Job 20
1 Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
Alors Sophar de Naama prit la parole et dit:
2 “So my anxious thoughts compel me to answer, because of the turmoil within me.
C’est pourquoi mes pensées me suggèrent une réponse, et, à cause de mon agitation, j’ai hâte de la donner.
3 I have heard a rebuke that insults me, and my understanding prompts a reply.
J’ai entendu des reproches qui m’outragent; dans mon intelligence, mon esprit trouvera la réplique.
4 Do you not know that from antiquity, since man was placed on the earth,
Sais-tu bien que, de tout temps, depuis que l’homme a été placé sur la terre,
5 the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?
le triomphe des méchants a été court, et la joie de l’impie d’un moment?
6 Though his arrogance reaches the heavens, and his head touches the clouds,
Quand il porterait son orgueil jusqu’au ciel, et que sa tête toucherait aux nues,
7 he will perish forever, like his own dung; those who had seen him will ask, ‘Where is he?’
comme son ordure, il périt pour toujours; ceux qui le voyaient disent: « Où est-il? »
8 He will fly away like a dream, never to be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night.
Il s’envole comme un songe, et on ne le trouve plus; il s’efface comme une vision de la nuit.
9 The eye that saw him will see him no more, and his place will no longer behold him.
L’œil qui le voyait ne le découvre plus; sa demeure ne l’apercevra plus.
10 His sons will seek the favor of the poor, for his own hands must return his wealth.
Ses enfants imploreront les pauvres, de ses propres mains il restituera ses rapines.
11 The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie down with him in the dust.
Ses os étaient pleins de ses iniquités cachées; elles dormiront avec lui dans la poussière.
12 Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue,
Parce que le mal a été doux à sa bouche, qu’il l’a caché sous sa langue,
13 though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth,
qu’il l’a savouré sans l’abandonner, et l’a retenu au milieu de son palais:
14 yet in his stomach his food sours into the venom of cobras within him.
sa nourriture tournera en poison dans ses entrailles, elle deviendra dans son sein le venin de l’aspic.
15 He swallows wealth but vomits it out; God will force it from his stomach.
Il a englouti des richesses, il les vomira; Dieu les retirera de son ventre.
16 He will suck the poison of cobras; the fangs of a viper will kill him.
Il a sucé le venin de l’aspic, la langue de la vipère le tuera.
17 He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream.
Il ne verra jamais couler les fleuves, les torrents de miel et de lait.
18 He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he cannot enjoy the profits of his trading.
Il rendra ce qu’il a gagné et ne s’en gorgera pas, dans la mesure de ses profits, et il n’en jouira pas.
19 For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor; he has seized houses he did not build.
Car il a opprimé et délaissé les pauvres, il a saccagé leur maison, et ne l’a pas rétablie:
20 Because his appetite is never satisfied, he cannot escape with his treasure.
son avidité n’a pu être rassasiée, il n’emportera pas ce qu’il a de plus cher.
21 Nothing is left for him to consume; thus his prosperity will not endure.
Rien n’échappait à sa voracité; aussi son bonheur ne subsistera pas.
22 In the midst of his plenty, he will be distressed; the full force of misery will come upon him.
Au sein de l’abondance, il tombe dans la disette; tous les coups du malheur viennent sur lui.
23 When he has filled his stomach, God will vent His fury upon him, raining it down on him as he eats.
Voici pour lui remplir le ventre: Dieu enverra sur lui le feu de sa colère, elle pleuvra sur lui jusqu’en ses entrailles.
24 Though he flees from an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce him.
S’il échappe aux armes de fer, l’arc d’airain le transperce.
25 It is drawn out of his back, the gleaming point from his liver. Terrors come over him.
Il arrache le trait, il sort de son corps, l’acier sort étincelant de son foie; les terreurs de la mort tombent sur lui.
26 Total darkness is reserved for his treasures. A fire unfanned will consume him and devour what is left in his tent.
Une nuit profonde engloutit ses trésors; un feu que l’homme n’a pas allumé le dévore, et consume tout ce qui restait dans sa tente.
27 The heavens will expose his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him.
Les cieux révéleront son iniquité, et la terre s’élèvera contre lui.
28 The possessions of his house will be removed, flowing away on the day of God’s wrath.
L’abondance de sa maison sera dispersée, elle disparaîtra au jour de la colère.
29 This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the inheritance God has appointed him.”
Telle est la part que Dieu réserve au méchant, et l’héritage que lui destine Dieu.
