Job’s Life Seems Futile

[a]Is a person not (A)forced to labor on earth,
And are his days not like the days of (B)a hired worker?
As a slave pants for the shade,
And as a hired worker who eagerly waits for his wages,
So I am allotted worthless months,
And (C)nights of trouble are apportioned to me.
When I (D)lie down, I say,
‘When shall I arise?’
But the night continues,
And I am continually tossing until dawn.
My (E)flesh is clothed with maggots and a crust of dirt,
My skin hardens and [b]oozes.

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Footnotes

  1. Job 7:1 Lit Has not man compulsory labor
  2. Job 7:5 Lit melts

Job: My Suffering Is without End

“Do not human beings have a hard service on earth,
    and are not their days like the days of a laborer?(A)
Like a slave who longs for the shadow,
    and like laborers who look for their wages,(B)
so I am allotted months of emptiness,
    and nights of misery are apportioned to me.(C)
When I lie down I say, ‘When shall I rise?’
    But the night is long,
    and I am full of tossing until dawn.(D)
My flesh is clothed with worms and dirt;
    my skin hardens, then breaks out again.

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