Joshua 1 At that time Joshua summoned the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh 那时若苏厄将勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派的人召来, 2 and said to them:"You have done all that Moses, the servant of the LORD, commanded you, and have obeyed every command I gave you. 对他们说:"上主的仆人梅瑟吩咐你们的一切,你们都遵守了,在我吩咐你们的一切事上,你们也都听从了我的话。 3 For many years now you have not once abandoned your kinsmen, but have faithfully carried out the commands of the LORD, your God. 这许多日子,你们从来没有离开你们的弟兄,直到今天,忠信遵守了上主你们天主的命令。 4 Since, therefore, the LORD, your God, has settled your kinsmen as he promised them, you may now return to your tents beyond the 现在上主我们的天主,照衪所应许的,使你们的弟兄获得了安居,你们现在可返回自己的帐幕,回到上主的仆人梅瑟在约但河东,赐给你们为产业的地方去, 5 But be very careful to observe the precept and law which Moses, the servant of the LORD, enjoined upon you: love the LORD, your God; follow him faithfully; keep his commandments; remain loyal to him; and serve him with your whole heart and soul." 只要你们谨慎遵守上主的仆人梅瑟吩咐你们的诫命和法律:爱慕上主你们的天主,遵行衪的一切道路,谨守衪的诫命,全心全灵归属上主,服事上主。" 6 Joshua then blessed them and sent them away to their own tents. 若苏厄于是祝福了他们,打发他们回去;他们就返回了自己的帐幕。—— 7 (For, to half the tribe of Manasseh Moses had assigned land in Bashan; and to the other half Joshua had given a portion along with their kinsmen west of the Jordan.) What Joshua said to them when he sent them off to their tents with his blessing was, 梅瑟在巴商已分给了默纳协半支派土地。至于另半个支派,若苏厄在约但河西,在他们的弟兄中,也分给了他们土地,──此外,当若苏厄打发他们回帐幕的时候,祝福了他们, 8 "Now that you are returning to your own tents with great wealth, with very numerous livestock, with silver, gold, bronze and iron, and with a very large supply of clothing, divide these spoils of your enemies with your kinsmen there." 向他们说:"现在你们带着这许多财物、牛、羊、金银、铜铁,和大批衣服回到自己的帐幕,也要将你们由敌人夺得的财物,分给你们的弟兄!" 9 So the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh left the other Israelites at Shiloh in the 勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派的人,于是从客纳罕地的史罗起身,离开以色列人,回到自己得为产业的基肋阿得,即上主借梅瑟吩咐给他们作为产业的地方。 10 When the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh came to the region of the 当勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派的人,来到属客纳罕地的约但河附近地区时,在约但河边筑了一座祭坛,一座高大可观的祭坛。 11 1 The other Israelites heard the report that the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had built an altar in the region of the Jordan facing the land of Canaan, across from them, 以色列人听见说:"看,勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派的人,在属客纳罕地的约但河附近地区,以色列子民境内,筑了一座祭坛。" 12 2 and therefore they assembled their whole community at 以色列子民一听说这事,全会众便聚集在史罗,要去作战攻打他们。 13 First, however, they sent to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the 以色列子民便委派厄肋阿匝尔的儿子丕乃哈斯司祭,到基肋阿得地方去见勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派人, 14 and ten princes, one from every tribe of 和他同去的尚有十位首领,每支派一个,他们都是以色列各家族的族长。 15 When these came to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the 他们来到基肋阿得地方,见勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派人,向他们说: 16 "The whole community of the LORD sends this message: What act of treachery is this you have committed against the God of Israel? You have seceded from the LORD this day, and rebelled against him by building an altar of your own! "上主的全会众这样说:你们相反以色列的天主,犯这不忠信的罪,有什么意思?为什么你们今天离开上主,另建立祭坛,公开背叛上主? 17 For the sin of Peor, a plague came upon the community of the LORD. 以前敬拜培敖尔的罪过为我们还不够吗?为了那个罪过,灾祸降于上主的会众,直到今天,我们还没洗净。 18 We are still not free of that; must you now add to it? You are rebelling against the LORD today and by tomorrow he will be angry with the whole community of 看你们今天又要离开上主,你们今天违背上主,明天衪必向以色列全会众发怒。 19 3 If you consider the land you now possess unclean, cross over to the land the LORD possesses, where the Dwelling of the LORD stands, and share that with us. But do not rebel against the LORD, nor involve us in rebellion, by building an altar of your own in addition to the altar of the LORD, our God. 如果你们认为所得的地方不洁,可以回到上主的地方,上主帐幕的所在地,住在我们中间;决不可违背上主,激怒我们,在上主我们的天主祭坛以外,为自己另筑祭坛。 20 4 When Achan, son of Zerah, violated the ban, did not wrath fall upon the entire community of 以前则辣黑的子孙阿干,在应毁灭的财物上犯了不忠之罪,虽只他一人犯罪,忿怒岂不是临到以色列全会众?死在他罪过中的并不只他一人!" 21 The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh replied to the military leaders of the Israelites:"The LORD is the God of gods. 勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派的人,回答以色列的首领说: 22 5 The LORD, the God of gods, knows and "大能者天主上主,大能者天主上主清楚知道,以色列也明白:如果我们有违背或干犯上主的事,愿衪今天别救我们! 23 and if we have built an altar of our own to secede from the LORD, or to offer holocausts, grain offerings or peace offerings upon it, the LORD himself will exact the penalty. 如果我们建筑这祭坛,有意离开上主,或有意在坛上献全燔祭、素祭或和平祭,愿上主自己惩罚我们! 24 We did it rather out of our anxious concern lest in the future your children should say to our children: 'What have you to do with the LORD, the God of Israel? 我们做这事,其实正是因为顾虑到:将来你们的子孙会对我们的子孙说:你们和上主以色列的天主有什么关系? 25 For the LORD has placed the 上主定了约但河为我们与你们勒乌本人和加得人之间的界限,你们和上主已没有分子。这样你们的子孙必使我们的子孙不再敬畏上主。 26 So we decided to guard our interests by building this altar of our own: not for holocausts or for sacrifices, 因此我们想:我们还是建筑一座祭坛,不是为献全燔祭,也不是为祭献牺牲, 27 but as evidence for you on behalf of ourselves and our descendants, that we have the right to worship the LORD in his presence with our holocausts, sacrifices, and peace offerings. Now in the future your children cannot say to our children,‘You have no share in the LORD.' 只是为在你我之间,在你我后人之间作一证据,证明我们愿在上主面前以全燔祭、牺牲及和平祭敬礼上主,免得日后你们的子孙对我们的子孙说:你们与上主已没有分子。 28 6 Our thought was, that if in the future they should speak thus to us or to our descendants, we could answer:‘Look at the model of the altar of the LORD which our fathers made, not for holocausts or for sacrifices, but to witness between you and us.' 因此我们想:日后如有人对我们或我们的子孙说,我们可以回答说:你们试看我们的祖先所筑的上主的祭坛的式样,不是为献全燔祭,也不是为献牺牲,而是为作你我之间的证据。 29 Far be it from us to rebel against the LORD or to secede now from the LORD by building an altar for holocaust, grain offering, or sacrifice in addition to the altar of the LORD, our God, which stands before his Dwelling." 我们今天决没有意思,违背上主,离开上主,在上主我们天主的帐幕前的祭坛以外,为献全燔祭、素祭和牺牲,另建立一祭坛。" 30 When Phinehas the priest and the princes of the community, the military leaders of the Israelites, heard what the Reubenites, the Gadites and the Manassehites had to say, they were satisfied. 司祭丕乃哈斯和同他来的会众的首领,即以色列人的族长,听了勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协人所说的话,都表示满意。 31 Phinehas, son of Eleazar the priest, said to the Reubenites, the Gadites and the Manassehites,"Now we know that the LORD is with us. Since you have not committed this act of treachery against the LORD, you have kept the Israelites free from punishment by the LORD." 厄肋阿匝尔的儿子丕乃哈斯司祭对勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协人说:"今天我们知道上主是在我们中间,因为你们对上主没有犯这样不忠信的罪,现在你们由上主手中救了以色列子民。" 32 Phinehas, son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes returned from the Reubenites and the Gadites in the 厄肋阿匝尔的儿子丕乃哈斯司祭和首领便离开勒乌本人、加得人和默纳协半支派的人,从基肋阿得地方回到客纳罕地见以色列子民,给他们报告了这事。 33 The report satisfied the Israelites, who blessed God and decided against declaring war on the Reubenites and Gadites or ravaging the land they occupied. 以色列子民对这报告都表示满意,遂颂扬上主,不再想作战攻打勒乌本人和加得人,毁灭他们所住的地方。 34 7 The Reubenites and the Gadites gave the altar its name as a witness among them that the LORD is God. 勒乌本人和加得人给那祭坛起名叫"赫得,"因为他们说:"这祭坛在我们中间证明上主是真天主。" Footnotes(注解) 1 [11] In the region of the 2 [12] To declare war on them: the western Israelites considered this altar, which seemed to violate the customary unity of the sanctuary (Lev 17:1-9; Deut 12:4-14), as a sign of secession and dangerous to national unity. The motives for the war were political as well as religious. 3 [19] Unclean: not sanctified by the Dwelling of the Lord. 4 [20] Achan . . . did not perish alone: his guilt caused the failure of the first attack on Ai (Joshua 7:4-23); this fact is adduced as an argument for the solidarity and mutual responsibility of all the Israelites. 5 [22] The LORD, the God of gods: the Hebrew, which cannot be adequately rendered in English here, adds to the divine name Yahweh ("the LORD") two synonymous words for"God," el and elohim. The repetition of these three sacred words adds force to the protestations of fidelity and innocence. 6 [28] To witness: far from being destined to form a rival sanctuary, the model of the altar was intended by the eastern tribes solely as a means of teaching their children to be faithful to the one true sanctuary beyond the 7 [34] The name of this altar was the Hebrew word for"witness,""ed. |