Job 7

Life Is Hard and Full of Struggle

1 “Is not life on earth like hard labor for a man, Are not our days like those of a hired hand,

2 We are like a worker longing for shade, like a servant waiting to get paid.

3 So I have been given months of misery and nights full of trouble.

4 When I lay down I think, ‘When will I get up?’ But the night drags on, and I toss until morning.

5 My body’s clothed with worms and scabs; my skin cracks and oozes.

Life Is Short and Slips Away Fast

6 My days go by faster than a weaver’s shuttle and come to an end without hope.

7 Remember, O God, my life is just a breath; my eyes will never see happiness again.

8 The eyes that see me now will see me no more; You will look for me, but I will be gone.

9 Just like a cloud fades and disappears, so he who goes down to the grave will not come back up.

10 He will never return to his house; his place will know him no more.

Job Cries Out to God

11 So I will not keep quiet; I will speak out in the anguish of my spirit and complain in the bitterness of my soul.

12 Am I the sea or a sea monster, that You put me under guard,

13 When I think my bed will comfort me and my couch will ease my pain,

14 You scare me with dreams and terrify me with visions,

15 So that I would rather choke to death than live like this.

16 I hate my life; I do not want to live forever. Leave me alone, my days are just a breath.

Why Will Not God Leave Me Alone,

17 What is man that You make so much of him, that You give him so much attention,

18 That You examine him every morning and test him every moment,

19 Will You never look away from me, or leave me alone long enough to swallow my spit,

20 If I have sinned, what have I done to You, O watcher of men, Why have You made me Your target, Have I become a burden to You,

21 Why do You not forgive my sin and take away my guilt, For soon I will lie down in the dust; You will search for me, but I will be gone.”