Shir ha-Shirim (שיר השירים ) - Cantico dei Cantici 40

MODERN HEBREW BIBLE	NEW JERUSALEM
1 ויען יהוה את איוב ויאמר	1 Stil speaking to Job, Yahweh said:
2 הרב עם שדי יסור מוכיח אלוה יעננה	2 Is Yahweh's opponent going to give way? Has God's critic thought up an answer?
3 ויען איוב את יהוה ויאמר	3 Job replied to Yahweh:
4 הן קלתי מה אשיבך ידי שמתי למו פי	4 My words have been frivolous: what can I reply? I had better lay my hand over my mouth.
5 אחת דברתי ולא אענה ושתים ולא אוסיף	5 I have spoken once, I shal not speak again; I have spoken twice, I have nothing more to say.
6 ויען יהוה את איוב מן סערה ויאמר	6 Yahweh gave Job his answer from the heart of the tempest. He said:
7 אזר נא כגבר חלציך אשאלך והודיעני	7 Brace yourself like a fighter, I am going to ask the questions, and you are to inform me!
8 האף תפר משפטי תרשיעני למען תצדק	8 Do you real y want to reverse my judgement, put me in the wrong and yourself in the right?
9 ואם זרוע כאל לך ובקול כמהו תרעם	9 Has your arm the strength of God's, can your voice thunder as loud?
10 עדה נא גאון וגבה והוד והדר תלבש	10 Come on, display your majesty and grandeur, robe yourself in splendour and glory.
11 הפץ עברות אפך וראה כל גאה והשפילהו	11 Let the fury of your anger burst forth, humble the haughty at a glance!
12 ראה כל גאה הכניעהו והדך רשעים תחתם	12 At a glance, bring down al the proud, strike down the wicked where they stand.
13 טמנם בעפר יחד פניהם חבש בטמון	13 Bury the lot of them in the ground, shut them, every one, in the Dungeon.
14 וגם אני אודך כי תושע לך ימינך	14 And I shal be the first to pay you homage, since your own right hand is strong enough to save you.
15 הנה נא בהמות אשר עשיתי עמך חציר כבקר יאכל	15 But look at Behemoth, my creature, just as you are! He feeds on greenstuff like the ox,
16 הנה נא כחו במתניו ואנו בשרירי בטנו	16 but what strength he has in his loins, what power in his stomach muscles!
17 יחפץ זנבו כמו ארז גידי פחדו ישרגו	17 His tail is as stiff as a cedar, the sinews of his thighs are tightly knit.
18 עצמיו אפיקי נחושה גרמיו כמטיל ברזל	18 His bones are bronze tubes, his frame like forged iron.
19 הוא ראשית דרכי אל העשו יגש חרבו	19 He is the first of the works of God. His Maker threatened him with the sword,
20 כי בול הרים ישאו לו וכל חית השדה ישחקו שם	20 forbidding him the mountain regions and al the wild animals that play there.
21 תחת צאלים ישכב בסתר קנה ובצה	21 Under the lotus he lies, he hides among the reeds in the swamps.
22 יסכהו צאלים צללו יסבוהו ערבי נחל	22 The leaves of the lotus give him shade, the willows by the stream shelter him.
23 הן יעשק נהר לא יחפוז יבטח כי יגיח ירדן אל פיהו	23 If the river overflows, he does not worry: Jordan might come up to his mouth, but he would not care.
24 בעיניו יקחנו במוקשים ינקב אף	24 Who is going to catch him by the eyes or put poles through his nose?
	25 Leviathan, too! Can you catch him with a fish-hook or hold his tongue down with a rope?
	26 Can you put a cane through his nostrils or pierce his jaw with a hook?
	27 Will he plead lengthily with you, addressing you in diffident tones?
	28 Will he strike a bargain with you to become your slave for life?
	29 Will you make a pet of him, like a bird, keep him on a lead to amuse your little girls?
	30 Is he to be sold by the fishing guild and then retailed by merchants?
	31 Riddle his hide with darts? Or his head with fishing spears?
	32 You have only to lay a finger on him never to forget the struggle or risk it again!