Klagesangene 4
1 Hvor Guldet blev sort, og skæmmet det ædle metal, de hellige Stene slængt hen på Gadernes Hjørner!
How gold has tarnished! Even pure gold has lost its shine! Jewels from the Temple have been scattered on every street corner.
2 Zions de dyre Sønner, der opvejed Guld, kun regnet for Lerkar, Pottemagerhænders Værk
Look at how the precious people of Zion, worth their weight in gold, are now valued like cheap clay jars made by a potter!
3 Selv Sjakaler byder Brystet til, giver Ungerne Die, men mit Folks Datter blev grum som Ørkenens Strudse.
Even jackals nurse their young at their breasts, but the women of my people have become cruel, like an ostrich in the desert.
4 Den spædes Tunge hang fast ved Ganen af Tørst, Børnene tigged om Brød, og ingen gav dem.
The nursing babies are so thirsty that their tongues stick to the roof of their mouths. Little children beg for food, but nobody gives them anything.
5 Folk, som levede lækkert, omkom på Gaden; Folk, som var båret på Purpur, favnede Skarnet.
Those who used to eat gourmet food now die starving in the streets. Those who dressed in fine clothes from their childhood now live in heaps of rubbish.
6 Mit Folks Datters Brøde var større end Synden i Sodom, som brat blev styrted, så Hænder ej rørtes derinde.
Jerusalem's punishment is worse than sinful Sodom's, which was destroyed in a brief moment, without the help of human hands.
7 Hendes Fyrster var renere end Sne, mer hvide end Mælk, deres Legeme rødere end Koral, som Safir deres Årer;
Her leaders were purer than snow, whiter than milk; their bodies were a healthier red than coral, and they shone like lapis lazuli.
8 mer sorte end Sod ser de ud, kan ej kendes på Gaden, Huden hænger ved Knoglerne, tør som Træ.
But now they look blacker than soot; no one recognizes them in the street. Their skin has shrunk to their bones and is as dry as wood.
9 Sværdets Ofre var bedre farne end Sultens, som svandt hen, dødsramte, af Mangel på Markens Grøde.
Those killed by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger, who slowly waste away in agony because the fields produce no crops.
10 Blide kvinders Hænder kogte deres Børn; da mit Folks Datter brød sammen, blev de dem til Føde.
The hands of loving women have cooked their own children to eat during the destruction of Jerusalem.
11 HERREN køled sin Vrede, udøste sin Harmglød, han tændte i Zion en Ild, dets Grundvolde åd den.
The Lord has given full expression to his anger. He has poured out his fury. He has started a fire in Zion, and it has burned down her very foundations.
12 Ej troede Jordens Konger, ja ingen i Verden, at Uven og Fjende skulde stå i Jerusalems Porte.
No king on earth—in fact nobody in all the world—thought that an enemy or attacker could enter the gates of Jerusalem.
13 Det var for Profeternes Synd, for Præsternes Brøde, som i dets Midte udgød retfærdiges Blod.
But this happened because of the sins of her prophets and the wickedness of her priests, who shed the blood of the innocent right there in the city.
14 De vanked som blinde på Gaderne, tilsølet af Blod, rørte med Klæderne Ting, som ikke må røres.
They wandered like blind men through the streets, made unclean by this blood, so no one would touch their clothes.
15 "Var jer! En uren!" råbte man; "Var jer dog for dem!" Når de flyr og vanker, råber man: "Bliv ikke her!"
“Go away! You're unclean!” people would shout at them, “Go away, go away! Don't touch us!” So they ran away and wandered from country to country, but the people there told them, “You can't stay here!”
16 HERREN spredte dem selv, han så dem ej mer, Præster regned man ej eller ynked Profeter.
The Lord himself has scattered them; he doesn't bother with them anymore. Nobody respects the priests, and nobody admires the leaders.
17 End smægted vort Blik efter Hjælp, men kun for at skuffes, på Varden spejded vi efter det Folk, der ej hjælper.
We wore out our eyes pointlessly looking for help the whole time; we watched from our towers for a nation to come that couldn't save us.
18 De lured på vort Fjed, fra Torvene holdt vi os borte; Enden var nær, vore Dage var omme, ja, Enden var kommet.
The enemy tracked our every movement so we couldn't walk through our streets. Our end approached. Our time was up because our end had come.
19 Mer snare end Himlens Ørne var de, som jog os, på Bjergene satte de efter os, lured i Ørkenen,
Our pursuers were faster than eagles in the sky. They chased us across the mountains and ambushed us in the desert.
20 vor Livsånde, HERRENs Salvede, blev fanget i deres Grave, han, i hvis Skygge vi tænkte at leve blandt Folkene.
The king, the Lord's anointed, our country's “life-breath,” was trapped and captured by them. We had said about him, “Under his protection we will live among the nations.”
21 Glæd dig og fryd dig, Edom, som bor i Uz! Også dig skal Bægeret nå, du skal blotte dig drukken.
Celebrate and be happy while you can, people of Edom, you who live in the land of Uz, because this cup will be passed to you too. You will get drunk and strip yourself naked.
22 Din Skyld er til Ende, Zion, du forvises ej mer; han hjemsøger, Edom, din Skyld, afslører dine Synder.
People of Zion, your punishment is coming to an end—he won't continue your exile for long. But he is going to punish your sins, people of Edom; he will reveal your sins.
