尼希米記 9
1 這月二十四日，以色列人聚集禁食，身穿麻衣，頭蒙灰塵。
Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel came together, taking no food and putting haircloth and dust on their bodies.
2 以色列人就與一切外邦人離絕，站着承認自己的罪惡和列祖的罪孽。
And the seed of Israel made themselves separate from all the men of other nations, publicly requesting forgiveness for their sins and the wrongdoing of their fathers.
3 那日的四分之一站在自己的地方念耶和華－他們上帝的律法書，又四分之一認罪，敬拜耶和華－他們的上帝。
And for a fourth part of the day, upright in their places, they were reading from the book of the law of their God; and for a fourth part of the day they were requesting forgiveness and worshipping the Lord their God.
4 耶書亞、巴尼、甲篾、示巴尼、布尼、示利比、巴尼、基拿尼站在利未人的臺上，大聲哀求耶和華－他們的上帝。
Then Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani took their places on the steps of the Levites, crying in a loud voice to the Lord their God.
5 利未人耶書亞、甲篾、巴尼、哈沙尼、示利比、荷第雅、示巴尼、毗他希雅說：「你們要站起來稱頌耶和華－你們的上帝，永世無盡。耶和華啊，你榮耀之名是應當稱頌的！超乎一切稱頌和讚美。」
Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah said, Get up and give praise to the Lord your God for ever and ever. Praise be to your great name which is lifted up high over all blessing and praise.
6 「你，惟獨你是耶和華！你造了天和天上的天，並天上的萬象，地和地上的萬物，海和海中所有的；這一切都是你所保存的。天軍也都敬拜你。
You are the Lord, even you only; you have made heaven, the heaven of heavens with all their armies, the earth and all things in it, the seas and everything in them; and you keep them from destruction: and the armies of heaven are your worshippers.
7 你是耶和華上帝，曾揀選亞伯蘭，領他出迦勒底的吾珥，給他改名叫亞伯拉罕。
You are the Lord, the God, who took Abram and made him yours, guiding him from Ur of the Chaldees, and gave him the name of Abraham;
8 你見他在你面前心裏誠實，就與他立約，應許把迦南人、赫人、亞摩利人、比利洗人、耶布斯人、革迦撒人之地賜給他的後裔，且應驗了你的話，因為你是公義的。
You saw that his heart was true to you, and made an agreement with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Jebusite and the Girgashite, even to give it to his seed, and you have done what you said; for righteousness is yours:
9 「你曾看見我們列祖在埃及所受的困苦，垂聽他們在紅海邊的哀求，
And you saw the trouble of our fathers in Egypt, and their cry came to your ears by the Red Sea;
10 就施行神蹟奇事在法老和他一切臣僕，並他國中的眾民身上。你也得了名聲，正如今日一樣，因為你知道他們向我們列祖行事狂傲。
And you did signs and wonders on Pharaoh and all his servants and all the people of his land; for you saw how cruel they were to them. So you got yourself a name as it is today.
11 你又在我們列祖面前把海分開，使他們在海中行走乾地，將追趕他們的人拋在深海，如石頭拋在大水中；
By you the sea was parted before them, so that they went through the sea on dry land; and those who went after them went down into the deep, like a stone into great waters.
12 並且白晝用雲柱引導他們，黑夜用火柱照亮他們當行的路。
And you went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light on the way they were to go.
13 你也降臨在西奈山，從天上與他們說話，賜給他們正直的典章、真實的律法、美好的條例與誡命，
And you came down on Mount Sinai, and your voice came to them from heaven, giving them right decisions and true laws, good rules and orders:
14 又使他們知道你的安息聖日，並藉你僕人摩西傳給他們誡命、條例、律法。
And you gave them word of your holy Sabbath, and gave them orders and rules and a law, by the hand of Moses your servant:
15 從天上賜下糧食充他們的飢，從磐石使水流出解他們的渴，又吩咐他們進去得你起誓應許賜給他們的地。
And you gave them bread from heaven when they were in need, and made water come out of the rock for their drink, and gave them orders to go in and take for their heritage the land which your hand had been lifted up to give them.
16 「但我們的列祖行事狂傲，硬着頸項不聽從你的誡命；
But they and our fathers, in their pride, made their necks stiff, and gave no attention to your orders,
17 不肯順從，也不記念你在他們中間所行的奇事，竟硬着頸項，居心背逆，自立首領，要回他們為奴之地。但你是樂意饒恕人，有恩典，有憐憫，不輕易發怒，有豐盛慈愛的上帝，並不丟棄他們。
And would not do them, and gave no thought to the wonders you had done among them; but made their necks stiff, and turning away from you, made a captain over themselves to take them back to their prison in Egypt: but you are a God of forgiveness, full of grace and pity, slow to wrath and great in mercy, and you did not give them up.
18 他們雖然鑄了一隻牛犢，彼此說『這是領你出埃及的神』，因而大大惹動你的怒氣；
Even when they had made for themselves an ox of metal, and said, This is your God who took you up out of Egypt, and had done so much to make you angry;
19 你還是大施憐憫，在曠野不丟棄他們。白晝，雲柱不離開他們，仍引導他們行路；黑夜，火柱也不離開他們，仍照亮他們當行的路。
Even then, in your great mercy, you did not give them up in the waste land: the pillar of cloud still went before them by day, guiding them on their way, and the pillar of fire by night, to give them light, and make clear the way they were to go.
20 你也賜下你良善的靈教訓他們；未嘗不賜嗎哪使他們糊口，並賜水解他們的渴。
And you gave your good spirit to be their teacher, and did not keep back your manna from their mouths, and gave them water when they had need of it.
21 在曠野四十年，你養育他們，他們就一無所缺：衣服沒有穿破，腳也沒有腫。
Truly, for forty years you were their support in the waste land, and they were in need of nothing; their clothing did not get old or their feet become tired.
22 並且你將列國之地照分賜給他們，他們就得了西宏之地、希實本王之地，和巴珊王噩之地。
And you gave them kingdoms and peoples, making distribution to them in every part of the land: so they took for their heritage the land of Sihon, even the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og, king of Bashan.
23 你也使他們的子孫多如天上的星，帶他們到你所應許他們列祖進入得為業之地。
And you made their children as great in number as the stars of heaven, and took them into the land, of which you had said to their fathers that they were to go in and take it for themselves.
24 這樣，他們進去得了那地，你在他們面前制伏那地的居民，就是迦南人；將迦南人和其君王，並那地的居民，都交在他們手裏，讓他們任意而待。
So the children went in and took the land, and you overcame before them the people of the land, the Canaanites, and gave them up into their hands, with their kings and the people of the land, so that they might do with them whatever it was their pleasure to do.
25 他們得了堅固的城邑、肥美的地土、充滿各樣美物的房屋、鑿成的水井、葡萄園、橄欖園，並許多果木樹。他們就吃而得飽，身體肥胖，因你的大恩，心中快樂。
And they took walled towns and a fat land, and became the owners of houses full of all good things, water-holes cut in the rock, vine-gardens and olive-gardens and a wealth of fruit-trees: so they had food enough and became fat, and had joy in the good you gave them.
26 「然而，他們不順從，竟背叛你，將你的律法丟在背後，殺害那勸他們歸向你的眾先知，大大惹動你的怒氣。
But they were hard-hearted, and went against your authority, turning their backs on your law, and putting to death your prophets, who gave witness against them with the purpose of turning them back again to you, and they did much to make you angry.
27 所以你將他們交在敵人的手中，磨難他們。他們遭難的時候哀求你，你就從天上垂聽，照你的大憐憫賜給他們拯救者，救他們脫離敵人的手。
And so you gave them up into the hands of their haters who were cruel to them: and in the time of their trouble, when they made their prayer to you, you gave ear to them from heaven; and in your great mercy gave them saviours, who made them free from the hands of their haters.
28 但他們得平安之後，又在你面前行惡，所以你丟棄他們在仇敵的手中，使仇敵轄制他們。然而他們轉回哀求你，你仍從天上垂聽，屢次照你的憐憫拯救他們，
But when they had rest, they did evil again before you: so you gave them into the hands of their haters, who had rule over them: but when they came back and made their prayer to you, you gave ear to them from heaven; again and again, in your mercy, you gave them salvation;
29 又警戒他們，要使他們歸服你的律法。他們卻行事狂傲，不聽從你的誡命，干犯你的典章（人若遵行就必因此活着），扭轉肩頭，硬着頸項，不肯聽從。
And gave witness against them so that you might make them come back again to your law: but their hearts were lifted up, and they gave no attention to your orders and went against your decisions (which, if a man keeps them, will be life to him), and turning their backs on you, made their necks stiff and did not give ear.
30 但你多年寬容他們，又用你的靈藉眾先知勸戒他們，他們仍不聽從，所以你將他們交在列國之民的手中。
Year after year you put up with them, and gave witness against them by your spirit through your prophets: still they did not give ear: and so you gave them up into the hands of the peoples of the lands.
31 然而你大發憐憫，不全然滅絕他們，也不丟棄他們；因為你是有恩典、有憐憫的上帝。
Even then, in your great mercy, you did not put an end to them completely, or give them up; for you are a God of grace and mercy.
32 「我們的上帝啊，你是至大、至能、至可畏、守約施慈愛的上帝。我們的君王、首領、祭司、先知、列祖，和你的眾民，從亞述列王的時候直到今日所遭遇的苦難，現在求你不要以為小。
And now, our God, the great, the strong, the God who is to be feared, who keeps faith and mercy, let not all this trouble seem small to you, which has come on us, and on our kings and our rulers and on our priests and our prophets and our fathers and on all your people from the time of the kings of Assyria till this day.
33 在一切臨到我們的事上，你卻是公義的；因你所行的是誠實，我們所做的是邪惡。
But still, you have been in the right in everything which has come on us; you have been true to us, but we have done evil:
34 我們的君王、首領、祭司、列祖都不遵守你的律法，不聽從你的誡命和你警戒他們的話。
And our kings, our rulers, our priests, and our fathers have not kept your law or given attention to your orders and your witness, with which you gave witness against them.
35 他們在本國裏沾你大恩的時候，在你所賜給他們這廣大肥美之地上不事奉你，也不轉離他們的惡行。
For they have not been your servants in their kingdom, and in all the good things you gave them, and in the great and fat land you gave them, and they have not been turned away from their evil-doing.
36 我們現今作了奴僕；至於你所賜給我們列祖享受其上的土產，並美物之地，看哪，我們在這地上作了奴僕！
Now, today, we are servants, and as for the land which you gave to our fathers, so that the produce of it and the good might be theirs, see, we are servants in it:
37 這地許多出產歸了列王，就是你因我們的罪所派轄制我們的。他們任意轄制我們的身體和牲畜，我們遭了大難。」
And it gives much increase to the kings whom you have put over us because of our sins: and they have power over our bodies and over our cattle at their pleasure, and we are in great trouble.
38 因這一切的事，我們立確實的約，寫在冊上。我們的首領、利未人，和祭司都簽了名。
And because of all this we are making an agreement in good faith, and putting it in writing; and our rulers, our Levites, and our priests are putting their names to it.
