< Judges 11 >

1 At that time, there was a Gileadite, Jephthah, a very strong man and a fighter, the son of a kept woman, and he was born of Gilead.
Gileaditen Jefta var en dygtig Kriger. Han var Søn af en Skøge. Gilead avlede Jefta.
2 Now Gilead had a wife, from whom he received sons. And they, after growing up, cast out Jephthah, saying, “You cannot inherit in the house of our father, because you were born of another mother.”
Men Gileads Hustru fødte ham Sønner, og da de voksede op, jog de Jefta bort med de Ord: "Du skal ikke have Arv og Lod i vor Faders Hus, thi du er en fremmed Kvindes Søn!"
3 And so, fleeing and avoiding them, he lived in the land of Tob. And men who were indigent and robbers joined with him, and they followed him as their leader.
Jefta flygtede da for sine Brødre og bosatte sig i Landet Tob, hvor nogle dårlige Folk samlede sig om ham og deltog i hans Strejftog.
4 In those days, the sons of Ammon fought against Israel.
Efter nogen Tids Forløb angreb Ammoniterne Israel.
5 And being steadfastly attacked, the elders of Gilead traveled so that they might obtain for their assistance Jephthah, from the land of Tob.
Og da Ammoniterne angreb Israel, drog Gileads Ældste hen for at hente Jefta hjem fra Landet Tob.
6 And they said to him, “Come and be our leader, and fight against the sons of Ammon.”
De sagde til Jefta: "Kom og vær vor Fører, at vi kan tage Kampen op med Ammoniterne!"
7 But he answered them: “Are you not the ones who hated me, and who cast me out of my father’s house? And yet now you come to me, compelled by necessity?”
Jefta svarede Gileads Ældste: "Har I ikke hadet mig og jaget mig bort fra min Faders Hus? Hvorfor kommer I da til mig, nu I er i Nød?"
8 And the leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “But it is due to this necessity that we have approached you now, so that you may set out with us, and fight against the sons of Ammon, and be commander over all who live in Gilead.”
Men Gileads Ældste sagde til Jefta: "Derfor kommer vi jo nu tilbage til dig! Vil du drage med os og kæmpe med Ammoniterne, skal du være Høvding over os, over alle Gileads Indbyggere!"
9 Jephthah also said to them: “If you have come to me so that I may fight for you against the sons of Ammon, and if the Lord will deliver them into my hands, will I truly be your leader?”
Jefta svarede Gileads Ældste: "Dersom I fører mig tilbage, for at jeg skal kæmpe med Ammoniterne, og HERREN giver dem i min Magt, så vil jeg være eders Høvding!"
10 They answered him, “The Lord who hears these things is himself the Mediator and the Witness that we shall do what we have promised.”
Da sagde Gileads Ældste til Jefta: "HERREN hører Overenskomsten mellem os; visselig vil vi gøre, som du siger!"
11 And so Jephthah went with the leaders of Gilead, and all the people made him their leader. And Jephthah spoke all his words, in the sight of the Lord, at Mizpah.
Da drog Jefta med Gileads Ældste; og Folket gjorde ham til deres Høvding og Fører. Og alle sine Ord udtalte Jefta for HERRENs Åsyn i Mizpa.
12 And he sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, who said on his behalf, “What is there between you and me, that you would approach against me, so that you might lay waste to my land?”
Derpå sendte Jefta Sendebud til Ammoniternes Konge og lod sige: "Hvad er der dig og mig imellem, siden du er draget imod mig for at angribe mit Land?"
13 And he responded to them, “It is because Israel took my land, when he ascended from Egypt, from the parts of Arnon, as far as the Jabbok and the Jordan. Now therefore, restore these to me with peace.”
Ammoniternes Konge svarede Jeftas Sendebud: "Jo, Israel tog mit Land, da de drog op fra Ægypten, lige fra Arnon til Jabbok og Jordan; giv det derfor tilbage med det gode!"
14 And Jephthah again commissioned them, and he ordered them to say to the king of Ammon:
Men Jefta sendte atter Sendebud til Ammoniternes Konge
15 “Jephthah says this: Israel did not take the land of Moab, nor the land of the sons of Ammon.
og lod sige: "Således siger Jefta: Israel har ikke taget Moabs eller Ammoniternes Land!
16 But when they ascended together from Egypt, he walked through the desert as far as the Red Sea, and he went into Kadesh.
Men da de drog op fra Ægypten, vandrede Israel igennem Ørkenen til det røde Hav og kom derpå til Kadesj.
17 And he sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Permit me to pass through your land.’ But he was not willing to agree to his petition. Likewise, he sent to the king of Moab, who also refused to offer him passage. And so he delayed in Kadesh,
Da sendte Israel Sendebud til Edomiternes Konge og lod sige: Lad mig drage igennem dit Land! Men Edomiternes Konge ænsede det ikke. Ligeledes sendte de Bud til Moabiternes Konge, men han var heller ikke villig dertil. Israel blev da boende i Kadesj.
18 and he circled around the side of the land of Edom and the land of Moab. And he arrived opposite the eastern region of the land of Moab. And he made camp across the Arnon. But he was not willing to enter the borders of Moab. (Of course, Arnon is the border of the land of Moab.)
Derpå drog de igennem Ørkenen og gik uden om Edomiternes og Moabiternes, Land, og da de nåede Egnen østen for Moab, slog de Lejr hinsides Arnon; men de betrådte ikke Moabs Enemærker, thi Arnon er Moabs Grænse.
19 And so Israel sent messengers to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who was living at Heshbon. And they said to him, “Permit me to cross through your land as far as the river.”
Israel sendte derpå Sendebud til Kongen af Hesjbon, Amoriterkongen Sihon, og lod sige: Lad os drage igennem dit Land for at nå hen, hvor vi skal!
20 But he, too, despising the words of Israel, would not permit him to cross through his borders. Instead, gathering an innumerable multitude, he went out against him at Jahaz, and he resisted strongly.
Men Sihon nægtede Israelitterne Tilladelse til at drage gennem hans Land; og Sihon samlede hele sin Hær, og de slog Lejr i Jaza og angreb Israel.
21 But the Lord delivered him, with his entire army, into the hands of Israel. And he struck him down, and he possessed all the land of the Amorite, the inhabitant of that region,
Da gav HERREN, Israels Gud, Sihon og hele hans Hær i Israels Hånd, så at de slog dem. Og Israel underlagde sig hele det Land, Amoriterne boede i;
22 with all its parts, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok, and from the wilderness even to the Jordan.
de underlagde sig hele Amoriternes Område fra Arnon til Jabbok og fra Ørkenen til Jordan.
23 Therefore, it was the Lord, the God of Israel, who overthrew the Amorites, by means of his people Israel fighting against them. And now you wish to possess his land?
Således drev HERREN, Israels Gud, Amoriterne bort foran sit Folk Israel; og nu vil du underlægge dig deres Land!
24 Are not the things that your god Chemosh possesses owed to you by right? And so, what the Lord our God has obtained by victory falls to us as a possession.
Ikke sandt, når din Gud Kemosj driver nogen bort, så tager du hans Land? Og hver Gang HERREN vor Gud driver nogen bort foran os, tager vi hans Land.
25 Or are you, perhaps, better than Balak, the son of Zippor, the king of Moab? Or are you able to explain what his argument was against Israel, and why he fought against him?
Er du vel bedre end Zippors Søn, Kong Balak af Moab? Stredes han med Israel, eller indlod han sig i Kamp med dem,
26 And though he has lived in Heshbon, and its villages, and in Aroer, and its villages, and in all the cities near the Jordan for three hundred years, why have you, for such long a time, put forward nothing about this claim?
da Israelitterne bosatte sig i Hesjbon med Småbyer, i Aroer med Småbyer og i alle Byerne langs Arnon nu har de boet der i 300 År? Hvorfor tilrev I eder dem ikke dengang?
27 Therefore, I am not sinning against you, but you are doing evil against me, by declaring an unjust war against me. May the Lord be the Judge and the Arbiter this day, between Israel and the sons of Ammon.”
Det er ikke mig, der har forbrudt mig mod dig, men dig, der handler ilde mod mig ved at angribe mig. HERREN, Dommeren, vil i Dag dømme Israelitterne og Ammoniterne imellem!"
28 But the king of the sons of Ammon was not willing to agree to the words of Jephthah that he commissioned by the messengers.
Men Ammoniternes Konge ænsede ikke Jeftas Ord, som hans Sendebud overbragte.
29 Therefore, the Spirit of the Lord rested upon Jephthah, and circling around Gilead, and Manasseh, and also Mizpah of Gilead, and crossing from there to the sons of Ammon,
Da kom HERRENs Ånd over Jefta; og han drog igennem Gilead og Manasse; derpå drog han til Mizpe i Gilead, og fra Mizpe i Gilead drog han mod Ammoniterne.
30 he made a vow to the Lord, saying, “If you will deliver the sons of Ammon into my hands,
Og Jefta aflagde HERREN et Løfte og sagde: "Dersom du giver Ammoniterne i min Hånd,
31 whoever will be the first to depart from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, the same will I offer as a holocaust to the Lord.”
så skal den, som først kommer mig i Møde fra min Husdør når jeg vender uskadt, tilbage fra Ammoniterne, tilfalde HERREN, og jeg vil ofre ham som Brændoffer!"
32 And Jephthah crossed to the sons of Ammon, so that he might fight against them. And the Lord delivered them into his hands.
Så drog Jefta i Kamp mod Ammoniterne, og HERREN gav dem i hans Hånd,
33 And he struck them down from Aroer, as far as the entrance to Minnith, twenty cities, and as far as Abel, which is covered with vineyards, in an exceedingly great slaughter. And the sons of Ammon were humbled by the sons of Israel.
så at han tilføjede dem et stort Nederlag fra Aroer til Egnen ved Minnit, tyve Byer, og til Abel Keramim. Således bukkede Ammoniterne under for Israelitterne.
34 But when Jephthah returned to Mizpah, to his own house, his only daughter met him with timbrels and dances. For he had no other children.
Men da Jefta kom til sit Hjem i Mizpa, se, da kom hans Datter ham i Møde med Håndpauker og Dans. Hun var hans eneste Barn foruden hende havde han hverken Søn eller Datter.
35 And upon seeing her, he tore his garments, and he said: “Alas, my daughter! You have cheated me, and you yourself have been cheated. For I opened my mouth to the Lord, and I can do nothing else.”
Da han fik Øje på hende, sønderrev han sine Klæder og råbte: "Ak, min Datter, du har bøjet mig dybt, og det er dig, der styrter mig i Ulykke! Thi jeg har åbnet min Mund for HERREN og kan ikke tage mit Ord tilbage!"
36 And she answered him, “My father, if you have opened your mouth to the Lord, do to me whatever you have promised, since victory has been granted to you, as well as vengeance against your enemies.”
Da svarede hun ham: "Fader, har du åbnet din Mund for HERREN, så gør med mig, som dit Ord lød, nu da HERREN har skaffet dig Hævn over dine Fjender, Ammoniterne!"
37 And she said to her father: “Grant to me this one thing, which I request. Permit me, that I may wander the hillsides for two months, and that I may mourn my virginity with my companions.”
Men hun sagde til sin Fader: "En Ting må du unde mig: Giv mig to Måneders Frist, så jeg kan gå omkring i Bjergene for at begræde min Jomfrustand sammen med mine Veninder!"
38 And he answered her, “Go.” And he released her for two months. And when she had departed with her friends and companions, she wept over her virginity in the hillsides.
Han sagde: "Gå!" og lod hende drage bort i to Måneder; og hun gik bort med sine Veninder for at begræde sin Jomfrustand i Bjergene.
39 And when the two months expired, she returned to her father, and he did to her just as he had vowed, though she knew no man. From this, the custom grew up in Israel, and the practice has been preserved,
Da de to Måneder var omme, vendte hun tilbage til sin Fader, og han fuldbyrdede det Løfte, han havde aflagt, på hende; og hun havde ikke kendt Mand. Og det blev Skik i Israel,
40 such that, after each year passes, the daughters of Israel convene as one, and they lament the daughter of Jephthah, the Gileadite, for four days.
at Israels Døtre hvert År går hen for at klage over Gileaditen Jeftas Datter fire Dage om Året.

< Judges 11 >