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1.
"Does not man have hard service on earth? Are not his days like those of a hired man?
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2.
Like a slave longing for the evening shadows, or a hired man waiting eagerly for his wages,
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3.
so I have been allotted months of futility, and nights of misery have been assigned to me.
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4.
When I lie down I think, 'How long before I get up?' The night drags on, and I toss till dawn.
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5.
My body is clothed with worms and scabs, my skin is broken and festering.
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6.
"My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, and they come to an end without hope.
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7.
Remember, O God, that my life is but a breath; my eyes will never see happiness again.
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8.
The eye that now sees me will see me no longer; you will look for me, but I will be no more.
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9.
As a cloud vanishes and is gone, so he who goes down to the grave does not return.
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10.
He will never come to his house again; his place will know him no more.
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11.
"Therefore I will not keep silent; I will speak out in the anguish of my spirit, I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
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12.
Am I the sea, or the monster of the deep, that you put me under guard?
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13.
When I think my bed will comfort me and my couch will ease my complaint,
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14.
even then you frighten me with dreams and terrify me with visions,
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15.
so that I prefer strangling and death, rather than this body of mine.
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16.
I despise my life; I would not live forever. Let me alone; my days have no meaning.
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17.
"What is man that you make so much of him, that you give him so much attention,
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18.
that you examine him every morning and test him every moment?
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19.
Will you never look away from me, or let me alone even for an instant?
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20.
If I have sinned, what have I done to you, O watcher of men? Why have you made me your target? Have I become a burden to you?
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21.
Why do you not pardon my offenses and forgive my sins? For I will soon lie down in the dust; you will search for me, but I will be no more."
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