1. “Is not all human life a struggle?Our lives are like that of a hired hand,
2. like a worker who longs for the shade,like a servant waiting to be paid.
3. I, too, have been assigned months of futility,long and weary nights of misery.
4. Lying in bed, I think, ‘When will it be morning?’But the night drags on, and I toss till dawn.
5. My body is covered with maggots and scabs.My skin breaks open, oozing with pus.
6. “My days fly faster than a weaver’s shuttle.They end without hope.
7. O God, remember that my life is but a breath,and I will never again feel happiness.
8. You see me now, but not for long.You will look for me, but I will be gone.
9. Just as a cloud dissipates and vanishes,those who die will not come back.
10. They are gone forever from their home—never to be seen again.
11. “I cannot keep from speaking.I must express my anguish.My bitter soul must complain.
12. Am I a sea monster or a dragonthat you must place me under guard?
13. I think, ‘My bed will comfort me,and sleep will ease my misery,’