<p class="poetry">They were saying to God, &#8216;Turn away from us,&#8217;p> <p class="poetry">and &#8216;What can the Almighty do to us?&#8217;<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">But it was he<n id="1" /> who filled their housesp> <p class="poetry">with good things &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">yet the counsel of the wicked<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">was far from me.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">That is why I am terrified in his presence;p> <p class="poetry">when I consider, I am afraid because of him.p>

<p class="poetry">To whom<n id="1" /> did you utter these words?p> <p class="poetry">And whose spirit has come forth from your mouth?<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">The earth, from which food comes,p> <p class="poetry">is overturned below as though by fire;<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">They detest me and maintain their distance;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">they do not hesitate to spit in my face.p>

<p class="poetry">My skin has turned dark on me;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">my body<n id="2" /> is hot with fever.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">If I ate my morsel of bread myself,p> <p class="poetry">and did not share any of it with orphans<n id="1" /> &#8211;p>

<p class="poetry">He spares a person&#8217;s life from corruption,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">his very life from crossing over<n id="2" /> the river.p>

<p class="poetry">to turn back his life from the place of corruption,p> <p class="poetry">that he may be enlightened with the light of life.p>

<p class="poetry">Gaze at the heavens and see;p> <p class="poetry">consider the clouds, which are higher than you!<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">&#8220;I know that you can do all things;p> <p class="poetry">no purpose of yours can be thwarted;p>

<p class="poetry">I loathe<n id="1" /> it;<n id="2" /> I do not want to live forever;p> <p class="poetry">leave me alone,<n id="3" /> for my days are a vapor!<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">Will you never<n id="1" /> look away from me,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">will you not let me alone<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">long enough to swallow my spittle?p>

<p class="poetry">If someone wishes<n id="1" /> to contend<n id="2" /> with him,p> <p class="poetry">he cannot answer<n id="3" /> him one time in a thousand.p>

<p class="poetry">Are not my days few?<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Cease,<n id="2" /> then, and leave<n id="3" /> me alone,<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">that I may find a little comfort,<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">But the eyes of the wicked fail,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and escape<n id="2" /> eludes them;p> <p class="poetry">their one hope<n id="3" /> is to breathe their last.&#8221;<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">He does not expect<n id="1" /> to escape from darkness;<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">he is marked for the sword;<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">He will not escape the darkness;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">a flame will wither his shootsp> <p class="poetry">and he will departp> <p class="poetry">by the breath of God&#8217;s mouth.<n id="2" />p>

<t /><p class="poetry">&#8220;But<n id="1" /> if I speak, my pain is not relieved,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">and if I refrain from speakingp> <p class="poetry">&#8211; how<n id="3" /> much of it goes away?p>