< Jonah 4 >
1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly; and he was wroth.
約納因此很不高興,遂發起怒來。
2 And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my word, while I was yet in my own country? Therefore made I haste to fly unto Tharshish; for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, long-suffering, and abundant in kindness, and repentant of the evil.
他懇求天主說:「上主,當我還在故鄉時,我豈不是已想到這事﹖所以我預先要逃往塔爾史士去,因為我知道你是慈悲的,寬仁的天主;是緩於發怒,富於慈愛,憐憫而不願降災禍的天主。
3 And now, O Lord, take, I pray thee, my soul from me; because it is better for me to die, than to live.
上主,現在,求你從我身上收去我的性命,因為,我死了比活著還好! 」
4 And the Lord said, Art thou very wroth?
上主說:「你的憤怒合理嗎﹖」
5 Now Jonah was gone out of the city, and dwelt on the east side of the city; and he had made himself there a booth, and sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city.
約納出了城,坐在城東,在那裏為自己搭了一個棚坐在棚蔭下,要看看那城究竟要發生什麼事。
6 And the Lord God made ready a gourd, and it grew up over Jonah, to be a shade over his head, to relieve him from his affliction. And Jonah rejoiced because of the gourd exceedingly.
上主天主安排了一株篦麻,使長得高過約納,為他的頭遮蔭,消除自己尸煩惱。約納很喜愛這株篦麻。
7 But God made ready a worm when the morning dawned on the morrow, and it smote the gourd that it withered.
但第二天曙升起時,天主安排了一個蟲咬死了篦麻,篦麻便枯萎了
8 And it came to pass, when the sun arose, that God made ready a hot east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he became faint; and he wished for himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.
當太陽升起時,天主又安排了灸熱的東風,太陽射在約納頭上,使他無法忍受,遂要求死去,說:「我死了比活著還好! 」
9 And God said unto Jonah, Art thou very wroth for the gourd? And he said, I am very wroth, even unto death.
天主血約納說:「你為這株篦麻發怒合理嗎﹖」他回答說:「我發怒以致於死,是合理的! 」
10 And the Lord said, Thou wouldst have spared the gourd, for which thou hadst not labored, neither hadst thou made it grow; which came up in one night, and perished in one night;
上主說:「你為這株篦麻,並沒有勞過力,也沒有使它生長,還憐惜它:它不過是一夜生,出一夜死去的植物;
11 And shall I not spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than twelve times ten thousand persons, who know not how to discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also much cattle?
對尼尼微這座大城,其中有十二萬不能分辨自己左右手的人,且有許多牲畜,我就不該憐他們麼﹖」