Here's my second attempt, incorporating the changes suggested above and some of my own. Thanks, folks.
SEVEN BROTHERS
(Richard Thompson)
There were seven brothers sat by the road
And every one was dressed in black
They smiled at everyone who passed
They smiled at them but none smiled back
A stranger passed along the road
Says the first brother, he’ll be mine soon
I’ll clot the blood within his veins
And his heart will burst like a child’s balloon
Another stranger passed them by
Says the second brother, soon he will moan
He’ll feel the claws dig at his bowels
And he’ll pray to the God he’s never known
Another stranger passed them by
Says the third brother the job's in hand
With corruption I’ll fill his lungs
And he’ll drown standing on dry land
Another stranger passed them by
Says the fourth brother, the seed is sown
I’ll darken his mind with helplessness
And the hand on the gun will be his own
Another stranger passed them by
Says the fifth brother, his race is run
I’ll send his car to the edge of the cliff
And friends will mourn he died too young
Another stranger passed them by
Says the sixth brother, he’ll try to hide
He’ll seal up the crack in pane and door
But still the plague will get inside
Another stranger passed them by
Says the seventh brother, this one I’ll reap
Peacefully in his old age
His breath will falter in his sleep
There were seven brothers sat by the road
Watching the human promenade
Filling their appointment books
Working at their father's trade
There were seven brothers sat by the road
And none could look them in the eye
They sent a shiver through the bones
Of every soul who passed them by
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8dbYDnLQ48
I think I'll go with THE job's in hand for the third brother.
I think the fourth brother is addressing suicide, and the hand on the gun WILL be his own.
I think the fifth brother will send HIS car to the edge of the cliff
about the sixth brother, I think "He’ll seal up the crack in pane and door" but I'm not sure.Thanks for the help, everyone.
-Joe-