Feeling Hopeless: Job 17:1-16

¹ My spirit is broken;
    the days of my life are almost gone.
    The grave is waiting for me.
² Those who laugh at me surround me;
    I watch them insult me.

³ “God, make me a promise.
    No one will make a pledge for me.
⁴ You have closed their minds to understanding.
    Do not let them win over me.
⁵ People might speak against their friends for money,
    but if they do, the eyes of their children go blind.

⁶ “God has made my name a curse word;
    people spit in my face.
⁷ My sight has grown weak because of my sadness,
    and my body is as thin as a shadow.
⁸ Honest people are upset about this;
    innocent people are upset with those who do wrong.
⁹ But those who do right will continue to do right,
    and those whose hands are not dirty with sin will grow stronger.

¹⁰ “But, all of you, come and try again!
    I do not find a wise person among you.
¹¹ My days are gone, and my plans have been destroyed,
    along with the desires of my heart.
¹² These men think night is day;
    when it is dark, they say, ‘Light is near.’
¹³ If the only home I hope for is the grave,
    if I spread out my bed in darkness,
¹⁴ if I say to the grave, ‘You are my father,’
    and to the worm, ‘You are my mother’ or ‘You are my sister,’
¹⁵ where, then, is my hope?
    Who can see any hope for me?
¹⁶ Will hope go down to the gates of death?
    Will we go down together into the dust?”

Read Job 17:1-16 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!