Job 3

Job complains to God

3:1Job does not understand why these bad things have happened to him. He thinks that God is not fair. He has so much trouble and pain that he wants to die.

1 Finally, Job decided to speak. He cursed the day when he was born.

2 This is what Job said:

3 ‘Forget the day of my birth.

Forget the night when a son was born to my parents.

4 That day should be completely dark,

with no light to shine on it!

God in heaven above should not even think about it.

5 That day should remain in a dark shadow.

Clouds should cover it so that everywhere is black.

6 Remove that night completely!

It should no longer be a date among the days of the year.

Remove that day from the months of the year.

7 Do not let women become pregnant on that night.

Nobody should be happy!

8 People who know how to curse days should curse that day.

They should wake up Leviathan, the monster from the sea, to attack it.

9 The stars of early morning should be dark on that day.

Do not let the sun shine at dawn,

so that there is no end to the dark night.

10 I curse that day because it allowed me to be born.

It brought me into a life of trouble.

11 It would have been better if I had died at birth.

I should have been born dead.

12 Instead, my mother held me on her knees.

I drank from her breasts.

13 If I had died at birth, I would now be resting in peace.

14 I would be resting with kings and rulers.

They lived in beautiful houses which are now heaps of stones.

15 I would be with princes who once were very rich.

Their palaces were full of gold and silver.

16 My parents should have buried me,

like a child that is born dead.

I would never have seen the light of day.

17 After death, wicked people can no longer cause any trouble.

People who have become tired can rest.

18 Even prisoners can enjoy a time of peace.

No guards are there to shout at them.

19 Great people and ordinary people are all there together.

Slaves have no master that they must obey.

20 I am suffering very much.

Why does God let me wake up each day?

I am very upset,

so why does God continue to let me live?

21 People like me only want to die. But death does not come.

They would rather die than find valuable gold.

22 When their life finally finishes, they are very happy.

They are happy to go into their graves.

23 So why do I continue to live?

God has stopped me moving forward in life.

I cannot see which way to go.

24 I am crying instead of eating.

My tears pour out like a river of water.

25 The things that frighten me most have happened to me.

26 Because of all the trouble that has happened to me,

I cannot rest. I have no peace in my mind.’