撒母耳記上 4
1 以色列人出去與非利士人打仗，安營在以便以謝；非利士人安營在亞弗。
And Samuel told to all the people of Israel the messages that God gave him. At that time the Israeli army went to fight against the army of the Philistine people. The Israeli army set up their tents at Ebenezer, and the Philistine army set up their tents at Aphek.
2 非利士人向以色列人擺陣。兩軍交戰的時候，以色列人敗在非利士人面前；非利士人在戰場上殺了他們的軍兵約有四千人。
The Philistine army attacked the Israeli army, and as the battle continued, the Philistines defeated the Israelis and killed about 4,000 of their soldiers.
3 百姓回到營裏，以色列的長老說：「耶和華今日為何使我們敗在非利士人面前呢？我們不如將耶和華的約櫃從示羅抬到我們這裏來，好在我們中間救我們脫離敵人的手。」
When the remaining Israeli soldiers returned to their camp, the Israeli elders/leaders said, “Why did Yahweh allow the Philistine army to defeat us today? We should bring the chest that contains the Ten Commandments here from Shiloh, in order that Yahweh will go with us [when we go to the battle again, and] in order that our enemies will not defeat us again!”
4 於是百姓打發人到示羅，從那裏將坐在二基路伯上萬軍之耶和華的約櫃抬來。以利的兩個兒子何弗尼、非尼哈與上帝的約櫃同來。
So the soldiers did that. They sent some men to Shiloh, and those men brought back the chest that contained the Ten Commandments. [They thought that if they did that, Yahweh would help them. They believed that] Yahweh sat on a throne between the statues of winged creatures [that were on top of] the chest that Yahweh Almighty [had given them]. The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, went with them.
5 耶和華的約櫃到了營中，以色列眾人就大聲歡呼，地便震動。
When the Israeli people saw [the men bringing] the box into their camp, they were so happy that they shouted loudly. They shouted so loudly that they made the ground shake!
6 非利士人聽見歡呼的聲音，就說：「在希伯來人營裏大聲歡呼，是甚麼緣故呢？」隨後就知道耶和華的約櫃到了營中。
The Philistines asked, “What are the people in the Hebrew camp shouting about?” Someone told them that they were shouting because the chest that contained the Ten Commandments of Yahweh had been brought to them.
7 非利士人就懼怕起來，說：「有神到了他們營中」；又說：「我們有禍了！向來不曾有這樣的事。
Then the Philistines became very afraid. They said, “One of the Israelis’ gods has come into their camp [to help them] We are in big trouble now! Nothing like this has happened to us before!
8 我們有禍了！誰能救我們脫離這些大能之神的手呢？從前在曠野用各樣災殃擊打埃及人的，就是這些神。
(Who can/Can anyone) save us from their powerful gods [RHQ]? They are the gods who struck the people of Egypt with many plagues [before the Israelis left Egypt and traveled] through the desert.
9 非利士人哪，你們要剛強，要作大丈夫，免得作希伯來人的奴僕，如同他們作你們的奴僕一樣。你們要作大丈夫，與他們爭戰。」
You Philistine men, be courageous! Fight very hard! If you do not do that, [they will defeat us, and then] you will become their slaves, just like they have been our slaves previously!”
10 非利士人和以色列人打仗，以色列人敗了，各向各家奔逃，被殺的人甚多，以色列的步兵仆倒了三萬。
So the Philistine men fought very hard, and they defeated the Israelis. They killed 30,000 Israeli soldiers, and the other Israeli soldiers fled and ran away to their tents.
11 上帝的約櫃被擄去，以利的兩個兒子何弗尼、非尼哈也都被殺了。
The Philistines captured the sacred chest, and they killed Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas.
12 當日，有一個便雅憫人從陣上逃跑，衣服撕裂，頭蒙灰塵，來到示羅。
On that same day, one man of the tribe [descended from] Benjamin tore his clothes and threw dirt on his head [to show that he was very sad]. He ran from the place where the armies were fighting, and he arrived at Shiloh late [that afternoon].
13 到了的時候，以利正在道旁坐在自己的位上觀望，為上帝的約櫃心裏擔憂。那人進城報信，合城的人就都呼喊起來。
Eli was waiting beside the road. [He wanted to hear news about the battle, and] he was also very anxious to know if anything bad had happened to God’s sacred chest. When the messenger arrived and told people what had happened, everyone in the town started to cry loudly.
14 以利聽見呼喊的聲音就問說：「這喧嚷是甚麼緣故呢？」那人急忙來報信給以利。
Eli asked, “Why are they making all that noise?” The messenger ran over to Eli and told him the news.
15 那時以利九十八歲了，眼目發直，不能看見。
At that time, Eli was 98 years old, and he was blind.
16 那人對以利說：「我是從陣上來的，今日我從陣上逃回。」以利說：「我兒，事情怎樣？」
The messenger said to Eli, “I have just come from where the armies were fighting. I left there earlier today.” Eli asked, “What happened?”
17 報信的回答說：「以色列人在非利士人面前逃跑，民中被殺的甚多！你的兩個兒子何弗尼、非尼哈也都死了，並且上帝的約櫃被擄去。」
The man replied, “The Philistines defeated our Israeli army. They killed thousands of our soldiers, and the others ran away. The Philistines killed your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas. They also captured God’s sacred chest.”
18 他一提上帝的約櫃，以利就從他的位上往後跌倒，在門旁折斷頸項而死；因為他年紀老邁，身體沉重。以利作以色列的士師四十年。
Eli was very old, and he was very fat; and when he heard what had happened to the sacred chest, he fell backward from his chair beside the town gate. His neck was broken and he died. He had led the Israeli people for 40 years before he died.
19 以利的兒婦、非尼哈的妻懷孕將到產期，她聽見上帝的約櫃被擄去，公公和丈夫都死了，就猛然疼痛，曲身生產；
The wife/widow of Eli’s son Phinehas was pregnant, and it was almost time for her to give birth to her baby. When she heard that God’s sacred chest had been captured and that her husband and her father-in-law were dead, her labor pains suddenly began. She quickly gave birth to a boy.
20 將要死的時候，旁邊站着的婦人們對她說：「不要怕！你生了男孩子了。」她卻不回答，也不放在心上。
The women who were helping her tried to encourage her by saying to her, “You have given birth to a son!” But she did not pay any attention [DOU] to what they said.
21 她給孩子起名叫以迦博，說：「榮耀離開以色列了！」這是因上帝的約櫃被擄去，又因她公公和丈夫都死了。
She named the boy Ichabod, which means ‘no glory’, because she said, “[God’s] glory has departed from Israel.” She said that because God’s sacred chest had been captured and because her husband and her father-in-law had died.
22 她又說：「榮耀離開以色列，因為上帝的約櫃被擄去了。」
She said, “[God’s] glory has left Israel, because God’s sacred chest has been captured!” And then she died.
