New King James Version

New Living Translation

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 I am mocked by people younger than I, by young men whose fathers are not worthy to run with my sheepdogs.

2Indeed, what profit is the strength of their hands to me? Their vigor has perished.

2A lot of good they are to me— those worn-out wretches!

3They are gaunt from want and famine, Fleeing late to the wilderness, desolate and waste,

3They are gaunt from poverty and hunger. They claw the dry ground in desolate wastelands.

4Who pluck mallow by the bushes, And broom tree roots for their food.

4They pluck wild greens from among the bushes and eat from the roots of broom trees.

5They were driven out from among men, They shouted at them as at a thief.

5They are driven from human society, and people shout at them as if they were thieves.

6They had to live in the clefts of the valleys, In caves of the earth and the rocks.

6So now they live in frightening ravines, in caves and among the rocks.

7Among the bushes they brayed, Under the nettles they nestled.

7They sound like animals howling among the bushes, huddled together beneath the nettles.

8They were sons of fools, Yes, sons of vile men; They were scourged from the land.

8They are nameless fools, outcasts from society.

9“And now I am their taunting song; Yes, I am their byword.

9“And now they mock me with vulgar songs! They taunt me!

10They abhor me, they keep far 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 He has loosed my bowstring and afflicted me, They have cast off restraint before me.

11For God has cut my bowstring. He has humbled me, so they have thrown off all restraint.

12At my right hand the rabble arises; They push away my feet, And they raise against me their ways of destruction.

12These outcasts oppose me to my face. They send me sprawling and lay traps in my path.

13They break up my path, They promote my calamity; They have no helper.

13They block my road and do everything they can to destroy me. They know I have no one to help me.

14They come as broad breakers; Under the ruinous storm they roll along.

14They come at me from all directions. They jump on me when I am down.

15Terrors are turned upon me; They pursue my honor as the wind, And my prosperity has passed like a cloud.

15I live in terror now. My honor has blown away in the wind, and my prosperity has vanished like a cloud.

16“And now my soul is poured out because of my plight; The days of affliction take hold of me.

16“And now my life seeps away. Depression haunts my days.

17My bones are pierced in me at night, And my gnawing pains take no rest.

17At night my bones are filled with pain, which gnaws at me relentlessly.

18By great force my garment is disfigured; It binds me about as the collar of my coat.

18With a strong hand, God grabs my shirt. He grips me by the collar of my coat.

19He has cast me into the mire, And I have become like dust and ashes.

19He has thrown me into the mud. I’m nothing more than dust and ashes.

20“I cry out to You, but You do not answer me; I stand up, and You regard me.

20“I cry to you, O God, but you don’t answer. I stand before you, but you don’t even look.

21But You have become cruel to me; With the strength of Your hand You oppose me.

21You have become cruel toward me. You use your power to persecute me.

22You lift me up to the wind and cause me to ride on it; You spoil my success.

22You throw me into the whirlwind and destroy me in the storm.

23For I know that You will bring me to death, And to the house appointed for all living.

23And I know you are sending me to my death— the destination of all who live.

24“Surely He would not stretch out His hand against a heap of ruins, If they cry out when He destroys it.

24“Surely no one would turn against the needy when they cry for help in their trouble.

25Have I not wept for him who was in trouble? Has not my soul grieved for the poor?

25Did I not weep for those in trouble? Was I not deeply grieved for the needy?

26But when I looked for good, evil came to me; And when I waited for light, then came darkness.

26So I looked for good, but evil came instead. I waited for the light, but darkness fell.

27My heart is in turmoil and cannot rest; Days of affliction confront me.

27My heart is troubled and restless. Days of suffering torment me.

28I go about mourning, but not in the sun; I stand up in the assembly and cry out for help.

28I walk in gloom, without sunlight. I stand in the public square and cry for help.

29I am a brother of jackals, And a companion of ostriches.

29Instead, I am considered a brother to jackals and a companion to owls.

30My skin grows black and falls from me; My bones burn with fever.

30My skin has turned dark, and my bones burn with fever.

31My harp is turned to mourning, And my flute to the voice of those who weep.

31My harp plays sad music, and my flute accompanies those who weep.

The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.

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.