17:1 My spirit is broken, my days are cut short, the grave awaits me.

17:2 Surely mockers surround me; my eyes must dwell on their hostility.

17:3 "Give me, O God, the pledge you demand. Who else will put up security for me?

17:4 You have closed their minds to understanding; therefore you will not let them triumph.

17:5 If a man denounces his friends for reward, the eyes of his children will fail.

17:6 "God has made me a byword to everyone, a man in whose face people spit.

17:7 My eyes have grown dim with grief; my whole frame is but a shadow.

17:8 Upright men are appalled at this; the innocent are aroused against the ungodly.

17:9 Nevertheless, the righteous will hold to their ways, and those with clean hands will grow stronger.

17:10 "But come on, all of you, try again! I will not find a wise man among you.

17:11 My days have passed, my plans are shattered, and so are the desires of my heart.

17:12 These men turn night into day; in the face of darkness they say, 'Light is near.'

17:13 If the only home I hope for is the grave, if I spread out my bed in darkness,

17:14 if I say to corruption, 'You are my father,' and to the worm, 'My mother' or 'My sister,'

17:15 where then is my hope? Who can see any hope for me?

17:16 Will it go down to the gates of death? Will we descend together into the dust?"