撒母耳記上 5
1 培肋舍特人劫走了天主的約櫃，從厄本厄則爾運到阿市多得，
After the Philistines captured the Ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.
2 把天主的約櫃抬到達貢廟內，放在達貢近旁。
They brought the Ark of God into the Temple of Dagon and placed it next to Dagon.
3 第二天清早，阿市多得人起來，見達貢傾倒了，在上主的約櫃面前，俯伏在地；他們把達貢豎起安置在原處。
When the people of Ashdod got up early the next day, they saw Dagon had fallen on his face in front of the Ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set him back up.
4 但第二天清早人們起來，見達貢又傾倒了，仍在上主的約櫃面前，俯伏在地，達貢的頭和雙手都斷在門檻上，只留下了他的魚身。──
When they got up early the next morning, they saw Dagon had fallen on his face in front of the Ark of the Lord, with his head and hands broken off lying on the doorstep. Only his body remained intact.
5 因此，達貢的司祭和進達貢廟的人，都不敢踏阿市多得的廟的門檻，直到今天。
(That's why the priests of Dagon, and all who enter the temple of Dagon in Ashdod, don't tread on the doorstep, even up to now.)
6 上主的手重重地壓制了阿市多得人，威嚇他們，使阿市多得和附近的人都生了毒瘡。
The Lord punished the people of Ashdod and its surrounding area, devastating them and plaguing them with swellings.
7 阿市多得人一見這樣，就說：「別讓以色列天主的約櫃留在我們這裏，因他的手重重地壓制了我們的神達貢。」
When the people of Ashdod saw what was going on, they said, “We can't let the Ark of the God of Israel remain here with us, because he is punishing us and Dagon our god.”
8 遂打發人召集了培肋舍特人所有的酋長來到他們那裏，向他們說：「對以色列天主的約櫃我們該怎麼辦﹖」他們就回答說：「把以色列天主的約櫃送到加特去! 」他們遂把以色列天主的約櫃送到加特去了。
So they sent for all the Philistine rulers and asked them, “What should we do with the Ark of the God of Israel?” “Take the Ark of the God of Israel to Gath,” they replied. So they moved it to Gath.
9 他們把約櫃送去以後，上主的手又壓制那座城，使他們發生了很大的恐慌，因為上主打擊了城中的人，無論老幼，都患了毒瘡。
But once they'd moved the Ark to Gath, the Lord also took action against that town, throwing it into great confusion and attacking the people of the town, young and old, with a plague of swellings.
10 於是加特人又把天主的約櫃送到厄刻龍；天主的約櫃一到了厄刻龍，厄刻龍人就喊說：「人把以色列天主的約櫃送到我們這裏，是為殺害我們和我們的百姓! 」
So they sent the Ark of God to Ekron, but as soon as it arrived, the leaders of Ekron shouted, “They've moved the Ark of the God of Israel here to kill us and our people!”
11 遂立刻派人召集培肋舍特所有的酋長來，向他們說，「你們把以色列天主的約櫃送走，送回原處，免得殺害我們和我們的百姓。」因為全城的人死的太多了，天主的手重重地壓制了那地方。
So they sent for all the Philistine rulers and said, “Send the Ark of the God of Israel away, back to where it came from, otherwise it's going to kill us and our people.” People were dying throughout the town, creating terrible panic, for God's punishment was very hard.
12 凡沒有死的人，都患了毒瘡，因此城中哀號之聲，上達於天。
Those who didn't die were plagued with swellings, and the cry for help from the town reached up to heaven.
