尼希米记 9
1 这月二十四日,以色列人聚集禁食,身穿麻衣,头蒙灰尘。
On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and having dust on their heads.
2 以色列人(人原文作种类)就与一切外邦人离绝,站着承认自己的罪恶和列祖的罪孽。
Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the wickedness of their fathers.
3 那日的四分之一,站在自己的地方,念耶和华他们神的律法书,又四分之一认罪,敬拜耶和华他们的神。
They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the LORD their God.
4 耶书亚,巴尼,甲篾,示巴尼,布尼,示利比,巴尼,基拿尼站在利未人的台上,大声哀求耶和华他们的神。
Standing on the stairs were the Levites--Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani and Kenani--who called with loud voices to the LORD their God.
5 利未人耶书亚,甲篾,巴尼,哈沙尼,示利比,荷第雅,示巴尼,毗他希雅说,你们要站起来称颂耶和华你们的神,永世无尽。耶和华阿,你荣耀之名是应当称颂的。超乎一切称颂和赞美。
And the Levites--Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah--said: "Stand up and praise the LORD your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting." "Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise.
6 你,惟独你是耶和华。你造了天和天上的天,并天上的万象,地和地上的万物,海和海中所有的。这一切都是你所保存的。天军也都敬拜你。
You alone are the LORD. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.
7 你是耶和华神,曾拣选亚伯兰,领他出迦勒底的吾珥,给他改名叫亚伯拉罕。
"You are the LORD God, who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and named him Abraham.
8 你见他在你面前心里诚实,就与他立约。应许把迦南人,赫人,亚摩利人,比利洗人,耶布斯人,革迦撒人之地赐给他的后裔。且应验了你的话,因为你是公义的。
You found his heart faithful to you, and you made a covenant with him to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites and Girgashites. You have kept your promise because you are righteous.
9 你曾看见我们列祖在埃及所受的困苦,垂听他们在红海边的哀求。
"You saw the suffering of our forefathers in Egypt; you heard their cry at the Red Sea.
10 就施行神迹奇事在法老,和他一切臣仆,并他国中的众民身上。你也得了名声,正如今日一样,因为你知道他们向我们列祖行事狂傲。
You sent miraculous signs and wonders against Pharaoh, against all his officials and all the people of his land, for you knew how arrogantly the Egyptians treated them. You made a name for yourself, which remains to this day.
11 你又在我们列祖面前把海分开,使他们在海中行走干地,将追赶他们的人抛在深海,如石头抛在大水中。
You divided the sea before them, so that they passed through it on dry ground, but you hurled their pursuers into the depths, like a stone into mighty waters.
12 并且白昼用云柱引导他们,黑夜用火柱照亮他们当行的路。
By day you led them with a pillar of cloud, and by night with a pillar of fire to give them light on the way they were to take.
13 你也降临在西乃山,从天上与他们说话,赐给他们正直的典章,真实的律法,美好的条例与诫命。
"You came down on Mount Sinai; you spoke to them from heaven. You gave them regulations and laws that are just and right, and decrees and commands that are good.
14 又使他们知道你的安息圣日,并藉你仆人摩西传给他们诫命,条例,律法。
You made known to them your holy Sabbath and gave them commands, decrees and laws through your servant Moses.
15 从天上赐下粮食充他们的饥,从磐石使水流出解他们的渴,又吩咐他们进去得你起誓应许赐给他们的地。
In their hunger you gave them bread from heaven and in their thirst you brought them water from the rock; you told them to go in and take possession of the land you had sworn with uplifted hand to give them.
16 但我们的列祖行事狂傲,硬着颈项不听从你的诫命。
"But they, our forefathers, became arrogant and stiff-necked, and did not obey your commands.
17 不肯顺从,也不记念你在他们中间所行的奇事,竟硬着颈项,居心背逆,自立首领,要回他们为奴之地。但你是乐意饶恕人,有恩典,有怜悯,不轻易发怒,有丰盛慈爱的神,并不丢弃他们。
They refused to listen and failed to remember the miracles you performed among them. They became stiff-necked and in their rebellion appointed a leader in order to return to their slavery. But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them,
18 他们虽然铸了一只牛犊,彼此说,这是领你出埃及的神。因而大大惹动你的怒气。
even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf and said, 'This is your god, who brought you up out of Egypt,' or when they committed awful blasphemies.
19 你还是大施怜悯,在旷野不丢弃他们。白昼,云柱不离开他们,仍引导他们行路。黑夜,火柱也不离开他们,仍照亮他们当行的路。
"Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them in the desert. By day the pillar of cloud did not cease to guide them on their path, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine on the way they were to take.
20 你也赐下你良善的灵教训他们,未尝不赐吗哪使他们糊口,并赐水解他们的渴。
You gave your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold your manna from their mouths, and you gave them water for their thirst.
21 在旷野四十年,你养育他们,他们就一无所缺。衣服没有穿破,脚也没有肿。
For forty years you sustained them in the desert; they lacked nothing, their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen.
22 并且你将列国之地照分赐给他们,他们就得了西宏之地,希实本王之地,和巴珊王噩之地。
"You gave them kingdoms and nations, allotting to them even the remotest frontiers. They took over the country of Sihon king of Heshbon and the country of Og king of Bashan.
23 你也使他们的子孙多如天上的星,带他们到你所应许他们列祖进入得为业之地。
You made their sons as numerous as the stars in the sky, and you brought them into the land that you told their fathers to enter and possess.
24 这样,他们进去得了那地,你在他们面前制伏那地的居民,就是迦南人。将迦南人和其君王,并那地的居民,都交在他们手里,让他们任意而待。
Their sons went in and took possession of the land. You subdued before them the Canaanites, who lived in the land; you handed the Canaanites over to them, along with their kings and the peoples of the land, to deal with them as they pleased.
25 他们得了坚固的城邑,肥美的地土,充满各样美物的房屋,凿成的水井,葡萄园,橄榄园,并许多果木树。他们就吃而得饱,身体肥胖,因你的大恩,心中快乐。
They captured fortified cities and fertile land; they took possession of houses filled with all kinds of good things, wells already dug, vineyards, olive groves and fruit trees in abundance. They ate to the full and were well-nourished; they reveled in your great goodness.
26 然而,他们不顺从,竟背叛你,将你的律法丢在背后,杀害那劝他们归向你的众先知,大大惹动你的怒气。
"But they were disobedient and rebelled against you; they put your law behind their backs. They killed your prophets, who had admonished them in order to turn them back to you; they committed awful blasphemies.
27 所以你将他们交在敌人的手中,磨难他们。他们遭难的时候哀求你,你就从天上垂听,照你的大怜悯赐给他们拯救者,救他们脱离敌人的手。
So you handed them over to their enemies, who oppressed them. But when they were oppressed they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion you gave them deliverers, who rescued them from the hand of their enemies.
28 但他们得平安之后,又在你面前行恶,所以你丢弃他们在仇敌的手中,使仇敌辖制他们。然而他们转回哀求你,你仍从天上垂听,屡次照你的怜悯拯救他们。
"But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight. Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time.
29 又警戒他们,要使他们归服你的律法。他们却行事狂傲,不听从你的诫命,干犯你的典章(人若遵行就必因此活着),扭转肩头,硬着颈项,不肯听从。
"You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, by which a man will live if he obeys them. Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen.
30 但你多年宽容他们,又用你的灵藉众先知劝戒他们,他们仍不听从,所以你将他们交在列国之民的手中。
For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you admonished them through your prophets. Yet they paid no attention, so you handed them over to the neighboring peoples.
31 然而你大发怜悯,不全然灭绝他们,也不丢弃他们。因为你是有恩典,有怜悯的神。
But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.
32 我们的神阿,你是至大,至能,至可畏,守约施慈爱的神。我们的君王,首领,祭司,先知,列祖,和你的众民。从亚述列王的时候直到今日所遭遇的苦难,现在求你不要以为小。
"Now therefore, O our God, the great, mighty and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes--the hardship that has come upon us, upon our kings and leaders, upon our priests and prophets, upon our fathers and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today.
33 在一切临到我们的事上,你却是公义的。因你所行的是诚实,我们所做的是邪恶。
In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong.
34 我们的君王,首领,祭司,列祖都不遵守你的律法。不听从你的诫命和你警戒他们的话。
Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the warnings you gave them.
35 他们在本国里沾你大恩的时候,在你所赐给他们这广大肥美之地上不事奉你,也不转离他们的恶行。
Even while they were in their kingdom, enjoying your great goodness to them in the spacious and fertile land you gave them, they did not serve you or turn from their evil ways.
36 我们现今作了奴仆。至于你所赐给我们列祖享受其上的土产,并美物之地,看哪,我们在这地上作了奴仆。
"But see, we are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our forefathers so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces.
37 这地许多出产归了列王,就是你因我们的罪所派辖制我们的。他们任意辖制我们的身体和牲畜,我们遭了大难。
Because of our sins, its abundant harvest goes to the kings you have placed over us. They rule over our bodies and our cattle as they please. We are in great distress.
38 因这一切的事,我们立确实的约,写在册上。我们的首领,利未人,和祭司都签了名。
"In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their seals to it."