OET interlinear JOB 3:8

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: writing-pronouns

יִקְּבֻ֥⁠הוּ

curse,it

The pronoun it refers to the day when Job was born. Job is alternating between speaking about that day and about the night when he was conceived. Alternate translation: “May … curse that day”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

אֹרְרֵי־י֑וֹם

curse day

Job assumes that his listeners will understand that by the ones cursing a day he is referring to sorcerers. People in this culture employed sorcerers in the belief that they could cause bad things to happen on a particular day to their enemies. For example, people might employ a sorcerer to try to ruin the day on which a person began an important journey or celebrated an important family occasion such as a wedding. You could indicate this in your translation if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: “professional sorcerers”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / nominaladj

הָ֝⁠עֲתִידִ֗ים

the,ready

Job is using the adjective skillful as a noun to mean certain people. The word is plural, and the ULT adds the word ones to show that. Your language may use adjectives in the same way. If not, you can translate this word with an equivalent phrase. Alternate translation: “the people who have the skill”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

עֹרֵ֥ר לִוְיָתָֽן

rouse leviathan

The implication is that if sorcerers created chaos by awakening the chaos monster, there would no longer be any distinction between days, and so the day of Job’s birth would no longer have a distinct identity. You could say that explicitly if it would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: “to cause chaos among days” or “to destroy the distinct identity of the day on which I was born”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

לִוְיָתָֽן

leviathan

As the General Introduction to Job explains, ancient peoples seem to have been aware of a large, fierce creature that lived in the ocean, which they called the “sea monster.” People in Job's culture regarded the sea as the realm of watery chaos, and they associated this sea monster with that chaos. That is the association that Job is making here, calling the sea monster by the name Leviathan. You could retain the name Leviathan in your translation. Alternatively, you could use a general expression to convey the idea here. Alternate translation: “the sea monster that is associated with chaos”