¹³ For now I would be lying down^(A) in peace;
    I would be asleep and at rest^(B)
14 with kings and rulers of the earth,^(C)
    who built for themselves places now lying in ruins,^(D)
15 with princes^(E) who had gold,
    who filled their houses with silver.^(F)
16 Or why was I not hidden away in the ground like a stillborn child,^(G)
    like an infant who never saw the light of day?^(H)
17 There the wicked cease from turmoil,^(I)
    and there the weary are at rest.^(J)
18 Captives^(K) also enjoy their ease;
    they no longer hear the slave driver’s^(L) shout.^(M)
19 The small and the great are there,^(N)
    and the slaves are freed from their owners.

¹¹ As the water of a lake dries up
    or a riverbed becomes parched and dry,^(A)
12 so he lies down and does not rise;^(B)
    till the heavens are no more,^(C) people will not awake
    or be roused from their sleep.^(D)

¹³ “If only you would hide me in the grave^(E)
    and conceal me till your anger has passed!^(F)
If only you would set me a time
    and then remember^(G) me!^(H)
14 If someone dies, will they live again?
    All the days of my hard service^(I)
    I will wait for my renewal^[a](J) to come.
¹⁵ You will call and I will answer you;^(K)
    you will long for the creature your hands have made.^(L)

²¹ If their children are honored, they do not know it;
    if their offspring are brought low, they do not see it.^(A)

¹³ If the only home I hope for is the grave,^(A)
    if I spread out my bed^(B) in the realm of darkness,^(C)
14 if I say to corruption,^(D) ‘You are my father,’
    and to the worm,^(E) ‘My mother’ or ‘My sister,’
¹⁵ where then is my hope—^(F)
    who can see any hope for me?^(G)
16 Will it go down to the gates of death?^(H)
    Will we descend together into the dust?”^(I)

⁵ Among the dead no one proclaims your name.
    Who praises you from the grave?^(A)

⁹ “What is gained if I am silenced,
    if I go down to the pit?^(A)
Will the dust praise you?
    Will it proclaim your faithfulness?^(B)