| New American Standard Bible 1995 | NET Bible |  
 | 1"Is not man forced to labor on earth, And are not his days like the days of a hired man? | 1"Does not humanity have hard service on earth? Are not their days also like the days of a hired man?  |   
| 2"As a slave who pants for the shade, And as a hired man who eagerly waits for his wages, | 2Like a servant longing for the evening shadow, and like a hired man looking for his wages,  |   
| 3So am I allotted months of vanity, And nights of trouble are appointed me. | 3thus I have been made to inherit months of futility, and nights of sorrow have been appointed to me.  |   
| 4"When I lie down I say, 'When shall I arise?' But the night continues, And I am continually tossing until dawn. | 4If I lie down, I say, 'When will I arise?', and the night stretches on and I toss and turn restlessly until the day dawns.  |   
| 5"My flesh is clothed with worms and a crust of dirt, My skin hardens and runs. | 5My body is clothed with worms and dirty scabs; my skin is broken and festering.  |   
| 6"My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, And come to an end without hope. | 6My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle and they come to an end without hope.  |   
| 7"Remember that my life is but breath; My eye will not again see good. | 7Remember that my life is but a breath, that my eyes will never again see happiness.  |   
| 8"The eye of him who sees me will behold me no longer; Your eyes will be on me, but I will not be. | 8The eye of him who sees me now will see me no more; your eyes will look for me, but I will be gone.  |   
| 9"When a cloud vanishes, it is gone, So he who goes down to Sheol does not come up. | 9As a cloud is dispersed and then disappears, so the one who goes down to the grave does not come up again.  |   
| 10"He will not return again to his house, Nor will his place know him anymore. | 10He returns no more to his house, nor does his place of residence know him any more.  |   
| 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. | 11"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.  |   
| 12"Am I the sea, or the sea monster, That You set a guard over me? | 12Am I the sea, or the creature of the deep, that you must put me under guard?  |   
| 13"If I say, 'My bed will comfort me, My couch will ease my complaint,' | 13If I say, "My bed will comfort me, my couch will ease my complaint,"  |   
| 14Then You frighten me with dreams And terrify me by visions; | 14then you scare me with dreams and terrify me with visions,  |   
| 15So that my soul would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pains. | 15so that I would prefer strangling, and death more than life.  |   
| 16"I waste away; I will not live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath. | 16I loathe it; I do not want to live forever; leave me alone, for my days are a vapor!  |   
| 17"What is man that You magnify him, And that You are concerned about him, | 17"What is mankind that you make so much of them, and that you pay attention to them?  |   
| 18That You examine him every morning And try him every moment? | 18And that you visit them every morning, and try them every moment?  |   
| 19"Will You never turn Your gaze away from me, Nor let me alone until I swallow my spittle? | 19Will you never look away from me, will you not let me alone long enough to swallow my spittle?  |   
| 20"Have I sinned? What have I done to You, O watcher of men? Why have You set me as Your target, So that I am a burden to myself? | 20If I have sinned--what have I done to you, O watcher of men? Why have you set me as your target? Have I become a burden to you?  |   
| 21"Why then do You not pardon my transgression And take away my iniquity? For now I will lie down in the dust; And You will seek me, but I will not be." | 21And why do you not pardon my transgression, and take away my iniquity? For now I will lie down in the dust, and you will seek me diligently, but I will be gone."  |  
 | New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | NET Bible copyright © 1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. //netbible.com. Used by permission. All rights reserved. |  
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