Job 6-7

Living Bible

6 Job’s reply:

² “Oh, that my sadness and troubles were weighed. ³ For they are heavier than the sand of a thousand seashores. That is why I spoke so rashly. ⁴ For the Lord has struck me down with his arrows; he has sent his poisoned arrows deep within my heart. All God’s terrors are arrayed against me. ^5-7 When wild donkeys bray, it is because their grass is gone; oxen do not low when they have food; a man complains when there is no salt in his food. And how tasteless is the uncooked white of an egg—my appetite is gone when I look at it; I gag at the thought of eating it!

^8-9 “Oh, that God would grant the thing I long for most—to die beneath his hand and be freed from his painful grip. ¹⁰ This, at least, gives me comfort despite all the pain—that I have not denied the words of the holy God. ¹¹ Oh, why does my strength sustain me? How can I be patient till I die? ¹² Am I unfeeling, like stone? Is my flesh made of brass? ¹³ For I am utterly helpless, without any hope.

¹⁴ “One should be kind to a fainting friend, but you have accused me without the slightest fear of God. ^15-18 My brother, you have proved as unreliable as a brook; it floods when there is ice and snow, but in hot weather, disappears. The caravans turn aside to be refreshed, but there is nothing there to drink, and so they perish. ^19-21 When caravans from Tema and from Sheba stop for water there, their hopes are dashed. And so my hopes in you are dashed—you turn away from me in terror and refuse to help. ²² But why? Have I ever asked you for one slightest thing? Have I begged you for a present? ²³ Have I ever asked your help? ²⁴ All I want is a reasonable answer—then I will keep quiet. Tell me, what have I done wrong?

^25-26 “It is wonderful to speak the truth, but your criticisms are not based on fact. Are you going to condemn me just because I impulsively cried out in desperation? ²⁷ That would be like injuring a helpless orphan, or selling a friend. ²⁸ Look at me! Would I lie to your face? ²⁹ Stop assuming my guilt, for I am righteous. Don’t be so unjust. ³⁰ Don’t I know the difference between right and wrong? Would I not admit it if I had sinned?

7 “How mankind must struggle. A man’s life is long and hard, like that of a slave. ² How he longs for the day to end. How he grinds on to the end of the week and his wages. ³ And so to me also have been allotted months of frustration, these long and weary nights. ⁴ When I go to bed I think, ‘Oh, that it were morning,’ and then I toss till dawn.

⁵ “My skin is filled with worms and blackness. My flesh breaks open, full of pus. ⁶ My life drags by—day after hopeless day. ⁷ My life is but a breath, and nothing good is left. ⁸ You see me now, but not for long. Soon you’ll look upon me dead. ⁹ As a cloud disperses and vanishes, so those who die shall go away forever— ¹⁰ gone forever from their family and their home—never to be seen again. ¹¹ Ah, let me express my anguish. Let me be free to speak out of the bitterness of my soul.

¹² “O God, am I some monster that you never leave me alone? ^13-14 Even when I try to forget my misery in sleep, you terrify with nightmares. ¹⁵ I would rather die of strangulation than go on and on like this. ¹⁶ I hate my life. Oh, leave me alone for these few remaining days. ¹⁷ What is mere man that you should spend your time persecuting him? ¹⁸ Must you be his inquisitor every morning and test him every moment of the day? ¹⁹ Why won’t you leave me alone—even long enough to spit?

²⁰ “Has my sin harmed you, O God, watcher of mankind? Why have you made me your target, and made my life so heavy a burden to me? ²¹ Why not just pardon my sin and take it all away? For all too soon I’ll lie down in the dust and die, and when you look for me, I shall be gone.”