Genèse 31
1 Cependant, Jacob entendit les fils de Laban se dire entre eux: Jacob a pris tous les biens de notre père; c'est des biens de notre père qu'il s'est fait cette gloire où nous le voyons.
Someone told Jacob that Laban’s sons were complaining and saying, “Jacob has become very rich by taking everything [HYP] that belonged to our father.”
2 Et Jacob regarda la face de Laban, et il vit qu'elle n'était pas pour lui comme la veille et l'avant-veille.
And Jacob noticed that Laban was not acting friendly toward him as he had done before.
3 Le Seigneur lui-même dit à Jacob: Retourne au pays de ton père, dans ta famille; je serai avec toi.
Then Yahweh said to Jacob, “Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will help you there.”
4 Aussitôt, Jacob envoya chercher Lia et Rachel dans la plaine où étaient les troupeaux,
So Jacob sent a message to Rachel and Leah, telling them to come out to the pastures where his flocks of sheep and goats were.
5 Et il leur dit: Je vois que la face de votre père n'est pour moi ni comme hier, ni comme le jour précédent; cependant le Dieu de mon père a été avec moi.
When they arrived, he said to them, “I see that your father does not act friendly toward me as he did previously. But God, whom my father worshiped, has helped me.
6 Vous savez vous-mêmes que j'ai servi votre père de toutes mes forces.
You two know that I have worked very hard for your father,
7 Néanmoins, il m'a trompé, et pendant dix portées d'agneaux, il a changé ma récompense, mais Dieu ne lui a pas permis de me faire tort.
but many times [HYP] he has cheated me by decreasing my wages. But God has not allowed him to harm me.
8 S'il disait: Les bigarrés seront ta récompense, toutes les brebis produisaient des rejetons bigarrés, s'il disait, au contraire; Les blancs seront ton salaire, toutes les brebis produisaient des rejetons blancs.
When Laban said, ‘The speckled animals are the ones that I will give you to be your wages,’ then all the animals gave birth to young ones that were speckled. When he changed and said, ‘The ones that have black and white stripes on them will be your wages,’ then all the animals gave birth to young ones that were striped.
9 Le Seigneur a enlevé ainsi tout le bétail de votre père, pour me le donner.
In that way, God has taken away the livestock that belonged to your father and has given them to me.
10 Voici ce qui est arrivé: Lorsque les mères concevaient, j'eus pendant mon sommeil une vision; je vis que les béliers et les boucs couvrant les brebis et les chèvres étaient blancs-mêlés, bigarrés et cendrés.
“One time, when the animals were mating, I had a dream. In my dream I [looked up and was surprised to] see that some of the male goats that were mating with the female goats had black and white stripes on them, some were speckled, and some were spotted.
11 Et, pendant mon sommeil, l'ange du Seigneur m'a dit: Jacob; et j'ai répondu: Qu'y a-t-il?
An angel who was sent by God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob!’ I replied, ‘I am here!’
12 L'ange m'a dit: Lève les yeux, vois les boucs et les béliers couvrant les chèvres et les brebis; ils sont blancs-mêlés, bigarrés et cendrés. J'ai vu tout ce que te fait Laban.
He said to me, ‘Look up and you will see that all the male goats that are mating have black and white stripes on them, or are speckled or spotted. This is happening because I have seen all that Laban has done to you.
13 Je suis le Dieu qui t'apparus en la demeure de Dieu, où tu as oint pour moi une colonne, et où tu m'as fait un vœu. Maintenant donc, lève-toi et pars de cette terre; retourne au pays où tu es né, et je serai avec toi.
I am God who appeared to you at Bethel, where you set up a stone to show that the place was holy, and you poured [olive] oil on the stone and made a solemn promise to me. So now leave this land immediately, and return to the land where you were born.’”
14 Rachel et Lia lui dirent: Est-ce que nous avons encore une part ou un héritage en la maison de notre père?
Rachel and Leah replied, “Our father will not give us anything more when he dies [RHQ].
15 Ne nous a-t-il pas traitées en étrangères? Il nous a vendues, et il a dévoré avec avidité l'argent qu'il avait retiré de nous.
He treats us as though we were foreigners [RHQ]! [Your working for him all these years was like a payment] that you gave him as a price for us, but we will not inherit any of that money that he got as a price for us. He has spent it all!
16 Que toute la richesse, toute la gloire que Dieu a enlevées à notre père, soient à nous et à nos enfants; maintenant donc fais tout ce que Dieu t'a dit.
Surely all of the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So do whatever God has told you to do!”
17 Et Jacob, s'étant levé, prit sur des chamelles ses femmes et ses enfants.
Then Jacob put his children and his wives on camels.
18 Il emmena tout ce qui lui appartenait, tant ce qu'il avait acquis en Mésopotamie, que ce qui lui était propre, pour retourner auprès de son père Isaac, en la terre de Chanaan.
He made all his livestock go ahead of him. Besides the livestock, he took along all the other things that he had acquired while living in Paddan-Aram. And they prepared to return to his father Isaac, in the Canaan region.
19 Cependant, Laban était allé tondre ses brebis, et Rachel déroba les idoles de son père.
Before they left, while Laban was shearing his sheep, Rachel stole the [small wooden] idols [that were in her father’s tent].
20 Jacob se cacha de Laban le Syrien, ne lui faisant point savoir qu'il s'enfuyait.
Furthermore, Jacob deceived Laban, who belonged to the Aram people-group, by not telling him that they were planning to leave.
21 Il s'en alla rapidement avec ce qui lui appartenait, traversa l'Euphrate, et hâta sa marche vers la montagne de Galaad.
So Jacob and his family fled with all their possessions, and they crossed the Euphrates River, and then started traveling south toward the hilly Gilead region.
22 Le troisième jour, on apprit à Laban le Syrien que Jacob s'était enfui.
On the third day after they left, someone told Laban that Jacob and his family had left.
23 Aussitôt, prenant avec lui ses frères, il se mit à sa poursuite, et, au bout de sept jours, il l'atteignit en la montagne de Galaad.
So he took some of his relatives with him and started to pursue Jacob. They continued walking for seven days.
24 Or, Dieu vint vers Laban le Syrien la nuit, pendant son sommeil, et il lui dit: Garde-toi de parler méchamment à Jacob.
Then God appeared to Laban in a dream at night, and said to him, “When you catch up to Jacob, be sure that you do not say anything at all [HYP] to him in an angry manner!”
25 Bientôt Laban eut atteint Jacob, qui avait dressé ses tentes sur la montagne; Laban fit arrêter ses frères sur les monts de Galaad.
The next day, by the time Laban caught up with Jacob, Jacob and his household had set up their tents in the hilly Gilead region. So Laban and his relatives set up their tents there, too.
26 Qu'as-tu fait? dit-il à Jacob; pourquoi as-tu fui secrètement? pourquoi m'as-tu volé et m'as-tu emmené mes filles comme des captives conquises par le glaive?
Then Laban went to Jacob and said to him, “Why have you done this? You have deceived me by carrying away my daughters as though you had captured them in a war [MTY]!
27 Si tu m'avais averti, je t'aurais reconduit joyeusement avec des musiciens, au son des tambours et des cithares.
Why did you run away and deceive me? Why did you not tell me that you were going to leave, so that we could have rejoiced and sung while people played music on tambourines and harps before I said ‘goodbye’ to you?
28 Mais je n'ai pas été jugé digne d'embrasser mes petits-enfants et mes filles; tu as bien agi en insensé.
(You did not even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye before they left!/Why did you not allow me to kiss my grandchildren and daughters goodbye before they left?) [RHQ] What you have done was foolish!
29 Mon bras est assez fort pour te maltraiter; mais le Dieu de ton père m'a parlé cette nuit, disant: Garde-toi de parler méchamment à Jacob.
My relatives and I have the power to harm you, but last night the God whom your father worships said to me in a dream, ‘Be sure that you do not say anything at all to Jacob in an angry way.’
30 Pars donc, puisque tu désires si ardemment retourner dans la maison de ton père; mais pourquoi as-tu dérobé mes dieux?
Now, I know you have left because you long to go back home. But why did you steal my [wooden] idols?”
31 Jacob répondit à Laban: J'avais crainte, et je me disais: Qu'il n'aille point m'enlever ses filles et tout ce qui m'appartient.
Jacob replied to Laban, saying, “I did not tell you that we were planning to leave, because I was afraid. I thought that [if I told you], you would forcefully take your daughters away from me.
32 Jacob ajouta: Celui chez qui tu trouveras tes dieux, qu'il ne vive point parmi nos frères; reconnais chez moi ce qui t'appartient et prends-le. Or, il ne croyait pas qu'il y eût rien chez lui, car il ignorait que Rachel sa femme eût dérobé les idoles.
But if you find anyone here who has your wooden idols, we will execute that person. While our relatives are watching, search for yourself to see if there is anything that belongs to you that is here with me. If you find anything, you can take it!” When Jacob said that, he did not know that Rachel had stolen the wooden idols.
33 Étant entré dans la demeure de Lia, Laban chercha et ne trouva rien. Il sortit de la demeure de Lia, chercha dans celle de Jacob, puis dans la demeure des deux servantes, et il ne trouva rien; il entra aussi en la demeure de Rachel.
Laban went into Jacob’s tent, and then into Leah’s tent, and then into the tents of the two female slaves and searched for the idols, but he did not find them. After he left their tents, he entered Rachel’s tent.
34 Or, Rachel avait pris les idoles, et les ayant cachées dans le bât de sa chamelle, elle s'était assise par-dessus.
But Rachel had previously taken the idols and put them in the saddle of a camel, and she was sitting on the saddle. So when Laban searched all over for them inside Rachel’s tent, he did not find them.
35 Elle dit à son père: Ne t'indigne pas, seigneur; je ne puis me lever devant toi, il m'est advenu ce qui arrive aux femmes. Et Laban chercha dans toute la demeure, et il ne trouva pas les idoles.
Rachel said to her father, “Do not be angry with me, sir, but I cannot get up in your presence [to show respect for you], because I am having my monthly menstrual period. [EUP]” So when Laban searched some more, he did not find the [wooden] idols.
36 Jacob alors s'indigna, éclata en reproches contre Laban, et il se mit à lui dire: Quelle est mon iniquité, quel est mon crime, pour que tu m'aies poursuivi,
Then Jacob became angry. He rebuked Laban, saying, “What crime did I commit? For what sin that I committed have you pursued me?
37 Et pour que tu aies fouillé tous les meubles de ma demeure? Qu'as-tu trouvé des choses de ta maison? Mets-le donc là devant tes frères et devant mes frères, qu'ils jugent entre nous deux.
Now you have searched through all my possessions, and what did you find from all these possessions that belongs to you? Put it here in front of my relatives and your relatives, so that they can decide who is right, you or me!
38 J'ai passé avec toi vingt de mes années; tes brebis et tes chèvres n'ont jamais été stériles; jamais je n'ai mangé des béliers de tes troupeaux.
I was with you for 20 years. In all that time, your sheep and goats have (not miscarried/always given birth to animals safely). I have not [killed and] eaten any rams from your flocks.
39 Je ne t'ai point compté ce qu'ont pris les bêtes fauves, et j'ai payé du mien les rapts de jour et les rapts de nuit,
When one of your animals was attacked and mauled/killed by a wild animal, I did not bring it to you. I replaced the dead animal with a living one of my own animals. Whenever one of your animals was stolen, during the day or during the night, you demanded that I replace it with one of my own animals.
40 J'ai été brûlé par la chaleur des jours, glacé par la froidure des nuits; le sommeil avait fui de mes yeux.
I suffered from the heat during the day and from the cold at night. I was often not even able to sleep [PRS]!
41 Voilà vingt ans que je suis dans ta maison; je t'ai servi quatorze années pour prix de tes deux filles, et six pour tes menus troupeaux, et toi tu as changé ma récompense durant dix portées d'agneaux.
I lived in your household for 20 years. I worked for you for 14 years to buy your two daughters, and for six more years to buy some of your sheep and goats. During that time, you changed and reduced my wages many times [HYP].
42 Si le Dieu de mon père Abraham et la crainte d'Isaac n'étaient pas de mon côté, tu m'eusses renvoyé les mains vides; Dieu a vu mon humiliation et la fatigue de mes bras, et il t'a fait hier ses reproches.
If God, the one whom my grandfather Abraham worshiped and before whom my father Isaac trembled in fear, had not been with me and helped me, you would have sent me away (with nothing in my hands/owning nothing)! But God saw how much I was suffering and how hard I was working, so last night he told you that what you have done to me was wrong.”
43 Laban répondit à Jacob: Tes filles sont mes filles et tes fils sont mes fils, ce bétail est mon bétail, tout ce que tu vois est à moi et à mes filles. Comment pourrai-je leur nuire à elles et à leurs enfants?
Laban replied, “These two women are my daughters, and their children are my grandchildren, and the animals are my animals. Everything you see here is mine [HYP]! But what can I do today to keep my daughters or the children they have given birth to [RHQ]?
44 Viens donc, je veux faire une alliance qui soit un témoignage entre moi et toi. Et il lui dit: Il n'y a personne avec nous; que Dieu soit témoin entre nous.
I cannot do anything in order to keep them, so hey, we should make a peace agreement, you and I, and do something that will remind us about our agreement.”
45 Jacob, ayant pris une pierre, et l'ayant dressée en forme de colonne,
So Jacob took a [large] stone and set it on its end.
46 Dit à ses frères: Rassemblez des pierres. Et ils rassemblèrent des pierres dont ils firent un autel, sur lequel ils mangèrent; et Laban dit à Jacob: Cet autel est témoin aujourd'hui entre toi et moi.
Then Jacob said to his relatives, “You also gather some stones.” So they gathered some rocks and put them in a heap, and they ate some food there near the heap.
47 Laban l'appela l'autel du témoignage, et Jacob l'autel du témoin.
Laban gave the heap the Aramaic name Jegar-Sahadutha, [which means ‘rock-pile to remind us’, ] but Jacob gave the rock-pile the Hebrew name Galeed, [which has the same meaning].
48 Et Laban dit à Jacob: Voilà l'autel et la colonne que j'ai élevés entre moi et toi; cet autel est témoin, cette colonne porte témoignage. C'est pourquoi l'autel fut appelé: l'Autel porte témoignage (Galaad),
Laban said to Jacob, “This pile of rocks we have put here today will help us to remember our agreement.” That is why Jacob called it Galeed.
49 Et: La vision qui a été vue; que Dieu regarde entre nous deux, puisque nous allons nous séparer.
They also named the place Mizpah, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘watchtower’, ] because Laban said, “We will ask Yahweh to watch you and me while we are separated from each other, [so that we do not try to harm each other].
50 Si tu humilies mes filles; si avec elles tu prends d'autres femmes, fais attention: personne ne nous voit et n'est avec nous, [mais Dieu est témoin entre moi et toi].
If you mistreat my daughters, or if you take other women to be your wives, even if no one tells me about it, don’t forget that God sees what you and I are doing!”
Laban also said to Jacob, “You see this large stone and this pile of rocks that we have set up to be between us.
52 Si jamais je franchis de ton côté ou si tu franchis du mien cet autel et cette colonne dans de mauvais desseins,
Both this pile of rocks and this large stone will remind us, that I will not go past these rocks to harm you, and you will not go past these rocks to harm me.
53 Que le Dieu d'Abraham et le Dieu de Nachor juge entre nous. Et Jacob jura par l'objet de la crainte d'Isaac son père.
We will ask the God whom [your grandfather] Abraham and [his father] Nahor worshiped to punish [MTY] either one of us, [if we harm the other one].” So Jacob solemnly promised to do what they said in their peace agreement. And he asked God, the one before whom his father Isaac trembled, to listen to what they promised.
54 Il offrit un sacrifice sur la montagne, et convoqua ses frères; ils mangèrent, et ils burent, et ils dormirent sur la montagne.
He offered a sacrifice to God there in the hilly area, and he invited his relatives to eat with him. After they had eaten, they slept there that night.
55 Ensuite, Laban se leva de grand matin, embrassa ses fils et ses filles, les bénit, et, s'étant retourné, il s'en fut en son pas.
The next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters [goodbye] and asked God to bless them. Then he [and his men] left them and returned home.
