New Living Translation NLT
The Message Bible MSG
1 “But now I am mocked by people younger than I, by young men whose fathers are not worthy to run with my sheepdogs.
1
"But no longer. Now I'm the butt of their jokes - young ruffians! whippersnappers!
2 A lot of good they are to me— those worn-out wretches!
2
Why, I considered their fathers mere inexperienced pups. But they are worse than dogs - good for nothing, stray, mangy animals,
3 They are gaunt from poverty and hunger. They claw the dry ground in desolate wastelands.
3
Half-starved, scavenging the back alleys, howling at the moon;
4 They pluck wild greens from among the bushes and eat from the roots of broom trees.
4
Homeless guttersnipes chewing on old bones and licking old tin cans;
5 They are driven from human society, and people shout at them as if they were thieves.
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Outcasts from the community, cursed as dangerous delinquents.
6 So now they live in frightening ravines, in caves and among the rocks.
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Nobody would put up with them; they were driven from the neighborhood.
7 They sound like animals howling among the bushes, huddled together beneath the nettles.
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You could hear them out there at the edge of town, yelping and barking, huddled in junkyards,
8 They are nameless fools, outcasts from society.
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A gang of beggars and no-names, thrown out on their ears.
9 “And now they mock me with vulgar songs! They taunt me!
9
"But now I'm the one they're after, mistreating me, taunting and mocking.
10 They despise me and won’t come near me, except to spit in my face.
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They abhor me, they abuse me. How dare those scoundrels - they spit in my face!
11 For God has cut my bowstring. He has humbled me, so they have thrown off all restraint.
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Now that God has undone me and left me in a heap, they hold nothing back. Anything goes.
12 These outcasts oppose me to my face. They send me sprawling and lay traps in my path.
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They come at me from my blind side, trip me up, then jump on me while I'm down.
13 They block my road and do everything they can to destroy me. They know I have no one to help me.
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They throw every kind of obstacle in my path, determined to ruin me - and no one lifts a finger to help me!
14 They come at me from all directions. They jump on me when I am down.
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They violate my broken body, trample through the rubble of my ruined life.
15 I live in terror now. My honor has blown away in the wind, and my prosperity has vanished like a cloud.
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Terrors assault me - my dignity in shreds, salvation up in smoke.
16 “And now my life seeps away. Depression haunts my days.
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"And now my life drains out, as suffering seizes and grips me hard.
17 At night my bones are filled with pain, which gnaws at me relentlessly.
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Night gnaws at my bones; the pain never lets up.
18 With a strong hand, God grabs my shirt. He grips me by the collar of my coat.
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I am tied hand and foot, my neck in a noose. I twist and turn.
19 He has thrown me into the mud. I’m nothing more than dust and ashes.
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Thrown facedown in the muck, I'm a muddy mess, inside and out. What Did I Do to Deserve This?
20 “I cry to you, O God, but you don’t answer. I stand before you, but you don’t even look.
20
"I shout for help, God, and get nothing, no answer! I stand to face you in protest, and you give me a blank stare!
21 You have become cruel toward me. You use your power to persecute me.
21
You've turned into my tormenter - you slap me around, knock me about.
22 You throw me into the whirlwind and destroy me in the storm.
22
You raised me up so I was riding high and then dropped me, and I crashed.
23 And I know you are sending me to my death— the destination of all who live.
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I know you're determined to kill me, to put me six feet under.
24 “Surely no one would turn against the needy when they cry for help in their trouble.
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"What did I do to deserve this? Did I ever hit anyone who was calling for help?
25 Did I not weep for those in trouble? Was I not deeply grieved for the needy?
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Haven't I wept for those who live a hard life, been heartsick over the lot of the poor?
26 So I looked for good, but evil came instead. I waited for the light, but darkness fell.
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But where did it get me? I expected good but evil showed up. I looked for light but darkness fell.
27 My heart is troubled and restless. Days of suffering torment me.
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My stomach's in a constant churning, never settles down. Each day confronts me with more suffering.
28 I walk in gloom, without sunlight. I stand in the public square and cry for help.
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I walk under a black cloud. The sun is gone. I stand in the congregation and protest.
29 Instead, I am considered a brother to jackals and a companion to owls.
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I howl with the jackals, I hoot with the owls.
30 My skin has turned dark, and my bones burn with fever.
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I'm black and blue all over, burning up with fever.
31 My harp plays sad music, and my flute accompanies those who weep.
31
My fiddle plays nothing but the blues; my mouth harp wails laments.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by
Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.