and disclose to you the secrets of wisdom,^(HC)
    for true wisdom has two sides.
    Know this: God has even forgotten some of your sin.^(HD)

⁷ “Can you fathom^(HE) the mysteries of God?
    Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?
⁸ They are higher^(HF) than the heavens^(HG) above—what can you do?
    They are deeper than the depths below^(HH)—what can you know?^(HI)
9 Their measure^(HJ) is longer than the earth
    and wider than the sea.^(HK)

¹⁰ “If he comes along and confines you in prison
    and convenes a court, who can oppose him?^(HL)
11 Surely he recognizes deceivers;
    and when he sees evil, does he not take note?^(HM)
12 But the witless can no more become wise
    than a wild donkey’s colt^(HN) can be born human.^[g](HO)

¹³ “Yet if you devote your heart^(HP) to him
    and stretch out your hands^(HQ) to him,^(HR)
14 if you put away^(HS) the sin that is in your hand
    and allow no evil^(HT) to dwell in your tent,^(HU)
15 then, free of fault, you will lift up your face;^(HV)
    you will stand firm^(HW) and without fear.^(HX)
16 You will surely forget your trouble,^(HY)
    recalling it only as waters gone by.^(HZ)
17 Life will be brighter than noonday,^(IA)
    and darkness will become like morning.^(IB)
18 You will be secure, because there is hope;
    you will look about you and take your rest^(IC) in safety.^(ID)
19 You will lie down, with no one to make you afraid,^(IE)
    and many will court your favor.^(IF)
20 But the eyes of the wicked will fail,^(IG)
    and escape will elude them;^(IH)
    their hope will become a dying gasp.”^(II)

² “Doubtless you are the only people who matter,
    and wisdom will die with you!^(IJ)
3 But I have a mind as well as you;
    I am not inferior to you.
    Who does not know all these things?^(IK)

⁴ “I have become a laughingstock^(IL) to my friends,^(IM)
    though I called on God and he answered^(IN)—
    a mere laughingstock, though righteous and blameless!^(IO)
5 Those who are at ease have contempt^(IP) for misfortune
    as the fate of those whose feet are slipping.^(IQ)
6 The tents of marauders are undisturbed,^(IR)
    and those who provoke God are secure^(IS)—
    those God has in his hand.^[h]

⁷ “But ask the animals, and they will teach you,^(IT)
    or the birds in the sky,^(IU) and they will tell you;^(IV)
8 or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
    or let the fish in the sea inform you.
⁹ Which of all these does not know^(IW)
    that the hand of the Lord has done this?^(IX)
10 In his hand is the life^(IY) of every creature
    and the breath of all mankind.^(IZ)
11 Does not the ear test words
    as the tongue tastes food?^(JA)
12 Is not wisdom found among the aged?^(JB)
    Does not long life bring understanding?^(JC)

¹³ “To God belong wisdom^(JD) and power;^(JE)
    counsel and understanding are his.^(JF)
14 What he tears down^(JG) cannot be rebuilt;^(JH)
    those he imprisons cannot be released.^(JI)
15 If he holds back the waters,^(JJ) there is drought;^(JK)
    if he lets them loose, they devastate the land.^(JL)
16 To him belong strength and insight;^(JM)
    both deceived and deceiver are his.^(JN)
17 He leads rulers away stripped^(JO)
    and makes fools of judges.^(JP)
18 He takes off the shackles^(JQ) put on by kings
    and ties a loincloth^[i] around their waist.^(JR)
19 He leads priests away stripped^(JS)
    and overthrows officials long established.^(JT)
20 He silences the lips of trusted advisers
    and takes away the discernment of elders.^(JU)
21 He pours contempt on nobles^(JV)
    and disarms the mighty.^(JW)
22 He reveals the deep things of darkness^(JX)
    and brings utter darkness^(JY) into the light.^(JZ)
23 He makes nations great, and destroys them;^(KA)
    he enlarges nations,^(KB) and disperses them.^(KC)
24 He deprives the leaders of the earth of their reason;^(KD)
    he makes them wander in a trackless waste.^(KE)
25 They grope in darkness with no light;^(KF)
    he makes them stagger like drunkards.^(KG)

13 “My eyes have seen all this,^(KH)
    my ears have heard and understood it.
² What you know, I also know;
    I am not inferior to you.^(KI)
3 But I desire to speak to the Almighty^(KJ)
    and to argue my case with God.^(KK)
4 You, however, smear me with lies;^(KL)
    you are worthless physicians,^(KM) all of you!^(KN)
5 If only you would be altogether silent!^(KO)
    For you, that would be wisdom.^(KP)
6 Hear now my argument;
    listen to the pleas of my lips.^(KQ)
7 Will you speak wickedly on God’s behalf?
    Will you speak deceitfully for him?^(KR)
8 Will you show him partiality?^(KS)
    Will you argue the case for God?
⁹ Would it turn out well if he examined you?^(KT)
    Could you deceive him as you might deceive a mortal?^(KU)
10 He would surely call you to account
    if you secretly showed partiality.^(KV)
11 Would not his splendor^(KW) terrify you?
    Would not the dread of him fall on you?^(KX)
12 Your maxims are proverbs of ashes;
    your defenses are defenses of clay.^(KY)

¹³ “Keep silent^(KZ) and let me speak;^(LA)
    then let come to me what may.^(LB)
14 Why do I put myself in jeopardy
    and take my life in my hands?^(LC)
15 Though he slay me, yet will I hope^(LD) in him;^(LE)
    I will surely^[j] defend my ways to his face.^(LF)
16 Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance,^(LG)
    for no godless^(LH) person would dare come before him!^(LI)
17 Listen carefully to what I say;^(LJ)
    let my words ring in your ears.
¹⁸ Now that I have prepared my case,^(LK)
    I know I will be vindicated.^(LL)
19 Can anyone bring charges against me?^(LM)
    If so, I will be silent^(LN) and die.^(LO)

²⁰ “Only grant me these two things, God,
    and then I will not hide from you:
²¹ Withdraw your hand^(LP) far from me,
    and stop frightening me with your terrors.^(LQ)
22 Then summon me and I will answer,^(LR)
    or let me speak, and you reply to me.^(LS)
23 How many wrongs and sins have I committed?^(LT)
    Show me my offense and my sin.^(LU)
24 Why do you hide your face^(LV)
    and consider me your enemy?^(LW)
25 Will you torment^(LX) a windblown leaf?^(LY)
    Will you chase^(LZ) after dry chaff?^(MA)
26 For you write down bitter things against me
    and make me reap the sins of my youth.^(MB)
27 You fasten my feet in shackles;^(MC)
    you keep close watch on all my paths^(MD)
    by putting marks on the soles of my feet.

²⁸ “So man wastes away like something rotten,
    like a garment^(ME) eaten by moths.^(MF)

14 “Mortals, born of woman,^(MG)
    are of few days^(MH) and full of trouble.^(MI)
2 They spring up like flowers^(MJ) and wither away;^(MK)
    like fleeting shadows,^(ML) they do not endure.^(MM)
3 Do you fix your eye on them?^(MN)
    Will you bring them^[k] before you for judgment?^(MO)
4 Who can bring what is pure^(MP) from the impure?^(MQ)
    No one!^(MR)
5 A person’s days are determined;^(MS)
    you have decreed the number of his months^(MT)
    and have set limits he cannot exceed.^(MU)
6 So look away from him and let him alone,^(MV)
    till he has put in his time like a hired laborer.^(MW)

⁷ “At least there is hope for a tree:^(MX)
    If it is cut down, it will sprout again,
    and its new shoots^(MY) will not fail.^(MZ)
8 Its roots may grow old in the ground
    and its stump^(NA) die in the soil,
⁹ yet at the scent of water^(NB) it will bud
    and put forth shoots like a plant.^(NC)
10 But a man dies and is laid low;^(ND)
    he breathes his last and is no more.^(NE)
11 As the water of a lake dries up
    or a riverbed becomes parched and dry,^(NF)
12 so he lies down and does not rise;^(NG)
    till the heavens are no more,^(NH) people will not awake
    or be roused from their sleep.^(NI)

¹³ “If only you would hide me in the grave^(NJ)
    and conceal me till your anger has passed!^(NK)
If only you would set me a time
    and then remember^(NL) me!^(NM)
14 If someone dies, will they live again?
    All the days of my hard service^(NN)
    I will wait for my renewal^[l](NO) to come.
¹⁵ You will call and I will answer you;^(NP)
    you will long for the creature your hands have made.^(NQ)
16 Surely then you will count my steps^(NR)
    but not keep track of my sin.^(NS)
17 My offenses will be sealed^(NT) up in a bag;^(NU)
    you will cover over my sin.^(NV)