Job, 14

1. a human being, born of woman, whose life is short but full of trouble.

1. "Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.

2. Like a flower, such a one blossoms and withers, fleeting as a shadow, transient.

2. He comes forth like a flower, and withers; he flees like a shadow, and continues not.

3. And this is the creature on whom you fix your gaze, and bring to judgement before you!

3. And dost thou open thy eyes upon such a one and bring him into judgment with thee?

4. But will anyone produce the pure from what is impure? No one can!

4. Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? There is not one.

5. Since his days are measured out, since his tale of months depends on you, since you assign him bounds he cannot pass,

5. Since his days are determined, and the number of his months is with thee, and thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass,

6. turn your eyes from him, leave him alone, like a hired labourer, to finish his day in peace.

6. look away from him, and desist, that he may enjoy, like a hireling, his day.

7. There is always hope for a tree: when felled, it can start its life again; its shoots continue to sprout.

7. "For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease.

8. Its roots may have grown old in the earth, its stump rotting in the ground,

8. Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stump die in the ground,

9. but let it scent the water, and it buds, and puts out branches like a plant newly set.

9. yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth branches like a young plant.

10. But a human being? He dies, and dead he remains, breathes his last, and then where is he?

10. But man dies, and is laid low; man breathes his last, and where is he?

11. The waters of the sea will vanish, the rivers stop flowing and run dry:

11. As waters fail from a lake, and a river wastes away and dries up,

12. a human being, once laid to rest, will never rise again, the heavens will wear out before he wakes up, or before he is roused from his sleep.

12. so man lies down and rises not again; till the heavens are no more he will not awake, or be roused out of his sleep.

13. Will no one hide me in Sheol, and shelter me there till your anger is past, fixing a certain day for calling me to mind-

13. Oh that thou wouldest hide me in Sheol, that thou wouldest conceal me until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me!

14. can the dead come back to life? - day after day of my service, I should be waiting for my relief to come.

14. If a man die, shall he live again? All the days of my service I would wait, till my release should come.

15. Then you would call, and I should answer, you would want to see once more what you have made.

15. Thou wouldest call, and I would answer thee; thou wouldest long for the work of thy hands.

16. Whereas now you count every step I take, you would then stop spying on my sin;

16. For then thou wouldest number my steps, thou wouldest not keep watch over my sin;

17. you would seal up my crime in a bag, and put a cover over my fault.

17. my transgression would be sealed up in a bag, and thou wouldest cover over my iniquity.

18. Alas! Just as, eventually, the mountain falls down, the rock moves from its place,

18. "But the mountain falls and crumbles away, and the rock is removed from its place;

19. water wears away the stones, the cloudburst erodes the soil; so you destroy whatever hope a person has.

19. the waters wear away the stones; the torrents wash away the soil of the earth; so thou destroyest the hope of man.

20. You crush him once for all, and he is gone; first you disfigure him, then you dismiss him.

20. Thou prevailest for ever against him, and he passes; thou changest his countenance, and sendest him away.

21. His children may rise to honours -- he does not know it; they may come down in the world -- he does not care.

21. His sons come to honor, and he does not know it; they are brought low, and he perceives it not.

22. He feels no pangs, except for his own body, makes no lament, except for his own self.

22. He feels only the pain of his own body, and he mourns only for himself."