May the day I was born perish,
and the night when they said,
“A boy is conceived.”

If only darkness had taken that night away!
May it not appear among the days of the year
or be listed in the calendar.

Yes, may that night be barren;
may no joyful shout be heard in it.

Now I would certainly be lying down in peace;
I would be asleep.
Then I would be at rest

I cannot relax or be still;
I have no rest, for trouble comes.

They perish at a single blast from God
and come to an end by the breath of His nostrils.

A wind passed by me,
and I shuddered with fear.

“Can a person be more righteous than God,
or a man more pure than his Maker?”

They encounter darkness by day,
and they grope at noon
as if it were night.

You will be safe from slander
and not fear destruction when it comes.

For you will have a covenant with the stones of the field,
and the wild animals will be at peace with you.

You will know that your tent is secure,
and nothing will be missing when you inspect your home.

You will also know that your offspring will be many
and your descendants like the grass of the earth.

If only my grief could be weighed
and my devastation placed with it in the scales.

If only my request would be granted
and God would provide what I hope for:

What strength do I have that I should continue to hope?
What is my future, that I should be patient?

Have I ever said: “Give me something”
or “Pay a bribe for me from your wealth”

Teach me, and I will be silent.
Help me understand what I did wrong.

How painful honest words can be!
But what does your rebuke prove?

Reconsider; don’t be unjust.
Reconsider; my righteousness is still the issue.

Like a slave he longs for shade;
like a hired man he waits for his pay.

The eye of anyone who looks on me
will no longer see me.
Your eyes will look for me, but I will be gone.

What is man, that You think so highly of him
and pay so much attention to him?

Why not forgive my sin
and pardon my transgression?
For soon I will lie down in the grave.
You will eagerly seek me, but I will be gone.

Then, even if your beginnings were modest,
your final days will be full of prosperity.

For ask the previous generation,
and pay attention to what their fathers discovered,

Your enemies will be clothed with shame;
the tent of the wicked will exist no longer.

Yes, I know what you’ve said is true,
but how can a person be justified before God?

If He passes by me, I wouldn’t see Him;
if He goes right by, I wouldn’t recognize Him.

If I summoned Him and He answered me,
I do not believe He would pay attention to what I said.

My days fly by faster than a runner;
they flee without seeing any good.

They sweep by like boats made of papyrus,
like an eagle swooping down on its prey.

Since I will be found guilty,
why should I labor in vain?

Should this stream of words go unanswered
and such a talker be acquitted?

If He passes by and throws someone in prison
or convenes a court, who can stop Him?

then you will hold your head high, free from fault.
You will be firmly established and unafraid.

For you will forget your suffering,
recalling it only as waters that have flowed by.

Your life will be brighter than noonday;
its darkness will be like the morning.

You will be confident, because there is hope.
You will look carefully about and lie down in safety.

But the sight of the wicked will fail.
Their way of escape will be cut off,
and their only hope is their last breath.

I am a laughingstock to my friends,
by calling on God, who answers me.
The righteous and upright man is a laughingstock.

Whatever He tears down cannot be rebuilt;
whoever He imprisons cannot be released.

He releases the bonds put on by kings
and fastens a belt around their waists.

If only you would shut up
and let that be your wisdom!

Be quiet, and I will speak.
Let whatever comes happen to me.

Pay close attention to my words;
let my declaration ring in your ears.

Can anyone indict me?
If so, I will be silent and die.

My rebellion would be sealed up in a bag,
and You would cover over my iniquity.

What is man, that he should be pure,
or one born of woman, that he should be righteous?

what was declared by wise men
and was not suppressed by their ancestors,

He will no longer be rich; his wealth will not endure.
His possessions will not increase in the land.

He will not escape from the darkness;
flames will wither his shoots,
and by the breath of God’s mouth, he will depart.

It will be accomplished before his time,
and his branch will not flourish.

He will be like a vine that drops its unripe grapes
and like an olive tree that sheds its blossoms.

For the company of the godless will have no children,
and fire will consume the tents of those who offer bribes.

I was at ease, but He shattered me;
He seized me by the scruff of the neck
and smashed me to pieces.
He set me up as His target;

Make arrangements! Put up security for me.
Who else will be my sponsor?

My days have slipped by;
my plans have been ruined,
even the things dear to my heart.

You who tear yourself in anger—
should the earth be abandoned on your account,
or a rock be removed from its place?

A trap catches him by the heel;
a noose seizes him.

My relatives stop coming by,
and my close friends have forgotten me.

My skin and my flesh cling to my bones;
I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.

or were inscribed in stone forever
by an iron stylus and lead!

then be afraid of the sword,
because wrath brings punishment by the sword,
so that you may know there is a judgment.

He will fly away like a dream and never be found;
he will be chased away like a vision in the night.

His bones may be full of youthful vigor,
but will lie down with him in the grave.

If he flees from an iron weapon,
an arrow from a bronze bow will pierce him.

Total darkness is reserved for his treasures.
A fire unfanned by human hands will consume him;
it will feed on what is left in his tent.

The possessions in his house will be removed,
flowing away on the day of God’s anger.

Pay close attention to my words;
let this be the consolation you offer.

As for me, is my complaint against a man?
Then why shouldn’t I be impatient?

Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him,
and what will we gain by pleading with Him?”

Can a man be of any use to God?
Can even a wise man be of use to Him?

They were snatched away before their time,
and their foundations were washed away by a river.

Come to terms with God and be at peace;
in this way good will come to you.

If you return to the Almighty, you will be renewed.
If you banish injustice from your tent

the Almighty will be your gold
and your finest silver.

When you make a decision, it will be carried out,
and light will shine on your ways.

He will even rescue the guilty one,
who will be rescued by the purity of your hands.

Would He prosecute me forcefully?
No, He will certainly pay attention to me.

Yet I am not destroyed by the darkness,
by the thick darkness that covers my face.

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They drive away the donkeys owned by the fatherless
and take the widow’s ox as collateral.

Drenched by mountain rains,
they huddle against the rocks, shelterless.

The murderer rises at dawn
to kill the poor and needy,
and by night he becomes a thief.

In the dark they break into houses;
by day they lock themselves in,
never experiencing the light.

Yet God drags away the mighty by His power;
when He rises up, they have no assurance of life.

Can His troops be numbered?
Does His light not shine on everyone?

How can a person be justified before God?
How can one born of woman be pure?

By His power He stirred the sea,
and by His understanding He crushed Rahab.

By His breath the heavens gained their beauty;
His hand pierced the fleeing serpent.

May my enemy be like the wicked
and my opponent like the unjust.

Those who survive him will be buried by the plague,
yet their widows will not weep for them.

The house he built is like a moth’s cocoon
or a booth set up by a watchman.

Food may come from the earth,
but below the surface the earth is transformed as by fire.

But where can wisdom be found,
and where is understanding located?

No man can know its value,
since it cannot be found in the land of the living.

Gold cannot be exchanged for it,
and silver cannot be weighed out for its price.

Wisdom cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
in precious onyx or sapphire.

Gold and glass do not compare with it,
and articles of fine gold cannot be exchanged for it.

Topaz from Cush cannot compare with it,
and it cannot be valued in pure gold.