1Isn’t mankind consigned to forced labor a on earth?

Are not his days like those of a hired hand?

2Like a slave he longs for shade;

like a hired man he waits for his pay.

3So I have been made to inherit months of futility,

and troubled nights have been assigned to me. b

4When I lie down I think:

When will I get up?

But the evening drags on endlessly,

and I toss and turn until dawn.

5My flesh is clothed with maggots and encrusted with dirt. c

My skin forms scabs d and then oozes. e

6My days pass more swiftly than a weaver’s shuttle;

they come to an end without hope. f

7Remember that my life is but a breath.

My eye will never again see anything good. g

8The eye of anyone who looks on me

will no longer see me.

Your eyes will look for me, but I will be gone. h

9As a cloud fades away and vanishes,

so the one who goes down to ^•Sheol i will never rise again.

10He will never return to his house;

his hometown will no longer remember j him. k

11Therefore I will not restrain my mouth.

I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;

I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.

12Am I the sea l  m or a sea monster, n

that You keep me under guard?

13When I say: My bed will comfort me,

and my couch will ease my complaint,

14then You frighten me with dreams,

and terrify me with visions, o

15so that I prefer strangling p —

death rather than life in this body. q  r

16I give up! I will not live forever.

Leave me alone, s for my days are a breath. t

17What is man, that You think so highly of him

and pay so much attention to him? u

18You inspect him every morning,

and put him to the test every moment. v

19Will You ever look away from me,

or leave me alone long enough to swallow? w

20If I have sinned, what have I done to You,

Watcher of mankind?

Why have You made me Your target, x

so that I have become a burden to You? y

21Why not forgive my sin

and pardon my transgression? z

For soon I will lie down in the grave. aa

You will eagerly seek me, but I will be gone. ab