Job 24
1 Pourquoi des temps ne sont-ils pas réservés par-devers le Tout-puissant, et ceux qui le connaissent ne voient-ils pas ses jours?
“(Why does Almighty [God] not set a time when he will judge [evil people]?/I do not understand why Almighty [God does] not set a time when he will judge [evil people].) [RHQ] Those who know him never [RHQ] see him do that!
2 Ils reculent les bornes, ils pillent le troupeau et le paissent;
[Some evil people] remove the markers of boundaries of [other people’s] land, [in order to steal their land]; they seize/steal [other people’s] sheep and put them in their own pastures.
3 Ils emmènent l’âne des orphelins et prennent en gage le bœuf de la veuve;
[Some] (take away/steal) the donkeys that belong to orphans, and they take widow’s oxen to guarantee that the widows will pay back the money that they loaned to those widows.
4 Ils détournent du chemin les pauvres; les malheureux de la terre se cachent ensemble:
[Some] shove poor people off the road (OR, prevent poor people from (obtaining their rights/being treated justly)), and they force poor people to find places to hide from them.
5 Voici, ânes sauvages dans le désert, ils sortent pour leur besogne dès le matin, pour chercher leur proie; le désert leur [fournit] le pain pour leurs enfants;
The result is that poor people have to search for food in the desert like wild donkeys do.
6 Ils moissonnent le fourrage dans les champs, ils grappillent la vigne du méchant;
The poor people harvest left-over grain in other people’s fields, and gather grapes from vineyards that belong to wicked men.
7 Ils passent la nuit tout nus, sans vêtement, et n’ont pas de couverture par le froid;
During the night they have nothing to cover their bodies, nothing to keep them warm.
8 Ils sont trempés par les averses des montagnes, et, sans refuge, ils se serrent contre le rocher…
When it rains on the mountains, the poor people become very wet, so they huddle under the rock ledges to be protected [from the rain].
9 Ils arrachent de la mamelle l’orphelin, et [de la main] des pauvres ils prennent des gages:
[Some evil men] snatch infants away from their widowed mothers [SYN], and they say ‘I will return your babies to you when you repay the money that I lent to you.’
10 Ceux-ci vont nus, sans vêtement, et, affamés, ils portent la gerbe;
But the poor people walk around with no clothes on; they are hungry while they are working to carry [other people’s] bundles of grain [to the places where their grain will be threshed].
11 Entre leurs murailles ils font de l’huile, ils foulent le pressoir, et ont soif.
Poor people press olives to make [olive] oil; they tread on grapes [to make juice for wine], but [they are not allowed to drink any of it when] they become thirsty.
12 Des villes sortent les soupirs des mourants, et l’âme des blessés à mort crie, et Dieu n’impute pas l’indignité [qui se commet].
In the cities, people who are wounded and dying cry out [to God for help], but God does not heed their prayers.
13 D’autres sont ennemis de la lumière, ils ne connaissent pas ses voies et ne demeurent pas dans ses sentiers.
Some wicked people avoid the light [because they do evil things in the dark]; they do not walk on roads that are lighted.
14 Le meurtrier se lève avec la lumière, il tue le malheureux et le pauvre, et la nuit il est comme le voleur.
Murderers steal things during the night, and then they arise before dawn in order that they may [go out again and] kill needy [DOU] people.
15 L’œil aussi de l’adultère guette le crépuscule, en disant: Aucun œil ne m’apercevra; et il met un voile sur son visage.
Those who want to commit adultery wait for twilight/evening; they say ‘I do not want anyone to see me,’ so they keep their faces covered.
16 Dans les ténèbres ils percent les maisons, de jour ils s’enferment; ils ne connaissent pas la lumière;
It is during the night that robbers break into houses [to steal things], but during the day they hide because they want to avoid [being seen in] the light.
17 Car le matin est pour eux tous l’ombre de la mort, car ils connaissent les terreurs de l’ombre de la mort.
All of those [people] want to do their evil things at night, not in the morning [when it is light], because they are not afraid of [the things that happen during the] night that terrify others.”
18 Ils sont rapides sur la face des eaux, leur part est maudite sur la terre; ils ne se tournent pas vers les vignes.
“[But it is wicked people] who are swept/carried away by floods, and God curses the land that they own, and no one goes to work in their vineyards.
19 La sécheresse et la chaleur emportent l’eau de neige; ainsi le shéol fait-il de ceux qui ont péché. (Sheol h7585)
Just like the snow melts away when it is hot and there is no rain, those who have sinned disappear into the place where dead people are. (Sheol h7585)
20 Le sein maternel les oublie; les vers se repaissent d’eux; on ne se souvient plus d’eux: l’iniquité sera brisée comme du bois!
Not even their mothers remember them now; wicked people are destroyed like trees that are cut down, and maggots eat their corpses.
21 Ils dépouillent la femme stérile qui n’enfante pas, et ils ne font pas de bien à la veuve.
They mistreat women who have been unable to give birth to children and women who no longer have children [to take care of them], and they never do good things for widows.
22 Et par leur force ils traînent les puissants; ils se lèvent et on n’est plus sûr de sa vie.
But God, by his power, gets rid of mighty/influential people. God acts and causes the wicked people to die.
23 [Dieu] leur donne la sécurité, et ils s’appuient sur elle; mais il a ses yeux sur leurs voies.
God allows them to think that they are secure and safe, but he is watching [MTY] them all the time.
24 Ils sont élevés: dans peu, ils ne sont plus; ils défaillent, et sont recueillis comme tous; ils sont coupés comme la tête d’un épi.
They prosper for a little while, and then [suddenly] they are gone; they disappear like weeds wither and die; they are like [SIM] stalks of grain that have been cut off.
25 Et si cela n’est pas, qui me fera menteur et réduira mon discours à néant?
If this is not true, is there [RHQ] anyone who will show that I am a liar and prove that what I have said is not true?”
