Job 30
1 Et maintenant!… je suis la risée de plus jeunes que moi, De ceux dont je dédaignais de mettre les pères Parmi les chiens de mon troupeau.
“But now men who are younger than I am make fun of me— men whose fathers I greatly despised, with the result that I would not even have allowed them to help my dogs guard my sheep.
2 Mais à quoi me servirait la force de leurs mains? Ils sont incapables d’atteindre la vieillesse.
They were men who were old and (weak/worn out); so (what could I gain from them working for me?/I would have gained nothing from them working for me.) [RHQ]
3 Desséchés par la misère et la faim, Ils fuient dans les lieux arides, Depuis longtemps abandonnés et déserts;
They were very poor and hungry, with the result that they chewed on roots [at night] in dry and desolate places.
4 Ils arrachent près des arbrisseaux les herbes sauvages, Et ils n’ont pour pain que la racine des genêts.
They pulled up plants in the desert [and ate them] and warmed themselves by [burning] the roots of broom trees.
5 On les chasse du milieu des hommes, On crie après eux comme après des voleurs.
Everyone shouted at them as though they were thieves and expelled them [from their areas].
6 Ils habitent dans d’affreuses vallées, Dans les cavernes de la terre et dans les rochers;
They were forced to live in caves in the hills, in holes in the ground, and in the sides of cliffs.
7 Ils hurlent parmi les buissons, Ils se rassemblent sous les ronces.
In the bushes they howled [like animals because they were hungry], and they huddled together under thornbushes.
8 Êtres vils et méprisés, On les repousse du pays.
They were people without good sense, whose names no one knows; they have been expelled from the land [where they were born].
9 Et maintenant, je suis l’objet de leurs chansons, Je suis en butte à leurs propos.
“And now their [children] sing songs to make fun of me. They tell jokes about me.
10 Ils ont horreur de moi, ils se détournent, Ils me crachent au visage.
They are disgusted with me, and they [usually] stay away from me, [but when they see me, ] they are happy to spit in my face.
11 Ils n’ont plus de retenue et ils m’humilient, Ils rejettent tout frein devant moi.
Because [it is as though] [MET] God has cut my bowstring, [he has caused me to be unable to defend myself, ] and he has humbled me, and my enemies have done to me whatever they wanted.
12 Ces misérables se lèvent à ma droite et me poussent les pieds, Ils se fraient contre moi des sentiers pour ma ruine;
(Gangs/Groups of violent youths) attack me and force me to run away; they prepare to destroy me.
13 Ils détruisent mon propre sentier et travaillent à ma perte, Eux à qui personne ne viendrait en aide;
They prevent me from escaping, and they [do] not [need] anyone to help them (OR, there is no one to help me).
14 Ils arrivent comme par une large brèche, Ils se précipitent sous les craquements.
[It is as though I am a city wall and] [SIM] they have broken through the wall, and they have come crashing down on me.
15 Les terreurs m’assiègent; Ma gloire est emportée comme par le vent, Mon bonheur a passé comme un nuage.
I am very terrified; My dignity/honor has been taken away as though [SIM] [it has been] blown away by the wind, and my prosperity has disappeared like [SIM] clouds disappear.
16 Et maintenant, mon âme s’épanche en mon sein, Les jours de la souffrance m’ont saisi.
“And now I [SYN] am about to die [IDM]; I suffer every day.
17 La nuit me perce et m’arrache les os, La douleur qui me ronge ne se donne aucun repos,
My bones ache during the night, and the pain that torments me never stops.
18 Par la violence du mal mon vêtement perd sa forme, Il se colle à mon corps comme ma tunique.
[It is as though God] seizes my clothes and chokes me with the collar of my coat.
19 Dieu m’a jeté dans la boue, Et je ressemble à la poussière et à la cendre.
He has thrown me into the mud; I am [not worth anything more than] dust and ashes.
20 Je crie vers toi, et tu ne me réponds pas; Je me tiens debout, et tu me lances ton regard.
“I cry out to God, but he does not answer/help me; I stand up [and pray], but he does not pay any attention.
21 Tu deviens cruel contre moi, Tu me combats avec la force de ta main.
He acts very cruelly toward me; with all of his power [MTY] he causes me to suffer.
22 Tu me soulèves, tu me fais voler au-dessus du vent, Et tu m’anéantis au bruit de la tempête.
He [allows] the wind to lift me up and blow me away, and he tosses me up and down in a violent storm.
23 Car, je le sais, tu me mènes à la mort, Au rendez-vous de tous les vivants.
I know that he will cause me to die, which is what happens to everyone [MTY] who is alive.
24 Mais celui qui va périr n’étend-il pas les mains? Celui qui est dans le malheur n’implore-t-il pas du secours?
“When people experience disasters, and they sit on a pile of ruins and cry out for help, others surely [RHQ] reach out their hand to help them.
25 N’avais-je pas des larmes pour l’infortuné? Mon cœur n’avait-il pas pitié de l’indigent?
[That is what I did previously]. I wept for people who were experiencing troubles, and I felt sorry for poor/needy people.
26 J’attendais le bonheur, et le malheur est arrivé; J’espérais la lumière, et les ténèbres sont venues.
But when I expected good things [to happen to me], evil things happened; when I waited for light/happiness, all I experienced was darkness/unhappiness [MET].
27 Mes entrailles bouillonnent sans relâche, Les jours de la calamité m’ont surpris.
I am very distressed [IDM], all the time; I suffer every day.
28 Je marche noirci, mais non par le soleil; Je me lève en pleine assemblée, et je crie.
I go about very discouraged; I stand up and plead for people to help me.
29 Je suis devenu le frère des chacals, Le compagnon des autruches.
My wailing sounds as sad as [MET] the cries of jackals/foxes and ostriches.
30 Ma peau noircit et tombe, Mes os brûlent et se dessèchent.
My skin has become dark/black and is peeling off, and I have a fever [which causes my body to feel like it is] burning.
31 Ma harpe n’est plus qu’un instrument de deuil, Et mon chalumeau ne peut rendre que des sons plaintifs.
Previously, I played joyful music on my harp and with my flute, but now I play only the sad music of those who mourn.”
