| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 1Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. | 1"Mortals, born of woman, are of few days and full of trouble. |
| 2He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not. | 2They spring up like flowers and wither away; like fleeting shadows, they do not endure. |
| 3And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee? | 3Do you fix your eye on them? Will you bring them before you for judgment? |
| 4Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one. | 4Who can bring what is pure from the impure? No one! |
| 5Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass; | 5A person's days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed. |
| 6Turn from him, that he may rest, till he shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day. | 6So look away from him and let him alone, till he has put in his time like a hired laborer. |
| 7For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease. | 7"At least there is hope for a tree: If it is cut down, it will sprout again, and its new shoots will not fail. |
| 8Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground; | 8Its roots may grow old in the ground and its stump die in the soil, |
| 9Yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant. | 9yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth shoots like a plant. |
| 10But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? | 10But a man dies and is laid low; he breathes his last and is no more. |
| 11As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up: | 11As the water of a lake dries up or a riverbed becomes parched and dry, |
| 12So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep. | 12so he lies down and does not rise; till the heavens are no more, people will not awake or be roused from their sleep. |
| 13O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me! | 13"If only you would hide me in the grave and conceal me till your anger has passed! If only you would set me a time and then remember me! |
| 14If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. | 14If someone dies, will they live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait for my renewal to come. |
| 15Thou shalt call, and I will answer thee: thou wilt have a desire to the work of thine hands. | 15You will call and I will answer you; you will long for the creature your hands have made. |
| 16For now thou numberest my steps: dost thou not watch over my sin? | 16Surely then you will count my steps but not keep track of my sin. |
| 17My transgression is sealed up in a bag, and thou sewest up mine iniquity. | 17My offenses will be sealed up in a bag; you will cover over my sin. |
| 18And surely the mountain falling cometh to nought, and the rock is removed out of his place. | 18"But as a mountain erodes and crumbles and as a rock is moved from its place, |
| 19The waters wear the stones: thou washest away the things which grow out of the dust of the earth; and thou destroyest the hope of man. | 19as water wears away stones and torrents wash away the soil, so you destroy a person's hope. |
| 20Thou prevailest for ever against him, and he passeth: thou changest his countenance, and sendest him away. | 20You overpower them once for all, and they are gone; you change their countenance and send them away. |
| 21His sons come to honour, and he knoweth it not; and they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them. | 21If their children are honored, they do not know it; if their offspring are brought low, they do not see it. |
| 22But his flesh upon him shall have pain, and his soul within him shall mourn. | 22They feel but the pain of their own bodies and mourn only for themselves." |
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