Genèse 48
1 Après ces choses, quelqu'un dit à Joseph: « Voici ton père qui est malade. » Il prit avec lui ses deux fils, Manassé et Éphraïm.
Some time later, someone told Joseph, “[Hey, ] your father is ill.” When Joseph heard that, he took his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, to see his father.
2 Quelqu'un en informa Jacob, et dit: « Voici ton fils Joseph qui vient vers toi. » Israël se fortifia, et s'assit sur le lit.
When someone told Jacob, “Look, your son Joseph has come to see you!” Jacob sat up on the bed, even though it was difficult for him to do that.
3 Jacob dit à Joseph: « Le Dieu tout-puissant m'est apparu à Luz, au pays de Canaan, et il m'a béni.
He said to Joseph, “When I was at Luz in Canaan, God Almighty appeared to me. He blessed me
4 Il m'a dit: « Voici, je te rendrai fécond, je te multiplierai, je ferai de toi une multitude de peuples, et je donnerai ce pays à ta postérité après toi, comme possession éternelle.
and said to me, ‘I am going to enable you to become the father of many children. You will have many descendants, and they will become [the ancestors of] many people-groups. And I will give this land to your descendants to possess forever.’
5 Or, tes deux fils, qui te sont nés au pays d'Égypte avant que je ne vienne vers toi en Égypte, sont à moi; Éphraïm et Manassé, comme Ruben et Siméon, seront à moi.
“And now I will consider that your two sons, who were born to you here in Egypt before I came here, will (belong to me/be as though they are my sons). Ephraim and Manasseh will be [as though they were] my sons, and they will inherit my possessions, just like my sons Reuben and Simeon [and the others] will.
6 Ta descendance, que tu auras engendrée après eux, sera à toi. Ils seront appelés du nom de leurs frères dans leur héritage.
If you later become the father of any more children, they will not be considered to be my children, but as my grandchildren, and [in Canaan] they will receive as part of what they inherit some of the same land that is in the territory that their brothers [Ephraim and Manasseh] will inherit.
7 Quant à moi, quand je suis venu de Paddan, Rachel est morte près de moi au pays de Canaan, en chemin, alors qu'il y avait encore de la distance à parcourir jusqu'à Éphrata, et je l'ai enterrée là, sur le chemin d'Éphrata (appelée aussi Bethléem). »
Many years ago, as I was returning from Paddan-Aram/Mesopotamia, your mother Rachel died in the Canaan region, while we were still traveling, not far from Ephrath [town]. So I buried her body there alongside the road to Ephrath [which is now called Bethlehem].”
8 Israël vit les fils de Joseph, et dit: « Qui sont ceux-ci? »
When Jacob saw Joseph’s sons, he asked, “Who are these boys?”
9 Joseph dit à son père: « Ce sont mes fils, que Dieu m'a donnés ici. » Il dit: « Amène-les-moi, je te prie, et je les bénirai. »
Joseph replied, “They are the sons that God has given to me here in Egypt.” Jacob said, “Bring them close to me so that I can bless them.”
10 Or les yeux d'Israël s'étaient obscurcis à cause de l'âge, de sorte qu'il ne voyait pas bien. Joseph les fit approcher de lui; il les embrassa et les serra dans ses bras.
Jacob was almost blind because he was very old. He could not recognize the boys. So Joseph brought his sons close to his father, and Jacob kissed them and hugged them.
11 Israël dit à Joseph: « Je ne pensais pas voir ton visage, et voici que Dieu m'a permis de voir aussi ta descendance. »
Jacob said to Joseph, “I did not expect to see you again, but look at this! God has allowed me to see not only you, but he has allowed me to see your children, too!”
12 Joseph les fit sortir d'entre ses genoux, et il se prosterna, le visage tourné vers la terre.
Joseph took the boys from alongside Jacob’s knees. Then he bowed down with his face to the ground.
13 Joseph les prit tous deux, Éphraïm dans sa main droite vers la main gauche d`Israël, et Manassé dans sa main gauche vers la main droite d`Israël, et il les fit approcher de lui.
Then Joseph took both of the boys, putting Ephraim on his right side toward Jacob’s left hand, and putting Manasseh on his left side toward Jacob’s right hand, and brought them close to Jacob.
14 Israël étendit sa main droite et la posa sur la tête d'Ephraïm, qui était le plus jeune, et sa main gauche sur la tête de Manassé, guidant sciemment ses mains, car Manassé était le premier-né.
But Jacob [did not do what Joseph wanted him to do. Instead], he reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim’s head, even though he was the younger son. He crossed his arms and put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, even though Manasseh was the older son.
15 Il bénit Joseph, et dit, « Le Dieu devant lequel mes pères Abraham et Isaac ont marché, le Dieu qui m'a nourri toute ma vie jusqu'à aujourd'hui,
Then he (blessed/asked God to bless) Joseph and his sons, saying, “My grandfather Abraham and my father Isaac conducted their lives as God desired, and to this very day God has led me and taken care of me as a shepherd leads and cares for his sheep [MET].
16 l'ange qui m'a racheté de tout mal, bénis les gars, et que mon nom soit nommé sur eux, et le nom de mes pères, Abraham et Isaac. Qu'ils deviennent une multitude sur la terre. »
The angel whom he sent has kept me from being harmed in any way. I pray that God will bless these boys. I pray that people will never forget about me and about Abraham and Isaac because of what God does for these boys. I pray that they will have many descendants who will live all over the earth.”
17 Lorsque Joseph vit que son père posait sa main droite sur la tête d'Ephraïm, cela lui déplut. Il leva la main de son père, pour la faire passer de la tête d'Ephraïm à celle de Manassé.
When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head and not on Manasseh’s head, he was distressed/displeased. So he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head.
18 Joseph dit à son père: « Pas ainsi, mon père, car c'est le premier-né. Pose ta main droite sur sa tête. »
Joseph said to him, “My father, that is not right! The one on whom you put your left hand is my older son. Put your right hand on his head.”
19 Son père refusa, et dit: « Je le sais, mon fils, je le sais. Lui aussi deviendra un peuple, et lui aussi sera grand. Mais son jeune frère sera plus grand que lui, et sa descendance deviendra une multitude de nations. »
But his father refused, saying, “I know that, my son, I know what I am doing. Manasseh’s descendants will also become a people-group, and they will become important. But his younger brother’s descendants will become greater than his will. His descendants will become several nations.”
20 Il les bénit ce jour-là, en disant: « Israël bénira en vous, en disant: 'Que Dieu vous fasse comme Ephraïm et comme Manassé'" Il plaça Ephraïm devant Manassé.
So he blessed them both on that day, saying, “The people in Israel will use your names when they bless people. They will say, ‘We pray that God will help you as he helped Ephraim and Manasseh.’” In that way, Jacob said that Ephraim would become more important than Manasseh.
21 Israël dit à Joseph: « Voici, je meurs, mais Dieu sera avec toi, et il te ramènera dans le pays de tes pères.
Then Jacob said to Joseph, “I am about to die. But I know that God will help/protect you. And some day he will take your descendants back to the land of their ancestors.
22 De plus, je t'ai donné une part au-dessus de tes frères, que j'ai arrachée de la main de l'Amoréen avec mon épée et avec mon arc. »
And it is to you, not to your brothers, that I will give the fertile hill in the Shechem area. I captured that land from the Amor people-group, fighting them with my sword and my bow and arrows.”
