Psaumes 78
1 Psaume de méditation d'Asaph. O mon peuple, attachez-vous à ma loi; inclinez votre oreille vers les paroles de ma bouche.
My friends, listen to what I am going to teach you; pay careful attention [IDM] to what I say.
2 J'ouvrirai ma bouche en paraboles; je dirai les choses qui ont existé dès le commencement,
I am going to give you some sayings that wise people have said. They will be sayings about things that happened long ago, things that were difficult to understand [MET],
3 Telles que vous les avez ouïes et connues, et que vos pères vous les ont racontées.
things that we have heard and known previously, things that our parents and grandparents told us.
4 Elles n'ont point été cachées à leurs enfants de la seconde génération, eux-mêmes leur ayant annoncé les louanges du Seigneur, et sa puissance et les merveilles qu'il a faites.
We will tell these things to our children [LIT], and we will also tell to our grandchildren [about] Yahweh’s power and the glorious/great things that he has done.
5 Et il a suscité un témoignage en Jacob, et il a institué en Israël une loi qu'il a confiée à nos pères, pour qu'ils l'enseignassent à leurs enfants,
He gave laws and commandments to the Israeli people, [those who are the descendants of] Jacob [DOU], and he told our ancestors to teach them to their children
6 Afin que chaque génération les transmit à la suivante; les fils l'apprendront à ceux qui naîtront d'eux; et ils en porteront témoignage, et ils en instruiront leurs enfants:
in order that their children would [also] know them and then they would teach them to their children.
7 Afin qu'ils mettent en Dieu leur espérance, et qu'ils n'oublient point ses œuvres, et qu'ils recherchent ses commandements,
In that way, they also would trust in God, and not forget the things that he has done; instead, they would obey his commandments.
8 Et qu'ils ne soient point comme leurs pères, race perverse et provocatrice, qui n'a pas eu de droiture de cœur, et, en son esprit, n'a pas été fidèle à Dieu.
They would not be like their ancestors, who were very stubborn and kept rebelling [against God]; they did not continue firmly trusting in God, and they did not worship only him.
9 Les fils d'Éphraïm tendant l'arc, lançant des flèches, le jour du combat ont tourné le dos.
[The soldiers of] the tribe of Ephraim had bows [and arrows] but they ran away [from their enemies] on the day that they fought a battle with their enemies.
10 Ils n'ont point gardé l'alliance de Dieu, et ils ont refusé de marcher dans sa loi.
They did not do what they had agreed with God that they would do; they refused to obey his laws.
11 Et ils ont oublié ses bienfaits, et les miracles qu'il leur a montrés,
They forgot what he had done; they forgot about the miracles that they had seen him perform.
12 Et les prodiges qu'il a faits devant leurs pères, en la terre d'Egypte et dans la plaine de Tanis.
While our ancestors were watching, God performed miracles in the area around Zoan [city] in Egypt.
13 Il a séparé la mer, et il les a fait passer; il a contenu les eaux, comme dans une outre.
[Then] he caused the [Red] Sea to divide, causing the water [on each side] to pile up like a wall, with the result that [our ancestors] walked through it [on dry ground].
14 Et il les a guidés le jour dans une nuée, et la nuit dans un luminaire de feu.
He led them by a [bright] cloud during the day and by a fiery light during the night.
15 Il a fendu le rocher dans le désert, et il les a abreuvés comme avec l'eau d'un grand abîme.
He split rocks open in the desert, giving to our ancestors plenty of water from deep inside the earth.
16 Et de la pierre il a tiré et conduit l'eau comme un fleuve.
He caused a stream of water to flow from the rock; the water flowed like a river [DOU].
17 Et ils ont continué de pécher contre lui; ils ont provoqué le Très-Haut dans le désert;
But [our ancestors] continued to sin against God; in the desert they rebelled against the one who is greater than any other god.
18 Et ils ont tenté Dieu en leurs cœurs, en lui demandant des aliments pour leurs âmes.
By demanding that God give them the food that they desired, they tried to find out if he would always do what they requested him to do.
19 Et ils ont parlé contre Dieu, et ils ont dit: Est-ce que Dieu pourra nous préparer une table dans le désert?
They insulted God by saying, “We don’t think he can supply food for us [here] in this desert!
20 Il a frappé le rocher: l'eau a jailli; un torrent a coulé avec abondance. Mais Dieu pourra-t-il nous donner aussi du pain, ou préparer dans le désert une table à son peuple?
[It is true that] he struck the rock, with the result that water gushed/flowed out, [but] (can he also provide bread and meat for [us], his people?/we doubt that he can also provide bread and meat for us, his people.)” [RHQ]
21 C'est pourquoi le Seigneur, les ayant entendus, différa, et un feu fut allumé contre Jacob, et sa colère monta contre Israël;
So, when Yahweh heard that, he became very angry, and he sent a fire to burn up [some of] his Israeli [people]. [MTY, DOU]
22 Parce qu'ils n'avaient pas eu foi en Dieu, et qu'ils n'avaient point espéré en sa protection.
[He did that] because they did not trust in him, and they did not believe that he would rescue them.
23 Et d'en haut il donna ses ordres aux nues, et il ouvrit les portes du ciel.
But God spoke to the sky above them; he commanded it to open [like] a door,
24 Et il fit pleuvoir sur eux la manne pour les nourrir, et il leur donna le pain du ciel.
and [then food] fell down like rain, [food which they named] ‘manna’; God gave them grain from (heaven/the sky).
25 L'homme mangea le pain des anges; Dieu leur envoya des aliments en abondance.
[So] the people ate the food that angels eat, [and] God gave to them all the manna that they wanted.
26 Il chassa le vent du midi, et par sa puissance il amena le vent de l'occident.
[Later], he caused the wind to blow from the east, and by his power he also sent wind from the south,
27 Et il fit pleuvoir pour eux de la chair comme des nuées de poussière, et des oiseaux emplumés comme le sable des mers.
and the wind brought birds which were as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore.
28 Et ces oiseaux tombèrent au milieu de leur camp, autour de leurs tentes.
God caused those birds to fall [dead] in the middle of (their camp)/the area where the people had put up their tents. [There were dead birds] all around their tents.
29 Et ils mangèrent, et ils furent rassasiés; et il satisfit leur désir.
[So] the people [cooked the birds and] ate the meat and their stomachs were full, because God had given them what they wanted.
30 Rien ne leur manqua de ce qu'ils désiraient, et ils en avaient encore la bouche pleine.
But before they had eaten all that they wanted, and while they were still eating it,
31 Et la colère du Seigneur s'éleva contre eux, et il mit à mort leurs riches, et il saisit les élus d'Israël.
God was [still] very angry with them, and he caused their strongest men to die; he got rid of [many of] the finest [young] Israeli men.
32 Et malgré tout cela ils péchèrent encore, et ne crurent point à ses prodiges.
In spite of all that, the people continued to sin; in spite of all the miracles that God had performed, they still did not trust that he [would take care of them].
33 Et leurs jours défaillirent en vanité, et leurs années se précipitèrent.
So, he caused their lives to end as quickly as a puff of wind ends; they died when disasters suddenly struck them.
34 Quand il eut répandu parmi eux la mort, ils cherchèrent le Seigneur, et ils se convertirent à lui, et ils vinrent dès le matin vers Dieu.
When God caused [some of] them to die, [the others] turned to God; they repented and earnestly asked God [to save them].
35 Et ils se souvinrent que Dieu est leur champion, et que Dieu le Très-Haut est leur rédempteur.
They remembered that God is [like] a huge rock ledge [under which they would be safe] [MET], and that he, who was greater than any other god, is the one who protected/rescued them.
36 Et ils l'aimèrent de la bouche; mais leur langue lui mentait.
But they [tried to] deceive God by what they said [MTY]; their words [MTY] were [all] lies.
37 Car leur cœur ne fut point droit envers lui, et ils ne furent point fidèles en son alliance.
They were not loyal to him; they disregarded/ignored the agreement that he had made with them.
38 Et cependant il est miséricordieux, et il leur remettra leurs péchés; et il ne les détruira point. Il détournera souvent sa colère, et son courroux ne s'enflammera pas tout entier.
But God was merciful to his people. He forgave them for having sinned and did not get rid of them. Many times he refrained from becoming angry [with them] and restrained from furiously/severely [punishing them] [MTY].
39 Et il se souvint qu'ils étaient chair, un souffle qui passe et ne revient plus.
He remembered/considered that they were only humans who die; they [disappear quickly] [SIM], like a wind that blows by and then is gone.
40 Combien de fois l'ont-ils provoqué dans le désert, et l'ont-ils irrité dans la terre sans eau!
Many times our ancestors rebelled against God in the desert and caused him to become very sad.
41 Et ils se convertissaient, et ils recommençaient à tenter Dieu, et ils aigrissaient encore le Saint d'Israël.
Many times they did evil things, to find out [if they could do those things without God punishing them]. They frequently caused the holy God of Israel to become disgusted/sad.
42 Ils avaient oublié sa main, et le jour où elle les avait tirés des mains de l'oppresseur;
They forgot about his [great] power, and they (forgot/did not think) about the time when he rescued them from their enemies.
43 Et comment il avait fait ses miracles en Egypte, et ses prodiges dans la plaine de Tanis;
They forgot about when he performed many miracles in the area near Zoan [city] in Egypt.
44 Et comment il avait changé en sang leurs fleuves et leurs pluies, afin qu'ils ne pussent boire;
He caused the [Nile] River (OR, their sources of water) to become [red like] blood, with the result that the people of Egypt had no water to drink.
45 Et comment il avait envoyé des mouches de chien qui les dévoraient, et des grenouilles qui les détruisaient.
He sent among the people of Egypt swarms of flies that bit them, and he sent frogs that ate up everything.
46 Ils avaient oublié la nielle attachée à leurs fruits, et les sauterelles dont ils avaient souffert,
He sent locusts to eat their crops and the other things that grew in their fields.
47 Et la grêle détruisant leurs vignes, et la gelée faisant périr leurs mûriers,
He sent hail that destroyed the grapevines, and sent frost that ruined the figs.
48 Et les grêlons exterminant leur bétail, et le feu consumant leurs richesses,
He sent hail that killed their cattle and sent lightning that killed their sheep and cows.
49 Et sa colère et son indignation tombant sur eux; colère, fureur, afflictions, envois d'anges exterminateurs;
Because God was fiercely angry with the people of Egypt, he caused them to be very distressed. The disasters that struck them were like a group of angels that destroyed [everything].
50 Et la voie ouverte à son courroux, et son dessein de ne point épargner leur vie, et d'enclore leurs troupeaux, dans la mort;
He did not lessen his being angry [with them], and he did not (spare their lives/prevent them from dying); he sent a (plague/serious illness) that killed [many of] them.
51 Et le coup dont fut frappé tout premier-né en la terre d'Egypte, prémices de leurs peines sous leurs tentes de Cham;
He also caused all the firstborn sons of the people of Egypt to die.
52 Et le soin qu'il prit d'enlever son peuple comme des brebis, et de les conduire dans le désert, comme un troupeau;
Then he led his people out [of Egypt] like [a shepherd leads] his sheep [SIM], and he guided them [while they walked] through the desert.
53 Et les espérances qu'il leur donna, et les craintes dont il les délivra, et la mer qui couvrit leurs ennemis.
He led them safely, and they were not afraid, but their enemies were drowned in the sea.
54 Et il les mena sur la montagne qu'il s'était consacrée, cette montagne que sa droite avait acquise. Et il chassa les nations devant leur face, et il leur distribua, à grandes mesures, la terre de leur héritage.
[Later] he brought them to [Canaan], his sacred land, to [Zion] Hill (OR, the hilly area) and by his power [MTY] he enabled them to conquer [the people who were living there].
55 Et il établit les tribus d'Israël dans les demeures des vaincus.
He expelled the people-groups while his people were advancing; he allotted part of the land for [each tribe] to possess, and he gave to the Israeli people the houses of those people who had been expelled.
56 Mais elles tentèrent et provoquèrent Dieu le Très-Haut; elles ne gardèrent point ses témoignages.
However, the Israeli people rebelled against God, who is greater than any other god, and they did many evil things to see if they could do those things without God punishing them, and they did not obey his commandments.
57 Et son peuple, se détournant de lui, s'endurcit comme ses pères; il devint comme un arc tortu.
Instead, like their ancestors did, they rebelled against God and (were not loyal to/did not faithfully [obey]) him; they were as [unreliable as] a crooked arrow [that does not go straight] [SIM].
58 Et ils provoquèrent la colère de Dieu sur leurs hauts lieux; et ils le rendirent jaloux par leurs images sculptées.
Because they [worshiped] carved images of their gods on the tops of hills, they caused God to become angry [DOU].
59 Dieu les entendit et les méprisa, et réduisit à néant Israël.
He saw what they were doing and became very angry, so he rejected the Israeli people.
60 Et il répudia le tabernacle de Silo, son tabernacle où il résidait parmi les hommes.
He no longer appeared to them at Shiloh in the tent where he had lived among them.
61 Et il livra à la captivité leur force, aux ennemis leur beauté.
He allowed their enemies to capture [the sacred chest], [which was the symbol of] his power and his glory.
62 Et il exposa son peuple au glaive, et il dédaigna son propre héritage.
Because he was angry with his people, he allowed them to be killed [MTY] [by their enemies].
63 La flamme dévora leurs jeunes hommes, et leurs vierges ne furent point pleurées.
Young men were killed in battles, with the result that the young women had no one to marry.
64 Leurs prêtres tombèrent sous le glaive, et leurs veuves ne furent point pleurées.
[Many] priests were killed by [their enemies’] swords, and (the people did not allow the priests’ widows/the priests’ widows were not allowed) to mourn.
65 Et le Seigneur s'éveilla comme un homme endormi, ou comme un riche après l'ivresse.
Later, [it was as though] the Lord awoke from sleeping; he was like a strong man who (became stimulated/felt that he was strong) by (OR, became sober after) [drinking] a lot of wine [SIM].
66 Et il frappa ses ennemis comme ils tournaient le dos, et il les couvrit d'un opprobre éternel.
He pushed their enemies back and caused them to be [very] ashamed for a long time [HYP] [because they had been defeated].
67 Et il répudia le tabernacle de Joseph, et il ne choisit point la tribu d'Éphraïm.
[But] he did not set up his tent where [the people of] the tribe of Ephraim lived; he did not choose their area [to do that].
68 Et il choisit la tribu de Juda, et la montagne de Sion, qu'il a aimée.
Instead he chose [the area where] the tribe of Judah [lived]; he chose Zion Hill, which he loves.
69 Et il bâtit son sanctuaire, fort comme la corne des licornes, en la terre qu'il a fondée pour les siècles des siècles.
He [decided to have] his temple built [there], high up, like [his home in] heaven; he caused it to be firm, [and intended that] his temple would last forever, like the earth.
70 Et il choisit David son serviteur, et il le tira de la garde des troupeaux; il le prit tandis qu'il surveillait les brebis mères,
He chose David, who served him [faithfully], and took him from the pastures
71 Pour qu'il fût le pasteur de Jacob, son serviteur, et d'Israël, son héritage.
where he was taking care of his [father’s] sheep, and appointed him to be the leader [MET] of the Israeli people, the people who belong to God.
72 Et David prit soin d'eux en l'innocence de son cœur, et il les mena dans la voie selon l'intelligence de ses mains.
David took care of the Israeli people sincerely and wholeheartedly, and guided them skillfully/wisely.
