Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Chapter Three: A Curse and a Lament

The first word to come out of Job’s mouth was a curse.

Then he said,

“I wish I had never been born!
Or that I had died at birth.
Then I would be quiet;
I would sleep with the kings
And the counselors of the earth,
With the powerful who build
Desolate places for themselves
And with princes who had gold,
Who filled their houses with silver.

“In death the wicked cease their troubling
And the weary can rest.
In death the prisoners relax, never
Hearing the voice of the oppressor.
In death the small and great gather,
And the servant is free of the master.

“Why is it that light comes in misery?
Why does the bitter soul go on breathing?
Why do those who long for death have to wait,
Digging for it as if it were a hidden treasure?
When they find the grave, they rejoice.

“Why is it that light comes to those
Whose paths are hidden
And whom God has fenced in?
I sigh before I eat;
I pour out my screams like water.

“What I feared most has come to me;
What terrified me is here.
I never felt secure;
I never rested;
Never was I complacent;
Yet trouble came to me.”

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