30:1   But men younger than I am make fun of me now! Their fathers have always been so worthless that I wouldn't let them help my dogs guard sheep.

30:2   They were a bunch of worn-out men, too weak to do any work for me.

30:3   They were so poor and hungry that they would gnaw dry roots--- at night, in wild, desolate places.

30:4   They pulled up the plants of the desert and ate them, even the tasteless roots of the broom tree!

30:5   Everyone drove them away with shouts, as if they were shouting at thieves.

30:6   They had to live in caves, in holes dug in the sides of cliffs.

30:7   Out in the wilds they howled like animals and huddled together under the bushes.

30:8   A worthless bunch of nameless nobodies! They were driven out of the land.

30:9   Now they come and laugh at me; I am nothing but a joke to them.

30:10   They treat me with disgust; they think they are too good for me, and even come and spit in my face.

30:11   Because God has made me weak and helpless, they turn against me with all their fury.

30:12   This mob attacks me head-on; they send me running; they prepare their final assault.

30:13   They cut off my escape and try to destroy me; and there is no one to stop them.

30:14   They pour through the holes in my defenses and come crashing down on top of me;

30:15   I am overcome with terror; my dignity is gone like a puff of wind, and my prosperity like a cloud.

30:16   Now I am about to die; there is no relief for my suffering.

30:17   At night my bones all ache; the pain that gnaws me never stops.

30:18   God seizes me by my collar and twists my clothes out of shape.

30:19   He throws me down in the mud; I am no better than dirt.

30:20   I call to you, O God, but you never answer; and when I pray, you pay no attention.

30:21   You are treating me cruelly; you persecute me with all your power.

30:22   You let the wind blow me away; you toss me about in a raging storm.

30:23   I know you are taking me off to my death, to the fate in store for everyone.

30:24   Why do you attack a ruined man, one who can do nothing but beg for pity?

30:25   Didn't I weep with people in trouble and feel sorry for those in need?

30:26   I hoped for happiness and light, but trouble and darkness came instead.

30:27   I am torn apart by worry and pain; I have had day after day of suffering.

30:28   I go about in gloom, without any sunshine; I stand up in public and plead for help.

30:29   My voice is as sad and lonely as the cries of a jackal or an ostrich.

30:30   My skin has turned dark; I am burning with fever.

30:31   Where once I heard joyful music, now I hear only mourning and weeping.