Nehemiah 5
1 About that time there was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews.
Der lød nu højrøstede Klager fra Folket og deres Kvinder mod deres Brødre, Jøderne.
2 Some were saying, “We and our sons and daughters are numerous. We must get grain in order to eat and stay alive.”
Nogle sagde: »Vore Sønner og Døtre maa vi give i Pant for at faa Korn til Livets Ophold!«
3 Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our homes to get grain during the famine.”
Andre sagde: »Vore Marker, Vingaarde og Huse maa vi give i Pant for at faa Korn under Hungersnøden!«
4 Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards.
Atter andre sagde: »Vi har maattet laane paa vore Marker og Vingaarde for at kunne udrede de kongelige Skatter!
5 We and our children are just like our countrymen and their children, yet we are subjecting our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters are already enslaved, but we are powerless to redeem them because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”
Og vore Legemer er dog lige saa gode som vore Brødres og vore Sønner lige saa gode som deres; men vi er nødt til at give vore Sønner og Døtre hen til at blive Trælle, ja, nogle af vore Døtre er det allerede, og det stod ikke i vor Magt at hindre det, eftersom vore Marker og Vingaarde tilhører andre!«
6 When I heard their outcry and these complaints, I became extremely angry,
Da jeg hørte deres Klager og disse deres Ord, blussede Vreden heftigt op i mig;
7 and after serious thought I rebuked the nobles and officials, saying, “You are exacting usury from your own brothers!” So I called a large assembly against them
og efter at have tænkt over Sagen gik jeg i Rette med de store og Forstanderne og sagde til dem: I driver jo Aager over for eders Næste! Saa kaldte jeg en stor Folkeforsamling sammen imod dem
8 and said, “We have done our best to buy back our Jewish brothers who were sold to foreigners, but now you are selling your own brothers, that they may be sold back to us!” But they remained silent, for they could find nothing to say.
og sagde til dem: Saa vidt vi var i Stand dertil, har vi frikøbt vore jødiske Brødre, der maatte sælge sig til Hedningerne; og I sælger eders Brødre, saa de maa sælge sig til os! Da tav de og fandt intet at svare.
9 So I continued, “What you are doing is not right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God to avoid the reproach of our foreign enemies?
Men jeg fortsatte: Det er ikke ret af eder at handle saaledes! Skulde I ikke vandre i Frygt for vor Gud af Hensyn til Hedningerne, vore Fjenders Spot?
10 I, as well as my brothers and my servants, have been lending the people money and grain. Please, let us stop this usury.
Ogsaa jeg og mine Brødre og mine Folk har laant dem Penge og Korn; men lad os nu eftergive dem, hvad de skylder!
11 Please restore to them immediately their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and houses, along with the percentage of the money, grain, new wine, and oil that you have been assessing them.”
Giv dem straks deres Marker, Vingaarde, Oliventræer og Huse tilbage og eftergiv dem Pengene, Kornet, Mosten og Olien, som I har laant dem!
12 “We will restore it,” they replied, “and will require nothing more from them. We will do as you say.” So I summoned the priests and required of the nobles and officials an oath that they would do what they had promised.
Da svarede de: Ja, vi vil give det tilbage og ikke afkræve dem noget; som du siger, vil vi gøre! Jeg lod da Præsterne kalde og lod dem sværge paa, at de vilde handle saaledes.
13 I also shook out the folds of my robe and said, “May God likewise shake out of His house and possession every man who does not keep this promise. May such a man be shaken out and have nothing!” The whole assembly said, “Amen,” and they praised the LORD. And the people did as they had promised.
Og jeg rystede min Brystfold og sagde: Enhver, der ikke holder dette Ord, vil Gud saaledes ryste ud af hans Hus og Ejendom; ja, saaledes skal han blive udrystet og tømt! Da sagde hele Forsamlingen: Amen! Og de lovpriste HERREN; og Folket handlede efter sit Løfte.
14 Furthermore, from the day King Artaxerxes appointed me to be their governor in the land of Judah, from his twentieth year until his thirty-second year (twelve years total), neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor.
Desuden skal det nævnes, at fra den Dag Kong Artaxerxes bød mig være deres Statholder i Judas Land, fra Kong Artaxerxes's tyvende til hans to og tredivte Regeringsaar, hele tolv Aar, spiste hverken jeg eller mine Brødre det Brød, der tilkom Statholderen,
15 The governors before me had heavily burdened the people, taking from them bread and wine plus forty shekels of silver. Their servants also oppressed the people, but I did not do this because of my fear of God.
medens mine Forgængere, de tidligere Statholdere, lagde Tynge paa Folket og for Brød og Vin daglig afkrævede dem fyrretyve Sekel Sølv, ligesom ogsaa deres Tjenere optraadte som Folkets Herrer. Det undlod jeg at gøre af Frygt for Gud.
16 Instead, I devoted myself to the construction of the wall, and all my servants were gathered there for the work; we did not acquire any land.
Og desuden tog jeg selv fat ved Arbejdet paa denne Mur, skønt vi ingen Mark havde købt, og alle mine Folk var samlet der ved Arbejdet.
17 There were 150 Jews and officials at my table, besides the guests from the surrounding nations.
Og Jøderne, baade Forstanderne, 150 Mand, og de, der kom til os fra de omboende Hedningefolk, spiste ved mit Bord;
18 Each day one ox, six choice sheep, and some fowl were prepared for me, and once every ten days an abundance of all kinds of wine was provided. But I did not demand the food allotted to the governor, because the burden on the people was so heavy.
og hvad der daglig lavedes til, et Stykke Hornkvæg, seks udsøgte Faar og Fjerkræ, afholdt jeg Udgifterne til; dertil kom hver tiende Dag en Masse Vin af alle Sorter. Men alligevel krævede jeg ikke det Brød, der tilkom Statholderen, fordi Arbejdet tyngede haardt paa Folket.
19 Remember me favorably, O my God, for all that I have done for this people.
Kom i Hu alt, hvad jeg har gjort for dette Folk, og regn mig det til gode, min Gud!
