Job 31
1 “I solemnly promised myself that I would not look at a young woman with a desire [to have sex with her].
J’ai fait alliance avec mes yeux: et comment aurais-je arrêté mes regards sur une vierge?
2 [If I did not do what I promised, ] what would God who is in heaven [MTY] do to me [RHQ]? Almighty [God] would certainly not [RHQ] give me any reward!
Et quelle aurait été d’en haut [ma] portion de la part de Dieu, et, des hauts lieux, [mon] héritage de la part du Tout-puissant?
3 [Previously I thought that] surely [RHQ] it was unrighteous people who would experience calamities, and that it was those who do what is wrong who would experience disasters.
La calamité n’est-elle pas pour l’inique, et le malheur pour ceux qui pratiquent le mal?
4 God certainly sees [RHQ] everything that I do, [so why is he causing me to suffer?] [It is as though] he counts every step that I take.
Lui, ne voit-il pas mon chemin, et ne compte-t-il point tous mes pas?
5 [“I solemnly declare that] I have never acted wickedly and have never tried to deceive people.
Si j’ai marché avec fausseté, si mes pieds se sont hâtés vers la fraude,
6 I request only that God judge me fairly [MET], and if he does that, he will know that I (am innocent/have not done what is wrong).
Qu’il me pèse dans la balance de justice, et Dieu reconnaîtra ma perfection.
7 If [it were true that] I have stopped living righteously, or [that] I [SYN] have desired the things that I look at [MTY], or [that] I am guilty of any other sin,
Si mon pas s’est détourné du chemin, et si mon cœur a suivi mes yeux, et si quelque souillure s’est attachée à ma main,
8 then I hope/wish that when I plant [seeds], someone else will [harvest the crops and] eat [them] and that others will uproot the [fruit trees] that I planted.
Que je sème et qu’un autre mange, et que mes rejetons soient déracinés!…
9 “If [it were true that] I [SYN] have been attracted by some other man’s wife, or [that] I have hidden myself and waited outside [the] door [to] her [house],
Si mon cœur s’est laissé attirer vers une femme et que j’aie fait le guet à la porte de mon prochain,
10 I hope/desire that my wife will become the servant/slave of another man and have sex [EUP] with him.
Que ma femme tourne la meule pour un autre, et que d’autres se penchent sur elle;
11 [For me to do] that would be a terrible sin, and the judges would decide that I should be punished.
Car c’est là une infamie, et une iniquité punissable par les juges:
12 My [committing adultery] would [produce in me a fire like] [MET] the fire that burns people in hell, and it would burn up everything that I own. (questioned)
Car c’est un feu qui dévore jusque dans l’abîme et qui détruirait par la racine tout mon revenu…
13 “And, if [it were true that] I have ever refused to listen to one of my male or female servants when they complained to me about something,
Si j’ai méprisé le droit de mon serviteur ou de ma servante quand ils contestaient avec moi,
14 God would arise [and declare that he would punish me]; and when he would do that, what would I do? If he would ask me [about what I have done], (what would I answer?/I would not be able to answer.) [RHQ]
Que ferais-je quand Dieu se lèverait? et s’il me visitait, que lui répondrais-je?
15 God, who created me, certainly also created my servants [RHQ]; surely he is the one who formed them and me in our mothers’ wombs [RHQ]; [so we all should behave toward each other equally].
Celui qui m’a fait dans le sein de ma mère, ne les a-t-il pas faits [eux aussi], et un seul et même [Dieu] ne nous a-t-il pas formés dans la matrice?…
16 “I have guided orphans from the time that they were born; I have taken care of them since they were young. So, if [it were true that] I ate all my food myself and did not share some of it with orphans, or [that] I refused to give poor people the things that they wanted, or [that] I caused widows to live (in despair/without hope [that they would receive any help from anyone]),
Si j’ai refusé aux misérables leur désir, si j’ai fait défaillir les yeux de la veuve;
Si j’ai mangé seul mon morceau, et que l’orphelin n’en ait pas mangé; –
Car dès ma jeunesse il m’a honoré comme un père, et dès le ventre de ma mère j’ai soutenu la [veuve]; …
19 or [that] I had seen people die [from cold] because they had no clothes, or [that] I had seen poor people who did not have clothes [to keep them warm],
Si j’ai vu quelqu’un périr faute de vêtement, et le pauvre manquer de couverture;
20 and they were not able to become warm [from clothes made] from the wool of my sheep with the result that they thanked me for [giving them clothes, ]
Si ses reins ne m’ont pas béni, et qu’il ne se soit pas réchauffé avec la toison de mes agneaux;
21 or if [it were true that] I threatened to strike any orphan because I knew that the elders at the city gates would (decide in my favor);
Si j’ai secoué ma main contre un orphelin, parce que je voyais mon appui dans la porte:
22 [if those things were true about me], I hope/desire that my shoulder blade would be torn out and my arm be torn from my shoulder.
Que mon épaule se démette de sa jointure, et que mon bras cassé se détache de l’os!
23 I always feared that God would cause me to experience a great disaster [if I did any of those evil things], and I would not have been able to endure the powerful [things that he would do to punish me].
Car la calamité de la part de Dieu m’était une frayeur, et devant sa grandeur je ne pouvais rien…
24 “If [it were true that] I trusted in my gold/money [DOU],
Si j’ai mis ma confiance dans l’or, si j’ai dit à l’or fin: C’est à toi que je me fie;
25 or that I rejoiced because I had acquired many things and had become very rich,
Si je me suis réjoui de ce que mes biens étaient grands, et de ce que ma main avait beaucoup acquis;
26 or that I looked at the sun when it was shining or looked at the beautiful moon
Si j’ai vu le soleil quand il brillait, et la lune quand elle marchait dans sa splendeur,
27 and I [SYN] had been tempted [to worship them] by kissing my hand to revere them,
Et que mon cœur ait été séduit en secret, et que ma bouche ait embrassé ma main, –
28 those things also would be sins for which the judges would say that I must be punished, because I would have been rejecting God [by doing those things].
Cela aussi serait une iniquité punissable par le juge, car j’aurais renié le Dieu qui est en haut; …
29 “[It is not true that] I [SYN] sinned by requesting God to curse people who hated me with the result that God would cause them to die. It is also not true that I was glad when they were ruined or that I rejoiced when they experienced disasters [DOU].
Si je me suis réjoui dans la calamité de celui qui me haïssait, si j’ai été ému de joie lorsque le malheur l’a trouvé; –
Même je n’ai pas permis à ma bouche de pécher, de demander sa vie par une exécration; …
31 [It is also not true that] I never welcomed travelers to stay in my tent or that I did not open my doors to them, but [forced them to] sleep in the streets. [All] the men who work for me certainly know that [RHQ]!
Si les gens de ma tente n’ont pas dit: Qui trouvera quelqu’un qui n’ait pas été rassasié de la chair de ses bêtes? –
L’étranger ne passait pas la nuit dehors, j’ouvrais ma porte sur le chemin; …
33 Some people try to hide their sins, but I have never done that;
Si j’ai couvert ma transgression comme Adam, en cachant mon iniquité dans mon sein,
34 and I never remained silent and refused to go outside of my home because I was very (afraid of/worried about) what people would say [about me], and that they would hate/scorn me.
Parce que je craignais la grande multitude, et que le mépris des familles me faisait peur, et que je sois resté dans le silence et ne sois pas sorti de ma porte…
35 “I wish/desire that there was someone who would hear what I am saying! I solemnly declare [that all that I have said is true]. I wish that those who oppose me would write down [on a scroll] the evil things that they say that I did.
Oh! si j’avais quelqu’un pour m’écouter! Voici ma signature. Que le Tout-puissant me réponde, et que ma partie adverse fasse un écrit!
36 [If they did that, ] I would wear that scroll on my shoulder, or wear it on top of my head, [in order that everyone could see it].
Ne le porterais-je pas sur mon épaule? Ne le lierais-je pas sur moi comme une couronne?
37 I would tell [God] everything that I have done, and I would approach him [confidently], like a ruler would.
Je lui déclarerais le nombre de mes pas; comme un prince je m’approcherais de lui…
38 If [it were true that] I have stolen land, with the result that [it was as though] its furrows cried out to accuse me of stealing;
Si ma terre crie contre moi, et que ses sillons pleurent ensemble,
39 or [if it were true that] I have eaten the crops that grew in someone else’s fields without paying [for those crops], with the result that those farmers who grew those crops died [from hunger];
Si j’en ai mangé le revenu sans argent, et que j’aie tourmenté à mort l’âme de ses possesseurs,
40 then I wish/desire that thorns would grow [in my fields] instead of wheat. May bad weeds grow instead of barley!” That is the end of what Job said [to his three friends].
Que les épines croissent au lieu de froment, et l’ivraie au lieu d’orge! Les paroles de Job sont finies.
