| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1“But now they mock at me, men younger than I, Whose fathers I disdained to put with the dogs of my flock. | 1"But now they mock me, those who are younger than I, whose fathers I disdained too much to put with my sheep dogs. |
| 2Indeed, what profit is the strength of their hands to me? Their vigor has perished. | 2Moreover, the strength of their hands--what use was it to me? Men whose strength had perished; |
| 3They are gaunt from want and famine, Fleeing late to the wilderness, desolate and waste, | 3gaunt with want and hunger, they would gnaw the parched land, in former time desolate and waste. |
| 4Who pluck mallow by the bushes, And broom tree roots for their food. | 4By the brush they would gather herbs from the salt marshes, and the root of the broom tree was their food. |
| 5They were driven out from among men, They shouted at them as at a thief. | 5They were banished from the community--people shouted at them like they would shout at thieves-- |
| 6They had to live in the clefts of the valleys, In caves of the earth and the rocks. | 6so that they had to live in the dry stream beds, in the holes of the ground, and among the rocks. |
| 7Among the bushes they brayed, Under the nettles they nestled. | 7They brayed like animals among the bushes and were huddled together under the nettles. |
| 8They were sons of fools, Yes, sons of vile men; They were scourged from the land. | 8Sons of senseless and nameless people, they were driven out of the land with whips. |
| 9“And now I am their taunting song; Yes, I am their byword. | 9"And now I have become their taunt song; I have become a byword among them. |
| 10They abhor me, they keep far from me; They do not hesitate to spit in my face. | 10They detest me and maintain their distance; they do not hesitate to spit in my face. |
| 11Because He has loosed my bowstring and afflicted me, They have cast off restraint before me. | 11Because God has untied my tent cord and afflicted me, people throw off all restraint in my presence. |
| 12At my right hand the rabble arises; They push away my feet, And they raise against me their ways of destruction. | 12On my right the young rabble rise up; they drive me from place to place, and build up siege ramps against me. |
| 13They break up my path, They promote my calamity; They have no helper. | 13They destroy my path; they succeed in destroying me without anyone assisting them. |
| 14They come as broad breakers; Under the ruinous storm they roll along. | 14They come in as through a wide breach; amid the crash they come rolling in. |
| 15Terrors are turned upon me; They pursue my honor as the wind, And my prosperity has passed like a cloud. | 15Terrors are turned loose on me; they drive away my honor like the wind, and like a cloud my deliverance has passed away. |
| 16“And now my soul is poured out because of my plight; The days of affliction take hold of me. | 16"And now my soul pours itself out within me; days of suffering take hold of me. |
| 17My bones are pierced in me at night, And my gnawing pains take no rest. | 17Night pierces my bones; my gnawing pains never cease. |
| 18By great force my garment is disfigured; It binds me about as the collar of my coat. | 18With great power God grasps my clothing; he binds me like the collar of my tunic. |
| 19He has cast me into the mire, And I have become like dust and ashes. | 19He has flung me into the mud, and I have come to resemble dust and ashes. |
| 20“I cry out to You, but You do not answer me; I stand up, and You regard me. | 20I cry out to you, but you do not answer me; I stand up, and you only look at me. |
| 21But You have become cruel to me; With the strength of Your hand You oppose me. | 21You have become cruel to me; with the strength of your hand you attack me. |
| 22You lift me up to the wind and cause me to ride on it; You spoil my success. | 22You pick me up on the wind and make me ride on it; you toss me about in the storm. |
| 23For I know that You will bring me to death, And to the house appointed for all living. | 23I know that you are bringing me to death, to the meeting place for all the living. |
| 24“Surely He would not stretch out His hand against a heap of ruins, If they cry out when He destroys it. | 24"Surely one does not stretch out his hand against a broken man when he cries for help in his distress. |
| 25Have I not wept for him who was in trouble? Has not my soul grieved for the poor? | 25Have I not wept for the unfortunate? Was not my soul grieved for the poor? |
| 26But when I looked for good, evil came to me; And when I waited for light, then came darkness. | 26But when I hoped for good, trouble came; when I expected light, then darkness came. |
| 27My heart is in turmoil and cannot rest; Days of affliction confront me. | 27My heart is in turmoil unceasingly; the days of my affliction confront me. |
| 28I go about mourning, but not in the sun; I stand up in the assembly and cry out for help. | 28I go about blackened, but not by the sun; in the assembly I stand up and cry for help. |
| 29I am a brother of jackals, And a companion of ostriches. | 29I have become a brother to jackals and a companion of ostriches. |
| 30My skin grows black and falls from me; My bones burn with fever. | 30My skin has turned dark on me; my body is hot with fever. |
| 31My harp is turned to mourning, And my flute to the voice of those who weep. | 31My harp is used for mourning and my flute for the sound of weeping. |
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