Jérémie 4
1 Si tu revenais, ô Israël, dit le Seigneur, revenais à moi, si tu écartais tes abominations loin de ma face, sans plus errer de côté et d’autre,
Yahweh says, “You Israeli [people], come back to me! If you get rid of those detestable idols and do not turn away from me [again],
2 et si tu jurais "par l’Eternel vivant", en vérité, en droiture et justice mais les peuples par lui se diraient heureux, et par lui se diraient glorieux!
and if you declare, ‘Just as surely as Yahweh lives, what he says is true,’ and if you [start to] always say what is true and act justly/fairly and righteously, then the [people in the other] nations [of the world] will request that I bless them [as I have blessed you], and they will [all come and] honor/praise me.”
3 Car c’est ainsi que parle l’Eternel aux gens de Juda et de Jérusalem: "Creusez-vous des sillons, et ne jetez pas vos semences parmi les épines.
This is what Yahweh says to the people of Jerusalem and [the other cities in] Judah: “[Prepare yourselves to receive my messages] like farmers plow up hard ground [in order that they can plant seed in it]. Just as farmers do not [waste good seed by] sowing seeds among thorny plants, [I do not want to waste my time telling you messages that you are not ready to receive].
4 Tâchez de vous circoncire en l’honneur de l’Eternel et d’enlever les excroissances de votre coeur; sans cela ma colère éclatera comme le feu, et brûlera sans qu’on puisse l’éteindre, à cause de la perversité de vos actes."
Purify your inner beings and your minds for me. If you do not do that, my being angry with you [MTY] because of [all] the sins that you have committed will be like a fire that will be impossible to extinguish.”
5 Annoncez en Juda, proclamez à Jérusalem et dites: "Qu’on fasse retentir la trompette dans le pays! Criez à plein gosier et dites: "Rassemblez-vous, afin de nous retirer dans les villes fortes!"
“Declare this [DOU] to [all the people in] Jerusalem and [the rest of] Judea; blow the trumpets everywhere in the land [to warn the people]. Tell them that they should flee to the cities that have high walls around them.
6 Dressez une bannière dans la direction de Sion, fuyez, ne vous arrêtez pas! Car je fais venir du Nord une calamité, une terrible catastrophe.
Shout to the people of Jerusalem, ‘Run away [now]! Do not delay, because I am about to cause you to experience a terrible disaster [DOU] that will come from the north.
7 Un lion s’est élancé de son hallier, un destructeur de nations s’est mis en route, quittant sa résidence, pour réduire ton pays en ruine; tes villes deviendront des solitudes inhabitées.
[An army] that has destroyed [many] nations will attack you [like] [MET] a lion that comes out of its den [to attack other animals]. [The soldiers of that army] have taken down their tents and they are ready to march toward your land. They will destroy your cities and leave them without any people still living in them.’
8 C’Est pourquoi ceignez-vous de cilices, exhalez votre douleur, lamentez-vous, puisque le feu de la colère divine ne se détourne pas de nous.
So, put on sackcloth/rough clothes and weep and beat your chests [to show that you are very sorry for what you have done], because Yahweh is still very angry with us.
9 En ce jour, il arrivera, dit l’Eternel, que le coeur du roi et le coeur des chefs seront éperdus; atterrés seront les prêtres et stupéfaits les prophètes.
Yahweh said that at the time [he punishes you], the King of Judah and [all his] officials will be very afraid. The priests and the prophets will be terrified.
10 Et je m’écriai: "Eh quoi! Eternel Dieu! Ainsi donc tu aurais complètement leurré ce peuple et Jérusalem, quand tu disais: "Vous obtiendrez la paix!—Et le glaive pénètre jusqu’à l’âme!
Then I replied, “Yahweh [my] God, you completely deceived the people by telling them that there would be peace in Jerusalem, but now [our enemies] [PRS] are ready to slaughter us with their swords!”
11 En ce temps-là, on dira à ce peuple et à Jérusalem: "II y a un vent embrasé sur les hauteurs dans le désert, venant dans la direction de la fille de mon peuple, mais ne servant ni à vanner ni à épurer le grain.
When that happens, [Yahweh] will say to the people of Jerusalem, [“A huge army will come to attack you]. They will not [be like a gentle breeze that] separates wheat from chaff. [They will be like] a very hot wind [that blows in] from the desert [MET].
12 Un souffle violent m’arrive de là; maintenant je vais, moi aussi, prononcer l’arrêt contre eux.
[They will be like] [MET] a strong blast that I will send. Now I am declaring that I will punish/destroy you.”
13 Voici, il s’élance comme les nuages; ses chars ressemblent à l’ouragan, ses chevaux sont plus rapides que les aigles. Malheur à nous! Car nous sommes, saccagés.
[Our enemies] are about to rush down on us; their chariots are like [SIM] whirlwinds. Their horses are faster than eagles. It will be terrible for us!
14 O Jérusalem, lave ton coeur de toute perversité pour être sauvée: jusqu’à quand logeras-tu dans ton sein tes pensées criminelles?
[You people of] Jerusalem [APO], purify your hearts/inner beings, in order that Yahweh will rescue you. How long will you continue to think about [doing] evil things?
15 Car une voix se fait entendre de Dan et annonce la calamité depuis la montagne d’Ephraïm.
From Dan [city in the far north] to the hills of Ephraim [a few miles/kilometers north of Jerusalem] messengers are proclaiming that disasters are coming.
16 "Faites-le savoir aux nations, allons, apprenez-le à Jérusalem, que des assiégeants arrivent d’un pays lointain et poussent des clameurs contre les villes de Juda!"
Tell this to the [people in other] nations [but also] announce it in Jerusalem: [Yahweh says], “An army is coming to Jerusalem from far away; they will shout [a battle-cry] against the cities in Judah.
17 Comme les gardiens des champs, ils l’enserrent de tous côtés, parce qu’elle s’est révoltée contre moi, dit l’Eternel.
They will set up tents around Jerusalem like people set up temporary shelters [SIM] around a field [at harvest time]. That will happen because the people of Judah have rebelled against me.
18 C’Est ta conduite, ce sont tes actes qui t’ont valu cela; de là ton malheur, qui est si amer, car il t’atteint jusqu’au coeur.
You will be punished very severely; it will [be as though a sword] has stabbed your inner beings. But you are causing those things to happen to you because of the evil things that you have done.”
19 O mes entrailles, mes entrailles! Je frémis jusqu’au fond de mon coeur! Tout mon coeur est en émoi, je ne puis le calmer; car tu entends, ô mon âme, le son de la trompette. Les fanfares belliqueuses.
I am extremely anguished/sad; the pain in my inner being is very severe. My heart beats wildly. But I cannot remain silent because I have heard [our enemies] blowing their trumpets to announce that the battle [against Judah will start immediately].
20 On annonce désastres sur désastres, que tout le pays est saccagé; mes tentes ont été saccagées soudainement, mes pavillons en un clin d’oeil.
Disasters will occur one after another until the whole land is ruined. Suddenly [all] our tents will be destroyed; [even] the curtains [inside the tents] will be ripped apart.
21 Jusqu’à quand verrai-je des bannières? Entendrai-je les trompettes retentissantes?
How long will this battle continue? How long will I continue to see the enemy battle flags and hear the sound of their trumpets being blown?
22 Certes, mon peuple est dénué de raison, ils ne me connaissent pas; ce sont des enfants insensés, sans aucun discernement, intelligents seulement pour mal faire, incapables de faire le bien.
[Yahweh says], “My people are [very] foolish! They do not have a relationship with me. They are [like] [MET] stupid children who do not understand [anything]. They very cleverly do what is wrong, but they do not know how to do what is good.”
23 J’Ai regardé la terre, et voici tout y était chaos informe; et vers les cieuxleur lumière avait disparu.
[God gave me a vision in which] I saw that the earth was barren and without form. I looked at the sky, and there was no light there.
24 J’Ai regardé les montagnes, elles étaient tremblantes; toutes les collineselles étaient violemment agitées.
I looked at the mountains and hills, and they shook and moved from side to side.
25 J’Ai regardé et voici, il n’y avait plus d’hommes, et tous les oiseaux du ciel avaient pris leur vol.
I looked and saw that there were no [more] people, and all the birds had flown away.
26 J’Ai regardé et voici, la campagne fertile était devenue un désert, et toutes ses villes étaient renversées par l’action de l’Eternel, par le feu de sa colère.
I looked and saw that the fields that previously were fertile had become a desert. The cities were all ruined; they had all been destroyed by Yahweh because he was extremely angry.
27 Oui, ainsi parle l’Eternel: "Tout le pays deviendra une solitude, bien que je ne consomme pas la ruine."
This is what Yahweh is saying: “The entire land [of Judah] will be ruined, but I will not destroy it completely.
28 C’Est pour cette raison que la terre est en deuil, et les cieux là-haut sont ténébreux, parce que j’ai annoncé ce que j’ai résolu et que je n’entends ni me raviser ni me rétracter.
I will do to my people what I said that I would do, and I will not change my mind. So [when that happens, it will be as though] the earth will mourn and the sky will become very dark.”
29 Devant la clameur des cavaliers et des archers, toute la ville est en fuite; on pénètre dans les fourrés, on escalade les rochers; toute ville est abandonnée, pas un homme n’y reste.
[When the people hear] the sound of the [enemy] army marching, [they will be terrified as] they flee from their cities. Some of them will find places to hide in the bushes, and others will run toward the mountains/hills [to escape being killed by their enemies]. All the cities [in Judah] will be abandoned; not one person will remain in them.
30 Et toi, si complètement ruinée, que vas-tu faire? Tu aurais beau te vêtir de pourpre, te parer de tes bijoux d’or, allonger tes yeux au moyen du fard: vainement tu te ferais belle, les amoureux te dédaignent, c’est à ta vie qu’ils en veulent.
So you who will surely be destroyed, [why are you doing the things that you are doing now]? Why are you wearing beautiful clothes and jewelry? Why are you putting paint around your eyes? Doing those things will not help you, because the people [in other countries that you think] love you [actually] despise you, and they will try to kill you.
31 Car j’entends des plaintes comme celles d’une femme en travail, des cris d’angoisse comme ceux d’une mère mettant au monde son premier-né: c’est la voix de Sion qui exhale des soupirs, qui se tord les bras: "Malheur à moi, mon âme est à bout de force devant les meurtriers!"
[It is as though] I already hear [the people in Jerusalem] crying very loudly, like [SIM] a woman cries when she is giving birth to her first child; she gasps for breath and pleads for someone to help her. [It is as though Jerusalem] is crying, “Something terrible is happening to me! They are about to murder me!”
