< Genèse 37 >
1 Jacob demeura dans le pays de Canaan, où avait séjourné son père.
And Jacob dwells in the land of his father’s sojournings—in the land of Canaan.
2 Voici la postérité de Jacob. Joseph, âgé de dix-sept ans, faisait paître le troupeau avec ses frères; cet enfant était auprès des fils de Bilha et des fils de Zilpa, femmes de son père. Et Joseph rapportait à leur père leurs mauvais propos.
These [are] the generations of Jacob: Joseph, a son of seventeen years, has been enjoying himself with his brothers among the flock (and he [is] a youth), with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and Joseph brings in an account of their evil to their father.
3 Israël aimait Joseph plus que tous ses autres fils, parce qu’il l’avait eu dans sa vieillesse; et il lui fit une tunique de plusieurs couleurs.
And Israel has loved Joseph more than any of his sons, for he [is] a son of his old age, and has made for him a long coat;
4 Ses frères virent que leur père l’aimait plus qu’eux tous, et ils le prirent en haine. Ils ne pouvaient lui parler avec amitié.
and his brothers see that their father has loved him more than any of his brothers, and they hate him, and have not been able to speak [to] him peaceably.
5 Joseph eut un songe, et il le raconta à ses frères, qui le haïrent encore davantage.
And Joseph dreams a dream, and declares to his brothers, and they add still more to hate him.
6 Il leur dit: Écoutez donc ce songe que j’ai eu!
And he says to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed:
7 Nous étions à lier des gerbes au milieu des champs; et voici, ma gerbe se leva et se tint debout, et vos gerbes l’entourèrent et se prosternèrent devant elle.
that, behold, we are binding bundles in the midst of the field, and behold, my bundle has arisen, and has also stood up, and behold, your bundles are all around, and they bow themselves to my bundle.”
8 Ses frères lui dirent: Est-ce que tu régneras sur nous? Est-ce que tu nous gouverneras? Et ils le haïrent encore davantage, à cause de ses songes et à cause de ses paroles.
And his brothers say to him, “Do you certainly reign over us? Do you certainly rule over us?” And they add still more to hate him, for his dreams, and for his words.
9 Il eut encore un autre songe, et il le raconta à ses frères. Il dit: J’ai eu encore un songe! Et voici, le soleil, la lune et onze étoiles se prosternaient devant moi.
And he dreams yet another dream, and recounts it to his brothers, and says, “Behold, I have dreamed a dream again, and behold, the sun and the moon, and eleven stars, are bowing themselves to me.”
10 Il le raconta à son père et à ses frères. Son père le réprimanda, et lui dit: Que signifie ce songe que tu as eu? Faut-il que nous venions, moi, ta mère et tes frères, nous prosterner en terre devant toi?
And he recounts to his father, and to his brothers; and his father pushes against him, and says to him, “What [is] this dream which you have dreamed? Do we certainly come, I, and your mother, and your brothers—to bow ourselves to you, to the earth?”
11 Ses frères eurent de l’envie contre lui, mais son père garda le souvenir de ces choses.
And his brothers are zealous against him, and his father has watched the matter.
12 Les frères de Joseph étant allés à Sichem, pour faire paître le troupeau de leur père,
And his brothers go to feed the flock of their father in Shechem,
13 Israël dit à Joseph: Tes frères ne font-ils pas paître le troupeau à Sichem? Viens, je veux t’envoyer vers eux. Et il répondit: Me voici!
and Israel says to Joseph, “Are your brothers not feeding in Shechem? Come, and I send you to them”; and he says to him, “Here I [am]”;
14 Israël lui dit: Va, je te prie, et vois si tes frères sont en bonne santé et si le troupeau est en bon état; et tu m’en rapporteras des nouvelles. Il l’envoya ainsi de la vallée d’Hébron; et Joseph alla à Sichem.
and he says to him, “Now go see the peace of your brothers, and the peace of the flock, and bring me back word”; and he sends him from the Valley of Hebron, and he comes to Shechem.
15 Un homme le rencontra, comme il errait dans les champs. Il le questionna, en disant: Que cherches-tu?
And a man finds him, and behold, he is wandering in the field, and the man asks him, saying, “What do you seek?”
16 Joseph répondit: Je cherche mes frères; dis-moi, je te prie, où ils font paître leur troupeau.
And he says, “I am seeking my brothers, please declare to me where they are feeding.”
17 Et l’homme dit: Ils sont partis d’ici; car je les ai entendus dire: Allons à Dothan. Joseph alla après ses frères, et il les trouva à Dothan.
And the man says, “They have journeyed from this, for I have heard some saying, Let us go to Dothan,” and Joseph goes after his brothers, and finds them in Dothan.
18 Ils le virent de loin; et, avant qu’il fût près d’eux, ils complotèrent de le faire mourir.
And they see him from afar, even before he draws near to them, and they conspire against him to put him to death.
19 Ils se dirent l’un à l’autre: Voici le faiseur de songes qui arrive.
And they say to one another, “Behold, this man of the dreams comes;
20 Venez maintenant, tuons-le, et jetons-le dans une des citernes; nous dirons qu’une bête féroce l’a dévoré, et nous verrons ce que deviendront ses songes.
and now, come, and we slay him, and cast him into one of the pits, and have said, An evil beast has devoured him; and we see what his dreams are.”
21 Ruben entendit cela, et il le délivra de leurs mains. Il dit: Ne lui ôtons pas la vie.
And Reuben hears, and delivers him out of their hand, and says, “Let us not strike the life”;
22 Ruben leur dit: Ne répandez point de sang; jetez-le dans cette citerne qui est au désert, et ne mettez pas la main sur lui. Il avait dessein de le délivrer de leurs mains pour le faire retourner vers son père.
and Reuben says to them, “Shed no blood; cast him into this pit which [is] in the wilderness, and do not put forth a hand on him,” in order to deliver him out of their hand, to bring him back to his father.
23 Lorsque Joseph fut arrivé auprès de ses frères, ils le dépouillèrent de sa tunique, de la tunique de plusieurs couleurs, qu’il avait sur lui.
And it comes to pass, when Joseph has come to his brothers, that they strip Joseph of his coat, the long coat which [is] on him,
24 Ils le prirent, et le jetèrent dans la citerne. Cette citerne était vide; il n’y avait point d’eau.
and take him and cast him into the pit, and the pit [is] empty, there is no water in it.
25 Ils s’assirent ensuite pour manger. Ayant levé les yeux, ils virent une caravane d’Ismaélites venant de Galaad; leurs chameaux étaient chargés d’aromates, de baume et de myrrhe, qu’ils transportaient en Égypte.
And they sit down to eat bread, and they lift up their eyes, and look, and behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, and their camels carrying spices, and balm, and myrrh, going to take [them] down to Egypt.
26 Alors Juda dit à ses frères: Que gagnerons-nous à tuer notre frère et à cacher son sang?
And Judah says to his brothers, “What gain when we slay our brother, and have concealed his blood?
27 Venez, vendons-le aux Ismaélites, et ne mettons pas la main sur lui, car il est notre frère, notre chair. Et ses frères l’écoutèrent.
Come, and we sell him to the Ishmaelites, and our hands are not on him, for he [is] our brother—our flesh”; and his brothers listen.
28 Au passage des marchands madianites, ils tirèrent et firent remonter Joseph hors de la citerne; et ils le vendirent pour vingt sicles d’argent aux Ismaélites, qui l’emmenèrent en Égypte.
And Midianite merchantmen pass by and they draw out and bring up Joseph out of the pit, and sell Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver, and they bring Joseph into Egypt.
29 Ruben revint à la citerne; et voici, Joseph n’était plus dans la citerne. Il déchira ses vêtements,
And Reuben returns to the pit, and behold, Joseph is not in the pit, and he tears his garments,
30 retourna vers ses frères, et dit: L’enfant n’y est plus! Et moi, où irai-je?
and he returns to his brothers and says, “The boy is not, and I—to where am I going?”
31 Ils prirent alors la tunique de Joseph; et, ayant tué un bouc, ils plongèrent la tunique dans le sang.
And they take the coat of Joseph, and slaughter a kid of the goats, and dip the coat in the blood,
32 Ils envoyèrent à leur père la tunique de plusieurs couleurs, en lui faisant dire: Voici ce que nous avons trouvé! Reconnais si c’est la tunique de ton fils, ou non.
and send the long coat, and they bring [it] to their father, and say, “We have found this; please discern whether it [is] your son’s coat or not.”
33 Jacob la reconnut, et dit: C’est la tunique de mon fils! une bête féroce l’a dévoré! Joseph a été mis en pièces!
And he discerns it and says, “My son’s coat! An evil beast has devoured him; torn—Joseph is torn!”
34 Et il déchira ses vêtements, il mit un sac sur ses reins, et il porta longtemps le deuil de son fils.
And Jacob tears his raiment, and puts sackcloth on his loins, and becomes a mourner for his son many days,
35 Tous ses fils et toutes ses filles vinrent pour le consoler; mais il ne voulut recevoir aucune consolation. Il disait: C’est en pleurant que je descendrai vers mon fils au séjour des morts! Et il pleurait son fils. (Sheol )
and all his sons and all his daughters rise to comfort him, and he refuses to comfort himself, and says, “For I go down to my son mourning, to Sheol,” and his father weeps for him. (Sheol )
36 Les Madianites le vendirent en Égypte à Potiphar, officier de Pharaon, chef des gardes.
And the Midianites have sold him to Egypt, to Potiphar, a eunuch of Pharaoh, head of the executioners.