“Let the day on which I was born perish,
And the night which announced: ‘There is a man-child conceived.’

“May that day be darkness;
Let God above not care about it,
Nor light shine on it.

“Let darkness and gloom claim it for their own;
Let a cloud settle upon it;
Let all that blackens the day terrify it (the day that I was born).

“As for that night, let darkness seize it;
Let it not rejoice among the days of the year;
Let it not be counted in the number of the months.

“Behold, let that night be barren [and empty];
Let no joyful voice enter it.

“Let those curse it who curse the day,
Who are skilled in rousing up Leviathan.

“Let the stars of its early dawn be dark;
Let the morning wait in vain for the light,
Let it not see the eyelids of morning (the day’s dawning),

“I wish that it would please God to crush me,
That He would let loose His hand and cut me off.

“Turn away [from your suspicion], let there be no injustice;
Turn away, my righteousness and vindication is still in it.

“I waste away and loathe my life; I will not live forever.
Let me alone, for my days are but a breath [futile and without substance].

“Will You never turn Your gaze away from me [it plagues me],
Nor let me alone until I swallow my spittle?

“Would He not let my few days alone,
Withdraw from me that I may have a little cheer

If sin is in your hand, put it far away [from you],
And do not let wrongdoing dwell in your tents;

“Be silent before me so that I may speak;
And let happen to me what may.

“Listen diligently to my speech,
And let my declaration fill your ears.

Withdraw Your hand from me and remove this bodily suffering,
And let not the dread of You terrify me.

“Then [Lord,] call, and I will answer;
Or let me speak, and then reply to me.

“[O God] turn your gaze from him so that he may rest,
Until he fulfills his day [on earth] like a hired man.

That you should turn your spirit against God
And let such words [as you have spoken] go out of your mouth?

“Let him not trust in vanity (emptiness, futility) and be led astray;
For emptiness will be his reward [for such living].

“O earth, do not cover my blood,
And let there be no [resting] place for my cry [where it will cease being heard].

“But You [Lord] have closed their hearts to understanding,
Therefore You will not exalt them [by giving a verdict against me].

Though he desires it and will not let it go
But holds it in his mouth,

“Listen carefully to my speech,
And let this be the consolation.

“You say, ‘God stores away [the punishment of] man’s wickedness for his children.’
Let God repay him so that he may know and experience it.

“Let his own eyes see his destruction,
And let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty.

“I hold fast my uprightness and my right standing with God and I will not let them go;
My heart does not reproach me for any of my days.

“May my enemy be as the wicked,
And he who rises up against me be as the unrighteous (unjust).

Oh, let Him weigh me with accurate scales,
And let God know my integrity.

Then let me plant and [let] another eat [from the results of my labor],
And let my crops be uprooted and ruined.

Let my wife grind [meal, like a bond slave] for another [man],
And let others kneel down over her.

Then let my shoulder fall away from its socket,
And my arm be broken off at the elbow.

“No, I have not allowed my mouth to sin
By cursing my enemy and asking for his life.

“Oh, that I had one to listen to me!
Look, here is my signature (mark);
Let the Almighty answer me!
Let my adversary write out His indictment [and put His vague accusations in tangible form].

Let thorns grow instead of wheat,
And stinkweed and cockleburs instead of barley.”

So the words of Job [with his friends] are finished.

“I thought age should speak,
And a multitude of years should teach wisdom.

“Let us choose for ourselves that which is right;
Let us know among ourselves what is good.

“Do not let wrath entice you into scoffing;
And do not let the greatness and the extent of the ransom turn you aside.

“He lets it loose under the whole heaven,
And His lightning to the ends of the earth.

“Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty?
Let him who disputes with God answer it.”