Job 21
1 Job prit la parole et dit:
Then Job replied,
2 Écoutez, écoutez mes paroles, Donnez-moi seulement cette consolation.
“Listen to what I say, all [three] of you; that is the only thing that you can do that will comfort me.
3 Laissez-moi parler, je vous prie; Et, quand j’aurai parlé, tu pourras te moquer.
Be patient with me, and allow me to speak. Then, after I am finished speaking, you can continue to make fun of me.
4 Est-ce contre un homme que se dirige ma plainte? Et pourquoi mon âme ne serait-elle pas impatiente?
“It is certainly not [RHQ] people against whom I am complaining, [but God] And it is certainly [RHQ] right for me to be impatient!
5 Regardez-moi, soyez étonnés, Et mettez la main sur la bouche.
Look at me! Does what you see not cause you to be appalled and to put your hands over your mouths [and say no more]?
6 Quand j’y pense, cela m’épouvante, Et un tremblement saisit mon corps.
When I think about [what has happened to me], I am frightened and my entire body shakes.
7 Pourquoi les méchants vivent-ils? Pourquoi les voit-on vieillir et accroître leur force?
“[But let me ask this: ] ‘Why do wicked people continue to live, and become prosperous, and not die until they are very old?’
8 Leur postérité s’affermit avec eux et en leur présence, Leurs rejetons prospèrent sous leurs yeux.
They have their children around them, and they watch them while they [grow up and] start to live in their own houses, and they enjoy their grandchildren.
9 Dans leurs maisons règne la paix, sans mélange de crainte; La verge de Dieu ne vient pas les frapper.
Wicked people live in their own houses without being afraid, and God does not punish [MTY] them.
10 Leurs taureaux sont vigoureux et féconds, Leurs génisses conçoivent et n’avortent point.
Their bulls always mate with the cows successfully, and the cows give birth to calves and never miscarry.
11 Ils laissent courir leurs enfants comme des brebis, Et les enfants prennent leurs ébats.
Wicked people send their young children outside [to play], and the children play [happily] like [SIM] lambs [in a pasture].
12 Ils chantent au son du tambourin et de la harpe, Ils se réjouissent au son du chalumeau.
Some children dance and sing, while others shake tambourines and play lyres, and they are happy when they hear people playing flutes.
13 Ils passent leurs jours dans le bonheur, Et ils descendent en un instant au séjour des morts. (Sheol h7585)
Wicked people enjoy having good things all the time that they are alive, and they die quietly/peacefully and go down to the place of the dead. (Sheol h7585)
14 Ils disaient pourtant à Dieu: Retire-toi de nous; Nous ne voulons pas connaître tes voies.
While they are alive, they say to God, ‘Do not bother us; we do not want to know how you want us to conduct our lives!
15 Qu’est-ce que le Tout-Puissant, pour que nous le servions? Que gagnerons-nous à lui adresser nos prières?
Why do you, Almighty God, think that we should serve you? (What advantage do we get if we pray to you?/It is useless for us to pray to you.) [RHQ]’
16 Quoi donc! Ne sont-ils pas en possession du bonheur? Loin de moi le conseil des méchants!
Think about it: Wicked people think that it is because of what they have done that they have become prosperous, but I do not understand why they think like that.
17 Mais arrive-t-il souvent que leur lampe s’éteigne, Que la misère fonde sur eux, Que Dieu leur distribue leur part dans sa colère,
(“How often does it happen that wicked people die [MET] before they are old?/Very seldom do wicked people die [MET] before they are old.) [RHQ] (Do they ever experience disasters?/They seldom experience disasters.) [RHQ] (Does God ever punish them because of being very angry with them?/God never punishes them because of being very angry with them.) [RHQ]
18 Qu’ils soient comme la paille emportée par le vent, Comme la balle enlevée par le tourbillon?
[He does not blow] them away like wind blows away straw; they are never carried off by a whirlwind.
19 Est-ce pour les fils que Dieu réserve le châtiment du père? Mais c’est lui que Dieu devrait punir, pour qu’il le sente;
You say, ‘When people have committed sins, God waits and punishes their children because of those sins;’ but [I say that] God should punish those who sin, [not their children, ] in order that the sinners will know [that it is because of their own sins that they are being punished].
20 C’est lui qui devrait contempler sa propre ruine, C’est lui qui devrait boire la colère du Tout-Puissant.
I hope/wish that wicked people will experience themselves being destroyed, that they will experience being punished by an angry Almighty God.
21 Car, que lui importe sa maison après lui, Quand le nombre de ses mois est achevé?
After wicked people are dead, they are not at all concerned [RHQ] about what happens to their families [MTY].
22 Est-ce à Dieu qu’on donnera de la science, A lui qui gouverne les esprits célestes?
“Since God judges [everyone, ] even those that are in heaven, (who can teach God anything?/certainly no one can teach God anything.) [RHQ]
23 L’un meurt au sein du bien-être, De la paix et du bonheur,
Some people die while they are very healthy, while they are peaceful, when they are not afraid of anything.
24 Les flancs chargés de graisse Et la mœlle des os remplie de sève;
Their bodies are fat; their bones are strong.
25 L’autre meurt, l’amertume dans l’âme, Sans avoir joui d’aucun bien.
Other people die being very miserable; they have never experienced good things happening to them.
26 Et tous deux se couchent dans la poussière, Tous deux deviennent la pâture des vers.
But both rich and poor people die and are buried, and maggots eat their bodies. [Everyone dies, so it is clear that dying is not always the punishment for being wicked].
27 Je sais bien quelles sont vos pensées, Quels jugements iniques vous portez sur moi.
“Listen, I know what you [three] are thinking. I know the evil things that you plan to do to me.
28 Vous dites: Où est la maison de l’homme puissant? Où est la tente qu’habitaient les impies?
You say, ‘What happened to the tents in which wicked people were living? The houses of evil rulers have been destroyed!’
29 Mais quoi! N’avez-vous point interrogé les voyageurs, Et voulez-vous méconnaître ce qu’ils prouvent?
But have you never inquired of people who travel much? Do you not believe their reports about what they have seen,
30 Au jour du malheur, le méchant est épargné; Au jour de la colère, il échappe.
that wicked people usually do not suffer at the time when there are great disasters; that wicked people are the ones who are rescued when God is angry [and punishes people] [MTY]?
31 Qui lui reproche en face sa conduite? Qui lui rend ce qu’il a fait?
There is no one [RHQ] who accuses wicked people, and there is no one who (pays them back/gives them the punishment that they deserve) for all the evil things that they have done.
32 Il est porté dans un sépulcre, Et il veille encore sur sa tombe.
The corpses of wicked people are carried to their graves, and people are put there to guard those graves.
33 Les mottes de la vallée lui sont légères; Et tous après lui suivront la même voie, Comme une multitude l’a déjà suivie.
A huge number [HYP] of people go to the grave site. Some go in front of the procession and some come behind. And the clods of dirt thrown on the graves of those wicked people who have died are like a nice blanket.
34 Pourquoi donc m’offrir de vaines consolations? Ce qui reste de vos réponses n’est que perfidie.
“So how can you console me by talking nonsense? Every reply that you make is full of lies!”
