Psalms 78
1 A psalm (maskil) of Asaph. Listen to what I have to teach you, my people; hear what I have to say.
Þjóð mín, hlustaðu á kenningu mína. Gefðu gaum að því sem ég hef að segja.
2 I will tell you wise sayings; I will explain mysteries from the past
Nú ætla ég að rifja upp fyrir þér liðna atburði,
3 that we have heard before and reflected on; stories our forefathers passed down to us.
frásagnir sem varðveist hafa frá kynslóð til kynslóðar.
4 We will not keep them from our children; we will tell the next generation about God's marvelous actions—about his power and the amazing things he has done.
Ég birti ykkur sannleikann, svo að þið getið sagt börnum ykkar frá dásemdarverkum Drottins, öllum þeim undrum sem hann vann.
5 He gave his laws to the descendants of Jacob; his instructions to the people of Israel. He commanded our forefathers to teach them to their children,
Lögmál sitt gaf hann Ísrael og bauð forfeðrunum að kenna það börnum sínum
6 so that the next generation—children yet to be born—would understand and grow up to teach their children.
sem síðan skyldu kenna það sínum afkomendum. Þannig skyldi lögmál hans berast frá einni kynslóðinni til annarrar.
7 In this way they should place their trust in God and not forget what God has done, and keep his commandments.
Því hefur sérhver kynslóð getað haldið lög Guðs, treyst honum og heyrt um hans dásemdarverk.
8 Then they would not be like their forefathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation that was untrustworthy and unfaithful.
Ný kynslóð skyldi ekki þurfa að fara að fordæmi feðra sinna sem voru þrjóskir, óhlýðnir og ótrúir og forhertu sig gegn Guði.
9 The soldiers of Ephraim, though armed with bows, ran away on the day of battle.
Þótt íbúar Efraím væru alvopnaðir, þá flúðu þeir þegar að orustunni kom.
10 They did not keep God's agreement, and refused to follow his laws.
Þannig rufu þeir sáttmálann við Guð og fóru sína eigin leið.
11 They ignored what he had done, and the amazing things he had shown them—
Þeir gleymdu máttarverkum Drottins,
12 the miracles he had performed for their forefathers near Zoan in Egypt.
sem hann hafði fyrir þá gert og forfeður þeirra í Egyptalandi,
13 He split the sea in two and led them through, making the water stand like walls on either side.
þegar hann klauf hafið og leiddi þá yfir þurrum fótum. Vatnið stóð eins og veggur til beggja handa!
14 He led them with a cloud by day, and by night with a light of fire.
Að degi til leiddi hann þá með skýi, en eldstólpa um nætur.
15 He split open rocks in the desert to give his people plenty to drink, water as deep as the ocean.
Hann rauf gat á klettinn í eyðimörkinni. Vatnið streymdi fram og þeir svöluðu þorsta sínum.
16 He made streams flow from the stone; water rushing down like rivers!
Já, það flæddi frá klettinum, líkast rennandi á!
17 But they repeatedly sinned against him, rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
Samt héldu þeir fast við þrjósku sína og syndguðu gegn hinum hæsta Guði.
18 They deliberately provoked God by demanding the foods they longed for.
Þeir kvörtuðu og kveinuðu og heimtuðu annað að borða en það sem Guð gaf þeim.
19 They insulted God by saying, “Can God provide food here in the desert?
Þeir ásökuðu jafnvel sjálfan Guð og sögðu:
20 Yes, he can strike a rock so that water gushes out like flowing rivers, but can he give us bread? Can he supply his people with meat?”
„Hann gaf okkur vatn, en hvers vegna fáum við ekki brauð eða kjöt?!“
21 When he heard this, the Lord became very angry, burning like fire against the descendants of Jacob, furious with the people of Israel,
Drottinn hlustaði og honum rann í skap, reiði hans upptendraðist gegn Ísrael.
22 for they didn't believe in God and didn't trust him to take care of them.
Enda treystu þeir honum ekki, né trúðu forsjá hans.
23 Even so he commanded the skies above and the doors of heaven to open,
Jafnvel þótt hann lyki upp himninum – eins og glugga! –
24 and he made manna rain down on them to eat, giving them bread from heaven.
og léti manna rigna niður.
25 Human beings ate the bread of angels; he sent them more than enough food.
Já, þeir átu englabrauð! – og urðu mettir.
26 He sent the east wind blowing across the sky; by his power he drove the south wind.
Þá lét hann austanvind blása og stýrði vestanvindinum með krafti sínum.
27 He rained down meat on them as plentiful as dust; birds as numerous as sand on a beach.
Og viti menn, fuglum rigndi af himni, – þeir voru eins og sandur á sjávarströnd!
28 He made them fall right in the middle of their camp, all around where they were living.
Af hans völdum féllu þeir til jarðar um allar tjaldbúðirnar.
29 They ate until they were full. He gave them the food they longed for.
Og fólkið át nægju sína. Hann mettaði hungur þeirra.
30 But before they satisfied their appetite, while the meat was still in their mouths,
En varla höfðu þeir lokið matnum – fæðan var enn í munni þeirra,
31 God became angry with them and he killed their strongest men, striking them down in the prime of life.
þá reiddist Drottinn þeim og lagði að velli æskumenn Ísraels.
32 Despite all this they went right on sinning. Despite the miracles, they refused to trust him.
En þeir sáu sig ekki um hönd, en héldu áfram að syndga og vildu ekki trúa kraftaverkum Drottins.
33 So he snuffed out their futile lives, bringing them to an end in terror.
Þess vegna stytti hann ævi þeirra og sendi þeim miklar hörmungar.
34 When he began killing them, the rest came back to God in repentance, praying to him.
En þegar neyðin var stærst, tóku þeir að leita Guðs. Þeir iðruðust og snéru sér til hans.
35 They remembered that God was their rock, that God Most High was their Savior.
Þeir viðurkenndu að Guð er eini grundvöllur lífsins – að hinn hæsti Guð væri frelsari þeirra.
36 They flattered him by what they told him, but they were only lying.
En því miður fylgdu þeir honum aðeins í orði kveðnu, en ekki af heilum hug,
37 Deep down they were not sincere, and did not keep the agreement they had with him.
hjarta þeirra var langt frá honum. Þeir stóðu ekki við orð sín.
38 But being compassionate he pardoned their guilt and did not destroy all of them. He often held back his anger—he did not pour out all his fury.
Samt var hann þeim miskunnsamur, fyrirgaf syndir þeirra og tortímdi þeim ekki. Margoft hélt hann aftur af reiði sinni.
39 He remembered their mortality—that they were like a puff of wind that would not return.
Hann minntist þess að þeir voru dauðlegir menn, eins og andblær sem kemur og fer.
40 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness, giving him grief in the desert!
Já, oft risu þeir gegn Guði í eyðimörkinni og ollu honum vonbrigðum.
41 Again and again they provoked God, causing pain to the Holy One of Israel.
Aftur og aftur sneru þeir við honum baki og freistuðu hans.
42 They did not remember his strength when he rescued them from their oppressors,
Þeir gleymdu krafti hans og kærleika og hvernig hann hafði frelsað þá frá óvinum þeirra.
43 performing miracles in Egypt, doing wonderful things on the plain of Zoan.
Þeir gleymdu plágunum sem hann sendi Egyptum í Sóan
44 There he turned their rivers and their streams into blood so that no one could drink from them.
þegar hann breytti fljótum þeirra í blóð, svo að enginn gat drukkið.
45 He sent flies among them to destroy them, and frogs to ruin everything.
Eða þegar hann fyllti landið af flugum og froskum!
46 He gave their crops to locusts; everything they worked had for was taken by locusts.
Lirfurnar spilltu uppskerunni og engispretturnar átu allt, hvort tveggja var frá honum komið.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail, and their fig trees with freezing rain.
Hann eyddi vínviði þeirra með hagléli og mórberjatrjánum með frosti.
48 He handed over their cattle to hail and their flocks to lightning bolts.
Búpeningurinn hrundi niður í haganum, haglið rotaði hann og sauðirnir drápust í eldingum.
49 He poured out on them his fierce anger—rage and hostility and anguish—sending a band of destroying angels against them.
Hann úthellti reiði sinni yfir þá, sendi þeim ógn og skelfingu. Hann leysti út sendiboða ógæfunnar – engla sem létu þá kenna á því!
50 He sent his unrestrained anger against them; he did not spare them from death, handing them over to the plague.
Hann gaf reiðinni lausan tauminn. Og ekki hlífði hann Egyptunum. Þeir fengu vænan skerf af plágum og sjúkdómum.
51 He struck down all the firstborn of Egypt, the first to be conceived in the tents of Ham.
Þá deyddi hann frumburði Egypta, efnilegan ungviðinn, sem vonirnar voru bundnar við.
52 But he led out his people like sheep, and guided them like a flock in the wilderness.
Sinn eigin lýð leiddi hann styrkri hendi gegnum eyðimörkina.
53 He led them to safety, and they were not afraid. He drowned their enemies in the sea.
Hann var skjól þeirra og vörn. Þeir þurftu ekkert að óttast, en hafið gleypti óvini þeirra.
54 He brought them to the border of his holy land, to this mountainous land that he had conquered for them.
Hann greiddi för þeirra til fyrirheitna landsins, til hæðanna sem hann hafði skapað.
55 He drove out the heathen nations before them. He divided up the land for them to own. He settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.
Íbúum landsins stökkti hann á flótta en gaf þar ættkvíslum Ísraels erfðahlut og skjól.
56 But they provoked God Most High, rebelling against him. They did not follow what he had told them.
En þótt þeir nytu gæsku Guðs, risu þeir gegn hinum hæsta og fyrirlitu boðorð hans.
57 Just like their forefathers they turned away from God and were unfaithful to him, as twisted as a defective bow.
Þeir sneru af leið og rufu trúnað rétt eins og feður þeirra. Eins og bogin ör misstu þeir marksins sem Guð hafði sett þeim.
58 They made him angry with their pagan high places of worship; they made him jealous with their idols.
Þeir tóku aðra guði, reistu þeim ölturu og egndu Drottin á móti sér.
59 When God heard their worship he became furious and he totally rejected Israel.
Guð sá verk þeirra og reiddist – fékk viðbjóð á Ísrael.
60 He abandoned his place at Shiloh, the Tabernacle where he lived among the people.
Hann yfirgaf helgidóm sinn í Síló, bústað sinn meðal manna.
61 He surrendered the Ark of his power, allowing it to be captured; handing it over into enemy hands.
Örk sína lét hann falla í hendur óvinanna og vegsemd hans var óvirt af heiðingjum.
62 He handed over his people to be slaughtered by the sword; he was furious with his chosen people.
Hann reiddist lýð sínum og lét hann falla fyrir sverði óvinanna.
63 Their young men were destroyed by fire; their young women had no wedding songs.
Æskumenn Ísraels fórust í eldi og ungu stúlkurnar upplifðu ekki sinn brúðkaupsdag.
64 Their priests were killed by the sword; their widows were unable to mourn.
Prestunum var slátrað og ekkjur þeirra dóu áður en þær gátu harmað þá.
65 Then the Lord woke up as if from sleep, as a warrior sobering up from drinking wine.
Þá var sem Drottinn vaknaði af svefni, eins og hetja sem rís upp úr vímu,
66 He defeated his enemies, striking them on the back, causing them everlasting shame.
og hann gaf þeim vænt spark í bakhlutann og sendi þá burt með skömm, sömu leið og þeir komu.
67 He rejected the descendants of Joseph, and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
Hann hafnaði fjölskyldu Jósefs, ætt Efraíms,
68 Instead he chose the tribe of Judah, and Mount Zion which he loves.
en kaus Júdaættkvísl og Síonfjall, sem hann elskar.
69 There he built his sanctuary, high like the heavens, on earth that he made to last forever.
Þar reisti hann musteri sitt – voldugt og traust rétt eins og himin og jörð.
70 He chose his servant David, taking him from the sheep pens,
Hann kaus Davíð sem þjón sinn, tók hann frá sauðunum,
71 taking him from caring for the sheep and lambs to be a shepherd to the descendants of Jacob—God's special people, Israel.
úr smalamennskunni, til að verða leiðtogi og hirðir þjóðar sinnar.
72 Like a shepherd, he took care of them with sincere devotion, leading them with skillful hands.
Og hann gætti hennar af öryggi og með hreinu hjarta.
