Job 3
1 At length Job opened his mouth, and cursed the day of his birth.
μετὰ τοῦτο ἤνοιξεν Ιωβ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ
2 And Job spake and said:
καὶ κατηράσατο τὴν ἡμέραν αὐτοῦ λέγων
3 Perish the day in which I was born, and the night which said, “A man-child is conceived!”
ἀπόλοιτο ἡ ἡμέρα ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθην καὶ ἡ νύξ ἐν ᾗ εἶπαν ἰδοὺ ἄρσεν
4 Let that day be darkness; Let not God seek it from above; Yea, let not the light shine upon it!
ἡ ἡμέρα ἐκείνη εἴη σκότος καὶ μὴ ἀναζητήσαι αὐτὴν ὁ κύριος ἄνωθεν μηδὲ ἔλθοι εἰς αὐτὴν φέγγος
5 Let darkness and the shadow of death redeem it; Let a cloud dwell upon it; Let whatever darkeneth the day terrify it!
ἐκλάβοι δὲ αὐτὴν σκότος καὶ σκιὰ θανάτου ἐπέλθοι ἐπ’ αὐτὴν γνόφος
6 As for that night, let darkness seize upon it; Let it not rejoice among the days of the year; Let it not come into the number of the months!
καταραθείη ἡ ἡμέρα καὶ ἡ νὺξ ἐκείνη ἀπενέγκαιτο αὐτὴν σκότος μὴ εἴη εἰς ἡμέρας ἐνιαυτοῦ μηδὲ ἀριθμηθείη εἰς ἡμέρας μηνῶν
7 O let that night be unfruitful! Let there be in it no voice of joy;
ἀλλὰ ἡ νὺξ ἐκείνη εἴη ὀδύνη καὶ μὴ ἔλθοι ἐπ’ αὐτὴν εὐφροσύνη μηδὲ χαρμονή
8 Let them that curse the day curse it, Who are skilful to stir up the leviathan!
ἀλλὰ καταράσαιτο αὐτὴν ὁ καταρώμενος τὴν ἡμέραν ἐκείνην ὁ μέλλων τὸ μέγα κῆτος χειρώσασθαι
9 Let the stars of its twilight be darkened; Let it long for light, and have none; Neither let it see the eyelashes of the morning!
σκοτωθείη τὰ ἄστρα τῆς νυκτὸς ἐκείνης ὑπομείναι καὶ εἰς φωτισμὸν μὴ ἔλθοι καὶ μὴ ἴδοι ἑωσφόρον ἀνατέλλοντα
10 Because it shut not up the doors of my mother's womb, And hid not trouble from mine eyes.
ὅτι οὐ συνέκλεισεν πύλας γαστρὸς μητρός μου ἀπήλλαξεν γὰρ ἂν πόνον ἀπὸ ὀφθαλμῶν μου
11 Why died I not at my birth? Why did I not expire when I came forth from the womb?
διὰ τί γὰρ ἐν κοιλίᾳ οὐκ ἐτελεύτησα ἐκ γαστρὸς δὲ ἐξῆλθον καὶ οὐκ εὐθὺς ἀπωλόμην
12 Why did the knees receive me, And why the breasts, that I might suck?
ἵνα τί δὲ συνήντησάν μοι γόνατα ἵνα τί δὲ μαστοὺς ἐθήλασα
13 For now should I lie down and be quiet; I should sleep; then should I be at rest,
νῦν ἂν κοιμηθεὶς ἡσύχασα ὑπνώσας δὲ ἀνεπαυσάμην
14 With kings and counsellors of the earth, Who built up for themselves—ruins!
μετὰ βασιλέων βουλευτῶν γῆς οἳ ἠγαυριῶντο ἐπὶ ξίφεσιν
15 Or with princes that had gold, And filled their houses with silver;
ἢ μετὰ ἀρχόντων ὧν πολὺς ὁ χρυσός οἳ ἔπλησαν τοὺς οἴκους αὐτῶν ἀργυρίου
16 Or, as a hidden untimely birth, I had perished; As infants which never saw the light.
ἢ ὥσπερ ἔκτρωμα ἐκπορευόμενον ἐκ μήτρας μητρὸς ἢ ὥσπερ νήπιοι οἳ οὐκ εἶδον φῶς
17 There the wicked cease from troubling; There the weary are at rest.
ἐκεῖ ἀσεβεῖς ἐξέκαυσαν θυμὸν ὀργῆς ἐκεῖ ἀνεπαύσαντο κατάκοποι τῷ σώματι
18 There the prisoners rest together; They hear not the voice of the oppressor.
ὁμοθυμαδὸν δὲ οἱ αἰώνιοι οὐκ ἤκουσαν φωνὴν φορολόγου
19 The small and the great are there, And the servant is free from his master.
μικρὸς καὶ μέγας ἐκεῖ ἐστιν καὶ θεράπων οὐ δεδοικὼς τὸν κύριον αὐτοῦ
20 Why giveth He light to him that is in misery, And life to the bitter in soul,
ἵνα τί γὰρ δέδοται τοῖς ἐν πικρίᾳ φῶς ζωὴ δὲ ταῖς ἐν ὀδύναις ψυχαῖς
21 Who long for death, and it cometh not, And dig for it more than for hid treasures;
οἳ ὁμείρονται τοῦ θανάτου καὶ οὐ τυγχάνουσιν ἀνορύσσοντες ὥσπερ θησαυρούς
22 Who rejoice exceedingly, Yea, exult, when they can find a grave?
περιχαρεῖς δὲ ἐγένοντο ἐὰν κατατύχωσιν
23 Why is light given to a man from whom the way is hid, And whom God hath hedged in?
θάνατος ἀνδρὶ ἀνάπαυμα συνέκλεισεν γὰρ ὁ θεὸς κατ’ αὐτοῦ
24 For my sighing cometh before I eat, And my groans are poured out like water.
πρὸ γὰρ τῶν σίτων μου στεναγμός μοι ἥκει δακρύω δὲ ἐγὼ συνεχόμενος φόβῳ
25 For that which I dread overtaketh me; That at which I shudder cometh upon me.
φόβος γάρ ὃν ἐφρόντισα ἦλθέν μοι καὶ ὃν ἐδεδοίκειν συνήντησέν μοι
26 I have no peace, nor quiet, nor respite: Misery cometh upon me continually.
οὔτε εἰρήνευσα οὔτε ἡσύχασα οὔτε ἀνεπαυσάμην ἦλθεν δέ μοι ὀργή
