[1] My spirit is broken; I am ready to give up. My life is almost gone; the grave is waiting for me. [2] People stand around me and laugh at me. I watch them as they tease and insult me. [3] "God, give me some support. No one else will! [4] You have closed my friends' minds, and they don't understand. Please don't let them win. [5] You know what people say: 'A man neglects his own children to help his friends.' But my friends have turned against me. [6] God has made my name a bad word to everyone. People spit in my face. [7] My eyes are almost blind from my grief. My whole body is as thin as a shadow. [8] Good people wonder how this could happen. The innocent are upset with anyone who is against God. [9] But those who do right will continue to do what is right. Those who are not guilty grow stronger and stronger. [10] "But come on, all of you, and try to prove me wrong. I don't find any of you to be wise. [11] My life is passing away, and my plans are destroyed. My hope is gone. [12] Everything is confused- night is day, and evening comes when it should be dawn. [13] "I might hope for the grave to be my new home. I might hope to make my bed in the dark grave. [14] I might say to the grave, 'You are my father,' and to the worms, 'my mother' or 'my sister.' [15] But you can't really call that hope, can you? Does anyone see any hope for me? [16] Will hope go down with me to the place of death? Will we go down into the dirt together?"
