أَتاني اِبنُ المَسيحِ فَلَم يَجِدني

عَلَيهِ بِماءِ شِنَّتِنا بَخيلا

The son of the Messiah came to me, but did not find me

Stingy with the water of our hostility towards him.

فَقُلتُ لَهُ تَسَمَّلها فَإِنّي

أَخافُ عَلَيكَ عَينَكَ وَالدَليلا

So I said to him, "Help yourself," for I

Feared for your eye and the guide.

أَرى عَيناً قَدِ اِنقَلَبَت وَأُخرى

تُقَلِّبُ طَرفَها شَفّاً كَليلا

I see one eye has turned, and another

Moves its eyelid, bleary and weak.

وَلِلعَنزِيِّ قَد أَفرَغتُ سَجلاً

شَفَيتُ بِهِ الحَرارَةَ وَالغَليلا

And for the goat I have poured out a bucket,

With which I quenched the heat and the inflammation.

فَقالَ الأَصلُ خِندِفُ غَيرَ أَنّا

تَبِعنا الماءَ وَالأَجَمَ الظَليلا

So the real one said, "It's a ruin, except that

We followed the water and the shaded rock."