Nehemias 4
1 Og det skete, der Sanballat hørte, at vi byggede Muren, da optændtes hans Vrede, og han blev meget fortørnet, og han bespottede Jøderne.
Now when Sanballat heard we were building the wall, it burned within him, and he was furiously angry, and he mocked the Jews.
2 Og han sagde i Paahør af sine Brødre og af Hæren i Samaria, han sagde: Hvad gøre de afmægtige Jøder? skulde man lade dem være? skulde de ofre? skulde de fuldende det paa denne Dag? skulde de lade Stenene leve op af Grusdyngerne, da de ere forbrændte?
In the presence of his brothers and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore the city for themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish the work in a day? Will they bring to life the stones from the piles of rubble after they were burned?
3 Og Ammoniten Tobia var Jios ham, og han sagde: Om de end bygge, vil dog en Ræv, om den sprang op, nedrive deres Stenmur.
Tobiah the Ammonite was with him, and he said, “If only a fox went up on what they are building, it would break down their stone wall!”
4 Hør, vor Gud! at vi ere foragtede, og lad deres Forsmædelse vende tilbage paa deres Hoved, og giv dem hen til Bytte i Fangenskabs Land;
Hear, our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunts on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are prisoners.
5 og skjul ikke deres Misgerning, og lad deres Synd ikke udslettes fra dit Ansigt; thi de have opirret dig lige over for dem, som byggede.
Do not cover over their iniquity and do not erase their sin from before you, for they have provoked the builders to anger.
6 Men vi byggede Muren, saa at den ganske Mur blev sammenføjet indtil dens halvs Højde; thi Folket havde Hjerte til at gøre det.
So we built the wall and all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a desire to work.
7 Og det skete, der Sanballat og Tobia og Araberne og Ammoniterne og Asdoditerne hørte, at Udbedringen havde taget til paa Murene i Jerusalem, og at Revnerne begyndte at lukkes til, da optændtes deres Vrede saare.
But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabians, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the work of repairing the walls of Jerusalem was going forward, and that the broken places in the wall were being closed up, a great anger burned within them.
8 Og de gjorde alle et Forbund med hverandre om at komme at stride imod Jerusalem og at gøre en Forstyrrelse deri.
They all conspired together, and they came to fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it.
9 Men vi bade til vor Gud; og vi stillede Vagt imod dem Dag og Nat over for dem.
But we prayed to our God and set a guard as protection against them day and night because of their threat.
10 Da sagde Juda: Lastdragernes Kraft er skrøbelig, og Gruset er meget, og vi kunne ikke bygge paa Muren.
Then the people of Judah said, “The strength of those who carry the burdens is failing. There is too much rubble, and we are not able to rebuild the wall.”
11 Og vore Modstandere sagde: De skulle ikke vide og ikke se det, førend vi komme midt iblandt dem og slaa dem ihjel; og vi ville gøre, at Gerningen skal holde op.
Our enemies said, “They will not know or see until we come among them and kill them, and stop the work.”
12 Og det skete, der Jøderne, som boede hos dem, kom og sagde vel ti Gange til os: I, som ere komne fra alle Steder, vender tilbage til os!
At that time the Jews who lived near them came from all directions and spoke to us ten times, warning us about the schemes they were making against us.
13 da stillede jeg Folket neden for Stedet, bag om Muren, paa de frie Pladser; og jeg stillede Folket efter Slægter med deres Sværd, deres Spyd og deres Buer.
So I positioned people in the lowest parts of the wall in the exposed areas. I positioned each family with their swords, spears, and bows.
14 Og jeg saa til og rejste mig og sagde til de ypperste og til Forstanderne og til det øvrige Folk: Frygter ikke for deres Ansigt, tænker paa den store og forfærdelige Herre og strider før eders Brødre, eders Sønner og eders Døtre, eders Hustruer og eders Huse!
Then I looked, and stood up, and I said to the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Call to mind the Lord, who is great and awesome. Fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”
15 Og det skete, der vore Fjender hørte, at det var os tilkendegivet, og at Gud havde gjort deres Raad til intet, da vendte vi os alle til Muren igen, hver til sin Gerning.
It came about when our enemies heard that their plans were known to us, and God had frustrated their plans, all of us returned to the wall, each one to his work.
16 Og det skete fra den samme Dag af, at Halvdelen af mine unge Karle udførte Arbejdet, og den anden halve Del af dem holdt baade Spydene, Skjoldene og Buerne og Panserne, og Øversterne stode bag det ganske Judas Hus.
So from that time half of my servants worked only on rebuilding the wall, and half of them held spears, shields, bows, and wore armor, while the leaders stood behind all the people of Judah.
17 De, som byggede paa Muren, og Lastdragerne og de, som læssede paa, udførte med, deres ene Haand Arbejdet, og med den anden holdt de Vaabnet.
The same workers who were building the wall and carrying loads were also guarding their positions. Everyone worked with one hand, and with the other hand he held his weapon.
18 Og de, som byggede, havde hver sit Sværd bundet ved sine Lænder og byggede saa; og den, som blæste i Trompeten, var hos mig.
Every builder wore his sword on his side and that is how he worked. The one who sounded the trumpet stayed beside me.
19 Og jeg sagde til de ypperste og til Forstanderne og til det øvrige Folk: Arbejdet er stort og vidtløftigt; men vi ere adspredte paa Murene, den ene langt fra den anden.
I said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and extensive, and we are separated on the wall, far from one another.
20 Paa hvilket Sted I høre Trompetens Lyd, samler eder derhen til os; vor Gud skal stride for os.
You must rush to the place where you hear the trumpet sound and assemble there. Our God will fight for us.”
21 Saa udførte vi Arbejdet, medens Halvdelen af dem holdt paa Spydene, fra Morgenrøden gik op, indtil Stjernerne kom frem.
So we were doing the work. Half of them were holding spears from the rising of the dawn until the coming out of the stars.
22 Ogsaa sagde jeg paa samme Tid til Folket: Hver blive med sin Tjener Natten over midt i Jerusalem, at vi maa have dem om Natten til Vagt og om Dagen til Gerningen.
I also said to the people at that time, “Let every man and his servant spend the night in the middle of Jerusalem, so they may be for us a guard during the night and a worker in the day.”
23 Men hverken jeg eller mine Brødre eller mine Tjenere eller de Mænd paa Vagten, som vare bag mig, førte os af vore Klæder; hver havde sit Vaaben hos sig og Vand.
So neither I, nor my brothers, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us changed our clothes, and each of us carried his weapon, even if he went for water.
