Job 6:1-30 NCV

[1] Then Job answered: [2] "I wish my suffering could be weighed and my misery put on scales. [3] My sadness would be heavier than the sand of the seas. No wonder my words seem careless. [4] The arrows of the Almighty are in me; my spirit drinks in their poison; God's terrors are gathered against me. [5] A wild donkey does not bray when it has grass to eat, and an ox is quiet when it has feed. [6] Tasteless food is not eaten without salt, and there is no flavor in the white of an egg. [7] I refuse to touch it; such food makes me sick. [8] "How I wish that I might have what I ask for and that God would give me what I hope for. [9] How I wish God would crush me and reach out his hand to destroy me. [10] Then I would have this comfort and be glad even in this unending pain, because I would know I did not reject the words of the Holy One. [11] "I do not have the strength to wait. There is nothing to hope for, so why should I be patient? [12] I do not have the strength of stone; my flesh is not bronze. [13] I have no power to help myself, because success has been taken away from me. [14] "They say, 'A person's friends should be kind to him when he is in trouble, even if he stops fearing the Almighty.' [15] But my brothers cannot be counted on. They are like streams that do not always flow, streams that sometimes run over. [16] They are made dark by melting ice and rise with melting snow. [17] But they stop flowing in the dry season; they disappear when it is hot. [18] Travelers turn away from their paths and go into the desert and die. [19] The groups of travelers from Tema look for water, and the traders of Sheba look hopefully. [20] They are upset because they had been sure; when they arrive, they are disappointed. [21] You also have been no help. You see something terrible, and you are afraid. [22] I have never said, 'Give me a gift. Use your wealth to pay my debt. [23] Save me from the enemy's power. Buy me back from the clutches of cruel people.' [24] "Teach me, and I will be quiet. Show me where I have been wrong. [25] Honest words are painful, but your arguments prove nothing. [26] Do you mean to correct what I say? Will you treat the words of a troubled man as if they were only wind? [27] You would even gamble for orphans and would trade away your friend. [28] "But now please look at me. I would not lie to your face. [29] Change your mind; do not be unfair; think again, because my innocence is being questioned. [30] What I am saying is not wicked; I can tell the difference between right and wrong.