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Job 7
New Catholic Bible
Job 7
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 7
A Life of Exhausting Service[a]
1 “Is not man’s life on earth an exhausting one,
and are not his days like those of a hired laborer?
2 Like a slave who sighs for the evening shade
and like a laborer who is bent upon his wages,
3 so have I been forced to endure months of futility,
and nights of grief have been inflicted on me.
4 “When I lie in bed, I wonder,
‘When will the daylight come so that I may rise?’
But the night drags on,
and I toss restlessly until the dawn.
5 My body is infected with worms and scabs;
my skin is cracked and festering.
My Life Is But a Breath[b]
6 “My days pass more swiftly than a weaver’s shuttle,
and they come to an end without a glimmer of hope.
7 “Remember that my life is but a breath of wind;
my eyes will never again see happiness.
8 The eye that now sees me will see me no more;
I will vanish before your very eyes.
9 As a cloud vanishes and is no more,
so the one who descends to the netherworld[c] will never come up again.
10 He will never again return to his home,
nor will he be remembered anymore.
11 “Therefore, I will not restrain my mouth.
I will speak out in my anguish of spirit,
and I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I a monster of the deep, or a sea serpent,
that you place me under guard?[d]
13 When I say, ‘I will find comfort in my bed,
and my couch will soothe my complaints,’
14 you then frighten me with dreams
and terrify me with visions,
15 so that I would prefer to be strangled
and to endure death rather than my sufferings.
16 My life is ebbing away; I cannot live forever.
Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath.
A Continual Testing[e]
17 “What is man, that you make so much of him
or pay him any mind?
18 You examine him every morning
and test him every moment of the day.
19 “Will you never take your eyes from me,
or let me alone long enough to swallow my saliva?
20 If I have sinned, what harm have I done to you,
O watcher of humanity?
Why have you designated me to be your target?
Why have I become a burden to you?[f]
21 Why do you not pardon my offenses
and forgive my iniquity?
For soon I will lie down in the dust;
you will search for me, but I will be no more.”
Footnotes
- Job 7:1 The lot of the sick seems to be one of exhausting service comprising interminable days and nights of suffering.
- Job 7:6 Regret for the happiness that has vanished too soon and fear of the netherworld haunt the sick man. He feels that he is, so to speak, hunted by God.
- Job 7:9 Netherworld: this is the first explicit allusion to the great subterranean pit where the dead are gathered together. Job speaks of it according to the opinion in his day. It is no longer the sojourn of repose (Job 3:13-19), but a place from which one “will never again return,” or where one is separated from his home, his family, and even his God.
- Job 7:12 This is a very poetic and Semitic way of representing the dominion of God over the forces of the universe.
- Job 7:17 Unlike the psalmist (Pss 8:5; 139:13-14, 23-24), Job cannot rejoice at the special attention God pays to human beings. This divine scrutiny shakes his conviction of innocence.
- Job 7:20 Burden to you: many Hebrew manuscripts have: “burden to myself.”
Job 7
Segond 21
Job 7
Segond 21
7 »Le sort de l'homme sur la terre n’est-il pas celui d'un soldat,
et sa vie n’est-elle pas celle d'un ouvrier?
2 L'esclave aspire à jouir de l'ombre
et l’ouvrier attend son salaire.
3 De même, j’ai hérité de mois de douleur,
on m’a attribué des nuits de souffrance.
4 Je me couche en disant:
‘Quand pourrai-je me lever?’ Le soir se prolonge
et je suis rassasié d'insomnies jusqu'au lever du jour.
5 Mon corps se couvre de vers et d'une croûte terreuse,
ma peau s’est crevassée et se décompose.
6 Plus rapides que la navette d’un tisserand,
mes jours s'évanouissent: plus d'espérance!
7 »Mon Dieu, souviens-toi que ma vie est un simple souffle!
Mes yeux ne reverront pas le bonheur.
8 L'œil qui me regarde ne me verra plus.
Ton œil me cherchera, et je ne serai plus là.
9 Pareil à un nuage qui se dissipe et s'en va,
celui qui descend au séjour des morts n’en remontera pas.
10 Il ne reviendra plus chez lui
et son domicile ne le connaîtra plus.
11 C'est pourquoi je ne me retiendrai pas.
Je parlerai, dans la détresse de mon esprit;
je me plaindrai, dans l'amertume de mon âme.
12 »Suis-je une mer ou un monstre marin,
pour que tu places des gardes autour de moi?
13 Quand je me dis: ‘Mon divan me soulagera,
mon lit calmera mes douleurs’,
14 tu m'effraies par des rêves,
tu m’assailles de visions.
15 Je voudrais être étranglé,
je voudrais mourir plutôt que d’être réduit à l’état de squelette!
16 Je suis dégoûté! Je n’en ai plus pour longtemps.
Laisse-moi, car ma vie est sans consistance.
17 »Qu'est-ce que l'homme, pour que tu fasses tant de cas de lui,
pour que tu lui portes tant d’attention,
18 pour que tu le visites tous les matins,
pour que tu le mettes à l'épreuve à chaque instant?
19 Quand cesseras-tu de me fixer du regard?
Quand me laisseras-tu le temps d'avaler ma salive?
20 Si j'ai péché, qu'ai-je pu te faire, gardien des hommes?
Pourquoi m’as-tu pris pour cible?
Pourquoi te serais-je à charge?
21 Pourquoi ne pardonnes-tu pas ma transgression
et n'oublies-tu pas ma faute?
En effet, je vais bientôt me coucher dans la poussière.
Tu auras beau me chercher de bon matin, je ne serai plus là!»
Job 7
New International Version
Job 7
New International Version
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)
Footnotes
- Job 7:20 A few manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, an ancient Hebrew scribal tradition and Septuagint; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text I have become a burden to myself.
Job 7
King James Version
Job 7
King James Version
7 Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? are not his days also like the days of an hireling?
2 As a servant earnestly desireth the shadow, and as an hireling looketh for the reward of his work:
3 So am I made to possess months of vanity, and wearisome nights are appointed to me.
4 When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? and I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day.
5 My flesh is clothed with worms and clods of dust; my skin is broken, and become loathsome.
6 My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, and are spent without hope.
7 O remember that my life is wind: mine eye shall no more see good.
8 The eye of him that hath seen me shall see me no more: thine eyes are upon me, and I am not.
9 As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away: so he that goeth down to the grave shall come up no more.
10 He shall return no more to his house, neither shall his place know him any more.
11 Therefore I will not refrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I a sea, or a whale, that thou settest a watch over me?
13 When I say, My bed shall comfort me, my couch shall ease my complaints;
14 Then thou scarest me with dreams, and terrifiest me through visions:
15 So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life.
16 I loathe it; I would not live alway: let me alone; for my days are vanity.
17 What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? and that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him?
18 And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment?
19 How long wilt thou not depart from me, nor let me alone till I swallow down my spittle?
20 I have sinned; what shall I do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? why hast thou set me as a mark against thee, so that I am a burden to myself?
21 And why dost thou not pardon my transgression, and take away my iniquity? for now shall I sleep in the dust; and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I shall not be.
約伯記 7
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
約伯記 7
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
7 「人生在世豈不像服勞役嗎？
他有生之年豈不像個雇工嗎？
2 他像切望陰涼的奴隸，
又如盼望報酬的雇工。
3 同樣，我註定要度過虛空的歲月，
熬過悲慘的黑夜。
4 我躺在床上，想著何時起來。
長夜漫漫，我輾轉難眠，直到拂曉。
5 我身上佈滿蛆蟲、傷疤，
皮膚破裂，流膿不止。
6 我的年日飛逝，比梭還快，
轉眼結束，毫無盼望。
7 「上帝啊，別忘了我的生命不過是一口氣，
我再也看不見幸福。
8 注視我的眼睛將再也看不見我，
你將尋找我，而我已不復存在。
9 人死後一去不返，
就像煙消雲散；
10 他永不再返回家園，
故土也不再認識他。
11 「因此我不再緘默不語，
我要吐露胸中的悲愁，
傾訴心裡的苦楚。
12 上帝啊，我豈是大海，豈是海怪，
值得你這樣防範我？
13 我以為床鋪是我的安慰，
臥榻可解除我的哀愁，
14 你卻用噩夢驚我，
用異象嚇我，
15 以致我寧願窒息而死，
也不願這樣活著。
16 我厭惡生命，不想永活。
不要管我，因為我的日子都是虛空。
17 「人算什麼，你竟這樣看重他，
這樣關注他？
18 你天天早上察看他，
時時刻刻考驗他。
19 你的視線何時離開我，
給我嚥口唾沫的時間？
20 鑒察世人的主啊，
我若犯了罪，又於你何妨？
為何把我當成你的箭靶？
難道我成了你的重擔？
21 為何不赦免我的過犯，
饒恕我的罪惡？
我很快將歸於塵土，
你將尋找我，
而我已不復存在。」
Segond 21 (SG21)
Version Segond 21 Copyright © 2007 Société Biblique de Genève by Société Biblique de Genève
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.