Judges 15
1 Then, after some time, when the days of the wheat harvest were near, Samson arrived, intending to visit his wife, and he brought her a kid from the goats. And when he wanted to enter her bedroom, as usual, her father prohibited him, saying:
Et quelque temps après, à l'époque de la moisson des orges, Samson visita sa femme, apportant un chevreau, et il dit: Je veux entrer chez ma femme dans la chambre; mais le père ne lui permit pas d'entrer.
2 “I thought that you would hate her, and therefore I gave her to your friend. But she has a sister, who is younger and more beautiful than she is. And she may be a wife for you, instead of her.”
Et le père dit: Je pensais que tu la haïssais et je l'ai donnée à ton ami. Sa sœur cadette n'est-elle pas plus belle qu'elle? prends-la donc à sa place!
3 And Samson answered him: “From this day, there shall be no guilt for me against the Philistines. For I will do harm to you all.”
Alors Samson leur dit: Cette fois si je fais du mal aux Philistins, les Philistins ne pourront en rejeter la faute sur moi.
4 And he went out and caught three hundred foxes. And he joined them tail to tail. And he tied torches between the tails.
Et Samson partit, et ayant attrapé trois cents renards, il se procura des torches; et croisant une queue avec l'autre queue, il fixa une torche entre deux queues, au milieu.
5 And setting these on fire, he released them, so that they might rush from place to place. And immediately they went into the grain fields of the Philistines, setting these on fire, both the grain that was already bound for carrying, and what was still standing on the stalk. These were completely burned up, so much so that the flame also consumed even the vineyards and the olive groves.
Puis ayant allumé les torches, il les lâcha dans les moissons des Philistins, et ainsi embrasa et les tas de gerbes et les blés qui étaient sur pied, et les olivaies.
6 And the Philistines said, “Who has done this thing?” And it was said: “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he took away his wife, and gave her to another. He has done these things.” And the Philistines went up and burned the woman as well as her father.
Alors les Philistins dirent: Qui a fait cela? Et on dit: C'est Samson, gendre du Thimnite, parce que celui-ci lui a ôté sa femme et l'a donnée à son ami. Alors les Philistins arrivèrent, ils la brûlèrent elle et son père dans les flammes.
7 And Samson said to them, “Even though you have done this, I will still fulfill vengeance against you, and then I will be quieted.”
Et Samson leur dit: Est-ce ainsi que vous faites?… Oui, quand j'aurai tiré vengeance de vous, alors je cesserai.
8 And he struck them with a tremendous slaughter, so much so that, out of astonishment, they laid the calf of the leg upon the thigh. And descending, he lived in a cave of the rock at Etam.
Et il leur frappa jambes et reins d'un grand coup. Puis il descendit, et prit pour sa demeure la caverne du rocher d'Eitam.
9 And so the Philistines, ascending into the land of Judah, made camp at the place which was later called Lehi, that is, the Jawbone, where their army spread out.
Alors les Philistins se mirent en campagne et vinrent camper en Juda, et ils se déployèrent dans Léchi.
10 And some from the tribe of Judah said to them, “Why have you ascended against us?” And they responded, “We have come to bind Samson, and to repay him for what he has done to us.”
Et les hommes de Juda dirent: Pourquoi marchez-vous contre nous?
11 Then three thousand men of Judah descended to the cave of the rock at Etam. And they said to Samson: “Do you not know that the Philistines rule over us? Why would you want to do this?” And he said to them, “As they have done to me, so I have done to them.”
Et ils dirent: C'est pour enchaîner Samson que nous sommes venus, pour lui rendre ce qu'il nous a fait. Là-dessus trois mille hommes de Juda descendirent à la caverne du rocher d'Eitam, et ils dirent à Samson: Ne savais-tu pas que les Philistins sont nos dominateurs? et qu'est-ce que tu nous as fait là? Et il leur dit: Je les ai traités comme ils m'ont traité.
12 And they said to him, “We have come to bind you, and to deliver you into the hands of the Philistines.” And Samson said to them, “Swear and promise to me that you will not kill me.”
Et ils lui dirent: C'est pour te garrotter que nous venons, pour te livrer aux mains des Philistins. Et Samson leur dit: Jurez-moi que vous ne me tuerez pas!
13 They said: “We will not kill you. But we will deliver you tied.” And they bound him with two new cords. And they took him from the rock at Etam.
Et ils lui dirent: Non; nous ne voulons que te garrotter et te remettre entre leurs mains; quant à te faire mourir, nous ne le ferons point. Et ils le lièrent de deux cordes neuves, et ils l'emmenèrent loin du rocher.
14 And when he had arrived at the place of the Jawbone, and the Philistines, shouting aloud, had met him, the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him. And just as flax is usually consumed by a hint of fire, so were the ties with which he was bound broken and released.
Il arriva à Léchi et les Philistins l'accueillirent par des huées; alors l'esprit de l'Éternel s'empara de lui, et les cordes qu'il avait aux bras ne furent plus que comme des brins de fil qui brûlent dans le feu, et ses liens coulèrent de ses poignets.
15 And finding a jawbone which was laying there, that is, the jawbone of a donkey, snatching it up, he put to death a thousand men with it.
Et il trouva une mâchoire d'âne fraîche, et il étendit la main et la saisit, et en frappa mille hommes.
16 And he said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, with the jaw of the colt of a donkey, I have destroyed them, and I have struck down a thousand men.”
Et Samson dit: Avec une mâchoire d'âne, une, deux troupes! Avec une mâchoire d'âne j'ai défait mille hommes!
17 And when he had completed these words, singing, he threw the jawbone from his hand. And called the name of that place Ramath-Lehi, which is translated as ‘the elevation of the jawbone.’
Et quand il eut achevé son discours, il jeta la mâchoire loin de sa main, et il nomma ce lieu Ramath-Léchi (jet de la mâchoire).
18 And being very thirsty, he cried out to the Lord, and he said: “You have given, to the hand of your servant, this very great salvation and victory. But see that I am dying of thirst, and so I will fall into the hands of the uncircumcised.”
Et il était fort altéré; alors il invoqua l'Éternel et dit: Par la main de ton serviteur tu as procuré cette grande victoire, et maintenant devrais-je mourir de soif et tomber entre les mains des incirconcis!
19 And so the Lord opened a large tooth in the jawbone of the donkey, and water went out from it. And having drank it, his spirit was revived, and he recovered his strength. For this reason, the name of that place was called ‘the Spring called forth from the jawbone,’ even to the present day.
Alors Dieu entrouvrit une cavité qui était à Léchi, et il en jaillit de l'eau et il but, et ses esprits revinrent, et il fut ranimé. C'est pourquoi on la nomma Source de l'invocateur, et elle existe encore aujourd'hui à Léchi.
20 And he judged Israel, in the days of the Philistines, for twenty years.
Et il jugea Israël à l'époque des Philistins pendant vingt ans.
