Job 3
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Job’s Opening Speech
3 After this, Job began to speak and cursed the day he was born. 2 He said:
3 May the day I was born perish,
and the night when they said,
“A boy is conceived.”(A)
4 If only that day had turned to darkness!
May God above not care about it,
or light shine on it.
5 May darkness and gloom(B) reclaim it,
and a cloud settle over it.
May an eclipse of the sun[a] terrify it.
6 If only darkness had taken that night away!
May it not appear[b] among the days of the year
or be listed in the calendar.[c]
7 Yes, may that night be barren;
may no joyful shout(C) be heard in it.
8 Let those who curse certain days
cast a spell(D) on it,
those who are skilled in rousing Leviathan.(E)
9 May its morning stars grow dark.
May it wait for daylight but have none;
may it not see the breaking[d] of dawn.
10 For that night did not shut
the doors of my mother’s womb,
and hide sorrow from my eyes.
11 Why was I not stillborn;
why didn’t I die as I came from the womb?(F)
12 Why did the knees receive me,
and why were there breasts for me to nurse?(G)
13 Now I would certainly be lying down in peace;
I would be asleep.(H)
Then I would be at rest(I)
14 with the kings and counselors(J) of the earth,
who rebuilt ruined cities for themselves,
15 or with princes who had gold,
who filled their houses(K) with silver.
16 Or why was I not hidden like a miscarried child,(L)
like infants who never see daylight?
17 There the wicked(M) cease to make trouble,
and there the weary find rest.
18 The captives are completely at ease;(N)
they do not hear the voice of their oppressor.(O)
19 Both small and great are there,
and the slave is set free from his master.(P)
20 Why is light given to one burdened with grief,
and life to those whose existence is bitter,(Q)
21 who wait for death,(R) but it does not come,
and search for it more than for hidden treasure,
22 who are filled with much joy
and are glad when they reach the grave?(S)
23 Why is life given to a man whose path is hidden,(T)
whom God has hedged in?
24 I sigh when food(U) is put before me,[e]
and my groans pour out like water.(V)
25 For the thing I feared has overtaken me,
and what I dreaded has happened to me.(W)
26 I cannot relax or be still;
I have no rest,(X) for trouble comes.
Job 3
International Standard Version
Job Laments the Day He was Born
3 After this, Job spoke up solemnly, cursing[a] the day he was born.[b] 2 This is what Job said:
3 “Let the day when I was born be annihilated,
along with the night when it was announced,
‘It’s a boy!’[c]
4 Let that day be dark;
let God above not care about it;
let no light shine over it.
5 Let darkness and deep gloom reclaim it;
let clouds settle down on it;
let blackness in mid-day terrify it.
6 Let darkness carry that night away;
let it not take its place joyfully among the days of the year;
let it not be entered into the calendar.[d]
7 “Yes, let that night be barren;
let it not appear with its joyful shout.
8 Let whoever curses days curse it—
those who are ready to awaken monsters.[e]
9 Let the stars of its evening twilight be dark;
let it hope for light but let there be none;
let it not see the breaking rays[f] of the dawn.
10 “Because that night[g] refused to shut the doors of my mother’s[h] womb;
it failed to keep me from seeing this trouble.
11 Why didn’t I die while I was still in the womb,
or die while I was being born?
12 Why was there a lap[i] to hold me,
and why were there breasts to nurse me?
13 “If I had died,[j] I would be lying down by now,
undisturbed, asleep, and at rest,
14 along with kings and counselors of the earth,
who used to build for themselves what are now only[k] ruins,
15 or princes who amassed[l] gold for themselves,
and who kept filling their houses with silver.
16 “Or why was I not buried[m] like a stillborn child,[n]
like babies[o] who never saw the light?
17 In that place, the wicked stop causing trouble,
and there, those whose strength is exhausted are at rest.
18 In that place, those who once were prisoners will be at ease together;
they won’t hear the voice of oppressors.
19 The unimportant and the important are both there,
and the servant is free from his master.
20 “Why does God[p] give light to the sufferer
or life to the bitter person:
21 To those who are longing for death—
even though it does not come?
To those who search for it
more than for hidden treasure?
22 To those who are happy beyond measure[q]
when they reach their graves?
23 To the formerly successful[r] man who lost his way in life,
and God fenced him in?
24 “As far as I’m concerned, my food comes to me in the form of sighs,
and my cries of anguish pour out like water.
25 For the dreaded thing that I feared has happened to me,
what caused me to worry has engulfed[s] me.
26 I will not be at ease;
I will not be quiet;
I will not rest;
because trouble has arrived.”
Footnotes
- Job 3:1 Or Job opened his mouth and cursed
- Job 3:1 The Heb. lacks he was born
- Job 3:3 Lit. A man has been conceived
- Job 3:6 Lit. entered among the numbering of months
- Job 3:8 Lit. Leviathan; i.e. an ancient sea creature
- Job 3:9 Lit. the eyelashes
- Job 3:10 Lit. It
- Job 3:10 The Heb. lacks mother’s
- Job 3:12 Lit. Why were there knees
- Job 3:13 Lit. For
- Job 3:14 The Heb. lacks only
- Job 3:15 The Heb. lacks who amassed
- Job 3:16 Lit. hidden
- Job 3:16 Or miscarriage
- Job 3:16 Lit. children
- Job 3:20 Lit. he
- Job 3:22 Lit. happy with great rejoicing
- Job 3:23 Lit. the valiant
- Job 3:25 Lit. come
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