Jérémie 14
1 La parole de l’Éternel qui vint à Jérémie au sujet de la sécheresse.
After there had been no rain [in Judah] for a long time, Yahweh gave me this message:
2 Juda mène deuil, et ses portes défaillent; elles sont en deuil, par terre; et le cri de Jérusalem est monté.
[The people in] Judah are very distressed; people [are sitting] on the ground and mourning; [in all of] Jerusalem people are crying loudly.
3 Et ses nobles ont envoyé à l’eau les petits; ils sont allés aux citernes, ils n’ont pas trouvé d’eau; ils sont revenus, leurs vases vides; ils ont eu honte, ils ont été confus, et ils ont couvert leur tête.
The rich people send their servants to [wells] to get water, but [all] the wells are dry. The servants return with empty pitchers; they cover their heads [because they are ashamed and humiliated/disappointed and sad].
4 Parce que la terre est crevassée, parce qu’il n’y a point eu de pluie dans le pays, les cultivateurs sont honteux, ils ont couvert leur tête;
The ground is extremely dry and cracked open because there has been no rain. The farmers are very worried, [so] they [also] cover their heads.
5 car aussi la biche a mis bas dans les champs, et a abandonné [son faon], parce qu’il n’y a point d’herbe verte;
Even the (does/female deer) abandon their newborn babies/fawns because there is no grass in the fields [for them to eat].
6 et les ânes sauvages se sont tenus sur les hauteurs, ils ont humé l’air comme des chacals; leurs yeux se sont consumés, parce qu’il n’y a point d’herbe.
The wild donkeys stand on the barren hills, panting like [SIM] [thirsty] jackals/wolves. They become blind because there is no grass [to eat].
7 Éternel! si nos iniquités rendent témoignage contre nous, agis à cause de ton nom; car nos infidélités sont multipliées, nous avons péché contre toi.
[The people say], “Yahweh, we have turned away from you and sinned many times, and now we know that we are being punished because of our sins, but please help us in order that everyone can see that you are very great [MTY].
8 Attente d’Israël, celui qui le sauve au temps de la détresse! pourquoi serais-tu comme un étranger dans le pays, comme un voyageur qui se détourne pour passer la nuit?
You are the one whom [we] Israelis confidently expect [to do good things for us] when we have [many] troubles/difficulties. So, why do you [not help us]? You act as though you are a stranger in our land, like you are someone who is staying here for only one night.
9 Pourquoi serais-tu comme un homme stupéfait, comme un homme fort qui ne peut sauver? Toutefois tu es au milieu de nous, ô Éternel, et nous sommes appelés de ton nom; ne nous délaisse pas!
Are you also surprised [about the terrible things that are happening to us]? Why do you act like you are unable to save anyone, even though you are a strong warrior? Yahweh, you are [here] among us, and [others know that] we are your people, [so] do not abandon us!”
10 Ainsi dit l’Éternel à ce peuple: C’est ainsi qu’ils ont aimé à aller çà et là, ils n’ont pas retenu leurs pieds; et l’Éternel ne prend point plaisir en eux: maintenant il se souviendra de leurs iniquités et il visitera leurs péchés.
And this is what Yahweh says to those people: “You love to wander away [from me]; you run [MTY] from one [idol] to another. Therefore, now I will no [longer] accept you, and I will punish you for your sins.”
11 Et l’Éternel me dit: Ne prie pas pour ce peuple pour leur bien.
[Then] Yahweh said to me, “Do not pray for these people [any more].
12 S’ils jeûnent, je n’écouterai pas leur cri, et s’ils offrent un holocauste et une offrande de gâteau, je ne les agréerai pas; car je les consumerai par l’épée, et par la famine, et par la peste.
When they (fast/abstain from food in order to honor me), I will not pay any attention. When they bring [to me] their offerings [of animals] to be completely burned [on the altar] and their offerings of grain, I will not accept them. Instead, I will get rid of them by wars, by famines, and by diseases.”
13 Et je dis: Ah, Seigneur Éternel! voici, les prophètes leur disent: Vous ne verrez pas l’épée, et la famine ne viendra pas sur vous; car je vous donnerai une vraie paix en ce lieu-ci.
Then I replied to him, “Yahweh [my] God, [their] prophets are telling the people that they will not experience wars [MTY] or famines. They are telling the people that you will surely allow us to have peace in our land [for many years].”
14 Et l’Éternel me dit: Les prophètes prophétisent le mensonge en mon nom; je ne les ai pas envoyés, et je ne leur ai pas commandé, et je ne leur ai pas parlé; ils vous prophétisent une vision de mensonge, et la divination, et la vanité, et la tromperie de leur cœur.
Yahweh replied to me, “Those prophets say that they are speaking what I tell them to say [MTY], but they are telling lies. I did not send them, [so] what they are saying is false. They say that they have received visions from me, and that they are telling things that I have revealed to them, but that is not true. They are saying foolish things that they have only thought of themselves.
15 C’est pourquoi, ainsi dit l’Éternel au sujet des prophètes qui prophétisent en mon nom, et que je n’ai point envoyés, et qui disent: L’épée et la famine ne seront pas dans ce pays: Ces prophètes-là seront consumés par l’épée et par la famine.
So this is what I say about those prophets who are predicting what will happen, saying that I told them those things: They are saying that we Israelis will not die from wars or famines, but I did not send those prophets. And they themselves will die from wars or from famines.
16 Et le peuple auquel ils prophétisent sera jeté dans les rues de Jérusalem à cause de la famine et de l’épée, et il n’y aura personne pour les enterrer, eux, leurs femmes, et leurs fils, et leurs filles; et je verserai sur eux leur iniquité.
And the people to whom they are predicting these things, they and their wives and their sons and their daughters, will [also die] from wars or from famines. [Their corpses will] be thrown into the streets of Jerusalem, and there will not be anyone to bury them. I will punish them like they deserve to be punished.
17 Et tu leur diras cette parole: Que mes yeux se fondent en larmes, nuit et jour, et qu’ils ne cessent pas, car la vierge, fille de mon peuple, est ruinée d’une grande ruine, d’un coup très douloureux.
[So, Jeremiah], tell this to them [about yourself]: ‘Day and night my eyes are full of tears. I cannot stop crying. I cry for my people, who are [very precious to me, as if they were] [MET] my daughters. I cry for them because they have been severely wounded; they have been severely crushed [DOU].
18 Si je sors aux champs, voici des gens tués par l’épée, et si j’entre dans la ville, voici des gens alanguis par la faim; car prophète et sacrificateur s’en iront dans un pays qu’ils ne connaissent pas.
If I go out into the fields, I see [corpses of] people who have been slaughtered by our enemies. If I walk along the streets of the city, I see [corpses of people who died] from hunger. The prophets and the priests travel through the land, preaching to people, but they do not know [what they are doing] (OR, [in a land] that they know nothing about).’”
19 Aurais-tu entièrement rejeté Juda? Ton âme serait-elle dégoûtée de Sion? Pourquoi nous as-tu frappés sans qu’il y ait de guérison pour nous? On attendait la paix, et il n’y a rien de bon, – et le temps de la guérison, et voici l’épouvante.
[Then I prayed this]: “[Yahweh], have you completely rejected [the people of] Judah? Do you really despise [the people of] Jerusalem [MTY]? Why have you [RHQ] wounded us very badly, with the result that we will never be healed? We hoped that we would have peace, but there was no peace. We hoped that there would be a time when we would be healed, but all that we received were things that terrified us.
20 Nous reconnaissons, ô Éternel! notre méchanceté, l’iniquité de nos pères; car nous avons péché contre toi.
Yahweh, we admit/know that we are wicked people, and that our ancestors [also] did many wicked things. We have [all] sinned against you.
21 À cause de ton nom, ne [nous] dédaigne point, n’avilis pas le trône de ta gloire; souviens-toi, ne romps pas ton alliance avec nous.
But [Yahweh], in order that we may honor [MTY] you, do not despise/abandon us. Do not dishonor [the city where] [MTY] your glorious throne is. [Please] do not forget [us], and do not (break your agreement with us/stop doing what you agreed to do for us).
22 Parmi les vanités des nations, en est-il qui donnent la pluie? ou les cieux donnent-ils des ondées? N’est-ce pas toi, Éternel! notre Dieu? Et nous nous attendons à toi; car c’est toi qui as fait toutes ces choses.
Those idols that [have been brought from] other nations certainly cannot [RHQ] bring rain [to us], and the sky certainly cannot [RHQ] cause rain to fall. Yahweh our God, you are the only one who can do things like that. So we will confidently expect you [to help us].”
