My soul is weary of my life;
I will give free course to my complaint;
I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
I will say unto God, Do not condemn me;
Show me wherefore thou contendest with me.
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress,
That thou shouldest despise the {Hebrew: labor.}work of thy hands,
And shine upon the counsel of the wicked?
Hast thou eyes of flesh?
Or seest thou as man seeth?
Are thy days as the days of man,
Or thy years as man's days,
That thou inquirest after mine iniquity,
And searchest after my sin,
Although thou knowest that I am not wicked,
And there is none that can deliver out of thy hand?
Thy hands have framed me and fashioned me
Together round about; yet thou dost destroy me.
Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast fashioned me as clay;
And wilt thou bring me into dust again?
Hast thou not poured me out as milk,
And curdled me like cheese?
Thou hast clothed me with skin and flesh,
And knit me together with bones and sinews.
Thou hast granted me life and lovingkindness;
And thy {Or, care}visitation hath {Or, I am filled with ignominy, but look thou…for it increaseth: thou &c.}preserved my spirit.
Yet these things thou didst hide in thy heart;
I know that this is with thee:
If I sin, then thou markest me,
And thou wilt not acquit me from mine iniquity.
If I be wicked, woe unto me;
And if I be righteous, yet shall I not lift up my head;
Being filled with ignominy,
And looking upon mine affliction.
And if my head exalt itself, thou huntest me as a lion;
And again thou showest thyself marvellous upon me.
Thou renewest thy witnesses against me,
And increasest thine indignation upon me:
{Or, Host after host is against me}Changes and warfare are with me.
Wherefore then hast thou brought me forth out of the womb?
I had given up the ghost, and no eye had seen me.
I should have been as though I had not been;
I should have been carried from the womb to the grave.
Are not my days few? {Another reading is, let him cease, and leave me alone.}cease then,
And let me alone, that I may {Hebrew: brighten up.}take comfort a little,
Before I go whence I shall not return,
Even to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;
The land dark as {Hebrew: thick darkness.}midnight,
The land of the shadow of death, without any order,
And where the light is as {Hebrew: thick darkness.}midnight.
Querverweise zu Hiob 10,1 Hiob 10,1
Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery,And life unto the bitter in soul;
Who {Hebrew: wait.}long for death, but it cometh not,And dig for it more than for hid treasures;
Who rejoice {Or, unto exultation}exceedingly,And are glad, when they can find the grave?
Why is light given to a man whose way is hid,And whom God hath hedged in?
Therefore I will not refrain my mouth;I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
If I be wicked, woe unto me;And if I be righteous, yet shall I not lift up my head;Being filled with ignominy,And looking upon mine affliction.
Oh that I might have my request;And that God would grant me the thing that I long for!
And be it indeed that I have erred,Mine error remaineth with myself.
And if my head exalt itself, thou huntest me as a lion;And again thou showest thyself marvellous upon me.
Even that it would please God to crush me;That he would let loose his hand, and cut me off!
Hear diligently my speech;And let this be your consolations.
Suffer me, and I also will speak;And after that I have spoken, {Or, thou shall mock}mock on.
As for me, is my complaint {Or, of}to man?And why should I not be impatient?
Oh that my vexation were but weighed,And all my calamity laid in the balances!
For now it would be heavier than the sand of the seas:Therefore have my words been rash.
For the arrows of the Almighty are within me,The poison whereof my spirit drinketh up:The terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.
But he saveth from the sword {Hebrew: out of their mouth.}of their mouth,Even the needy from the hand of the mighty.
Do ye think to reprove words,Seeing that the speeches of one that is desperate are {Or, for the wind}as wind?
So the poor hath hope,And iniquity stoppeth her mouth.
Therefore I will not refrain my mouth;I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
In famine he will redeem thee from death;And in war from the power of the sword.
Though I speak, my grief is not assuaged;And though I forbear, {Hebrew: what departeth from me?}what am I eased?
But now he hath made me weary:Thou hast made desolate all my company.
And thou hast {Or, shrivelled me up}laid fast hold on me, which is a witness against me:And my leanness riseth up against me,It testifieth to my face.
He hath torn me in his wrath, and {Or, hated}persecuted me;He hath gnashed upon me with his teeth:Mine adversary sharpeneth his eyes upon me.
They have gaped upon me with their mouth;They have smitten me upon the cheek reproachfully:They gather themselves together against me.
God delivereth me to the ungodly,And casteth me into the hands of the wicked.
I was at ease, and he brake me asunder;Yea, he hath taken me by the neck, and dashed me to pieces:He hath also set me up for his mark.
His {Or, arrows Or, mighty ones}archers compass me round about;He cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare;He poureth out my gall upon the ground.
He breaketh me with breach upon breach;He runneth upon me like a {Or, mighty man}giant.
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin,And have {Or, defiled}laid my horn in the dust.
My face is red with weeping,And on my eyelids is the shadow of death;
{Or, Though I be perfect, I will not regard &c.}I am perfect; I regard not myself;I despise my life.
When I kept silence, my bones wasted awayThrough my {Hebrew: roaring.}groaning all the day long.
For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me:My moisture was changed {Or, into the}as with the drought of summer. [Selah
I acknowledged my sin unto thee,And mine iniquity did I not hide:I said, I will confess my transgressions unto Jehovah;And thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. [Selah
Oh that thou wouldest hide me in Sheol,That thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past,That thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me!
What shall I say? he hath both spoken unto me, and himself hath done it:I shall go {Or, as in solemn procession See Psalm 42:4.}softly all my years because of the bitterness of my soul.
And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out of hand, if I have found favor in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.
Behold, it was for my peace that I had great bitterness:But {Hebrew: thou hast loved my soul from the pit.}thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of {Or, nothingness}corruption;For thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.
But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a {Or, broom-tree}juniper-tree: and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is enough; now, O Jehovah, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.
Therefore now, O Jehovah, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.
And it came to pass, when the sun arose, that God prepared a sultry east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.