← The Confessions of St. Augustine

The Confessions of St. Augustine — Page 1

English → Fr BOOK I Level 9/10

Great art Thou, O Lord, and greatly to be praised; great is Thy power, and Thy wisdom infinite.

Tu es grand, Seigneur, et très digne de louanges ; grande est Ta puissance, et infinie Ta sagesse.

And Thee would man praise; man, but a particle of Thy creation; man, that bears about him his mortality, the witness of his sin, the witness that Thou resistest the proud: yet would man praise Thee; he, but a particle of Thy creation.

Et l'homme voudrait Te louer ; l'homme, qui n'est qu'une parcelle de Ta création ; l'homme, qui porte en lui sa mortalité, le témoignage de son péché, le témoignage que Tu résistes aux orgueilleux : et pourtant l'homme voudrait Te louer ; lui, qui n'est qu'une parcelle de Ta création.

Thou awakest us to delight in Thy praise; for Thou madest us for Thyself, and our heart is restless, until it repose in Thee.

Tu nous éveilles à prendre plaisir à Te louer ; car Tu nous as faits pour Toi-même, et notre cœur est sans repos, jusqu'à ce qu'il se repose en Toi.

Grant me, Lord, to know and understand which is first, to call on Thee or to praise Thee? and, again, to know Thee or to call on Thee?

Accorde-moi, Seigneur, de savoir et de comprendre lequel est premier, de T'invoquer ou de Te louer ? et, de même, de Te connaître ou de T'invoquer ?

for who can call on Thee, not knowing Thee? for he that knoweth Thee not, may call on Thee as other than Thou art.

car qui peut T'invoquer sans Te connaître ? car celui qui ne Te connaît pas peut T'invoquer comme si Tu étais autre que Tu n'es.

Or, is it rather, that we call on Thee that we may know Thee? but how shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? or how shall they believe without a preacher?

Ou bien est-ce plutôt que nous T'invoquons afin de Te connaître ? mais comment invoqueront-ils Celui en qui ils n'ont pas cru ? ou comment croiront-ils sans prédicateur ?

and they that seek the Lord shall praise Him: for they that seek shall find Him, and they that find shall praise Him.

et ceux qui cherchent le Seigneur Le loueront : car ceux qui cherchent Le trouveront, et ceux qui Le trouvent Le loueront.

I will seek Thee, Lord, by calling on Thee; and will call on Thee, believing in Thee; for to us hast Thou been preached.

Je Te chercherai, Seigneur, en T'invoquant ; et je T'invoquerai en croyant en Toi ; car Tu nous as été annoncé.

My faith, Lord, shall call on Thee, which Thou hast given me, wherewith Thou hast inspired me, through the Incarnation of Thy Son, through the ministry of the Preacher.

Ma foi, Seigneur, T'invoquera, cette foi que Tu m'as donnée, dont Tu m'as inspiré, par l'Incarnation de Ton Fils, par le ministère du Prédicateur.

Vocabulary

grand
Adjective meaning large, great, or tall
Seigneur
Title meaning Lord, used for God or nobility
digne
Adjective meaning worthy or deserving of something
louanges
Plural noun meaning praises or words of admiration
puissance
Noun meaning power, strength, or might
infinie
Adjective meaning infinite, endless, or boundless
sagesse
Noun meaning wisdom or sound judgment
homme
Noun meaning man or human being
voudrait
Conditional form of 'vouloir', meaning would want
louer
Verb meaning to praise or to rent something
parcelle
Noun meaning a small piece or portion of something
création
Noun meaning creation, the act of bringing into existence
porte
Verb form of 'porter', meaning carries or bears
mortalité
Noun meaning mortality, the condition of being subject to death
témoignage
Noun meaning testimony, witness, or evidence
péché
Noun meaning sin or transgression against moral law
résistes
Second person singular of 'résister', meaning you resist
orgueilleux
Adjective or noun meaning proud, arrogant, or haughty people
pourtant
Conjunction meaning however, yet, or nevertheless
éveilles
Second person singular of 'éveiller', meaning you awaken
prendre
Infinitive verb meaning to take or to grab
plaisir
Noun meaning pleasure, enjoyment, or delight
car
Conjunction meaning 'because' or 'for'
faits
Past participle of 'faire', meaning made or done
même
Adjective or adverb meaning 'same' or 'even'
cœur
Noun meaning heart, both physical and emotional
sans
Preposition meaning 'without'
repos
Noun meaning rest, repose, or peace
repose
Third person singular of 'reposer', meaning rests or reposes
Accorde-
Imperative of 'accorder', meaning grant or give to someone
savoir
Infinitive verb meaning to know facts or how to do something
comprendre
Infinitive verb meaning to understand or comprehend
lequel
Interrogative or relative pronoun meaning 'which one'
premier
Adjective meaning first in order or importance
invoquer
Verb meaning to invoke or call upon someone
connaître
Infinitive verb meaning to know or be acquainted with
celui
Demonstrative pronoun meaning 'the one' (masculine)
connaît
Third person singular of 'connaître', meaning knows
étais
Imperfect form of 'être', meaning 'you were' or 'I was'
autre
Adjective or pronoun meaning 'other' or 'another'
bien
Adverb meaning 'well' or conjunction phrase 'or rather'
plutôt
Adverb meaning rather, instead, or more precisely
invoquons
First person plural of 'invoquer', meaning let us invoke
afin
Conjunction used in 'afin de/que', meaning in order to
comment
Adverb meaning 'how', used in questions or exclamations
invoqueront-
Future tense inverted form of 'invoquer', meaning will invoke
Celui
Demonstrative pronoun meaning 'the one' (masculine)
cru
Past participle of 'croire', meaning believed
croiront-
Future inverted form of 'croire', meaning will they believe
prédicateur
Noun meaning preacher, one who delivers sermons
ceux
Plural demonstrative pronoun meaning 'those' or 'the ones'
cherchent
Third person plural of 'chercher', meaning they search
loueront
Future tense of 'louer', meaning they will praise
trouveront
Future tense of 'trouver', meaning they will find
trouvent
Third person plural of 'trouver', meaning they find
chercherai
First person future of 'chercher', meaning I will search
invoquant
Present participle of 'invoquer', meaning invoking
invoquerai
First person future of 'invoquer', meaning I will invoke
croyant
Present participle of 'croire', meaning believing
annoncé
Past participle of 'annoncer', meaning announced or proclaimed
foi
Noun meaning faith or belief, especially religious
invoquera
Third person future of 'invoquer', meaning will invoke
donnée
Feminine past participle of 'donner', meaning given
dont
Relative pronoun meaning 'of which', 'whose', or 'from which'
inspiré
Past participle of 'inspirer', meaning inspired or breathed into
Incarnation
Noun meaning incarnation, taking on human flesh
Fils
Noun meaning son, especially referring to Christ
ministère
Noun meaning ministry, service, or governmental department
Prédicateur
Noun meaning preacher, one who proclaims religious messages
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