Livre de Judith 13

BIBLES DES PEUPLES	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Lorsqu’il se fit tard, ses officiers sortirent; Bagoas ferma la porte de l’extérieur, après avoir mis dehors ceux qui étaient encore là. Tout le monde partit se coucher,	1 So then, when it had become late, his servants hurried to their lodgings, and Vagao closed the chamber doors, and he went away.
2 épuisé par l’excès de la boisson, tandis que Judith restait seule dans la tente avec Holoferne écroulé sur son lit et noyé dans son vin.	2 But they were all drowsy from the wine.
3 Judith avait dit à sa servante de se tenir hors de la chambre à coucher et de guetter sa sortie comme chaque jour. Elle devait sortir, avait-elle dit, pour faire sa prière, et elle avait dit la même chose à Bagoas.	3 And Judith was alone in the chamber.
4 Lorsque tout le monde fut sorti et qu’il n’y eut personne, petit ou grand, dans la chambre à coucher, Judith se tint à côté du lit d’Holoferne et fit cette prière au plus profond de son cœur: “Seigneur, Dieu de toute puissance, pose ton regard à cette heure sur ce que je vais faire pour la gloire de Jérusalem!	4 Moreover, Holofernes, being very inebriated, was fast asleep, reclining on his bed.
5 C’est maintenant le moment de venir en aide à ton peuple et de faire réussir mon entreprise pour la ruine des ennemis qui se sont dressés contre nous.”	5 And Judith told her handmaid to stand outside before the chamber, and to watch.
6 Alors elle s’avança vers la traverse du lit qui était à la tête d’Holoferne, elle en décrocha son épée.	6 And Judith stood in front of the bed, praying with tears, and her lips moved in silence,
7 Elle s’approcha du lit et le saisit par ses cheveux: “Seigneur,dit-elle, Dieu d’Israël, donne-moi aujourd’hui ta force!”	7 saying: “Confirm me, O Lord God of Israel, and in this hour look kindly upon the works of my hands, so that, just as you promised, you may raise up Jerusalem, your city, and so that, believing through you that this plan is able to be accomplished, I may succeed.”
8 Elle le frappa à deux reprises au cou, de toutes ses forces, et lui coupa la tête.	8 And when she had said this, she approached the pillar, which was at the head of the bed, and she released his blade, which was hanging tied to it.
9 Elle fit rouler son corps en bas du lit et décrocha la draperie de ses colonnes; elle sortit ensuite, donnant la tête d’Holoferne à sa servante.	9 And when she had unsheathed it, she grabbed him by the hair of his head, and she said, “Confirm me, O Lord God, in this hour.”
10 Vite, elle la mit dans le sac à provisions et toutes deux partirent ensemble, comme elles le faisaient chaque jour pour la prière. Elles traversèrent le camp, elle firent le tour du vallon et ensuite montèrent vers Béthulie pour se présenter devant la porte.	10 And she struck him twice on his neck, and she cut off his head, and she took off his canopy from the pillars, and she rolled away the trunk of his body.
11 Judith cria de loin à ceux qui montaient la garde près des portes: “Ouvrez! Ouvrez vite la porte! Dieu, notre Dieu est avec nous! Aujourd’hui il a manifesté sa force en Israël et montré sa puissance à nos ennemis!”	11 And after a little while, she went out, and she delivered the head of Holofernes to her handmaid, and she ordered her to put it in her bag.
12 Dès que les hommes de la ville entendirent sa voix, ils se dépêchèrent de descendre vers la porte de la ville et appelèrent les anciens.	12 And the two went out, according to their custom, as if to prayer, and they passed through the camp, and having circled around the valley, they came to the gate of the city.
13 Tout le monde accourut, du plus petit jusqu’au plus grand, car on ne s’attendait pas à son retour! Ils ouvrirent la porte et accueillirent les deux femmes. Ils allumèrent un feu pour éclairer et se rassemblèrent autour d’elles.	13 And Judith, from a distance, spoke to the watchmen on the walls, “Open the gates, for God is with us, and he has acted with his power in Israel.”
14 Judith leur dit alors d’une voix forte: “Louez Dieu! Louez-le! Louez Dieu qui n’a pas été infidèle à la maison d’Israël, mais qui, cette nuit, a écrasé nos ennemis par ma main!”	14 And it happened that, when the men had heard her voice, they called the elders of the city.
15 À ces mots, elle tira la tête de son sac et la leur montra: “Voici la tête d’Holoferne, le général en chef de l’armée des Assyriens, et voici la draperie sous laquelle il gisait ivre mort. Le Seigneur l’a frappé par la main d’une femme.	15 And all rushed toward her, from the least to the greatest. For, until then, they held no hope that she would return.
16 Oui! Aussi vrai que le Seigneur est vivant, lui qui m’a gardé sur le chemin où j’ai marché, mon visage l’a séduit pour sa perte, mais il ne m’a ni souillée, ni déshonorée par le péché.”	16 And, enflaming the lights, they gathered all around her. But she climbed up to a higher place, and she ordered them to be made silent. And when all had quieted down,
17 Tout le monde était saisi de stupeur, on se prosternait, on adorait Dieu et tous ensemble disaient: “Béni sois-tu ô notre Dieu, toi qui en ce jour as réduit à rien les ennemis de ton peuple!”	17 Judith said: “Praise the Lord our God, who has not abandoned those who hope in him.
18 Osias lui dit: “Tu es bénie, ma fille, par le Dieu Très-Haut, plus que toutes les femmes de la terre! Béni soit le Seigneur Dieu, Créateur du ciel et de la terre, qui a fait réussir ton projet: tu as donc tranché la tête du chef de nos ennemis!	18 And by me, his handmaid, he has fulfilled his mercy, which he promised to the house of Israel. And he has killed the enemy of his people, by my hand this night.”
19 “Désormais tous ceux qui voudront rappeler les exploits de Dieu auront présente à l’esprit ton espérance.	19 Then, taking the head of Holofernes from the bag, she displayed it to them, saying: “Behold, the head of Holofernes the leader of the military of the Assyrians, and behold his canopy, under which he reclined in his drunkenness, where the Lord our God struck him by the hand of a woman.
20 “Que Dieu te comble d’honneurs et de toutes sortes de biens, car tu as su risquer ta propre vie pour notre race humiliée, tu nous as sauvé de la ruine en faisant de ton mieux les œuvres de notre Dieu.” Tout le peuple répondit: “Amen! Amen!”	20 But, as the Lord himself lives, his angel has been my guardian both from my departure, and while staying there, and when returning from there. And the Lord has not permitted me, his handmaid, to be defiled, but he has called me back to you without the pollution of sin, rejoicing in his victory, in my escape, and in your liberation.
	21 Confess everything to him, for he is good, for his mercy is with every generation.”
	22 Then everyone adored the Lord, and they said to her, “The Lord has blessed you by his power, because, through you, he has reduced our enemies to nothing.”
	23 Furthermore, Uzziah, the leader of the people of Israel, said to her: “O daughter, you have been blessed by the Lord, the most high God, above all the women on earth.
	24 Blessed is the Lord, who made heaven and earth, who has guided you in harming the head of the leader of our enemies.
	25 For he has so magnified your name this day, that your praise will not retire from the mouth of men, who will be mindful of the power of the Lord forever, because you have risked your life for the sake of the distress and tribulation of your people, and you have prevented our ruin before the sight of our God.”
	26 And all the people said: “Amen. Amen.”
	27 And so, Achior was called, and he drew near, and Judith said to him: “The God of Israel, to whom you gave testimony, has avenged himself on his enemies. He has cut down the head of all unbelievers, by my hand this night.
	28 And, so that you may determine that this is so, behold, the head of Holofernes, who, in the contempt of his pride, despised the God of Israel and threatened Israel with ruin, saying, ‘When the people of Israel have been captured, I will instruct your sides to be pierced through with a sword.’ ”
	29 Then Achior, seeing the head of Holofernes, and being distressed by fear, fell upon his face on the ground, and his soul became agitated.
	30 In truth, after this, when he had recovered his breath, he fell down before her feet, and he showed reverence for her, and he said:
	31 “Blessed are you by your God, in every tabernacle of Jacob, for in every nation that will hear of your name, the God of Israel will be magnified over you.”