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3:1  Finally, Job decided to speak. He cursed the day when he was born.
3:2  This is what Job said:
3:3  ‘Forget the day of my birth. Forget the night when a son was born to my parents.
3:4  That day should be completely dark, with no light to shine on it! God in heaven above should not even think about it.
3:5  That day should remain in a dark shadow. Clouds should cover it so that everywhere is black.
3:6  Remove that night completely! It should no longer be a date among the days of the year. Remove that day from the months of the year.
3:7  Do not let women become pregnant on that night. Nobody should be happy!
3:8  People who know how to curse days should curse that day. They should wake up Leviathan, the monster from the sea, to attack it.
3:9  The stars of early morning should be dark on that day. Do not let the sun shine at dawn, so that there is no end to the dark night.
3:10  I curse that day because it allowed me to be born. It brought me into a life of trouble.
3:11  It would have been better if I had died at birth. I should have been born dead.
3:12  Instead, my mother held me on her knees. I drank from her breasts.
3:13  If I had died at birth, I would now be resting in peace.
3:14  I would be resting with kings and rulers. They lived in beautiful houses which are now heaps of stones.
3:15  I would be with princes who once were very rich. Their palaces were full of gold and silver.
3:16  My parents should have buried me, like a child that is born dead. I would never have seen the light of day.
3:17  After death, wicked people can no longer cause any trouble. People who have become tired can rest.
3:18  Even prisoners can enjoy a time of peace. No guards are there to shout at them.
3:19  Great people and ordinary people are all there together. Slaves have no master that they must obey.
3:20  I am suffering very much. Why does God let me wake up each day? I am very upset, so why does God continue to let me live?
3:21  People like me only want to die. But death does not come. They would rather die than find valuable gold.
3:22  When their life finally finishes, they are very happy. They are happy to go into their graves.
3:23  So why do I continue to live? God has stopped me moving forward in life. I cannot see which way to go.
3:24  I am crying instead of eating. My tears pour out like a river of water.
3:25  The things that frighten me most have happened to me.
3:26  Because of all the trouble that has happened to me, I cannot rest. I have no peace in my mind.’