1
Je! Mtu hana wakati wake wa vita juu ya nchi? Na siku zake, je! Si kama siku za mwajiriwa?
“Is not man consigned to labor on earth? Are not his days like those of a hired hand?
2
Kama mtumishi atamaniye sana kile kivuli, Kama mwajiriwa anayetazamia mshahara wake;
Like a slave he longs for shade; like a hireling he waits for his wages.
3
Ni vivyo nami nimepewa miezi ya ubatili iwe fungu langu, Nami nimeandikiwa masiku yenye kuchokesha.
So I am allotted months of futility, and nights of misery are appointed to me.
4
Hapo nilalapo chini, nasema, Nitaondoka lini? Lakini usiku huwa mrefu; Nami nimejawa na kujitupa huku na huku hata kupambazuke.
When I lie down I think: ‘When will I get up?’ But the night drags on, and I toss and turn until dawn.
5
Mwili wangu unavikwa mabuu na madongoa ya udongo; Ngozi yangu hufumba, kisha ikatumbuka tena.
My flesh is clothed with worms and encrusted with dirt; my skin is cracked and festering.
6
Siku zangu hupita upesi kuliko chombo cha kufumia, Nazo zapita pasipokuwa na matumaini.
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle; they come to an end without hope.
7
Kumbuka ya kwamba maisha yangu ni upepo; Jicho langu halitaona mema tena.
Remember that my life is but a breath. My eyes will never again see happiness.
8
Jicho lake huyo anionaye halitaniangalia tena; Macho yako yatanielekea, lakini sitakuwapo.
The eye that beholds me will no longer see me. You will look for me, but I will be no more.
9
Kama vile wingu likomavyo na kutoweka, Ni vivyo huyo ashukaye kuzimuni hatazuka tena kabisa.
As a cloud vanishes and is gone, so he who goes down to Sheol does not come back up.
10
Hatarudi tena nyumbani kwake, Wala mahali pake hapatamjua tena.
He never returns to his house; his place remembers him no more.
11
Kwa hiyo sitakizuia kinywa changu; Nitanena kwa mateso ya roho yangu; Nitalia kwa uchungu wa nafsi yangu.
Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12
Je! Mimi ni bahari, au je! Ni nyangumi? Hata ukawaweka walinzi juu yangu?
Am I the sea, or the monster of the deep, that You must keep me under guard?
13
Hapo nisemapo, kitanda changu kitanituza moyo, Malazi yangu yatanipunguzia kuugua kwangu;
When I think my bed will comfort me and my couch will ease my complaint,
14
Ndipo unitishapo kwa ndoto, Na kunitia hofu kwa maono;
then You frighten me with dreams and terrify me with visions,
15
Hata nafsi yangu huchagua kunyongwa, Na kuchagua kifo kuliko maumivu yangu haya.
so that I would prefer strangling and death over my life in this body.
16
Ninadhoofika; sitaishi sikuzote; Usinisumbue, kwani siku zangu ni uvuvio.
I loathe my life! I would not live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath.
17
Je! Mtu ni kitu gani, hata ukamtukuza, Na kumtia moyoni mwako,
What is man that You should exalt him, that You should set Your heart upon him,
18
Na kumwangalia kila asubuhi, Na kumjaribu kila dakika?
that You attend to him every morning, and test him every moment?
19
Je! Hata lini hukomi kuniangalia; Wala kunisumbua hata nimeze mate?
Will You never look away from me, or leave me alone to swallow my spittle?
20
Kwamba nimefanya dhambi, nikufanyieje Ee mlinda wanadamu? Mbona umeniweka niwe shabaha yako, Hata nimekuwa mzigo kwa nafsi yangu?
If I have sinned, what have I done to You, O watcher of mankind? Why have You made me Your target, so that I am a burden to You?
21
Nawe, je! Mbona hunisamehe makosa yangu, Na kuniondolea maovu yangu? Kwa kuwa sasa nitalala mavumbini; Nawe utanitafuta kwa bidii, lakini sitakuwapo.
Why do You not pardon my transgression and take away my iniquity? For soon I will lie down in the dust; You will seek me, but I will be no more.”