< Exodus 1 >
1 And these are the names of the sons of Israel who had come into Egypt; with Jacob had they come, each with his household:
以色列的兒子們,各帶了家眷,同雅各伯來到埃及;他們的名字記載如下:
2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah;
勒烏本、西默盎、勒末和猶大,
3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin;
依撒加爾,則步隆和本雅明丹,
4 Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher.
和納裴塔里,加得和阿協爾。
5 And all the souls that had come out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls; and Joseph was in Egypt.
他們全是雅各伯所生的,一共七十人;若瑟那時已經在埃及。
6 And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation.
若瑟和他的眾兄弟,以及這一代的人死了以後,
7 And the children of Israel were fruitful, and swarmed and multiplied, and became exceeding strong; and the land was full of them.
以色列的子孫生育繁殖,數目增多,極其強盛,佈滿了那地。受壓迫
8 And there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.
有位不認識若瑟的新王興起,統治了埃及。
9 And he said to his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more numerous and stronger than we.
他對自己的人民說:「看以色列子民,比我們又多又強。
10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them, lest they multiply, and it come to pass that, if war occur, they take side with our enemies and fight against us, and go up out of the land.
來,我們要用智謀對付他們,免得他們繁盛起來,一遇戰爭,就去與我們的敵人聯合,攻擊我們,然後離開此地。」
11 And they set over them service-masters to oppress them with their burdens. And they built store-cities for Pharaoh, Pithom and Rameses.
於是派定督工管制他們,以苦役壓迫他們,叫他們給法朗建築丕通和辣默色斯兩做貯貨城。
12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and spread; and they were distressed because of the children of Israel.
但是越壓迫他們,他們越增多,也越繁殖,以至埃及人都怕以色列子民。
13 And the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with harshness;
於是埃及人更嚴厲地強迫以色列子民做苦工,
14 and they embittered their life with hard labour in clay and bricks, and in all manner of labour in the field: all their labour with which they made them serve was with harshness.
強迫他們作和泥做磚的苦工,田間的一切勞工,以及種種苦工,使他們的生活十分痛苦。殘害男嬰
15 And the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives — of whom the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other was Puah —
埃及王又吩咐為希伯來女人接生的收生婆,一個名叫史斐辣,一個名叫普亞的說
16 and he said, When ye help the Hebrew women in bearing, and see [them] on the stool, if it be a son, then ye shall kill him, but if a daughter, then she shall live.
「你們為希伯來女人接生時,要看著她們臨盆! 若是男孩,就殺死;若是女孩,就讓她活著。」
17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt had said to them, but saved the male children alive.
但是收生婆敬畏天主,沒有照埃及王的吩咐去作,保留了男孩的性命。
18 And the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, Why have ye done this, and saved the male children alive?
埃及王將收生婆召來,問她們說:「你們為什麼這樣做,竟叫男孩活著呢﹖」
19 And the midwives said to Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian; for they are strong, and they have borne before the midwife comes to them.
‧收收婆回答法朗說:「希伯來女人和埃及女人不同,她們富有生機,收生婆還沒有來,她們已生產了。」
20 And God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong.
天主遂恩待了收生婆。以色列的子民更加增多起來,更加強盛。
21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.
因為收生婆敬畏天主,天主就使她們家門興旺。
22 Then Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, but every daughter ye shall save alive.
法朗於是訓令他的全體人民說:「凡希伯來人所生的男孩,你們應把他丟在尼羅河裏;凡是女孩,留她活著! 」