Numbers 24
1 Balaam now realized that Yahweh wanted to bless the Israeli people, [not curse them]. So he did not use magic/divination [like a shaman would do] to find out what Yahweh wanted, as he often did. Instead, he turned toward the desert.
Balaam vit que l’Éternel trouvait bon de bénir Israël, et il n’alla point comme les autres fois, à la rencontre des enchantements; mais il tourna son visage du côté du désert.
2 He saw the Israeli people camped there [in their tents], with each tribe gathered in its own group. Then the Spirit of God took control of him,
Balaam leva les yeux, et vit Israël campé selon ses tribus. Alors l’esprit de Dieu fut sur lui.
3 and enabled him to give this prophetic message to Balak: “I, Balaam, the son of Beor, am giving this prophecy; I am speaking as a man who sees [what will happen in the future] clearly speaks.
Balaam prononça son oracle, et dit: Parole de Balaam, fils de Beor, Parole de l’homme qui a l’œil ouvert,
4 I hear this message from God; I see a vision from him who is all-powerful. My eyes are open as I prostrate myself in front of him.
Parole de celui qui entend les paroles de Dieu, De celui qui voit la vision du Tout-Puissant, De celui qui se prosterne et dont les yeux s’ouvrent.
5 You descendants of Jacob, your tents are very beautiful; they are truly lovely!
Qu’elles sont belles, tes tentes, ô Jacob! Tes demeures, ô Israël!
6 Your tents are spread out [in front of me like groves of palm trees in] valleys, like gardens alongside a river. They are like strong aloe trees/plants that Yahweh has planted, like [strong] cedar trees [that grow] along the rivers.
Elles s’étendent comme des vallées, Comme des jardins près d’un fleuve, Comme des aloès que l’Éternel a plantés, Comme des cèdres le long des eaux.
7 Your water buckets will always be full; the seeds [that you plant] will always have plenty of water [to make them grow]. The Israelis’ king will be greater than [King] Agag; the kingdom that he rules will be honored.
L’eau coule de ses seaux, Et sa semence est fécondée par d’abondantes eaux. Son roi s’élève au-dessus d’Agag, Et son royaume devient puissant.
8 God brought the Israelis out of Egypt, [leading them along] with his great power [MTY] like a wild ox has. He devastates all the nations that oppose him; he breaks all those people’s bones into pieces, and shoots them with his arrows.
Dieu l’a fait sortir d’Égypte, Il est pour lui comme la vigueur du buffle. Il dévore les nations qui s’élèvent contre lui, Il brise leurs os, et les abat de ses flèches.
9 The Israelis are like lions that crouch and lie down, [ready to pounce on their prey] [SIM]. They are like lionesses [that are resting, but ready to attack]; no one [RHQ] would dare to arouse them! [God] will bless everyone who blesses you Israelis, and he will curse everyone who curses you.”
Il ploie les genoux, il se couche comme un lion, comme une lionne: Qui le fera lever? Béni soit quiconque te bénira, Et maudit soit quiconque te maudira!
10 Then King Balak was extremely angry with Balaam. He showed with his hands that he was very angry, and he [shouted at Balaam], “I summoned you here to curse my enemies! Instead, you have (blessed/asked God to bless) them three times!
La colère de Balak s’enflamma contre Balaam; il frappa des mains, et dit à Balaam: C’est pour maudire mes ennemis que je t’ai appelé, et voici, tu les as bénis déjà trois fois.
11 So now, get out of here! Go back home! I said that I would pay you a lot of money [if you cursed them], but Yahweh has prevented you from getting any pay!”
Fuis maintenant, va-t’en chez toi! J’avais dit que je te rendrais des honneurs, mais l’Éternel t’empêche de les recevoir.
12 Balaam said to Balak, “[Do you not remember what] [RHQ] I told the messengers that you sent to me? I said,
Balaam répondit à Balak: Eh! N’ai-je pas dit aux messagers que tu m’as envoyés:
13 ‘Even if Balak would give me a palace filled with silver and gold, I would not disobey Yahweh. I cannot do anything bad or anything that is good [that he does not approve of].’ And I told you that I could say only what Yahweh says to me.
Quand Balak me donnerait sa maison pleine d’argent et d’or, je ne pourrais faire de moi-même ni bien ni mal contre l’ordre de l’Éternel; je répéterai ce que dira l’Éternel?
14 So yes, I will return to my people, but first, allow me to tell you what will happen to you Moab people in the future.”
Et maintenant voici, je m’en vais vers mon peuple. Viens, je t’annoncerai ce que ce peuple fera à ton peuple dans la suite des temps.
15 So Balaam said this [to Balak]: “I, Balaam, son of Beor, am again giving a prophecy, speaking as a man who sees [what will happen in the future] clearly speaks.
Balaam prononça son oracle, et dit: Parole de Balaam, fils de Beor, Parole de l’homme qui a l’œil ouvert,
16 I hear a message from God; I know things that God, who lives in heaven, has [revealed to me]. I see a vision from him who is all-powerful. My eyes are open as I prostrate myself in front of him.
Parole de celui qui entend les paroles de Dieu, De celui qui connaît les desseins du Très-Haut, De celui qui voit la vision du Tout-Puissant, De celui qui se prosterne et dont les yeux s’ouvrent.
17 The things that I see [in the vision] are not [going to happen] now; I see things [that God will cause to happen] in the future. A man who is [a descendant of] Jacob will appear like a star [MET]; a king who holds a scepter will be one of the Israeli people. He will crush the heads of you people of Moab; he will wipe out the descendants of Seth.
Je le vois, mais non maintenant, Je le contemple, mais non de près. Un astre sort de Jacob, Un sceptre s’élève d’Israël. Il perce les flancs de Moab, Et il abat tous les enfants de Seth.
18 The Israelis will occupy Edom, and they will conquer their enemies [who live near] Seir [Mountain]. The Israeli people will be victorious/strong.
Il se rend maître d’Édom, Il se rend maître de Séir, ses ennemis. Israël manifeste sa force.
19 A ruler who is a descendant of Jacob will come; he will get rid of the people who still live in the city [where Balaam first met Balak].”
Celui qui sort de Jacob règne en souverain, Il fait périr ceux qui s’échappent des villes.
20 Then Balaam looked out over where the Amalek people-group [lived], and he prophesied this: “The Amalek people-group were the greatest nation, but they will be wiped out.”
Balaam vit Amalek. Il prononça son oracle, et dit: Amalek est la première des nations, Mais un jour il sera détruit.
21 Then he looked out over the area where the Ken people-group [lived], and he prophesied this: “You [think that] the place where you live is secure/safe like a nest that is made in the cliffs [MET],
Balaam vit les Kéniens. Il prononça son oracle, et dit: Ta demeure est solide, Et ton nid posé sur le roc.
22 but you will be wiped out when the army of Assyria conquers you.”
Mais le Kénien sera chassé, Quand l’Assyrien t’emmènera captif.
23 Balaam ended his prophecies by saying, “Also, (who can (survive/escape) when God does all these things?/no one will be able to (survive/escape) when God does all these things!) [RHQ]
Balaam prononça son oracle, et dit: Hélas! Qui vivra après que Dieu l’aura établi?
24 Ships will come from Cyprus [Island], and [the men in those ships] will defeat [the armies of] Assyria and Eber. But God will get rid of those men, too.”
Mais des navires viendront de Kittim, Ils humilieront l’Assyrien, ils humilieront l’Hébreu; Et lui aussi sera détruit.
25 Then Balaam and Balak returned to their homes.
Balaam se leva, partit, et retourna chez lui. Balak s’en alla aussi de son côté.
