< Kings II 13 >
1 And it happened after this that Abessalom the son of David had a very beautiful sister, and her name [was] Themar; and Amnon the son of David loved her.
Après cela, voici ce qui arriva. Absalom, fils de David, avait une sœur qui était belle et qui s’appelait Tamar; et Amnon, fils de David, l’aima.
2 And Amnon was distressed even to sickness, because of Themar his sister; for she was a virgin, and it seemed very difficult for Amnon to do anything to her.
Amnon était tourmenté jusqu’à se rendre malade à cause de Tamar, sa sœur; car elle était vierge, et il paraissait difficile à Amnon de faire sur elle la moindre tentative.
3 And Amnon had a friend, and his name [was] Jonadab, the son of Samaa the brother of David: and Jonadab [was] a very cunning man.
Amnon avait un ami, nommé Jonadab, fils de Schimea, frère de David, et Jonadab était un homme très habile.
4 And he said to him, What ails you that you are thus weak? O son of the king, morning by morning? will you not tell me? and Ammon said, I love Themar the sister of my brother Abessalom.
Il lui dit: Pourquoi deviens-tu, ainsi chaque matin plus maigre, toi, fils de roi? Ne veux-tu pas me le dire? Amnon lui répondit: J’aime Tamar, sœur d’Absalom, mon frère.
5 And Jonadab said to him, Lie upon your bed, and make yourself sick, and your father shall come in to see you; and you shall say to him, Let, I pray you, Themar my sister come, and feed me with morsels, and let her prepare food before my eyes, that I may see and eat at her hands.
Jonadab lui dit: Mets-toi au lit, et fais le malade. Quand ton père viendra te voir, tu lui diras: Permets à Tamar, ma sœur, de venir pour me donner à manger; qu’elle prépare un mets sous mes yeux, afin que je le voie et que je le prenne de sa main.
6 So Ammon lay down, and made himself sick; and the king came in to see him: and Amnon said to the king, Let, I pray you, my sister Themar come to me, and make a couple of cakes in my sight, and I will eat them at her hand.
Amnon se coucha, et fit le malade. Le roi vint le voir, et Amnon dit au roi: Je te prie, que Tamar, ma sœur, vienne faire deux gâteaux sous mes yeux, et que je les mange de sa main.
7 And David sent to Themar to the house, saying, Go now to your brother's house, and dress him food.
David envoya dire à Tamar dans l’intérieur des appartements: Va dans la maison d’Amnon, ton frère, et prépare-lui un mets.
8 And Themar went to the house of her brother Amnon, and he [was] lying down: and she took the dough and kneaded it, and made cakes in his sight, and baked the cakes.
Tamar alla dans la maison d’Amnon, son frère, qui était couché. Elle prit de la pâte, la pétrit, prépara devant lui des gâteaux, et les fit cuire;
9 And she took the frying pan and poured them out before him, but he would not eat. And Amnon said, Send out every man from about me. And they removed every man from about him.
prenant ensuite la poêle, elle les versa devant lui. Mais Amnon refusa de manger. Il dit: Faites sortir tout le monde. Et tout le monde sortit de chez lui.
10 And Amnon said to Themar, Bring in the food into the closet, and I will eat of your hand. And Themar took the cakes which she had made, and brought them to her brother Amnon into the chamber.
Alors Amnon dit à Tamar: Apporte le mets dans la chambre, et que je le mange de ta main. Tamar prit les gâteaux qu’elle avait faits, et les porta à Amnon, son frère, dans la chambre.
11 And she brought [them] to him to eat, and he caught hold of her, and said to her, Come, lie with me, my sister.
Comme elle les lui présentait à manger, il la saisit et lui dit: Viens, couche avec moi, ma sœur.
12 And she said to him, Nay, my brother, do not humble me, for it ought not to be so done in Israel; do not this folly.
Elle lui répondit: Non, mon frère, ne me déshonore pas, car on n’agit point ainsi en Israël; ne commets pas cette infamie.
13 And I, whither shall I remove my reproach? and you shall be as one of the fools in Israel. And now, speak, I pray you, to the king, for surely he will not keep me from you.
Où irais-je, moi, avec ma honte? Et toi, tu serais comme l’un des infâmes en Israël. Maintenant, je te prie, parle au roi, et il ne s’opposera pas à ce que je sois à toi.
14 But Amnon would not listen to her voice; and he prevailed against her, and humbled her, and lay with her.
Mais il ne voulut pas l’écouter; il lui fit violence, la déshonora et coucha avec elle.
15 Then Amnon hated her with very great hatred; for the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her, for the last wickedness was greater than the first: and Amnon said to her, Rise, and be gone.
Puis Amnon eut pour elle une forte aversion, plus forte que n’avait été son amour. Et il lui dit: Lève-toi, va-t’en!
16 And Themar spoke to him concerning this great mischief, greater, [said she], than the other that you did me, to send me away: but Amnon would not listen to her voice.
Elle lui répondit: N’augmente pas, en me chassant, le mal que tu m’as déjà fait.
17 And he called his servant who had charge of the house, and said to him, Put now this [woman] out from me, and shut the door after her.
Il ne voulut pas l’écouter, et appelant le garçon qui le servait, il dit: Qu’on éloigne de moi cette femme et qu’on la mette dehors. Et ferme la porte après elle!
18 And she had on her a variegated robe, for so were the king's daughters that were virgins attired in their apparel: and his servant led her forth, and shut the door after her.
Elle avait une tunique de plusieurs couleurs; car c’était le vêtement que portaient les filles du roi, aussi longtemps qu’elles étaient vierges. Le serviteur d’Amnon la mit dehors, et ferma la porte après elle.
19 And Themar took ashes, and put them on her head; and she tore the variegated garment that was upon her: and she laid her hands on her head, and went crying continually.
Tamar répandit de la cendre sur sa tête, et déchira sa tunique bigarrée; elle mit la main sur sa tête, et s’en alla en poussant des cris.
20 And Abessalom her brother said to her, Has your brother Amnon been with you? now then, my sister, be silent, for he is your brother: be not careful to mention this matter. So Themar lived as a widow in the house of her brother Abessalom.
Absalom, son frère, lui dit: Amnon, ton frère, a-t-il été avec toi? Maintenant, ma sœur, tais-toi, c’est ton frère; ne prends pas cette affaire trop à cœur. Et Tamar, désolée, demeura dans la maison d’Absalom, son frère.
21 And king David heard of all these things, and was very angry; but he did not grieve the spirit of his son Amnon, because be loved him, for he was his firstborn.
Le roi David apprit toutes ces choses, et il fut très irrité.
22 And Abessalom spoke not to Amnon, good or bad, because Abessalom hated Amnon, on account of his humbling his sister Themar.
Absalom ne parla ni en bien ni en mal avec Amnon; mais il le prit en haine, parce qu’il avait déshonoré Tamar, sa sœur.
23 And it came to pass at the end of two whole years, that they were shearing [sheep] for Abessalom in Belasor near Ephraim: and Abessalom invited all the king's sons.
Deux ans après, comme Absalom avait les tondeurs à Baal-Hatsor, près d’Éphraïm, il invita tous les fils du roi.
24 And Abessalom came to the king, and said, Behold, your servant has a sheep-shearing; let now the king and his servants go with your servant.
Absalom alla vers le roi, et dit: Voici, ton serviteur a les tondeurs; que le roi et ses serviteurs viennent chez ton serviteur.
25 And the king said to Abessalom, Nay, my son, let us not all go, and let us not be burdensome to you. And he pressed him; but he would not go, but blessed him.
Et le roi dit à Absalom: Non, mon fils, nous n’irons pas tous, de peur que nous ne te soyons à charge. Absalom le pressa; mais le roi ne voulut point aller, et il le bénit.
26 And Abessalom said to him, And if not, let I pray you, my brother Amnon go with us. And the king said to him, Why should he go with you?
Absalom dit: Permets du moins à Amnon, mon frère, de venir avec nous. Le roi lui répondit: Pourquoi irait-il chez toi?
27 And Abessalom pressed him, and he sent with him Amnon and all the king's sons; and Abessalom made a banquet like the banquet of the king.
Sur les instances d’Absalom, le roi laissa aller avec lui Amnon et tous ses fils.
28 And Abessalom charged his servants, saying, Mark when the heart of Amnon shall be merry with wine, and I shall say to you, Strike Amnon, and kill him: fear not; for is it not I that command you? Be courageous, and be valiant.
Absalom donna cet ordre à ses serviteurs: Faites attention quand le cœur d’Amnon sera égayé par le vin et que je vous dirai: Frappez Amnon! Alors tuez-le; ne craignez point, n’est-ce pas moi qui vous l’ordonne? Soyez fermes, et montrez du courage!
29 And the servants of Abessalom did to Amnon as Abessalom commanded them: and all the sons of the king rose up, and they mounted every man his mule, and fled.
Les serviteurs d’Absalom traitèrent Amnon comme Absalom l’avait ordonné. Et tous les fils du roi se levèrent, montèrent chacun sur son mulet, et s’enfuirent.
30 And it came to pass, when they were in the way, that a report came to David, saying, Abessalom has slain all the king's sons, and there is not one of them left.
Comme ils étaient en chemin, le bruit parvint à David qu’Absalom avait tué tous les fils du roi, et qu’il n’en était pas resté un seul.
31 Then the king arose, and tore his garments, and lay upon the ground: and all his servants that were standing round him tore their garments.
Le roi se leva, déchira ses vêtements, et se coucha par terre; et tous ses serviteurs étaient là, les vêtements déchirés.
32 And Jonadab the son of Samaa brother of David, answered and said, Let not my Lord the king say that he has slain all the young men the sons of the king, for Amnon only of them all is dead; for he was appointed [to death] by the mouth of Abessalom from the day that he humbled his sister Themar.
Jonadab, fils de Schimea, frère de David, prit la parole et dit: Que mon seigneur ne pense point que tous les jeunes gens, fils du roi, ont été tués, car Amnon seul est mort; et c’est l’effet d’une résolution d’Absalom, depuis le jour où Amnon a déshonoré Tamar, sa sœur.
33 And now let not my lord the king take the matter to heart, saying, All the king's sons are dead: for Amnon only of them is dead.
Que le roi mon seigneur ne se tourmente donc point dans l’idée que tous les fils du roi sont morts, car Amnon seul est mort.
34 And Abessalom escaped: and the young man the watchman, lifted up his eyes, and looked; and, behold, much people went in the way behind him from the side of the mountain in the descent: and the watchman came and told the king, and said, I have seen men by the way of Oronen, by the side of the mountain.
Absalom prit la fuite. Or le jeune homme placé en sentinelle leva les yeux et regarda. Et voici, une grande troupe venait par le chemin qui était derrière lui, du côté de la montagne.
35 And Jonadab said to the king, Behold, the king's sons are present: according to the word of your servant, so has it happened.
Jonadab dit au roi: Voici les fils du roi qui arrivent! Ainsi se confirme ce que disait ton serviteur.
36 And it came to pass when he had finished speaking, that, behold, the king's sons came, and lifted up their voices and wept: and the king also and all his servants wept with a very great weeping.
Comme il achevait de parler, voici, les fils du roi arrivèrent. Ils élevèrent la voix, et pleurèrent; le roi aussi et tous ses serviteurs versèrent d’abondantes larmes.
37 But Abessalom fled, and went to Tholmi son of Emiud the king of Gedsur to the land of Chamaachad: and king David mourned for his son continually.
Absalom s’était enfui, et il alla chez Talmaï, fils d’Ammihur, roi de Gueschur. Et David pleurait tous les jours son fils.
38 So Abessalom fled, and departed to Gedsur, and was there three years.
Absalom resta trois ans à Gueschur, où il était allé, après avoir pris la fuite.
39 And king David ceased to go out after Abessalom, for he was comforted concerning Amnon, touching his death.
Le roi David cessa de poursuivre Absalom, car il était consolé de la mort d’Amnon.