1. My excuse is to God, not to people,
For drinking after performing the duty with the cup.

2. Three are with me after my lute strings at my bedside:
Water from the wilderness, or syrup from a jug.

3. They are the cure for an old man whose teeth have fallen out,
Whose nights have multiplied amid vileness and breaths.

4. They take away my cares and alleviate what
The tribulations of mankind engender in adversity and ease.