Deuxième livre de Samuel 14

BIBLES DES PEUPLES	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Joab, fils de Sérouya, s’aperçut que maintenant le roi se faisait du souci pour Absalom.	1 Now Joab, the son of Zeruiah, understood that the heart of the king had been turned toward Absalom,
2 Alors Joab envoya chercher à Tékoa une femme astucieuse: “Écoute-moi, lui dit-il, tu vas mettre des vêtements de deuil; tu ne te parfumeras pas et tu feras tout comme une femme qui porte depuis longtemps le deuil d’un mort.	2 so he sent to Tekoa, and he brought from there a wise woman. And he said to her: “Feign that you are in mourning, and put on the clothing of one who mourns. And do not anoint yourself with oil, so that you may be like a woman who is still grieving for someone who died some time ago.
3 Tu te rendras chez le roi et tu lui rediras toute l’histoire que je vais te dire.”	3 And you shall enter to the king, and you shall speak words to him in this manner.” Then Joab put the words in her mouth.
4 La femme de Tékoa se rendit donc chez le roi, elle se prosterna la face contre terre et s’écria: “Au secours, mon seigneur!”	4 And so, when the woman of Tekoa had entered to the king, she fell before him on the ground, and she reverenced, and she said, “Save me, O king.”
5 Le roi lui demanda: “Qu’as-tu?” Elle répondit: “Hélas! Je suis veuve, mon mari est mort.	5 And the king said to her, “What problem do you have?” And she responded: “Alas, I am a woman who is a widow. For my husband has died.
6 Ta servante avait deux fils. Ils se sont battus dans la campagne, personne n’était là pour les séparer, et l’un d’eux a tué l’autre.	6 And your handmaid had two sons. And they quarreled against one another in the field. And there was no one there who would be able to stop them. And one struck the other, and killed him.
7 Maintenant toute la famille s’est dressée contre moi. On me dit: Livre-nous celui qui a tué son frère, nous le mettrons à mort pour lui faire payer la vie de son frère. Mais ils vont nous enlever l’héritier! Ils vont éteindre la petite braise qui me reste encore, ils me laisseront sur la terre sans mari, sans nom, sans descendance.”	7 And behold, the whole family, rising up against your handmaid, said: ‘Deliver him who struck down his brother, so that we may kill him for the life of his brother, whom he killed, and so that we may do away with the heir.’ And they are seeking to extinguish my spark that is left, so that there may not survive a name for my husband, nor a remnant upon the earth.”
8 Le roi dit à la femme: “Retourne chez toi et je donnerai moi-même des ordres à ton sujet.”	8 And the king said to the woman, “Go to your own house, and I will make a decree on your behalf.”
9 La femme de Tékoa dit au roi: “Mon seigneur le roi, que toute la faute retombe sur moi et sur ma famille, que le roi et son trône n’aient pas à en souffrir!”	9 And the woman of Tekoa said to the king: “May the iniquity be upon me, my lord, and upon the house of my father. But may the king and his throne be innocent.”
10 Le roi reprit: “Amène-moi celui qui t’a menacée et je te promets qu’il ne reviendra plus te faire de mal.”	10 And the king said, “Whoever will contradict you, bring him to me, and he will never touch you again.”
11 Elle lui dit: “Que le roi me promette au nom de Yahvé son Dieu, que le vengeur du sang n’augmentera pas ma peine et ne fera pas périr mon fils.” Il lui dit: “Aussi vrai que Yahvé est vivant, il ne tombera pas à terre un seul cheveu de ton fils.”	11 And she said, “Let the king remember the Lord his God, so that close blood relatives may not be multiplied in order to take revenge, and so that they may by no means kill my son.” And he said, “As the Lord lives, not one hair from your son shall fall to the ground.”
12 La femme reprit alors la parole: “Que mon seigneur le roi permette à sa servante de dire encore un mot.” Il lui dit: “Parle.”	12 Then the woman said, “Let your handmaid speak a word to my lord the king.” And he said, “Speak.”
13 La femme répondit: “En prononçant ce jugement, le roi se condamne lui-même: il fait du tort au peuple de Dieu quand il refuse de faire revenir celui qu’il a exilé.	13 And the woman said: “Why have you thought such a thing against the people of God, and why has the king spoken this word, so that he sins and does not lead back the one whom he rejected?
14 Nous sommes condamnés à mourir: on ne ramasse pas l’eau qu’on a versé sur le sol, Dieu ne fait pas revenir les morts. Il faut donc trouver le moyen de faire revenir celui qu’on a exilé.	14 We are all dying, and we are all like waters that flow into the ground and do not return. God does not will to lose a soul. Instead, he renews his efforts, thinking that what has been rejected might not perish altogether.
15 Voilà pourquoi je suis venue raconter au roi toute cette histoire des gens qui me faisaient peur. Je me suis dit: Je parlerai au roi, peut-être fera-t-il ce que lui demande sa servante.	15 Therefore, now I have come to speak this word to my lord the king, in the presence of the people. And your handmaid said: I will speak to the king, for perhaps there may be some way for the king to accomplish the word of his handmaid.
16 Peut-être le roi m’écoutera-t-il et voudra-t-il me délivrer de celui qui veut nous retrancher, moi et mon fils, de l’héritage de Dieu.	16 And the king listened, and he freed his handmaid from the hand of all who were willing to take away me and my son together, from the inheritance of God.
17 Et je me suis dit: Si seulement mon seigneur le roi pouvait dire une parole apaisante, car le roi est comme un ange de Dieu, il comprend le bien et le mal. Que Yahvé ton Dieu soit donc avec toi.”	17 Therefore, let your handmaid speak, so that the word of my lord the king may be like a sacrifice. For even like an Angel of God, so is my lord the king, so that he is moved by neither a blessing, nor a curse. Then too, the Lord your God is with you.”
18 Le roi répondit à la femme: “Ne me cache rien, réponds à ma question.” La femme lui dit: “Que mon seigneur le roi parle.”	18 And in response, the king said to the woman, “You shall not conceal from me a word of what I ask you.” And the woman said to him, “Speak, my lord the king.”
19 Le roi lui dit: “Joab n’est-il pas derrière toute cette affaire?” La femme lui répondit: “Aussi vrai que tu es vivant, mon seigneur le roi, on ne peut s’écarter ni à droite ni à gauche, de tout ce que dit mon seigneur le roi. Oui, c’est bien ton serviteur Joab qui m’a donné cet ordre. C’est lui qui a mis toutes ces paroles dans ma bouche.	19 And the king said, “Is not the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman answered and said: “By the welfare of your soul, my lord the king, it is neither to the left, nor to the right, in all these things that my lord the king has spoken. For your servant Joab himself instructed me, and he himself placed all these words in the mouth of your handmaid.
20 Oui, Joab a fait tout cela pour que la paix revienne dans cette affaire; mais la sagesse de mon seigneur le roi est comme la sagesse d’un ange de Dieu, il sait tout ce qui se passe sur la terre.”	20 Thus did I turn to this figure of speech, because your servant Joab instructed it. But you, my lord the king, are wise, just as an Angel of God has wisdom, so that you understand all that is upon the earth.”
21 Alors le roi dit à Joab: “J’ai réglé toute cette affaire: ramène le jeune Absalom.”	21 And the king said to Joab: “Behold, your word has succeeded in appeasing me. Therefore, go and call back the boy Absalom.”
22 Joab se prosterna la face contre terre et bénit le roi, puis il ajouta: “Maintenant que le roi a réglé cette affaire de son serviteur, j’ai la preuve qu’il est plein d’attentions pour moi.”	22 And falling to the ground upon his face, Joab reverenced, and he blessed the king. And Joab said: “Today your servant has understood that I have found grace in your sight, my lord the king. For you have accomplished the word of your servant.”
23 Joab partit à Guéchour et il ramena Absalom à Jérusalem.	23 Then Joab rose up, and he went away to Geshur. And he brought Absalom into Jerusalem.
24 Cependant le roi dit: “Qu’il se retire chez lui et qu’il ne se présente pas devant moi.” Absalom se retira donc dans sa maison et ne se présenta pas devant le roi.	24 But the king said, “Let him return to his own house, but let him not see my face.” And so, Absalom returned to his own house, but he did not see the face of the king.
25 Personne n’était aussi beau qu’Absalom dans tout le pays d’Israël. Tout le monde chantait ses louanges: des pieds à la tête on ne lui trouvait pas le moindre défaut.	25 Now in all of Israel, there was no man so handsome, and so very stately as Absalom. From the sole of the foot to the top of the head, there was no blemish in him.
26 Chaque année Absalom se rasait la tête, quand ses cheveux lui pesaient trop lourd, et lorsqu’il se rasait on pesait sa chevelure. Eh bien, elle pesait 200 sicles au poids du roi.	26 And when he shaved off his hair, for he shaved it off once a year, because his long hair was burdensome to him, he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels, by the public weights.
27 Absalom eut trois fils, et une fille qu’il appela Tamar: elle était très belle.	27 Then three sons were born to Absalom, and one daughter, of elegant form, whose name was Tamar.
28 Absalom resta deux ans à Jérusalem sans se présenter devant le roi,	28 And Absalom remained for two years in Jerusalem, and he did not see the face of the king.
29 après quoi il envoya chercher Joab pour l’envoyer vers le roi, mais Joab ne voulut pas venir. Il envoya une seconde fois le chercher, mais il ne voulut toujours pas venir.	29 And so, he sent to Joab, so that he might send him to the king. But he refused to come to him. And when he had sent a second time, and he had refused to come to him,
30 Il dit donc à ses serviteurs: “Vous voyez le champ de Joab à côté du mien, là où on a mis de l’orge. Allez-y et mettez-y le feu.” Les serviteurs d’Absalom mirent donc le feu au champ. Aussitôt les serviteurs de Joab allèrent le trouver avec les habits déchirés et ils lui dirent: “Les serviteurs d’Absalom ont mis le feu dans ton champ.”	30 he said to his servants: “You know that the field of Joab, the one that is near my field, has a harvest of barley. Therefore, go and set it on fire.” And so, the servants of Absalom set fire to the grain field. And the servants of Joab, arriving with their garments torn, said, “The servants of Absalom have set fire to part of the field!”
31 Joab se leva et se rendit chez Absalom, il lui dit: “Pourquoi tes serviteurs ont-ils mis le feu dans mon champ?”	31 And Joab rose up, and he went to Absalom at his house, and he said, “Why have your servants set fire to my grain field?”
32 Absalom répondit à Joab: “Je t’ai fait chercher, je t’ai fait dire: Viens, je voudrais t’envoyer vers le roi. Tu lui demanderas pour quelle raison il m’a fait revenir de Guéchour. Il aurait mieux valu pour moi rester là-bas. Maintenant je veux me présenter devant le roi: si j’ai commis un crime, qu’il me mette à mort.”	32 And Absalom responded to Joab: “I sent to you, begging that you might come to me, and that I might send you to the king, and that you might say to him: ‘Why was I brought from Geshur? It would have been better for me to be there.’ I beg you, therefore, that I may see the face of the king. And if he is mindful of my iniquity, let him put me to death.”
33 Joab alla rapporter tout cela au roi; il fit appeler Absalom. Celui-ci arriva chez le roi, se prosterna la face contre terre, et le roi l’embrassa.	33 And so, Joab, entering to the king, reported everything to him. And Absalom was summoned. And he entered to the king, and he reverenced on the face of the earth. And the king kissed Absalom.