Nehemias 9

1 Men paa den fire og tyvende Dag i samme Maaned samledes Israeliterne under Faste og i Sørgedragt med Jord paa Hovedet;

Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.

2 og de, der var af Israels Slægt, skilte sig ud fra alle fremmede og traadte frem og bekendte deres Synder og deres Fædres Misgerninger.

And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.

3 Saa rejste de sig paa deres Plads, og der blev læst op af Bogen med HERREN deres Guds Lov i en Fjerdedel af Dagen, og i en anden Fjerdedel bekendte de deres Synder og tilbad HERREN deres Gud.

And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of Yhwh their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped Yhwh their God.

4 Og Jesua, Bani, Kadmiel, Sjebanja, Bunni, Sjerebja, Bani og Kenani traadte op paa Leviternes Forhøjning og raabte med høj Røst til HERREN deres Gud;

Then stood up upon the stairs, of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto Yhwh their God.

5 og Leviterne Jesua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hasjabneja, Sjerebja, Hodija, Sjebanja og Petaja sagde: »Staa op og lov HERREN eders Gud fra Evighed til Evighed!« Da lovede de hans herlige Navn, som er ophøjet over al Lov og Pris.

Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless Yhwh your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.

6 Derpaa sagde Ezra: »Du, HERRE, er den eneste; du har skabt Himmelen, Himlenes Himle med al deres Hær, Jorden med alt, hvad der er paa den, Havene med alt, hvad der er i dem; du giver dem alle Liv, og Himmelens Hær tilbeder dig.

Thou, even thou, art Yhwh alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.

7 Du er Gud HERREN, der udvalgte Abram og førte ham bort fra Ur-Kasdim og gav ham Navnet Abraham;

Thou art Yhwh the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham;

8 og du fandt hans Hjerte fast i Troen for dit Aasyn og sluttede Pagt med ham om at give hans Afkom Kana'anæernes, Hetiternes, Amoriternes, Perizziternes, Jebusiternes og Girgasjiternes Land; og du holdt dit Ord; thi du er retfærdig.

And foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a 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, I say, to his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous:

9 Og da du saa vore Fædres Nød i Ægypten og hørte deres Raab ved det røde Hav,

And didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red sea;

10 udførte du Tegn og Undere paa Farao og alle hans Tjenere og alt Folket i hans Land, fordi du vidste, at de havde handlet overmodigt med dem. Og saaledes skabte du dig et Navn, som du har den Dag i Dag.

And shewedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them. So didst thou get thee a name, as it is this day.

11 Du kløvede Havet for deres Øjne, saa de vandrede midt igennem Havet paa tør Bund, og dem, der forfulgte dem, styrtede du i Dybet som Sten i vældige Vande.

And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors thou threwest into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters.

12 I en Skystøtte førte du dem om Dagen og i en Ildstøtte om Natten, saa den lyste for dem paa Vejen, de skulde vandre.

Moreover thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar; and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.

13 Du steg ned paa Sinaj Bjerg, du talede med dem fra Himmelen og gav dem retfærdige Lovbud og tilforladelige Love, gode Anordninger og Bud.

Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments:

14 Du kundgjorde dem din hellige Sabbat og paalagde dem Bud, Anordninger og Love ved din Tjener Moses.

And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant:

15 Du gav dem Brød fra Himmelen til at stille deres Sult og lod Vand springe ud af Klippen til at slukke deres Tørst. Og du bød dem drage hen og tage det Land i Besiddelse, som du med løftet Haand havde lovet dem.

And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promisedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.

16 Men vore Fædre blev overmodige og halsstarrige og hørte ikke paa dine Bud;

But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments,

17 de vægrede sig ved at lyde og ihukom ikke dine Undergerninger, som du havde gjort iblandt dem; de blev halsstarrige og satte sig i Hovedet at vende tilbage til Trældommen i Ægypten. Men du er Forladelsens Gud, naadig og barmhjertig, langmodig og rig paa Miskundhed, og du svigtede dem ikke.

And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not.

18 Selv da de lavede sig et støbt Billede af en Kalv og sagde: Der er din Gud, som førte dig ud af Ægypten! og gjorde sig skyldige i svare Gudsbespottelser,

Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations;

19 svigtede du dem i din store Barmhjertighed ikke i Ørkenen; Skystøtten veg ikke fra dem om Dagen, men ledede dem paa Vejen, ej heller Ildstøtten om Natten, men lyste for dem paa Vejen, de skulde vandre.

Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar of the cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way wherein they should go.

20 Du gav dem din gode Aand for at give dem Indsigt og forholdt ikke deres Mund din Manna, og du gav dem Vand til at slukke deres Tørst.

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 I fyrretyve Aar sørgede du for dem i Ørkenen, saa de ingen Nød led; deres Klæder sledes ikke op, og deres Fødder hovnede ikke.

Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not.

22 Du gav dem Riger og Folkeslag; som du uddelte Stykke for Stykke. De tog Kong Sihon af Hesjbons Land og Kong Og af Basans Land i Besiddelse.

Moreover thou gavest them kingdoms and nations, and didst divide them into corners: so they possessed the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan.

23 Du gjorde deres Børn talrige som Himmelens Stjerner og førte dem ind i det Land, du havde lovet deres Fædre, at de skulde komme ind i og tage i Besiddelse;

Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it.

24 og Børnene kom og tog Landet i Besiddelse, og du underlagde dem Landets Indbyggere, Kana'anæerne, og gav dem i deres Haand, baade deres Konger og Folkene i Landet, saa de kunde handle med dem, som de fandt for godt.

So 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, with their kings, and the people of the land, that they might do with them as they would.

25 De indtog befæstede Byer og frugtbart Land, og Huse, fulde af alle Slags Goder, tog de i Besiddelse og udhugne Cisterner, Vingaarde, Oliventræer og Frugttræer i Mængde; og de spiste sig mætte og blev fede og gjorde sig til gode med dine store Rigdomme.

And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all goods, wells digged, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit trees in abundance: so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.

26 Men de var genstridige og satte sig op imod dig; de kastede din Lov bag deres Ryg, dræbte dine Profeter, som talte dem alvorligt til for at lede dem tilbage til dig, og gjorde sig skyldige i svare Gudsbespottelser.

Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets which testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations.

27 Da gav du dem i deres Fjenders Haand, og de bragte Trængsel over dem. Men naar de da i deres Trængsel raabte til dig, hørte du dem i Himmelen og sendte dem i din store Barmhjertighed Befriere, som friede dem af deres Fjenders Haand.

Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.

28 Men naar de fik Ro, handlede de atter ilde for dit Aasyn. Da overlod du dem i deres Fjenders Haand, og de undertvang dem. Men naar de atter raabte til dig, hørte du dem i Himmelen og udfriede dem i din Barmhjertighed Gang paa Gang.

But after they had rest, they did evil again before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them: yet when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies;

29 Du talede dem alvorligt til for at lede dem tilbage til din Lov, men de var overmodige og vilde ikke høre paa dine Bud, og de syndede mod dine Lovbud, som dog holder det Menneske i Live, der gør efter dem; de vendte i Genstridighed Ryggen til og var halsstarrige og vilde ikke lyde.

And testifiedst against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments, ( which if a man do, he shall live in them; ) and withdrew the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.

30 I mange Aar var du langmodig imod dem og talede dem alvorligt til ved din Aand gennem dine Profeter; men da de ikke vilde høre, gav du dem til Pris for Hedningefolkene.

Yet many years didst thou forbear them, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets: yet would they not give ear: therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the people of the lands.

31 Dog har du i din store Barmhjertighed ikke helt tilintetgjort dem eller forladt dem, thi du er en naadig og barmhjertig Gud!

Nevertheless for thy great mercies’ sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for thou art a gracious and merciful God.

32 Og nu, vor Gud, du store, vældige, frygtelige Gud, som holder fast ved Pagten og Miskundheden! Lad ikke alle de Lidelser, der har ramt os, vore Konger, Øverster, Præster, Profeter, vore Fædre og hele dit Folk fra Assyrerkongernes Dage indtil i Dag, synes ringe for dine Øjne!

Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and mercy, 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 time of the kings of Assyria unto this day.

33 I alt, hvad der er kommet over os, staar du retfærdig, thi du har vist dig trofast, men vi var ugudelige.

Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly:

34 Vore Konger, Øverster og Præster og vore Fædre handlede ikke efter din Lov og lyttede ikke til dine Bud og de Vidnesbyrd, du lod dem blive til Del.

Neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, wherewith thou didst testify against them.

35 Da de var i Besiddelse af deres Rige og de store Rigdomme, du gav dem, og af det vidtstrakte, frugtbare Land, du oplod for dem, tjente de dig ikke, og de omvendte sig ikke fra deres onde Gerninger.

For they have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goodness that thou gavest them, and in the large and fat land which thou gavest before them, neither turned they from their wicked works.

36 Se, derfor er vi nu Trælle; i det Land, du gav vore Fædre, for at de skulde nyde dets Frugter og Rigdom, er vi Trælle;

Behold, we are servants this day, and for the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, behold, we are servants in it:

37 dets rige Afgrøde tilfalder de Konger, du for vore Synders Skyld har øvet Magten over os, og de gør, hvad de lyster, med vore Kroppe og vort Kvæg. Vi er i stor Nød!«

And it yieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins: also they have dominion over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.

38 I Henhold til alt dette indgaar vi med Navns Underskrift en urokkelig Pagt, og den beseglede Skrivelse er underskrevet af vore Øverster, Leviter og Præster.

And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and write it; and our princes, Levites, and priests, seal unto it.