Holman Christian Standard Bible | New Living Translation |
1But now they mock me, men younger than I am, whose fathers I would have refused to put with my sheep dogs. | 1“But now I am mocked by people younger than I, by young men whose fathers are not worthy to run with my sheepdogs. |
2What use to me was the strength of their hands? Their vigor had left them. | 2A lot of good they are to me— those worn-out wretches! |
3Emaciated from poverty and hunger, they gnawed the dry land, the desolate wasteland by night. | 3They are gaunt from poverty and hunger. They claw the dry ground in desolate wastelands. |
4They plucked mallow among the shrubs, and the roots of the broom tree were their food. | 4They pluck wild greens from among the bushes and eat from the roots of broom trees. |
5They were expelled from human society; people shouted at them as if they were thieves. | 5They are driven from human society, and people shout at them as if they were thieves. |
6They are living on the slopes of the wadis, among the rocks and in holes in the ground. | 6So now they live in frightening ravines, in caves and among the rocks. |
7They bray among the shrubs; they huddle beneath the thistles. | 7They sound like animals howling among the bushes, huddled together beneath the nettles. |
8Foolish men, without even a name. They were forced to leave the land. | 8They are nameless fools, outcasts from society. |
9Now I am mocked by their songs; I have become an object of scorn to them. | 9“And now they mock me with vulgar songs! They taunt me! |
10They despise me and keep their distance from me; they do not hesitate to spit in my face. | 10They despise me and won’t come near me, except to spit in my face. |
11Because God has loosened my bowstring and oppressed me, they have cast off restraint in my presence. | 11For God has cut my bowstring. He has humbled me, so they have thrown off all restraint. |
12The rabble rise up at my right; they trap my feet and construct their siege ramp against me. | 12These outcasts oppose me to my face. They send me sprawling and lay traps in my path. |
13They tear up my path; they contribute to my destruction, without anyone to help them. | 13They block my road and do everything they can to destroy me. They know I have no one to help me. |
14They advance as through a gaping breach; they keep rolling in through the ruins. | 14They come at me from all directions. They jump on me when I am down. |
15Terrors are turned loose against me; they chase my dignity away like the wind, and my prosperity has passed by like a cloud. | 15I live in terror now. My honor has blown away in the wind, and my prosperity has vanished like a cloud. |
16Now my life is poured out before my eyes, and days of suffering have seized me. | 16“And now my life seeps away. Depression haunts my days. |
17Night pierces my bones, but my gnawing pains never rest. | 17At night my bones are filled with pain, which gnaws at me relentlessly. |
18My clothing is distorted with great force; He chokes me by the neck of my garment. | 18With a strong hand, God grabs my shirt. He grips me by the collar of my coat. |
19He throws me into the mud, and I have become like dust and ashes. | 19He has thrown me into the mud. I’m nothing more than dust and ashes. |
20I cry out to You for help, but You do not answer me; when I stand up, You merely look at me. | 20“I cry to you, O God, but you don’t answer. I stand before you, but you don’t even look. |
21You have turned against me with cruelty; You harass me with Your strong hand. | 21You have become cruel toward me. You use your power to persecute me. |
22You lift me up on the wind and make me ride it; You scatter me in the storm. | 22You throw me into the whirlwind and destroy me in the storm. |
23Yes, I know that You will lead me to death-- the place appointed for all who live. | 23And I know you are sending me to my death— the destination of all who live. |
24Yet no one would stretch out his hand against a ruined man when he cries out to him for help because of his distress. | 24“Surely no one would turn against the needy when they cry for help in their trouble. |
25Have I not wept for those who have fallen on hard times? Has my soul not grieved for the needy? | 25Did I not weep for those in trouble? Was I not deeply grieved for the needy? |
26But when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, darkness came. | 26So I looked for good, but evil came instead. I waited for the light, but darkness fell. |
27I am churning within and cannot rest; days of suffering confront me. | 27My heart is troubled and restless. Days of suffering torment me. |
28I walk about blackened, but not by the sun. I stood in the assembly and cried out for help. | 28I walk in gloom, without sunlight. I stand in the public square and cry for help. |
29I have become a brother to jackals and a companion of ostriches. | 29Instead, I am considered a brother to jackals and a companion to owls. |
30My skin blackens and flakes off, and my bones burn with fever. | 30My skin has turned dark, and my bones burn with fever. |
31My lyre is used for mourning and my flute for the sound of weeping. | 31My harp plays sad music, and my flute accompanies those who weep. |
Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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