7 Isn’t mankind consigned to forced labor k on earth?

Are not his days like those of a hired hand?

2 Like a slave he longs for shade;

like a hired man he waits for his pay.

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

and troubled nights have been assigned to me. l

4 When I lie down I think:

When will I get up?

But the evening drags on endlessly,

and I toss and turn until dawn.

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

My skin forms scabs n and then oozes. o

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

they come to an end without hope. p

7 Remember that my life is but a breath.

My eye will never again see anything good. q

8 The eye of anyone who looks on me

will no longer see me.

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

9 As a cloud fades away and vanishes,

so the one who goes down to * Sheol s will never rise again.

10 He will never return to his house;

his hometown will no longer remember t him. u

11 Therefore I will not restrain my mouth.

I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;

I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.

12 Am I the sea v w or a sea monster, x

that You keep me under guard?

13 When I say: My bed will comfort me,

and my couch will ease my complaint,

14 then You frighten me with dreams,

and terrify me with visions, y

15 so that I prefer strangling z—

death rather than life in this body. a b

16 I give up! I will not live forever.

Leave me alone, c for my days are a breath. d

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

and pay so much attention to him? e

18 You inspect him every morning,

and put him to the test every moment. f

19 Will You ever look away from me,

or leave me alone long enough to swallow? g

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

Watcher of mankind?

Why have You made me Your target, h

so that I have become a burden to You? i

21 Why not forgive my sin

and pardon my transgression? j

For soon I will lie down in the grave. k

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