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Futility of Days

“Does not man have hard labor on earth?
    Are not his days like those of a hired laborer?
Like a slave longing for the shadow,
    or a hired man waiting for his pay,
so I have inherited months of futility,
    and nights of distress have been appointed to me.
When I lay down I say, “When will I rise?”
The night drags on, and I toss until the day dawns.
My flesh is clothed with maggots and clods of dirt;
    My skin is broken and festering.
My days fly faster than a weaver’s shuttle
    and come to an end without hope.
Remember, my life is but a breath;
    my eyes will not see goodness again!
The eye that sees me now will see me no more;
your eyes will be on me, but I will be no more.
As a cloud vanishes and is gone,
    so one descending into Sheol does not come up;
10 he will never return to his house,
    his place does not know him.

11 “So I will not keep silent;
    I will speak in the distress of my spirit,
    I will complain in bitterness of soul.
12 Am I a sea, or a monster of the deep
    that You have set a watch over me?
13 When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
    my couch will ease my complaint,’
14 then You frighten me with dreams,
    and terrify me with visions,
15 so that my soul prefers strangulation,
    and my bones death.
16 I despise it; I would not live forever.
Leave me alone, for my days are a vapor.

17 “What is mankind,
    that You magnify him,
    that You set Your heart on him,
18 that You visit him every morning,
    and test him in every moment?
19 Will You never look away from me,
    or let me alone until I swallow my spittle?
20 Have I sinned—
    what have I done to You,
    O watcher of men?
Why have You set me as Your target?
    Have I become a burden to You?
21 Why do You not pardon my transgression,
    and take away my iniquity?
For now I will lie down in the dust,
    and You will search for me,
    but I will be gone.”

Job: My Suffering Is Comfortless

Is there not (A)a time of hard service for man on earth?
Are not his days also like the days of a hired man?
Like a servant who [a]earnestly desires the shade,
And like a hired man who eagerly looks for his wages,
So I have been allotted (B)months of futility,
And wearisome nights have been appointed to me.
(C)When I lie down, I say, ‘When shall I arise,
And the night be ended?’
For I have had my fill of tossing till dawn.
My flesh is (D)caked with worms and dust,
My skin is cracked and breaks out afresh.

“My(E) days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
And are spent without hope.
Oh, remember that (F)my life is a breath!
My eye will never again see good.
(G)The eye of him who sees me will see me no more;
While your eyes are upon me, I shall no longer be.
As the cloud disappears and vanishes away,
So (H)he who goes down to the grave does not come up.
10 He shall never return to his house,
(I)Nor shall his place know him anymore.

11 “Therefore I will (J)not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
I will (K)complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I a sea, or a sea serpent,
That You set a guard over me?
13 (L)When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
My couch will ease my complaint,’
14 Then You scare me with dreams
And terrify me with visions,
15 So that my soul chooses strangling
And death rather than [b]my body.
16 (M)I loathe my life;
I would not live forever.
(N)Let me alone,
For (O)my days are but [c]a breath.

17 “What(P) is man, that You should exalt him,
That You should set Your heart on him,
18 That You should [d]visit him every morning,
And test him every moment?
19 How long?
Will You not look away from me,
And let me alone till I swallow my saliva?
20 Have I sinned?
What have I done to You, (Q)O watcher of men?
Why (R)have You set me as Your target,
So that I am a burden [e]to myself?
21 Why 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.

Footnotes

  1. Job 7:2 Lit. pants for
  2. Job 7:15 Lit. my bones
  3. Job 7:16 Without substance, futile
  4. Job 7:18 attend to
  5. Job 7:20 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX, Jewish tradition to You