“For now I would have lain down and been quiet; I would have slept then, I would have been at rest [in death],

“There [in death] the wicked cease from raging, And there the weary are at rest.

Who wait for death, but it does not come, And dig (search) for death more [diligently] than for hidden treasures,

“In famine He will redeem you from death, And in war from the power of the sword.

So that I would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pain.

Before I go—and I shall not return— To the land of darkness and the deep shadow [of death],

The [sunless] land of utter gloom as darkness itself, [The land] of the shadow of death, without order, And [where] it shines as [thick] darkness.”

“He uncovers mysteries [that are difficult to grasp and understand] out of the darkness And brings black gloom and the shadow of death into light.

Job Speaks of the Finality of Death

“Man, who is born of a woman, Is short-lived and full of turmoil.

“My face is red and swollen with weeping, And on my eyelids is the shadow of death [my eyes are dimmed],

“Give me a pledge (guarantee, promise) with Yourself [acknowledge my innocence before my death]; Who is there that will be my guarantor and give security for me?

“His skin is devoured by disease; The firstborn of death [the worst of diseases] consumes his limbs.

“He is torn from his tent which he trusted [for safety], And he is marched and brought to the king of terrors (death).

“My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, And I have escaped [death] by the skin of my teeth.

“Even after my [mortal] skin is destroyed [by death], Yet from my [immortal] flesh I will see God,

“Abaddon (the place of destruction) and Death say, ‘We have [only] heard a report of it with our ears.’

“For I know that You will bring me to death And to the house of meeting [appointed] for all the living.

“Then his soul draws near to the pit [of destruction], And his life to those who bring death (the destroyers).

“Have the gates of death been revealed to you, Or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?

“[Crush and] hide them in the dust together; Shut them up in the hidden place [the house of death].