1
Lakini sasa hao walio wadogo wangu hunifanyia mzaha, Ambao baba zao niliwadharau hata kuwaweka na mbwa wa kundi langu.
“But now they mock me, men younger than I am, whose fathers I would have refused to put with my sheep dogs.
2
Naam, uwezo wa mikono yao utanifaa nini? Watu ambao nguvu zao zimekoma.
What use to me was the strength of their hands, since their vigor had left them?
3
Wamekonda kwa uhitaji na njaa; Huguguna nchi kavu, penye giza la ukiwa na uharibifu.
Gaunt from poverty and hunger, they gnawed the dry land, and the desolate wasteland by night.
4
Hung'oa mboga ya chumvi kwenye kichaka; Na mizizi ya mretemu ni chakula chao.
They plucked mallow among the shrubs, and the roots of the broom tree were their food.
5
Hufukuzwa watoke kati ya watu; Huwapigia kelele kama kumpigia mwivi.
They were banished from among men, shouted at like thieves,
6
Lazima hukaa katika mianya ya mabonde, Katika mashimo ya nchi na ya majabali.
so that they lived on the slopes of the wadis, among the rocks and in holes in the ground.
7
Hulia kama punda vichakani; Hukusanyika chini ya upupu.
They cried out among the shrubs and huddled beneath the nettles.
8
Wao ni wana wa wapumbavu, naam, watoto wa wahuni; Walifukuzwa kwa mijeledi watoke katika nchi.
A senseless and nameless brood, they were driven off the land.
9
Na sasa mimi nimekuwa wimbo wao, Naam, nimekuwa simo kwao.
And now they mock me in song; I have become a byword among them.
10
Wao hunichukia, na kujitenga nami, Hawaachi kunitemea mate usoni.
They abhor me and keep far from me; they do not hesitate to spit in my face.
11
Kwani ameilegeza kamba yake, na kunitesa, Wala hawajizuii tena mbele yangu.
Because God has unstrung my bow and afflicted me, they have cast off restraint in my presence.
12
Kwa mkono wangu wa kuume huinuka kundi; Huisukuma miguu yangu kando, Na kunipandishia njia zao za uharibifu.
The rabble arises at my right; they lay snares for my feet and build siege ramps against me.
13
Waiharibu njia yangu, Wauzidisha msiba wangu, Watu wasio na msaidizi.
They tear up my path; they profit from my destruction, with no one to restrain them.
14
Wanijilia kama wapitao katika ufa mpana; Katikati ya magofu wanishambulia.
They advance as through a wide breach; through the ruins they keep rolling in.
15
Vitisho vimenigeukia; Huifukuza heshima yangu kama upepo; Na kufanikiwa kwangu kumepita kama wingu.
Terrors are turned loose against me; they drive away my dignity as by the wind, and my prosperity has passed like a cloud.
16
Sasa nafsi yangu inamwagika ndani yangu; Siku za mateso zimenishika.
And now my soul is poured out within me; days of affliction grip me.
17
Wakati wa usiku mifupa yangu huchomeka ndani yangu, Na maumivu yanayonitafuna hayapumziki.
Night pierces my bones, and my gnawing pains never rest.
18
Kwa ugonjwa wangu kuwa na nguvu nyingi Mavazi yangu yameharibika; Hunikaza kama shingo ya kanzu yangu.
With great force He grasps my garment; He seizes me by the collar of my tunic.
19
Yeye amenibwaga topeni, Nami nimekuwa kama mavumbi na majivu.
He throws me into the mud, and I have become like dust and ashes.
20
Nakulilia wewe, wala huniitikii; Nasimama, nawe wanitazama tu.
I cry out to You for help, but You do not answer; when I stand up, You merely look at me.
21
Wewe umegeuka kuwa mkali kwangu; Nawe waniudhi kwa uweza wa mkono wako.
You have ruthlessly turned on me; You oppose me with Your strong hand.
22
Waniinua juu hata upeponi, na kunipandisha juu yake; Nawe waniyeyusha katika dhoruba.
You snatch me up into the wind and drive me before it; You toss me about in the storm.
23
Kwani najua kuwa utanileta hata kifoni, Niifikilie nyumba waliyoandikiwa wenye uhai wote.
Yes, I know that You will bring me down to death, to the place appointed for all the living.
24
Je! Mtu katika kuanguka kwake hanyoshi mkono? Na kulilia msaada katika msiba wake?
Yet no one stretches out his hand against a ruined man when he cries for help in his distress.
25
Je! Mimi sikulia kwa ajili ya huyo aliyekuwa katika taabu? Nafsi yangu, je! Haikusononeka kwa ajili ya wahitaji?
Have I not wept for those in trouble? Has my soul not grieved for the needy?
26
Hapo nilipotazamia mema, ndipo yakaja mabaya; Nami nilipongojea mwanga, likaja giza.
But when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, darkness fell.
27
Matumbo yangu yatokota, wala hayaachi; Siku za taabu zimenijilia.
I am churning within and cannot rest; days of affliction confront me.
28
Naenda nikiomboleza pasipo jua; Nasimama katika mkutano, na kuulilia msaada.
I go about blackened, but not by the sun. I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.
29
Mimi ni ndugu yao mbwa-mwitu, Ni mwenzao mbuni.
I have become a brother of jackals, a companion of ostriches.
30
Ngozi yangu ni nyeusi, nayo yanitoka, Na mifupa yangu imeteketea kwa hari.
My skin grows black and peels, and my bones burn with fever.
31
Kwa hiyo kinanda changu kimegeuzwa kuwa maombolezo, Na filimbi yangu kuwa sauti yao waliao.
My harp is tuned to mourning and my flute to the sound of weeping.