Job 41
1 “[Think also about] (crocodiles/great sea dragons). Can you catch them with a fishhook or fasten their jaws with a rope?
Tireras-tu le Léviathan avec un hameçon? Lui feras-tu baisser la langue avec la ligne?
2 Can you put ropes through their noses [to control them] or thrust hooks through their jaws?
Lui passeras-tu un jonc dans les narines, lui perceras-tu la mâchoire avec un crochet?
3 Will they plead with you to act mercifully toward them or (use sweet talk/speak to you nicely) [in order that you will not harm them]?
Te prodiguera-t-il ses prières? Ou t’adressera-t-il de douces paroles?
4 Will they make an agreement with you to work for you, to be your slaves as long as they live?
Fera-t-il un pacte avec toi? L’Engageras-tu comme un esclave perpétuel?
5 Can you cause them to become pets like you cause birds to become your pets? Can you put a leash/rope around their [necks] so that your servant girls [can play with them]?
Te servira-t-il de jouet comme un passereau? L’Attacheras-tu pour amuser tes jeunes filles?
6 Will merchants try to buy them [in the market]? Will they cut them up into pieces and sell the meat?
Les pêcheurs associés en feront-ils le commerce? Le débiteront-ils entre les marchands?
7 Can you pierce their skins by throwing fishing spears at them? Can you pierce their heads with a harpoon?
Cribleras-tu sa peau de dards et sa tête de harpons barbelés?
8 If you grab one of them with your hands, it will fight you in a way that you will never forget, and you will never try to do it again!
Pose seulement ta main sur lui: tu te souviendras de ce combat et ne recommenceras plus!
9 It is useless to try to subdue them. Anyone who tries to subdue one of them will lose his courage.
Vois, espérer la victoire est une illusion: à son seul aspect, n’est-on pas terrassé?
10 No one dares/tries to (arouse them/cause them to be angry). So, [since I am much more powerful than they are, ] (who would dare to cause me to be angry?/no one would dare to cause me to be angry!) [RHQ]
Personne n’est assez téméraire pour l’exciter: qui donc oserait me tenir tête, à moi?
11 Also, everything on the earth is mine. Therefore, no one [RHQ] is able to give anything to me and require me to pay [money] for it!
Qui m’a rendu un service que j’aie à payer de retour? Tout ce qui est sous le ciel est à moi.
12 I will tell you about [how strong] crocodiles' legs [are] and how strong their well-formed bodies are.
Je ne passerai pas sous silence ses membres, le détail de ses exploits, la beauté de sa structure.
13 (Can anyone strip off their hides?/No one is able to strip off their hides.) [RHQ] (Can anyone try to put bridles on them?/No one can try to put bridles on them.) [RHQ] (OR, Can anyone pierce their very thick hides?)
Qui a soulevé le dessous de son vêtement? Qui a pénétré dans la double rangée de sa denture?
14 (Can anyone pry open their jaws, which have terrible teeth in them?/No one can pry open their jaws, which have terrible teeth in them!) [RHQ]
Qui a ouvert les battants de sa gueule? La terreur habite autour de ses dents.
15 They have rows of scales on their back which are as hard as a rock (OR, tightly fastened together).
Imposantes sont les lignes d’écailles qui lui servent de boucliers et pressées comme un sceau qui adhère fortement.
16 The scales are very close together, with the result that not even air can get between them.
Elles se touchent de près, l’air ne pénètre pas entre elles.
17 The scales are joined very closely to each other, and they cannot be separated.
L’Une est serrée contre l’autre; elles tiennent ensemble sans aucun interstice.
18 When crocodiles sneeze, [the tiny drops of water that come out of their noses] sparkle in the sunlight. Their eyes are red like the rising sun.
Ses éternuements font jaillir la lumière, ses yeux sont comme les paupières de l’aurore.
19 [It is as though] sparks of fire pour out of their mouths [DOU].
De sa bouche partent des flammes, s’échappent des étincelles de feu.
20 Smoke pours out of their nostrils/noses like steam comes out of a pot that is put over a fire made from dry reeds.
De ses naseaux sort la fumée, comme d’une marmite bouillante chauffée aux roseaux.
21 Their breath can cause coals to blaze, and flames shoot out from their mouths.
Son haleine allume les charbons, de sa gueule sort une flamme.
22 Their necks are very strong; wherever they go, they cause people to be very afraid.
Dans son cou la force réside, devant lui bondit la terreur.
23 The folds in their flesh are very close together and are very hard/firm.
Les fanons de sa chair sont adhérents, soudés sur lui sans ballotter.
24 [They are fearless, because] the inner parts of their bodies are as hard as a rock, as hard as the lower millstone [on which grain is ground].
Son cœur est massif comme une pierre, solide comme la meule de dessous.
25 When they rise up, they cause [even] very strong people to be terrified. As a result, people (fall back/run away) when crocodiles thrash around.
Quand il se dresse, les plus vaillants tremblent et se dérobent sous le coup de l’épouvante.
26 [People] [PRS] cannot injure them with swords, and spears or darts or javelins cannot injure them, either.
L’Attaque-t-on avec l’épée, elle n’a point de prise sur lui, pas plus que lance, javelot ou cuirasse.
27 They [certainly are not afraid of weapons made of] straw or rotten wood, but [they are not even afraid of weapons made of] iron or bronze!
Pour lui, le fer est comme de la paille, l’airain comme du bois pourri.
28 [Shooting] arrows [at them] does not cause them to run away. [Hurling] stones at them from a sling is like [hurling] bits of chaff at them.
Le fils de l’arc ne le met pas en fuite, les pierres de la fronde se changent pour lui en chaume.
29 They are not afraid of clubs [any more than they would be afraid of men throwing] bits of straw [at them], and they laugh when they hear the whirl/sound of javelins [being thrown at them].
Comme du chaume aussi lui paraît la massue, il se rit du sifflement des dards.
30 Their bellies are covered with scales that are as sharp as broken pieces of pottery. When they drag themselves through the mud, their bellies tear up the ground like a plow.
Son ventre est garni de tessons pointus, il promène comme une herse sur le limon.
31 They stir up the water and cause it to foam [as they churn/swim through it].
Il fait bouillonner les profondeurs comme une chaudière; il rend la mer semblable à un bassin d’onguents.
32 As they go through the water, the (wakes/trails in the water behind them) glisten. People [who see it] would think that the foam in those wakes had become white hair.
Le sillage qu’il laisse derrière lui est lumineux: on dirait que les vagues ont la blancheur de la vieillesse.
33 There are no creatures on earth that are as fearless as crocodiles.
Il n’a pas son pareil sur la terre, lui qui est fait pour ne rien craindre.
34 They are the proudest of all the creatures; [it is as though] they [rule like] kings over all the other wild animals.”
Il regarde avec dédain tout ce qui est élevé: il est le roi de tous les fauves altiers.
