1 Orgueil des hauteurs, firmament de clarté, tel apparaît le ciel dans son spectacle de gloire. | 1 The firmament on high is his beauty; it is the beauty of heaven in a vision of glory. |
2 Le soleil, en se montrant, proclame dès son lever: "Quelle merveille que l'oeuvre du Très-Haut!" | 2 The sun, at its appearance, announces its journey; it is an instrument of wonder, a work of the Most High. |
3 A son midi il dessèche la terre, qui peut résister à son ardeur? | 3 At midday, it scorches the earth. And in the presence of its heat, who would be able to endure? It is like the custodian of a furnace in its works of heat. |
4 On attise la fournaise pour produire la chaleur, le soleil brûle trois fois plus les montagnes;exhalant des vapeurs brûlantes, dardant ses rayons, il éblouit les yeux. | 4 In three ways, the sun acts: scorching the mountains, emitting fiery rays, and shining with its beams that can blind the eyes. |
5 Il est grand, le Seigneur qui l'a créé et dont la parole dirige sa course rapide. | 5 Great is the Lord who made it, and at his word, it hurries on its journey. |
6 La lune aussi, toujours exacte à marquer les temps, signe éternel. | 6 And the moon, in all its phases, serves to mark the seasons and to be a sign of the times. |
7 C'est la lune qui marque les fêtes, cet astre qui décroît, après son plein. | 7 From the moon is the sign of a feast day; it is a light which diminishes at its consummation. |
8 C'est d'elle que le mois tire son nom; elle croît étonnamment en sa révolution, enseigne desarmées célestes, brillant au firmament du ciel. | 8 A month is named according to its phases, increasing wonderfully at its culmination. |
9 La gloire des astres fait la beauté du ciel; ils ornent brillamment les hauteurs du Seigneur. | 9 It is an instrument of the armies on high, shining gloriously in the firmament of heaven. |
10 Sur la parole du Saint ils se tiennent selon son ordre et ne relâchent pas leur faction. | 10 The glory of the stars is the beauty of heaven; the Lord illuminates the world from on high. |
11 Vois l'arc-en-ciel et bénis son auteur, il est magnifique dans sa splendeur. | 11 At the words of the Holy One, they stand for judgment, and they will never fail in their vigilance. |
12 Il forme dans le ciel un cercle de gloire, les mains du Très-Haut l'ont tendu. | 12 Consider the rainbow, and bless the One who made it; it is very beautiful in its splendor. |
13 Par son ordre il fait tomber la neige, il lance les éclairs selon ses décrets. | 13 It encompasses the heavens with the circle of its glory; the hands of the Most High made it appear. |
14 C'est ainsi que s'ouvrent ses réserves et que s'envolent les nuages comme des oiseaux. | 14 By his order, he hastens the snow, and he spurs on the lightning to express his judgment. |
15 Sa puissance épaissit les nuages, qui se pulvérisent en grêlons; | 15 In like manner, his storehouses are opened, and the clouds fly out like birds. |
16 à sa vue les montagnes sont ébranlées; à sa volonté souffle le vent du sud, | 16 By his greatness, he has positioned the clouds, and the hailstones have been broken. |
17 à la voix de son tonnerre la terre entre en travail; comme l'ouragan du nord et les cyclones. | 17 At his glance, the mountains will be shaken, and by his will, the south wind will blow. |
18 Comme des oiseaux qui se posent il fait descendre la neige, elle s'abat comme dessauterelles. L'oeil s'émerveille devant l'éclat de sa blancheur et l'esprit s'étonne de la voir tomber. | 18 The voice of his thunder will reverberate through the earth, by a storm from the north, and by a gathering of the whirlwind. |
19 Il déverse encore sur la terre, comme du sel, le givre que le gel change en pointes d'épines. | 19 And like the birds landing in a flock upon the earth, he sends down the snow; and its descent is like the arrival of a swarm of locusts. |
20 Le vent froid du nord souffle, la glace se forme sur l'eau; elle se pose sur toute eaudormante, la revêt comme une cuirasse. | 20 The eye is in wonder at the beauty of its whiteness, and the heart is astonished at its falling. |
21 Il dévore les montagnes et brûle le désert, il consume la verdure comme un feu. | 21 He will pour out frost like salt upon the earth. And when it freezes, it will become like the tops of thistles. |
22 Le nuage est un prompt remède, la rosée, après la canicule, rend la joie. | 22 The cold north wind blows, and the water freezes into crystals; it will rest upon every gathering of water, and it will clothe the water like a breastplate. |
23 Selon un plan il a dompté l'abîme et il y a planté les îles. | 23 And it will devour the mountains, and burn the wilderness, and extinguish the greenery, like a fire. |
24 Ceux qui parcourent la mer en content les dangers; leurs récits nous remplissentd'étonnement: | 24 Relief for all is in the hurried arrival of a cloud. And the lowly dew will arrive to meet the heat and overpower it. |
25 ce ne sont qu'aventures étranges et merveilleuses, animaux de toutes sortes et monstresmarins. | 25 At his word, the wind grows quiet, and by his thought, he appeases the abyss, for the Lord has planted islands in it. |
26 Grâce à Dieu son messager arrive à bon port, et tout s'arrange selon sa parole. | 26 Let those who navigate the sea describe its perils. And when we have heard it with our ears, we will wonder. |
27 Nous pourrions nous étendre sans épuiser le sujet; en un mot: "Il est toutes choses." | 27 There are illustrious and wondrous works: the various kinds of wild animals, and all manner of cattle, and the great creatures of the sea. |
28 Où trouver la force de le glorifier? Car il est le Grand, au-dessus de toutes ses oeuvres, | 28 Through him, the end of their journey is confirmed, and by his word, all things fit together. |
29 Seigneur redoutable et souverainement grand, dont la puissance est admirable. | 29 We can say much, and yet still lack for words. But the consummation of our words is this: He is in all things. |
30 Que vos louanges exaltent le Seigneur, selon votre pouvoir, car il vous dépasse. Pourl'exalter déployez vos forces, ne vous lassez pas, car vous n'en finirez pas. | 30 What would we be able to do to glorify him? For the Almighty himself is above all his own works. |
31 Qui l'a vu et pourrait en rendre compte? Qui peut le glorifier comme il le mérite? | 31 The Lord is terrible, and exceedingly great, and his power is wonderful. |
32 Il reste beaucoup de mystères plus grands que ceux-là, car nous n'avons vu qu'un petitnombre de ses oeuvres. | 32 Glorify the Lord as much as you are able, yet still he will far exceed this. For his magnificence is beyond wonder. |
33 Car c'est le Seigneur qui a tout créé, et aux hommes pieux il a donné la sagesse. | 33 Bless the Lord and exalt him, as much as you are able. But he is beyond all praise. |
| 34 When you exalt him, use all your ability, and do not cease in this labor. For you can never comprehend him. |
| 35 Who will see him and explain? And who will magnify him, as he is from the beginning? |
| 36 There are many things, hidden from us, which are greater than these things. For we have seen but a few of his works. |
| 37 But the Lord has made all things, and he has given wisdom to those who act with piety. |