Isaiah 40
1 Our God says, “Encourage my people! Encourage them!
Consolez, consolez mon peuple, dit votre Dieu.
2 Speak kindly to [the people of] Jerusalem; tell them that their suffering is ended, and that I have forgiven them for the sins that they have committed; I [SYN] have fully punished them for their sins.”
Parlez à Jérusalem selon son cœur, et criez-lui que son temps de guerre est accompli, que son iniquité est pardonnée; qu'elle a reçu au double, de la main de l'Éternel, la peine de tous ses péchés.
3 I hear someone who is shouting, “Prepare in the desert a way for Yahweh to come [to you]; make a smooth road for our God (OR, Prepare yourselves to receive Yahweh when he comes, like people make a straight road for an important official [MET]).
Une voix crie: Préparez dans le désert le chemin de l'Éternel; aplanissez dans la solitude une route pour notre Dieu!
4 Fill in the valleys; flatten every hill and every mountain. Make the uneven ground smooth, and make the rough places smooth.
Toute vallée sera comblée, toute montagne et toute colline seront abaissées; les lieux montueux deviendront une plaine, et les lieux raboteux une vallée.
5 [If you do that], it will become known that Yahweh is glorious/great, and all people will realize it at the same time. [Those things will surely happen] because it is Yahweh who has said [MTY] it.”
Alors la gloire de l'Éternel sera manifestée, et toute chair en même temps la verra; car la bouche de l'Éternel a parlé.
6 Someone said to me, “Shout!” I replied, “What should I shout?” [He replied], “[Shout that] people are like [SIM] grass; their influence fades as quickly as flowers in the field.
Une voix dit: Crie. Et on répond: Que crierai-je? - Toute chair est comme l'herbe, et toute sa grâce comme la fleur des champs.
7 Grass withers and flowers dry up when Yahweh causes a hot wind from the desert to blow on them. And people are [MET] like that.
L'herbe sèche, la fleur tombe, quand le vent de l'Éternel souffle sur elle. Vraiment le peuple est comme l'herbe.
8 The grass withers and the flowers dry up, but what our God promises will last forever.”
L'herbe sèche, la fleur tombe, mais la parole de notre Dieu demeure éternellement!
9 You [people of] Jerusalem, you have good news to tell to people, so, shout it from the top of a high mountain! Shout it loudly, and do not be afraid! Tell the people in the towns of Judah, “Your God is coming here!”
Monte sur une haute montagne, Sion, qui annonces de bonnes nouvelles! Élève ta voix avec force, Jérusalem, qui annonces de bonnes nouvelles! Élève ta voix, ne crains point; dis aux villes de Juda: Voici votre Dieu!
10 Yahweh your God will be coming with power; he will rule powerfully [MTY]. And when he comes, he will bring with him the people whom he has freed [MET] [from being slaves in Babylonia].
Voici, le Seigneur, l'Éternel, vient avec puissance; il domine par la force de son bras; voici, son salaire vient avec lui, et sa rétribution devant lui.
11 He will take care of his people like [SIM] a shepherd takes care of his sheep, and carries the young lambs in his arms. He carries them close to his chest and he gently leads the female sheep that are nursing their young lambs.
Il paîtra son troupeau comme un berger; il rassemblera les agneaux entre ses bras, et les portera dans son sein; il conduira celles qui allaitent.
12 [There is no one like Yahweh]! (Who else has measured the water in the oceans in the palm of his hand?/No one else has measured the water in the oceans in the palm of his hand!) [RHQ] (Who else has measured the sky with his fingers?/No one else has measured the sky with his fingers!) [RHQ] (Who else knows how much the earth weighs?/No one else knows how much the earth weighs!) [RHQ] (Who else has weighed the mountains and hills on scales?/No one else has weighed the mountains and hills on scales!) [RHQ]
Qui a mesuré les eaux avec le creux de sa main, et qui a pris avec la paume les dimensions des cieux? Qui a ramassé dans un boisseau la poussière de la terre? Qui a pesé au crochet les montagnes, et les collines à la balance?
13 And (who else can advise Yahweh’s Spirit?/No one else can advise Yahweh’s Spirit!) [RHQ] (Who can teach him or advise/tell him what he should do?/No one can teach him or advise/tell him what he should do!) [RHQ]
Qui a mesuré l'Esprit de l'Éternel, ou qui a été son conseiller pour l'instruire?
14 (Has Yahweh consulted anyone else to get advice?/Yahweh has certainly not consulted anyone else to get advice!) [RHQ] (Does he need someone to tell him what is right to do and how to act justly?/He certainly does not need someone to tell him what is right to do and how to act justly!) [RHQ]
De qui a-t-il pris conseil? Qui lui a donné l'intelligence, et lui a enseigné le chemin de la justice? Qui lui a enseigné la science, et lui a fait connaître la voie de la sagesse?
15 [Yahweh considers that] the nations are [as insignificant as] [MET] one drop from a bucket [full of water]. They are [as insignificant as] dust on scales. He is able to weigh islands [as though they weighed no more than] grains of sand.
Voilà, les nations sont comme une goutte qui tombe d'un seau, ou comme la poussière d'une balance; voilà, les îles sont comme la poudre qui vole.
16 There would be [not] enough wood from all the trees in Lebanon to make a suitable fire for [sacrificing animals to] him, and there are not enough animals in Lebanon to offer as sacrifices to him.
Le Liban ne suffirait pas pour le feu, et ses bêtes ne suffiraient pas pour l'holocauste.
17 The nations of the world are completely insignificant/unimportant to him; he considers that they are worthless and less than nothing [HYP, DOU].
Toutes les nations sont devant lui comme un rien. Elles ne sont à ses yeux que néant et que vanité.
18 So, to whom can you compare God? What image resembles him?
A qui donc feriez-vous ressembler Dieu, et par quelle image le représenterez-vous?
19 Can you compare him to an idol that is made in a mold, and then is covered with [a thin sheet of] gold and decorated with silver chains?
L'ouvrier fond une idole, et l'orfèvre étend l'or par-dessus, et lui fait des chaînettes d'argent.
20 A man who is poor [cannot buy silver or gold for his idol]; [so] he selects a piece of wood that will not rot, and he gives it to a craftsman to carve an idol that will not fall down!
Celui qui ne peut offrir beaucoup, choisit un bois qui ne pourrisse point, et cherche un ouvrier habile pour fabriquer une idole qui ne branle pas.
21 Have you(pl) not heard this? Do you not understand it? Are you unable to hear what God said long ago— [messages that he gave] before he created the earth?
N'aurez-vous point de connaissance? N'entendrez-vous point? Ne l'avez-vous pas appris dès le commencement? N'avez-vous pas compris comment la terre fut fondée?
22 God sits [on his throne] above the earth, and the people [on the earth] below seem to be [as small] as [SIM] grasshoppers. He spreads out the sky like a curtain; it is like [SIM] a tent for him to live in.
C'est lui qui est assis au-dessus du globe de la terre, et ceux qui l'habitent sont comme des sauterelles; c'est lui qui étend les cieux comme un voile, et les déploie comme une tente pour y habiter;
23 He causes kings to have no more power, and he causes the rulers to be worth nothing.
C'est lui qui réduit les princes à rien, et qui anéantit les gouverneurs de la terre.
24 They start to rule, like small plants start to grow and form roots; but then [he gets rid of them] as though [MET] they withered when he blew on them, like [SIM] chaff that is blown away by the wind.
A peine sont-ils plantés, à peine sont-ils semés, à peine leur tronc a-t-il pris racine en terre: l'Éternel souffle sur eux, et ils sèchent; et un tourbillon les emporte comme du chaume.
25 The Holy One asks, “To whom will you compare me? Is anyone equal to me?”
A qui donc me feriez-vous ressembler? Et à qui serai-je égalé, dit le Saint?
26 Look up toward the sky: Consider who [RHQ] created all the stars. [Yahweh created them], and at night he causes them to appear; he calls each one by its name. Because he is extremely powerful [DOU], all of the stars are there [LIT] [when he calls out their names].
Levez les yeux en haut, et regardez: qui a créé ces choses? C'est lui qui fait sortir en ordre leur armée, et qui les appelle toutes par leur nom; telle est la grandeur de son pouvoir et de sa force puissante, que pas une ne manque à lui obéir.
27 You people of Israel [DOU], why do you complain that Yahweh does not see the [troubles that you are experiencing]? Why do you say that he does not act fairly toward you?
Pourquoi donc dirais-tu, Jacob, et pourquoi parlerais-tu ainsi, Israël: Mon état est caché à l'Éternel, et mon Dieu ne soutient plus mon droit?
28 Have you never heard and have you never understood that Yahweh is the everlasting God; he is the one who created the earth, [even the] most distant places on the earth. He never becomes weak or weary, and no one can find out how much he understands.
Ne le sais-tu pas, ne l'as-tu pas entendu, que l'Éternel est le Dieu d'éternité, qui a créé les extrémités de la terre? Il ne se lasse point, il ne se fatigue point, et on ne peut sonder son intelligence.
29 He strengthens [DOU] those who feel weak and tired.
Il donne de la force à celui qui est lassé; il accroît la vigueur de celui qui est affaibli.
30 Even youths become faint and weary, and young men will fall when they are exhausted.
Les jeunes gens se fatiguent et se lassent, les jeunes hommes deviennent chancelants.
31 But those who trust in Yahweh will become strong again; [it will be as though] they will soar/fly high like [SIM] eagles do. They will run [for a long time] and not become weary; they will walk [long distances] and not faint.
Mais ceux qui s'attendent à l'Éternel reprennent de nouvelles forces. Les ailes leur reviennent comme aux aigles. Ils courront, et ne se fatigueront point; ils marcheront, et ne se lasseront point.
