1 Much occupation ahath God apportioneda,

And heavy is the yoke upon the sons of men—

From the day that he cometh forth from his mother’s womb,

Until the day bwhen he returnethb cto the mother of all living:

G (S) 2 dPreoccupation and anxiety of heart,

And watchfulness for the future, till the day of his death!d

HB 3 From him that sitteth in exaltation on a throne,

Unto ehim that is clothede with dust and ashes;

4 From fhim that wearethf diadem and plate,

Even unto fhim that wearethf ga garment of hairg:

HB 5 (a) h(Naught but) anger and jealousyh, anxiety and fear,

Terror of death, istrifei, and contention!

5 (b) And what time he resteth upon his bed,

The sleep of night kdoubleth [his distraction]k.

6 For a little, vainly—lfor a moment—he reposethl,

mAnd then is disturbed by dreamsm:

nDeceivedn by the vision of his soul,

He is like a fugitive fleeing ofrom before the pursuero—

7 p[Now roused he waketh from his sleep]p,

qAnd his vision (?) … q

G 8 r(There are) with all flesh, both man and beast,

Yea and upon the ungodly sevenfoldr:

HB 9 Pestilence and bloodshed, sblight and droughts,

tDevastation and destruction, famine and plaguet.

HB 10 uFor the wickedu vevilv is created,

And on his account w[destruction is imposed]w.

11 All things that are from the earth return to the earth,

xAnd what is from on high (returneth) on highx.

G (S) 12 yAll that is false and unjust is destroyed,

But what is true abideth for every.

HB 13 zWealth unjustly gottenz a[cometh to an end] like a torrenta,

bAnd like a water-course that is mighty in a thunder-stormb:

14 cWith its onrush [rocks are rolled away]c—

dEven so doth [plunder] suddenly come to an endd.

15 eA branch (sprung) from violencee f[hath no tender twig]f,

gFor an impious rootg his on the point of a cragh:

HB 16 iLike reed-stalks (?)i jon the bank of a torrentj,

kWhich are consumed before any (other) [plant]k.

17 lBut kindness shall never be movedl,

And righteousness is established for aye.

(b) 40:18–27. The fear of the Lord is the greatest of all good things

(= 10 + 2 distichs).