< 歷代志下 20 >

1 [聯軍進襲猶大]此後,摩阿布人、阿孟人,還有一些瑪紅人前來供打約沙法特。
And it came to pass after this, that the children of Moab, and the children of 'Ammon, and with them some of the 'Ammonim, came against Jehoshaphat to battle.
2 有人來告訴約沙法特說:「由海那邊,由厄東有一支大軍前來攻擊你;他們現已到達哈匝宗塔瑪爾,即恩革狄。」
And there came some and told unto Jehoshaphat, saying, There is coming against thee a great multitude from beyond the sea, from Syria; and, behold, they are in Chazazon-thamar, which is 'En-gedi.
3 約沙法特害了怕,一面懇求上主,一面宣佈全猶大禁食。
Then became Jehoshaphat afraid, and he directed his face to seek the Lord; and he proclaimed a fast over all Judah.
4 猶大人遂集會,求上主援助;猶大各城的人也前來祈求上主。[約沙法特的禱詞]
And [the people of] Judah gathered themselves together, to ask [help] of the Lord: also out of all the cities of Judah did they come to seek the Lord.
5 約沙法特在猶大和耶路撒冷的會眾中,站在上主殿宇的新院前,
And Jehoshaphat stood forward in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court.
6 說「上主,我們祖先的天主! 你不是天上的天主嗎﹖你不是治理萬國萬民的麼﹖你手中有能力和權威,沒有誰能抵抗你。
And he said, O Lord, the God of our fathers, thou art God in the heavens, and thou rulest over all the kingdoms of the nations; and in thy hand are the power and might, and there is none that can withstand thee.
7 我們的天主! 不是你將這地方的居民,在你百姓以色列面前趕走,將這地方永遠賜給了你友人亞巴郎的後代嗎﹖
Behold, it is thou, O our God, who hast driven out the inhabitants of this land from before thy people Israel; and thou gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend to eternity.
8 他們現在住在這地方,並在這地方為你的名建造了聖殿說:
And they have dwelt therein, and have built for thee therein a sanctuary for thy name, saying,
9 如果我們遭遇了禍患,刀兵災害,或瘟疫饑饉,我們站在這殿前和你面前,在災難中向你呼籲,你必予以垂聽,施行拯救,因為你的名在這殿內。
If there should come over us any evil, the sword, punishment, or pestilence, or famine, [then] will we stand before this house, and in thy presence, for thy name is in this house, and we will cry unto thee out of our distress, and thou wilt hear and help.
10 現在你看,阿孟人、摩阿布人以及色依爾山中的人,這些人是以色列出離埃及時,你曾禁止以色列侵犯,以色列便繞道遠離,未加消滅的人。
And now, behold, the children of 'Ammon and Moab and mount Se'ir, against whom thou wouldst not suffer Israel to come, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned aside from them, and destroyed them not: —
11 你看他們如何報復我們要來驅逐我們離開你賜予我們為基業的地方。
And behold, they recompense us, by coming to drive us out of thy inheritance, which thou hast given us to possess.
12 我們的天主,你不懲罰他們麼﹖我們實在沒有力量抵抗來攻擊我們的這支龐大的軍隊,我們也不知道該作什麼,我們的眼睛惟有仰望你。」
O our God, wilt thou not execute justice on them? for there is no power in us against this great multitude that is coming against us; and we indeed know not what we are to do: but upon thee are our eyes [directed].
13 當時全猶大民眾,連他們全家妻子兒女,都立在上主面前。[先知預報勝利]
And all Judah were standing before the Lord, also their little ones, their wives, and their sons.
14 上主的神在會眾中臨於肋未人阿撒夫的後裔,瑪塔尼雅的玄孫,耶依耳的曾孫,貝納雅的孫子,則加黎雅的兒子雅哈齊耳身上,
And upon Jachaziel the son of Zecharyahu, the son of Benayah, the son of Je'iel, the son of Matthanyah, the Levite, of the sons of Assaph, came the spirit of the Lord in the midst of the assembly;
15 他遂說:「全猶大人耶路撒冷的居民以及約沙法特王,都要靜聽! 上主這樣對你們說:你們不要為這支龐大軍隊害怕,因為戰爭不在乎你們,而在乎天主。
And he said, Listen ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus hath said the Lord unto you, Be ye not afraid and be not dismayed because of this great multitude; for not unto you belongeth the battle, but unto God.
16 明天你們要下去迎敵,他們要由漆茲山坡上來,你們要在耶魯耳曠野前的谷口遇到他們。
Tomorrow go ye down against them behold, they come up by the ascent of Ziz; and ye will find them at the end of the valley, in front of the wilderness of Jeruel.
17 這次你們無須交戰,只須佈陣以待,觀看上主為你們所行的救援。猶大和耶路撒冷,不必畏懼,不必害怕! 明天你們只管出去迎敵,因為上主與你們同在。」
Ye shall not need to fight in this place: stand firmly, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, and be not dismayed; tomorrow go out to meet them, and the Lord will be with you.
18 約沙法特遂俯首至地,猶大民眾和耶路撒冷居民也都俯伏在上主面前,朝拜上主。
And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground: and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, to prostrate themselves unto the Lord.
19 刻哈特子孫和科辣黑子孫中的肋未人起立,引吭高歌,讚頌上主以色列的天主。[凱旋歸來]
And then arose the Levites, of the children of the Kehathites, and of the children of the Korehites, to praise the Lord the God of Israel with a very loud voice.
20 次日,他們一早就起來,開往特科亞曠野;在出發時,約沙法特立起來說:「猶大和耶路撒冷的居民,請聽我的話! 你們信賴上主你們的天主,必保生命;相信他的先知,必定勝利。」
And they rose up early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Thekoa': and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood forward and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; believe in the Lord your God, and ye will have permanence; believe his prophets, and ye will prosper.
21 他與百姓商定之後,便派歌詠人員讚頌上主,身穿聖潔服裝,走在軍隊面前,歌頌說:「你們應讚頌上主,因為他的慈愛永遠常存! 」
And he consulted with his people, and he appointed singers unto the Lord, and those that should praise in the holy ornaments, as they went out before the armed array, and said, Give thanks unto the Lord; for unto everlasting endureth his kindness.
22 他們正歌詠讚美時,上主派出伏兵,襲擊了那些來攻擊猶大的阿孟人、摩阿布人和色依爾山地的居民;他們便被擊敗了。
And at the time when they began with the song and the praise, the Lord set an ambush against the children of 'Ammon, Moab, and mount Se'ir, who were come against Judah, and they were smitten.
23 阿孟人和摩阿布人起來攻擊色依爾山地的居民,決心將他們殺盡滅絕;殲滅了色依爾山地居民以後,他們又自相殘殺。
And the children of 'Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Se'ir, utterly to annihilate and to destroy them; and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Se'ir, they helped to destroy one another.
24 猶大人到了俯瞰曠野的高崗上,觀望大軍,見伏屍遍野,沒有一個逃脫的。
And when Judah came toward the watchtower in the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none had escaped.
25 約沙法特遂帶他的軍民去掠奪敵人的財物,見有大批的牲畜、財物、衣服和寶物;足足掠取了三天,奪得的財物多得不能攜帶,因為實在太多。
And then came Jehoshaphat and his people to plunder their booty, and they found among them in abundance both riches and dead bodies, and costly vessels, which they stript off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in plundering the booty, for it was so much.
26 第四天,他們聚集在巴辣加谷,在那裏讚頌了上主,為此給那地起名叫巴辣加谷,直到今天。
And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah; for there they blessed the Lord: therefore did they call the name of this place, The valley of Berachah [[Blessing]], until this day.
27 此後,猶大和耶路撒冷所有的軍民,由約沙法特率領,凱旋回了耶路撒冷,因為上主使他們戰勝仇敵,因而異常歡樂,
Then returned all the men of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat at their head, to return to Jerusalem with joy; for the Lord had caused them to rejoice over their enemies.
28 都彈著琴,鼓著瑟,吹著號,來到耶路撒冷,進了上主的殿。
And they came to Jerusalem with psalteries and with harps and with trumpets unto the house of the Lord.
29 列國的民族一聽說上主擊敗了以色列的敵人,都對天主起了恐怖的心。
And a dread from God was on all the kingdoms of [those] countries, when they heard that the Lord had fought with the enemies of Israel.
30 約沙法特的王國於是獲享太平,因為上主賜給他四境平安。[對約沙法特的短評]
So the kingdom of Jehoshaphat had repose, and his God gave him rest all round about.
31 約沙法特為猶大王,即位時年三十五歲,在耶路撒冷為王凡二十五年;他的母親名叫阿組巴,是史肋希的女兒。
And [so] did Jehoshaphat reign over Judah; thirty and five years old was he when he became king, and twenty and five years did he reign in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was 'Azubah the daughter of Shilchi.
32 約沙法特走了他父親阿撒的道路,未偏左右,行了上主視為正義的事;
And he walked in the way of his father Assa, and turned not aside from it, doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord.
33 只是丘壇沒有剷除,人民仍沒有全心全意歸向他們祖先的天主。
Nevertheless the high-places were not removed; for the people had not yet directed their heart firmly unto the God of their fathers.
34 約沙法特前後其餘的事蹟,都記載在哈納尼之子耶胡的言行錄上這言行錄收集在以色列列王實錄內。[船遭破毀]
And the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, the first and the last, behold, they are written in the history of Jehu the son of Chanani, which was entered into the book of the kings of Israel.
35 此後,猶大王約沙法特與作惡多端的以色列王阿哈齊雅聯盟,
And after this did Jehoshaphat the king of Judah connect himself with Achazyah the king of Israel, the same who acted very wickedly;
36 合夥製造船隻,開往塔爾史士去;他們合力在厄茲雍革貝爾製造了一些船。
And he connected himself with him to make ships to go to Tharshish: and they made ships in 'Ezyon-geber.
37 瑪勒沙人多達瓦的兒子厄里厄則爾講預言攻擊約沙法特說:「因為你與阿哈齊雅聯盟,上主必要破壞你所造的船隻。」後來那些船隻果然遭受破壞,未能開往塔爾史士。
Then prophesied Eli'ezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because thou hast connected thyself with Achazyahu, the Lord hath broken down thy works. And the ships were wrecked, so that they were not able to go to Tharshish.

< 歷代志下 20 >