< Numbers 24 >
1 And when Balaam saw that it pleased God to bless Israel, he did not go according to his custom to meet the omens, but turned his face towards the wilderness.
Et Balaam vit qu’il était bon aux yeux de l’Éternel de bénir Israël, et il n’alla pas, comme d’autres fois, à la rencontre des enchantements, mais il tourna sa face vers le désert.
2 And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and sees Israel encamped by their tribes; and the Spirit of God came upon him.
Et Balaam leva ses yeux et vit Israël habitant dans ses tentes selon ses tribus; et l’Esprit de Dieu fut sur lui.
3 And he took up his parable and said, Balaam son of Beor says, the man who sees truly says,
Et il proféra son discours sentencieux, et dit: Balaam, fils de Béor, dit, et l’homme qui a l’œil ouvert, dit:
4 he says who hears the oracle of the Mighty One, who saw a vision of God in sleep; his eyes were opened:
Celui qui entend les paroles de Dieu, qui voit la vision du Tout-puissant, qui tombe et qui a les yeux ouverts, dit:
5 How goodly [are] your habitations, Jacob, and your tents, Israel!
Que tes tentes sont belles, ô Jacob! et tes demeures, ô Israël!
6 as shady groves, and as gardens by a river, and as tents which God pitched, and as cedars by the waters.
Comme des vallées elles s’étendent, comme des jardins auprès d’un fleuve, comme des arbres d’aloès que l’Éternel a plantés, comme des cèdres auprès des eaux.
7 There shall come a man out of his seed, and he shall rule over many nations; and the kingdom of Gog shall be exalted, and his kingdom shall be increased.
L’eau coulera de ses seaux; et sa semence sera au milieu de grandes eaux; Et son roi sera élevé au-dessus d’Agag, et son royaume sera haut élevé.
8 God led him out of Egypt; he has as it were the glory of a unicorn: he shall consume the nations of his enemies, and he shall drain their marrow, and with his darts he shall shoot through the enemy.
Dieu l’a fait sortir d’Égypte; il a comme la force des buffles; il dévorera les nations, ses ennemis; il cassera leurs os, et les frappera de ses flèches.
9 He lay down, he rested as a lion, and as a young lion; who shall stir him up? they that bless you are blessed, and they that curse you are cursed.
Il s’est courbé, il s’est couché comme un lion, et comme une lionne: qui le fera lever? Bénis sont ceux qui te bénissent, et maudits sont ceux qui te maudissent.
10 And Balac was angry with Balaam, and clapped his hands together; and Balac said to Balaam, I called you to curse my enemy, and behold you have decidedly blessed [him] this third time.
Alors la colère de Balak s’embrasa contre Balaam, et il frappa des mains; et Balak dit à Balaam: C’est pour maudire mes ennemis que je t’ai appelé, et voici, tu les as bénis expressément ces trois fois.
11 Now therefore flee to your place: I said, I will honour you, but now the Lord has deprived you of glory.
Et maintenant, fuis en ton lieu. J’avais dit que je te comblerais d’honneurs; et voici, l’Éternel t’a empêché d’en recevoir.
12 And Balaam said to Balac, Did I not speak to your messengers also whom you sent to me, saying,
Et Balaam dit à Balak: N’ai-je pas aussi parlé à tes messagers que tu as envoyés vers moi, disant:
13 If Balac should give me his house full of silver and gold, I shall not be able to transgress the word of the Lord to make it good or bad by myself; whatever things God shall say, them will I speak.
Quand Balak me donnerait plein sa maison d’argent et d’or, je ne pourrais transgresser le commandement de l’Éternel pour faire de mon propre mouvement du bien ou du mal; ce que l’Éternel dira, je le dirai.
14 And now, behold, I return to my place; come, I will advise you of what this people shall do to your people in the last days.
Et maintenant, voici, je m’en vais vers mon peuple; viens, je t’avertirai de ce que ce peuple fera à ton peuple à la fin des jours.
15 And he took up his parable and said, Balaam the son of Beor says, the man who sees truly says,
Et il proféra son discours sentencieux, et dit: Balaam, fils de Béor, dit, et l’homme qui a l’œil ouvert, dit:
16 hearing the oracles of God, receiving knowledge from the Most High, and having seen a vision of God in sleep; his eyes were opened.
Celui qui entend les paroles de Dieu, et qui connaît la connaissance du Très-haut, qui voit la vision du Tout-puissant, qui tombe et qui a les yeux ouverts, dit:
17 I will point to him, but not now; I bless him, but he draws not near: a star shall rise out of Jacob, a man shall spring out of Israel; and shall crush the princes of Moab, and shall spoil all the sons of Seth.
Je le verrai, mais pas maintenant; je le regarderai, mais pas de près. Une étoile surgira de Jacob, et un sceptre s’élèvera d’Israël, et transpercera les coins de Moab, et détruira tous les fils de tumulte.
18 And Edom shall be an inheritance, and Esau his enemy shall be an inheritance [of Israel], and Israel wrought valiantly.
Et Édom sera une possession, et Séhir sera une possession, … [eux], ses ennemis; et Israël agira avec puissance.
19 And [one] shall arise out of Jacob, and destroy out of the city him that escapes.
Et celui qui sortira de Jacob dominera, et il fera périr de la ville le résidu.
20 And having seen Amalec, he took up his parable and said, Amalec [is] the first of the nations; yet his seed shall perish.
Et il vit Amalek, et proféra son discours sentencieux, et dit: Amalek était la première des nations; et sa fin sera la destruction.
21 And having seen the Kenite, he took up his parable and said, your dwelling-place [is] strong; yet though you should put your nest in a rock,
Et il vit le Kénien, et il proféra son discours sentencieux, et dit: Forte est ta demeure, et tu as placé ton nid dans le rocher.
22 and though Beor should have a skilfully contrived hiding-place, the Assyrians shall carry you away captive.
Toutefois le Kénien doit être consumé, jusqu’à ce qu’Assur t’emmène captif.
23 And he looked upon Og, and took up his parable and said, Oh, oh, who shall live, when God shall do these things?
Et il proféra son discours sentencieux, et dit: Malheur! Qui vivra, quand Dieu fera ces choses?
24 And one shall come forth from the hands of the Citians, and shall afflict Assur, and shall afflict the Hebrews, and they shall perish together.
Et des navires viendront de la côte de Kittim, et affligeront Assur, et affligeront Héber, et lui aussi ira à la destruction.
25 And Balaam rose up and departed and returned to his place, and Balac went to his own home.
Et Balaam se leva, et s’en alla, et s’en retourna en son lieu; et Balak aussi s’en alla son chemin.