English Standard Version ESV
New Revised Standard NRS
1 “But now they laugh at me, men who are younger than I, whose fathers I would have disdained to set with the dogs of my flock.
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"But now they make sport of me, those who are younger than I, whose fathers I would have disdained to set with the dogs of my flock.
2 What could I gain from the strength of their hands, men whose vigor is gone?
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What could I gain from the strength of their hands? All their vigor is gone.
3 Through want and hard hunger they gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation;
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Through want and hard hunger they gnaw the dry and desolate ground,
4 they pick saltwort and the leaves of bushes, and the roots of the broom tree for their food.
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they pick mallow and the leaves of bushes, and to warm themselves the roots of broom.
5 They are driven out from human company; they shout after them as after a thief.
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They are driven out from society; people shout after them as after a thief.
6 In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell, in holes of the earth and of the rocks.
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In the gullies of wadis they must live, in holes in the ground, and in the rocks.
7 Among the bushes they bray; under the nettles they huddle together.
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Among the bushes they bray; under the nettles they huddle together.
8 A senseless, a nameless brood, they have been whipped out of the land.
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A senseless, disreputable brood, they have been whipped out of the land.
9 “And now I have become their song; I am a byword to them.
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"And now they mock me in song; I am a byword to them.
10 They abhor me; they keep aloof from me; they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.
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They abhor me, they keep aloof from me; they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.
11 Because God has loosed my cord and humbled me, they have cast off restraint in my presence.
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Because God has loosed my bowstring and humbled me, they have cast off restraint in my presence.
12 On my right hand the rabble rise; they push away my feet; they cast up against me their ways of destruction.
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On my right hand the rabble rise up; they send me sprawling, and build roads for my ruin.
13 They break up my path; they promote my calamity; they need no one to help them.
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They break up my path, they promote my calamity; no one restrains them.
14 As through a wide breach they come; amid the crash they roll on.
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As through a wide breach they come; amid the crash they roll on.
15 Terrors are turned upon me; my honor is pursued as by the wind, and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.
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Terrors are turned upon me; my honor is pursued as by the wind, and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.
16 “And now my soul is poured out within me; days of affliction have taken hold of me.
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"And now my soul is poured out within me; days of affliction have taken hold of me.
17 The night racks my bones, and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest.
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The night racks my bones, and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest.
18 With great force my garment is disfigured; it binds me about like the collar of my tunic.
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With violence he seizes my garment; he grasps me by the collar of my tunic.
19 God has cast me into the mire, and I have become like dust and ashes.
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He has cast me into the mire, and I have become like dust and ashes.
20 I cry to you for help and you do not answer me; I stand, and you only look at me.
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I cry to you and you do not answer me; I stand, and you merely look at me.
21 You have turned cruel to me; with the might of your hand you persecute me.
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You have turned cruel to me; with the might of your hand you persecute me.
22 You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it, and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.
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You lift me up on the wind, you make me ride on it, and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.
23 For I know that you will bring me to death and to the house appointed for all living.
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I know that you will bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living.
24 “Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand, and in his disaster cry for help?
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"Surely one does not turn against the needy, when in disaster they cry for help.
25 Did not I weep for him whose day was hard? Was not my soul grieved for the needy?
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Did I not weep for those whose day was hard? Was not my soul grieved for the poor?
26 But when I hoped for good, evil came, and when I waited for light, darkness came.
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But when I looked for good, evil came; and when I waited for light, darkness came.
27 My inward parts are in turmoil and never still; days of affliction come to meet me.
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My inward parts are in turmoil, and are never still; days of affliction come to meet me.
28 I go about darkened, but not by the sun; I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.
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I go about in sunless gloom; I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.
29 I am a brother of jackals and a companion of ostriches.
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I am a brother of jackals, and a companion of ostriches.
30 My skin turns black and falls from me, and my bones burn with heat.
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My skin turns black and falls from me, and my bones burn with heat.
31 My lyre is turned to mourning, and my pipe to the voice of those who weep.
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My lyre is turned to mourning, and my pipe to the voice of those who weep.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2025
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.