Ἰώβ 29

1 ἔτι δὲ προσθεὶς Ιωβ εἶπεν τῷ προοιμίῳ

Job again took up his parable, and said,

2 τίς ἄν με θείη κατὰ μῆνα ἔμπροσθεν ἡμερῶν ὧν με ὁ θεὸς ἐφύλαξεν

“Oh that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me;

3 ὡς ὅτε ηὔγει ὁ λύχνος αὐτοῦ ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς μου ὅτε τῷ φωτὶ αὐτοῦ ἐπορευόμην ἐν σκότει

when his lamp shone on my head, and by his light I walked through darkness,

4 ὅτε ἤμην ἐπιβρίθων ὁδοῖς ὅτε ὁ θεὸς ἐπισκοπὴν ἐποιεῖτο τοῦ οἴκου μου

as I was in my prime, when the friendship of God was in my tent,

5 ὅτε ἤμην ὑλώδης λίαν κύκλῳ δέ μου οἱ παῖδες

when the Almighty was yet with me, and my children were around me,

6 ὅτε ἐχέοντό μου αἱ ὁδοὶ βουτύρῳ τὰ δὲ ὄρη μου ἐχέοντο γάλακτι

when my steps were washed with butter, and the rock poured out streams of oil for me,

7 ὅτε ἐξεπορευόμην ὄρθριος ἐν πόλει ἐν δὲ πλατείαις ἐτίθετό μου ὁ δίφρος

when I went out to the city gate, when I prepared my seat in the street.

8 ἰδόντες με νεανίσκοι ἐκρύβησαν πρεσβῦται δὲ πάντες ἔστησαν

The young men saw me and hid themselves. The aged rose up and stood.

9 ἁδροὶ δὲ ἐπαύσαντο λαλοῦντες δάκτυλον ἐπιθέντες ἐπὶ στόματι

The princes refrained from talking, and laid their hand on their mouth.

10 οἱ δὲ ἀκούσαντες ἐμακάρισάν με καὶ γλῶσσα αὐτῶν τῷ λάρυγγι αὐτῶν ἐκολλήθη

The voice of the nobles was hushed, and their tongue stuck to the roof of their mouth.

11 ὅτι οὖς ἤκουσεν καὶ ἐμακάρισέν με ὀφθαλμὸς δὲ ἰδών με ἐξέκλινεν

For when the ear heard me, then it blessed me, and when the eye saw me, it commended me,

12 διέσωσα γὰρ πτωχὸν ἐκ χειρὸς δυνάστου καὶ ὀρφανῷ ᾧ οὐκ ἦν βοηθός ἐβοήθησα

because I delivered the poor who cried, and the fatherless also, who had no one to help him,

13 εὐλογία ἀπολλυμένου ἐπ’ ἐμὲ ἔλθοι στόμα δὲ χήρας με εὐλόγησεν

the blessing of him who was ready to perish came on me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.

14 δικαιοσύνην δὲ ἐνεδεδύκειν ἠμφιασάμην δὲ κρίμα ἴσα διπλοΐδι

I put on righteousness, and it clothed me. My justice was as a robe and a diadem.

15 ὀφθαλμὸς ἤμην τυφλῶν ποὺς δὲ χωλῶν

I was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame.

16 ἐγὼ ἤμην πατὴρ ἀδυνάτων δίκην δέ ἣν οὐκ ᾔδειν ἐξιχνίασα

I was a father to the needy. I researched the cause of him whom I didn’t know.

17 συνέτριψα δὲ μύλας ἀδίκων ἐκ δὲ μέσου τῶν ὀδόντων αὐτῶν ἅρπαγμα ἐξέσπασα

I broke the jaws of the unrighteous and plucked the prey out of his teeth.

18 εἶπα δέ ἡ ἡλικία μου γηράσει ὥσπερ στέλεχος φοίνικος πολὺν χρόνον βιώσω

Then I said, ‘I will die in my own house, I will count my days as the sand.

19 ἡ ῥίζα μου διήνοικται ἐπὶ ὕδατος καὶ δρόσος αὐλισθήσεται ἐν τῷ θερισμῷ μου

My root is spread out to the waters. The dew lies all night on my branch.

20 ἡ δόξα μου καινὴ μετ’ ἐμοῦ καὶ τὸ τόξον μου ἐν χειρὶ αὐτοῦ πορεύσεται

My glory is fresh in me. My bow is renewed in my hand.’

21 ἐμοῦ ἀκούσαντες προσέσχον ἐσιώπησαν δὲ ἐπὶ τῇ ἐμῇ βουλῇ

“Men listened to me, waited, and kept silence for my counsel.

22 ἐπὶ δὲ τῷ ἐμῷ ῥήματι οὐ προσέθεντο περιχαρεῖς δὲ ἐγίνοντο ὁπόταν αὐτοῖς ἐλάλουν

After my words they didn’t speak again. My speech fell on them.

23 ὥσπερ γῆ διψῶσα προσδεχομένη τὸν ὑετόν οὕτως οὗτοι τὴν ἐμὴν λαλιάν

They waited for me as for the rain. Their mouths drank as with the spring rain.

24 ἐὰν γελάσω πρὸς αὐτούς οὐ μὴ πιστεύσωσιν καὶ φῶς τοῦ προσώπου μου οὐκ ἀπέπιπτεν

I smiled on them when they had no confidence. They didn’t reject the light of my face.

25 ἐξελεξάμην ὁδὸν αὐτῶν καὶ ἐκάθισα ἄρχων καὶ κατεσκήνουν ὡσεὶ βασιλεὺς ἐν μονοζώνοις ὃν τρόπον παθεινοὺς παρακαλῶν

I chose out their way, and sat as chief. I lived as a king in the army, as one who comforts the mourners.