¹¹ “^(A)Why did I not die ^[a]at birth,
Come out of the womb and pass away?
¹² Why were the knees there in front of me,
And why the breasts, that I would nurse?
¹³ For now I ^(B)would have lain down and been quiet;
I would have slept then, I would have been at rest,
¹⁴ With ^(C)kings and ^(D)counselors of the earth,
Who rebuilt ^(E)ruins for themselves;
¹⁵ Or with ^(F)rulers ^(G)who had gold,
Who were filling their houses with silver.
¹⁶ Or like a miscarriage which is ^[b]hidden, I would not exist,
As infants that never saw light.
¹⁷ There the wicked cease from raging,
And there the ^[c]weary are at ^(H)rest.
¹⁸ The prisoners are at ease together;
They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.
¹⁹ The small and the great are there,
And the slave is free from his master.

²⁰ “Why is ^(I)light given to one burdened with grief,
And life to the bitter of soul,
²¹ Who ^[d](J)long for death, but there is none,
And dig for it more than for ^(K)hidden treasures;
²² Who are filled with jubilation,
And rejoice when they find the grave?
²³ Why is light given to a man ^(L)whose way is hidden,
And whom ^(M)God has shut off?
²⁴ For ^(N)my groaning comes at the sight of my food,
And ^(O)my cries pour out like water.
²⁵ For ^[e](P)what I fear comes upon me,
And what I dread ^[f]encounters me.
²⁶ I ^(Q)am not at ease, nor am I quiet,
And I am not at rest, but turmoil comes.”