11. Why didn’t I die when I was born? Why didn’t I die as I came from my mother’s womb?
12. Why did my mother hold me on her knees? Why did her breasts feed me?
13. If I had died when I was born, I would be at peace now. I wish I were asleep and at rest
14. with the kings and their advisors who built palaces that are now in ruins.
15. I wish I were buried with rulers who filled their graves with gold and silver.
16. Why wasn’t I a child who died at birth and was put in the ground? I wish I had been buried like a baby who never saw the light of day.
17. There the wicked stop causing trouble, and the weary find rest.
18. Even prisoners find relief there; they no longer hear their guards shouting at them.
19. Everyone—from the greatest to the least important—will be there, and even the slave is free from his master.
20. “Why must a suffering person continue to live? Why let anyone live such a bitter life?