< 2 Samuel 17 >
1 Then Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Allow me to choose 12,000 men, and I will leave [with them] tonight to pursue David.
阿希托費耳向說:「讓我選拔一萬二千人,今夜起程去追趕達味。
2 We will attack him while he is tired and discouraged, and cause him to be very frightened. All the soldiers who are with him will run away. We will kill only the king.
正當他困乏疲倦時,我忽然趕到,使他驚惶失措,隨從他的人,必會逃散,我只把君王一人殺了,
3 Then we will bring back all his soldiers to you, like [SIM] a (bride/woman comes to her husband when she is married). You are wanting to kill only one man; so the other people will not be harmed.”
然後人民來歸順你,像新娘回到新郎那裏;你只須害一人的性命,全民眾就都和平無事了」。
4 Absalom and all the Israeli leaders [who were with him] thought that what Ahithophel said would be good to do.
阿貝沙隆和以色列的眾長老,對這提議都很贊成。
5 But Absalom said, “Summon Hushai also, and we will hear what he suggests.”
阿貝沙隆說:「讓把阿爾基人胡瑟召來,我們也願聽聽他說什麼」。
6 So when Hushai arrived, Absalom told him what Ahithophel had suggested. Then he asked Hushai, “What do you think we should do? If you do not think that we should do what Ahithophel suggests, tell us [what you think that we should do].”
胡瑟來到阿貝沙隆前,阿貝沙隆向他說:「阿希托費耳說出這樣的話,我們應按他的主意去行嗎﹖請你提議吧! 」
7 Hushai replied, “This time what Ahithophel has suggested is not good advice.
胡瑟回答阿貝沙隆說:「阿希托費耳這次所出的計謀卻是不妙」。
8 You know that your father and the men who are with him are strong soldiers, and that now they are very angry, like [SIM] a mother bear whose cubs have been stolen from her. Furthermore, your father knows how to fight because he has fought in many battles. He will not stay with his troops during the night.
胡瑟接著說:「你知道你父親和隨從他的人,都是勇將,現在心情惱怒,好像田野間喪子的母熊;何況,你父親又是歷戰陣的人,夜間決不會讓軍民安睡。
9 Right now he is probably already hiding in one of the pits, or in some other place. [If his soldiers start to attack your soldiers, and] if they kill some of them, whoever hears about that will say ‘Many of the soldiers with Absalom have been killed!’
他現在必藏在一個山洞裏,或另一個地方;若起初我們的人就有傷亡,人們聽見必要說:跟隨阿貝沙隆的人,慘遭失敗;
10 Then your other soldiers, even if they are as fearless [SIM, IDM] as lions, they will become very afraid. Do not forget that everyone in Israel knows that your father is a great/strong soldier, and that the soldiers who are with him are also very brave/courageous.
那麼,連性情兇猛如獅子的壯士,也要灰心喪膽,因為全以色列人都知道你父親是個勇將,跟隨他的人,也都是驍勇的人。
11 “So what I suggest is that you summon all the Israeli soldiers, from Dan [in the far north] to Beersheba [in the far south]. They will be as many as the grains of sand on the seashore [HYP]. And then you yourself lead us into the battle.
我的計劃,是先把所有的以色列人集合在你身邊,從丹直到貝爾舍巴,像海邊沙粒那樣多,然後由你親自率領,前去征討;
12 We will find [your father], wherever he is, and we will attack him [from all sides], like [SIM] dew covers all the ground. And neither he nor any of the soldiers who are with him will survive.
他不論到那裏,我們也突然到那裏;像露一樣襲擊他,使他和跟隨他的人一個也不留下。
13 If he escapes into some city, all our soldiers will bring ropes and pull that city down into the valley. As a result, not one stone will be left there [on top of the hill where that city was]!”
若他退入一座城內,全以色列就帶著繩索去攻擊那城,將那城拉到山谷裏,連一塊小石也不剩下」。
14 Absalom and all the other Israeli men [who were with him] said, “What Hushai suggests is better than what Ahithophel suggested.” The reason that happened was that Yahweh had determined that if they would accept the good advice that Ahithophel had given them, [they would have been able to defeat/kill David]. But [as a result of their doing what Hushai suggested], Yahweh would cause a disaster to happen to Absalom.
阿貝沙隆和全以色列人都說:「阿爾基人胡瑟的計謀比阿希托費耳的更為可取」。原是上主決定了要破壞阿希托費耳是好計謀,為給阿彼瑟降下災禍。
15 Then Hushai told the two priests, Zadok and Abiathar, what both he and Ahithophel had suggested to Absalom and the Israeli leaders.
隨後,胡瑟報告匝多克和厄貝雅塔爾說:「阿希托費耳給阿貝沙隆和以色列長老出了那樣的計謀,我卻出了這樣的計謀。
16 Then he said to them, “Send [a message] quickly to David. Tell him to not stay at the place where people walk across the river, near the desert. Instead, he and his soldiers must cross [the Jordan River] immediately, in order that they will not be killed/wiped out.”
現在,快派人去報告達味說:今夜不可在曠野的渡口露宿,要趕快過河,免得君王和隨從他的人民都遭殲滅」。
17 [The priest’s two sons, ] Jonathan and Ahimaaz, were waiting at En-Rogel [Spring], outside Jerusalem. They did not [dare to] enter the city, because if someone saw them, [he would report it to Absalom]. [While they were at En-Rogel, ] a female servant [of the two priests] would frequently go to them and report to them [what was happening], and then they would go and report it to King David.
那時,約納堂和阿希瑪茲已在洛革泉傍等候,因怕被人看見,不敢進城;有個使女出來給他們傳信,他們就去報告達味君王。
18 But a young man saw them, and went and reported it to Absalom. [They found out what the young man had done, ] so both of them left quickly and went to stay in the house of a man in Bahurim. That man had a well in his courtyard; so the two men went down into the well [to hide].
但有一個少年人看見了他們,便向阿貝沙隆報告了;他們二人就急速逃匿,來到巴胡陵的一個人家裏,他院子裏有一口井,他們便下到井裏。
19 The man’s wife took a cloth/mat and covered the well, and scattered grain on top of it in order that no one would know [that two men were hiding inside it].
那家的婦女取了一個蓋子蓋在井口上,蓋子上又撒了些麥粒,免得有人注意。
20 Some of Absalom’s soldiers [found out where the two men had gone. So they] went to the house, and asked the woman, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” She replied, “They crossed the river.” So the soldiers [crossed the river and] searched for them. But they could not find them, so they returned to Jerusalem.
阿貝沙隆的差役來到那家的婦女前問說:「阿希瑪茲和約納堂在哪裏﹖那婦女答說:「他們早過了蓄水池」。差役就去搜索他們,卻沒有找著,便回了耶路撒冷。
21 After they had gone, the two men came out of the well and went and reported to King David [what had happened and] what Ahithophel had suggested. Then they said to him, “Cross the river quickly!”
差役走了以後,兩人就為井裏上來;去給達味君王報信,對達味說:「起身,趕快過河,因為阿希托費耳為害你們出了這樣的計謀」。
22 So David and all his soldiers quickly started to cross the Jordan [River], and by dawn they had all crossed to the other side.
達味和隨從他的人就起身過了約旦河。到天亮時,沒有一個沒有過約旦河的。
23 When Ahithophel realized that Absalom was not going to do what he suggested, he put a saddle on his donkey and returned to his own town. He gave [to his family] instructions about his possessions, and then he hanged himself [because he knew that Absalom would be defeated and that he would be considered a traitor and be killed]. His body was buried in the tomb where his ancestors [had been buried].
阿希托費耳看見人不依從他的計謀,就備上驢,動身回家,回了本城,安排了自己的家務以後,就上吊死了。人將他埋在他父親的墳墓裏。
24 David [and his soldiers] arrived at Mahanaim. And Absalom [and all his Israeli soldiers] also crossed the Jordan [River].
阿貝沙隆率領以色列人過約旦河時,達味已到了瑪哈納因。
25 Absalom had appointed [his cousin] Amasa to be the commander of his army, instead of Joab. Amasa was the son of a man named Jether, a descendant of Ishmael. Amasa’s mother was Abigail, the daughter of Nahash and the sister of Joab’s mother Zeruiah.
阿貝沙隆派阿瑪撒代約阿布為統帥。阿瑪撒是依市瑪耳人依特辣的兒子。依特辣曾走近過葉瑟的女兒,約阿布的母親,責魯雅的姐妹阿彼蓋耳。
26 Absalom and his Israeli soldiers set up their tents in [the] Gilead [region].
以色列人同阿貝沙隆在基肋阿得一帶紮了營。
27 When David [and his soldiers] arrived at Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah [city] in the Ammon area, and Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-Debar [city], and Barzillai from Rogelim [town] in [the] Gilead [region]
當達味來到瑪哈納因時,納哈士的兒子芍彼,由阿孟人民的辣巴城,阿米爾的兒子瑪基爾由羅德巴爾城,基肋阿得人巴爾齊來由洛革林城,
28 brought sleeping mats, bowls, clay pots, barley, wheat flour, parched grain, beans, and lentils to them.
帶來了床、鋪蓋、杯盤、炊具、小麥、麵粉、炒麥、豆子、扁豆、
29 They brought honey and curds, sheep, and some cream/cheese for David and his soldiers to eat. They knew that David and his soldiers would be hungry and tired and thirsty [from marching] in the desert.
蜂蜜、奶油、奶餅、牛肉和羊肉,供給達味和他的的人吃用,因為他們想:這些人經過了曠野,必定感到飢餓和疲勞。