尼希米記 9
1 同月二十四日，以色列子民都聚集起來，守齋禁食，穿粗毛衣，頭上頂著灰土。
And on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.
2 以色列的苗裔，同一切外方人的子孫分開之後，便站起來，坦白承認自己的罪過。和祖先的罪惡。
And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all foreigners, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.
3 他們各站在自己的地方，三小時之久，誦讀他們天主的法律書；又三小時之久，承認了自己的罪過，跪拜了上主，他們的天主。
And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of Jehovah their God a fourth part of the day; and a fourth part they confessed, and worshipped Jehovah their God.
4 肋未人耶叔亞、彼奴依、卡德米耳、舍巴尼雅、步尼、舍勒彼雅、巴尼、和革納尼，站在高處，大聲呼號上主，他們的天主。
Then stood up upon the platform of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, Chenani, and cried with a loud voice to Jehovah their God.
5 隨後肋未人耶叔亞、卡德米耳、巴尼、哈沙彼雅、曷狄雅、舍巴尼雅、培塔希雅說道：「起來! 你們應讚頌上主我們的天主，從永遠直到永遠! 」眾人便讚頌他光榮的聖名，因此名遠超一切稱頌和讚美。
And the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, Pethahiah, said, Stand up, bless Jehovah your God from eternity to eternity. And let [men] bless the name of thy glory, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.
6 厄斯德拉祈禱說：「唯獨你是上主，是你創造了天，天上的天，和天上的一切軍旅，地和地上的一切，海和海中的一切，是你使一切生存；天上的軍旅常在你前跪拜。
Thou art the Same, thou alone, Jehovah, who hast made the heaven of heavens, and all their host, the earth and all that is therein, the seas and all that is therein. And thou quickenest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.
7 上主，你就是那揀選亞巴郎，領他離開加色丁烏爾，給他起名叫阿貝辣罕的天主。
Thou art the Same, Jehovah Elohim, who didst choose Abram and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham;
8 你見他的心對你忠實，就與他立約，把客納罕人、赫特人、阿摩黎人、培黎齊人、耶步斯人和基爾加士人的土地，賜給了他的後裔；你履行了你的諾言，因為你是正義的。
and foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest the covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, — to give it to his seed; and thou hast performed thy words, for thou art righteous.
9 你垂顧了我們祖先在埃及的困苦，俯聽了他們在紅海旁的呼聲，
And thou sawest the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red Sea;
10 遂對法郎和他所有的臣僕，以及他國內所有的民眾，行了奇蹟異能，因為你知道，他們怎樣任性傲慢地，對待了我們的祖先，因而你獲得了大名，直至今日。
and didst shew signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and upon all his servants, and upon all the people of his land; for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them, and thou didst make thee a name, as it is this day.
11 你在我們祖先面前，分開了海，使他們在海中乾地路過，卻把追趕他們的人，拋入深淵，有如把一塊石頭拋入怒潮。
And thou didst divide the sea before them, and they went through the midst of the sea on dry [ground]; and their pursuers thou threwest into the depths, as a stone into the mighty waters.
12 日間你用雲柱領導，夜間你用火柱光照他們所走的路。
And thou leddest them in the day by a pillar of cloud, and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.
13 你降臨西乃山上，從天上向他們施救，賜給了他們公正的條例、真理的法律、美好的規矩及誡命；
And thou camest down on mount Sinai, and didst speak with them from the heavens, and gavest them right judgments and true laws, good statutes and commandments.
14 你令他們知道，你神聖的安息日，藉著你的僕人梅瑟，向他們頒佈了規矩、誡命和法律。
And thou madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and prescribedst for them commandments and statutes and a law, through Moses thy servant.
15 你從天上賜下食物，給他們充飢；使岩石中流出清泉，給他們解渴；命令他們去佔領，。你曾舉手誓許賜與他們的土地。
And thou gavest them bread from the heavens for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and didst say to them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.
16 但是他們，我們的祖先，任性妄為，硬著脖子，不肯聽從你的命令。
But they, our fathers, dealt proudly, and hardened their neck, and hearkened not to thy commandments,
17 他們拒絕聽命，忘卻了你在他們中間所行的奇蹟，硬著脖子，立了首領，要回到埃及去當奴隸。但你是寬大為懷，仁愛慈悲，緩於忿怒，富於慈愛的天主，並未拋棄他們；
and refused to obey, neither were they mindful of thy wonders which thou hadst done among them; but hardened their neck, and in their rebellion made a captain to return to their bondage. But thou art a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great loving-kindness, and thou forsookest them not.
18 甚至連他們鑄了一個牛犢說：「這是領你出埃及的天主! 」犯了褻瀆的大罪時，
Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy god that brought thee up out of Egypt! and they had wrought great provocation,
19 你因你無限的仁慈，也沒有將他們拋棄在曠野中；日間在路上領導他們的雲柱，夜間為他們光照道路的火柱，仍沒有離開他們。
yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness. The pillar of the cloud departed not from over them by day, to lead them on the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way wherein they should go.
20 你賜下你溫和的風，使他們甦醒，並沒有將「瑪納」扣住，不給他們充飢，仍賜下了水為他們解渴。
Thou gavest also thy good Spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst.
21 四十年之久，你在曠野照顧他們，使他們一無所缺；他們的衣服沒有穿破，他們的腳也沒有腫脹。
Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing; their clothes grew not old, and their feet swelled not.
22 你將各國和眾民交給了他們，將各個角落分給了他們，他們遂佔領了赫市朋王息紅，和巴商王敖格的土地。
And thou gavest them kingdoms and peoples, and didst divide them by countries; and they possessed the land of Sihon, as well the land of the king of Heshbon, as the land of Og king of Bashan.
23 你使他們的子孫繁衍，有如天上的繁星，領他們道你誓許與他們的祖先，要去佔領的土地，
And their children thou didst multiply as the stars of heaven, and thou broughtest them into the land concerning which thou didst say to their fathers that they should go in to possess it.
24 他們的子孫便去佔領了那地方；你使那地方的居民客納罕人，屈服在他們面前，將他們的君王和地方上的人民，交在他們的手中，任他們隨意處置。
And the children went in and possessed the land; and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gavest them into their hands, both their kings and the peoples of the land, that they might do with them as they would.
25 他們攻取了堅固的城池，和肥沃的土地，奪得了滿藏寶物的房舍、掘好的井、葡萄園、橄欖園和豐富的果林；他們都吃得飽滿，身體肥胖，安逸享樂，這都是因你無量的慈善。
And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all good things, wells digged, vineyards and olive-gardens, and fruit trees in abundance. And they did eat and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.
26 但是，他們竟抗命背叛了你，將你的法律置諸背後，殺了那些警戒他們，勸他們歸順於你的先知；他們竟犯了這褻瀆的大罪，
But they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets who testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations.
27 因此你把他們交在仇人的手中，受人迫害。他們遭遇迫害時，一呼求你，你就由天上俯聽了他們，照你無限的仁慈，打發救援者，由仇人手中救出他們；
And thou gavest them into the hand of their oppressors, and they oppressed them; and in the time of their distress, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest them from the heavens, and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their oppressors.
28 然而他們一享平安，便又去做惡背叛你，因此你又把他們拋在他們敵人手中，受他們的管轄；幾時他們再回心轉意呼號你，你就再由天上俯聽他們，照你無限的仁慈拯救他們。
But when they had rest, they did evil again before thee; and thou didst leave them in the hand of their enemies, and they had dominion over them; and again they cried unto thee, and thou heardest [them] from the heavens, and many times didst thou deliver them, according to thy mercies.
29 你曾警告他們轉向你的法律，但是他們仍恣意妄行，不聽從你的命令，違反你的典章，－人若遵行，必因此而生活，－扭轉倔強的肩膀，硬著脖子，不願服從。
And thou testifiedst against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law; but they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned against thine ordinances (which if a man do, he shall live in them); and they withdrew the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.
30 你多年來容忍他們，藉先知和以你的精神，警戒他們，但他們仍不聽從，所以你將他們交在異方人民手中。
And many years didst thou forbear with them, and testifiedst against them by thy Spirit through thy prophets; but they would not give ear: and thou gavest them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.
31 但因你無限的仁慈，你沒有消滅他們，也沒有拋棄他們，因為你是博愛仁慈的天主。
Nevertheless for thy manifold mercies' sake, thou didst not make a full end of them nor forsake them; for thou art a gracious and merciful God.
32 現在，我們的天主! 遵守信約，保持仁愛，偉大、全能和可畏的天主! 請不要把我們、我們的君王、我們的首長、我們的司祭、我們的先知、我們的祖先和你的全民眾，從亞述王時代直到今日所遭遇的一切迫害，看作小事。
And now, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and loving-kindness, let not all the trouble seem little before thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the days of the kings of Assyria unto this day.
33 你使這一切降在我們身上，是公義的，因為你所行的是忠義，而我們所行的是邪惡。
But thou art just in all that is come upon us; for thou hast acted according to truth, and we have done wickedly.
34 我們的君王、我們的首領、我們的司祭和我們的祖先，實在都沒有遵行你的法律，也沒有聽從你的命令和你警戒他們的勸告。
And our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers, have not performed thy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, wherewith thou didst testify against them.
35 他們在你賜給他們的國土上和許多幸福中，在你擺在他們面前的廣大而肥沃的土地上，並沒有侍奉你，也沒有放棄他們的惡行。
And they have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goodness that thou gavest them, and in the large and fat land that thou didst set before them, neither turned they from their wicked works.
36 我們今天竟成了奴隸! 看，我們在你賞給我們祖先吃那裏的果實和出產的土地上，作了奴隸!
Behold, we are servants this day, and the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, behold, we are bondmen in it.
37 為了我們的罪過，那豐富的出產歸於你派定來管轄我們的君王，他們隨意處置了我們的肉體和我們的牲畜；我們實在是處在極大的困苦中! 」
And it yieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins: and they have dominion over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure; and we are in great distress.
38 鑑於這一切，我們立了盟約，也寫了出來；我們的族長、我們的肋未人和司祭，也在上面蓋了印。
And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and write it; and our princes, our Levites, [and] our priests are at the sealing.
