< Job 30 >

1 Et maintenant je suis la risée de mes cadets, dont je ne daignais pas associer les pères aux chiens de mes troupeaux.
“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 Aussi bien la force de leurs mains, qu'eût-elle été pour moi? Pour ces hommes il n'y a jamais d'âge mûr:
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 disette et la faim, ils rongent la steppe, le vieux désert et la solitude;
They were very poor and hungry, with the result that they chewed on roots [at night] in dry and desolate places.
4 ils cueillent l'arroche le long des haies, et la racine du genêt est leur pain;
They pulled up plants in the desert [and ate them] and warmed themselves by [burning] the roots of broom trees.
5 ils sont bannis de la société; on crie après eux, comme après les larrons;
Everyone shouted at them as though they were thieves and expelled them [from their areas].
6 réduits à habiter des ravins affreux, les antres de la terre et des rochers,
They were forced to live in caves in the hills, in holes in the ground, and in the sides of cliffs.
7 parmi les buissons ils poussent des hurlements, et pêle-mêle se blottissent sous les ronces,
In the bushes they howled [like animals because they were hungry], and they huddled together under thornbushes.
8 impies, hommes sans nom, qui furent chassés 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 leur chanson, et le sujet de leurs discours;
“And now their [children] sing songs to make fun of me. They tell jokes about me.
10 ils me maudissent, puis me quittent, et devant moi ne s'abstiennent pas de cracher.
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 Bien plus, ils déceignent leur corde, et m'en frappent, et ils secouent 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 A ma droite leur engeance se lève; ils ne me laissent pas prendre pied, et se fraient jusqu'à moi une voie pour me nuire;
(Gangs/Groups of violent youths) attack me and force me to run away; they prepare to destroy me.
13 ils ruinent mon sentier, aident à ma perte, eux que personne ne soutient.
They prevent me from escaping, and they [do] not [need] anyone to help them (OR, there is no one to help me).
14 Ils viennent comme par une large brèche, se précipitent avec fracas.
[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 Toutes les terreurs se tournent contre moi; c'est comme un ouragan qui poursuit ma grandeur, et, comme un nuage, mon bonheur a passé.
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 Aussi, maintenant mon âme en moi épanche sa plainte; les jours de malheur m'ont saisi.
“And now I [SYN] am about to die [IDM]; I suffer every day.
17 La nuit perce mes os et les détache, et le mal qui me ronge, ne sommeille pas.
My bones ache during the night, and the pain that torments me never stops.
18 Sous Ses coups puissants mon manteau se déforme, comme ma tunique il s'applique à mon corps.
[It is as though God] seizes my clothes and chokes me with the collar of my coat.
19 Il m'a jeté dans la boue, et assimilé à la poudre et à la cendre.
He has thrown me into the mud; I am [not worth anything more than] dust and ashes.
20 Je crie à Toi, et Tu ne m'écoutes pas! je suis là debout, et Tu me regardes!
“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 T'es changé pour moi en cruel ennemi, et Tu m'opposes la force de ton bras.
He acts very cruelly toward me; with all of his power [MTY] he causes me to suffer.
22 Tu me soulèves sur la tempête et m'emportes avec elle, et pour moi tu anéantis tout espoir de salut.
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, c'est à la mort que tu me mènes, 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 Cependant du sein des décombres ne tend-on pas la main? Quand on périt, ne crie-t-on pas au 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 Oui, je pleurai sur ceux pour qui les temps étaient durs, et les indigents attristaient mon âme.
[That is what I did previously]. I wept for people who were experiencing troubles, and I felt sorry for poor/needy people.
26 Et pourtant! j'attendais le bonheur, et le malheur est venu; j'espérais la clarté, et les ténèbres sont arrivées.
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, et n'ont aucun repos, des jours de chagrin me sont survenus.
I am very distressed [IDM], all the time; I suffer every day.
28 Je marche noirci, mais non par le soleil; debout dans l'assemblée, je me lamente,
I go about very discouraged; I stand up and plead for people to help me.
29 devenant ainsi le frère des chacals, et l'égal de l'autruche.
My wailing sounds as sad as [MET] the cries of jackals/foxes and ostriches.
30 Ma peau noircit et tombe, et mes os brûlent d'inflammation.
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 Ainsi le deuil a remplacé mon luth, et des sons lugubres, ma cornemuse.
Previously, I played joyful music on my harp and with my flute, but now I play only the sad music of those who mourn.”

< Job 30 >