< Job 3 >

1 Darnach tat Hiob seinen Mund auf und verfluchte seinen Tag.
Finally, Job spoke, and he cursed the day that he was born.
2 Und Hiob sprach:
He said,
3 Der Tag müsse verloren sein, darin ich geboren bin, und die Nacht, welche sprach: Es ist ein Männlein empfangen!
“I wish that the day when I was born could be eradicated, and also the night when I was conceived.
4 Derselbe Tag müsse finster sein, und Gott von obenherab müsse nicht nach ihm fragen; kein Glanz müsse über ihn scheinen!
I wish that the day when I was born would have been covered in darkness. I wish that God who is in heaven [MTY] would have forgotten about that day, and that the sun would not have shone on it.
5 Finsternis und Dunkel müssen ihn überwältigen, und dicke Wolken müssen über ihm bleiben, und der Dampf am Tage mache ihn gräßlich!
I wish that thick/intense darkness would have filled that day, and that a black cloud would have come over it and blotted out all light and caused people to be terrified.
6 Die Nacht müsse Dunkel einnehmen; sie müsse sich nicht unter den Tagen des Jahres freuen noch in die Zahl der Monden kommen!
I wish that the night when I was conceived would be erased from the calendar, with the result that it would never again appear as one night in any month, and that it would not be included in any calendar.
7 Siehe, die Nacht müsse einsam sein und kein Jauchzen darin sein!
I wish that no child would again be conceived on that night of the month [MET], and that no one would again be happy on that night.
8 Es müssen sie verfluchen die Verflucher des Tages und die da bereit sind, zu erregen den Leviathan!
I want those people who (curse/put evil spells on) days—those who know how to arouse/awaken the great sea monster—to curse that day.
9 Ihre Sterne müssen finster sein in ihrer Dämmerung; sie hoffe aufs Licht, und es komme nicht, und müsse nicht sehen die Wimpern der Morgenröte,
I wish that the stars that shone early in the morning on that day [after I was conceived] will not shine again. I want those stars to have wished in vain for light to shine; and that they would not have shone on that day.
10 darum daß sie nicht verschlossen hat die Tür des Leibes meiner Mutter und nicht verborgen das Unglück vor meinen Augen!
[That was an evil day] because my mother was able to conceive; instead, I was born, and I have now experienced all these terrible things.
11 Warum bin ich nicht gestorben von Mutterleib an? Warum bin ich nicht verschieden, da ich aus dem Leibe kam?
“I wish that I had died [RHQ] when I was born— at the time I emerged from my mother’s womb.
12 Warum hat man mich auf den Schoß gesetzt? Warum bin ich mit Brüsten gesäugt?
I wish that my mother had not [RHQ] allowed me to live. I wish that she had not nursed me.
13 So läge ich doch nun und wäre still, schliefe und hätte Ruhe
If I had died at the time when I was born, I would be asleep, resting peacefully [in the place where the dead people are].
14 mit den Königen und Ratsherren auf Erden, die das Wüste bauen,
I would be resting with kings whose [beautiful palaces] that they built are now in ruins (OR, who rebuilt [palaces] that had previously been destroyed), and I would be resting with their officials [who have also died].
15 oder mit den Fürsten, die Gold haben und deren Häuser voll Silber sind.
I would be resting with princes who were wealthy, whose palaces were filled with gold and silver.
16 Oder wie eine unzeitige Geburt, die man verborgen hat, wäre ich gar nicht, wie Kinder, die das Licht nie gesehen haben.
I wish that I had been buried like a child who died in its mother’s womb and never lived to see the light.
17 Daselbst müssen doch aufhören die Gottlosen mit Toben; daselbst ruhen doch, die viel Mühe gehabt haben.
After wicked people die, they do not cause any more troubles; those who are very tired now will rest.
18 Da haben doch miteinander Frieden die Gefangenen und hören nicht die Stimme des Drängers.
Those who were in prison rest peacefully [after they die]; they no longer have slave-drivers who curse them.
19 Da sind beide, klein und groß, und der Knecht ist frei von seinem Herrn.
Rich people and poor people are alike after they die, and those who were slaves are no longer controlled by their masters.
20 Warum ist das Licht gegeben dem Mühseligen und das Leben den betrübten Herzen
(“Why does God allow those who are suffering greatly [like me] to continue to remain alive?/I do not understand why God allows those who are suffering greatly [like me] to continue to remain alive.) [RHQ] Why does he allow those who are very miserable/distressed to keep living [RHQ]?
21 (die des Todes warten, und er kommt nicht, und grüben ihn wohl aus dem Verborgenen,
They long/want to die, but they do not die. They desire to die more than people desire to find a hidden treasure.
22 die sich sehr freuten und fröhlich wären, wenn sie ein Grab bekämen),
When they finally die and are buried, they are very happy.
23 dem Manne, dessen Weg verborgen ist und vor ihm von Gott verzäunt ward?
Those who do not know where they are [eventually] going when they die [RHQ], people whom God has forced [MET] to continue to live in misery, (it is not right that they continue to live./why do they continue to live?) [RHQ]
24 Denn wenn ich essen soll, muß ich seufzen, und mein Heulen fährt heraus wie Wasser.
I continually cry very much; as a result, I cannot eat; and I can never stop groaning.
25 Denn was ich gefürchtet habe ist über mich gekommen, und was ich sorgte, hat mich getroffen.
Things that I always worried might happen to me, have happened to me; things that I always dreaded have happened to me.
26 War ich nicht glückselig? War ich nicht fein stille? Hatte ich nicht gute Ruhe? Und es kommt solche Unruhe!
Now I have no peace [in my inner being], I have no peace; I cannot rest; instead, I have only troubles.”

< Job 3 >