Genesis 37
1 Jacob continued to live in the Canaan region where his father had lived previously.
雅各伯定居在他父親作客的客納罕地方。
2 (This is/I will now tell you) what happened to Jacob’s family. When his son Joseph was 17 years old, he was taking care of the flocks of sheep and goats with some of his older brothers. They were sons of his father’s (concubines/female slaves that he had taken to be his secondary wives). Joseph sometimes told his father about bad things that his brothers were doing.
以下是雅各伯的小史。若瑟十七歲時，與哥哥們一同放羊。他尚年幼，常與自己的父親的妻子彼耳哈和齊耳帕的兒子們在一起。他不斷將他們作的惡事報告給父親。
3 Jacob loved Joseph more than he loved any of his other children, because Joseph had been born when Jacob was an old man. Jacob made for Joseph a long pretty robe that had long sleeves.
以色列愛若瑟超過其他的兒子，因為是他年老生的，並給他做了一件彩色長衫。
4 When Joseph’s older brothers realized that their father loved him more than he loved any of them, they hated him. They never spoke kindly to him.
他的哥哥們見父親愛他勝過其餘的兒子，就忌恨他，不能與他和氣交談。
5 One night Joseph had a dream. He told his brothers about the dream.
若瑟作了一夢，講給哥哥們聽，因此他們越發惱恨他。
6 He said to them, “Listen to the dream I had!
他對他們說：「請聽我作的夢：
7 In the dream, we were tying up bundles of wheat in the field. Suddenly my bundle stood up straight, and surprisingly, your bundles gathered around my bundle and bowed down to it!”
我夢見我們同在田間捆麥子，忽然我的麥捆站起來，你們的麥捆圍住我的麥捆下拜。」
8 His brothers said to him, “Do you think that some day you will rule over us? Are you [saying that some day] you are going to be our king?” [RHQ] They hated him even more than before because of what he had told them about his dream.
他哥哥們對他說：「難道你要作我們的君王﹖或者統治我們﹖」他們為了這夢和這番話，越發惱恨他。
9 Later he had another dream, and again he told his older brothers about it. He said, “Listen to this! I had another dream. In this dream, the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me!”
他又作了一夢，也告訴他哥哥們說：「我又作了一夢：夢見太陽和月亮並一顆星辰向我下拜。」
10 He also told his father about it. His father rebuked him, saying “What are you suggesting by that dream [RHQ]? Do you think it means that your mother and I and your older brothers will some day bow down to the ground in front of you?” [RHQ]
當他給父親和哥哥們講說這夢時，他父親就責斥他說：「你作的是什麼夢﹖難道我和你母親以及你的兄弟，都要來向你叩首至地﹖」
11 Joseph’s older brothers were furious/angry with him, but his father just kept thinking about what the dream meant.
他兄弟們都忌恨他；他父親卻將這事存在心裏。
12 One day Joseph’s older brothers went to take care of their father’s sheep and goats that were eating grass near Shechem.
若瑟的哥哥們去了舍根，放他們父親的羊。
13 Some time later, Jacob said to Joseph, “Your brothers are taking care of the sheep and goats near Shechem [RHQ]. I am going to send you there to see them.” Joseph replied, “Okay.”
以色列對若瑟說：「你哥哥們不是在舍根放羊麼﹖來，我打發你去看看他們。」他回答說：「我在這裏。」
14 Jacob said, “Go and see if they are doing okay, and if the flocks are doing okay. Then come back and give me a report.” So Jacob sent Joseph from [the valley where they were living], the valley where Hebron is located, [to go north] to find his brothers. When Joseph arrived near Shechem [city],
以色列對他說：「你去看看你哥哥們是否平安，羊群怎樣；然後回來告訴我。」以色列便打發他由赫貝龍山谷前去；他到了舍根。
15 while he was wandering around in the fields looking/searching for his brothers, a man saw him and asked him, “Whom are you looking/searching for?”
有一個人見他在田間遊蕩，那人就問他說：「你尋找什麼﹖」
16 Joseph replied, “I am looking for my older brothers. Can you tell me where they are taking care of their sheep and goats?”
他答說：「我尋找我的哥哥；請告訴我：他們在那裏放羊﹖」
17 The man replied, “They are not here any more. I heard one of them saying, ‘Let’s take the sheep and goats and go to Dothan [town].’” So Joseph left there and went north, and found his older brothers near Dothan.
那人答說：「他們已離開了這裏；我聽見他們說：我們到多堂去。」於是若瑟便去追尋他的哥哥，在多堂找到了。
18 But they saw him when he was still far away, and they decided to kill him.
他們老遠就看見了他；在他尚未近以前，就已決定要謀殺他。
19 They said to each other [things like], “Here comes that dreamer!”
他們彼此說：「看，那作夢的人來了!
20 and “Hey, let’s kill him, and then throw his body into one of the pits/cisterns. Then we will tell people that a ferocious/wild animal attacked and killed him and ate him. And then we will (find out whether his dreams come true/make sure that his dreams do not come true)!”
我們殺掉他，將他拋在一口井裏，說是猛獸吃了。看他的夢還有什麼用﹖」
21 Reuben heard what they were saying, so he tried to persuade them not to kill [MTY] Joseph. He said, “No, we should not kill him.
勒烏本聽了，就設法由他們手中救他，遂說：「我們不要害他! 」
22 Do not even shed his blood! We can throw him into this pit/cistern in the desert, but we should not harm him [MTY].” He said that, and then left them, planning to rescue Joseph later and take him back to his father.
勒烏本又對他們說：「你們不要流血；只將他丟在這曠野的井裏，不可下手害他。」他的意思是想由他們手中救出他來，還給父親。
23 So when Joseph arrived where his older brothers were, they seized him and ripped off his pretty robe with long sleeves.
若瑟一來到他哥哥們那裏，他們就脫去了他穿的那件彩色長衣，抓住他，把他丟在井裏；
24 Then they took him and threw him into the pit/cistern. But the pit/cistern was dry; there was no water in it.
那井是空的，裏面沒有水。
25 After they sat down to eat some food, they looked up and saw a (caravan/group [of traders]), descendants of Ishmael, coming from the Gilead area. Their camels were loaded with bags of spices and nice-smelling resins. They were going down to Egypt to sell those things there.
他們坐下吃飯時，舉目看見一隊由基肋阿得來的依市瑪耳人；他們的駱駝滿載樹膠、香液和香料，要下到埃及去。
26 Judah said to his [older and younger] brothers, “If we kill our younger brother and hide his body, (what will we gain?/we will not gain anything!) [RHQ]
猶大遂對兄弟們說：「殺害我們的弟弟，隱瞞他的血，究竟有什麼益處﹖
27 So, instead of harming him, let’s sell him to these men who are descendants of Ishmael. Don’t forget, he is our own younger brother!” So they all agreed to do that.
不如將他賣給依市瑪耳人，免得對他下毒手，因為他究竟是我們的兄弟，是我們的骨肉。」兄弟們聽從了他的意見。
28 When those traders from the Midian area came near, Joseph’s brothers pulled him up out of the pit/cistern. Then they sold him to the men from Midian for 20 pieces of silver. The traders then took Joseph to Egypt.
米淂楊的商人經過那裏時，他們便從井中拉出若瑟來，以二十塊銀錢賣給了依市瑪耳人；他們便將若瑟帶到埃及去了。
29 When Reuben returned to the pit/cistern, he saw that his younger brother was not there. He was so grieved that he tore his clothes.
勒烏本回到井邊，不見若瑟在井內，遂撕裂了自己的衣服，
30 He went back to his [younger] brothers and said, “The boy is not in the pit/cistern! What can I do now?” [RHQ]
回到兄弟們那裏喊說：「孩子不見了! 我可往那裏去呢﹖」
31 [Joseph’s brothers did not dare to tell their father what they had done. So, they decided to invent a story about what had happened]. They got Joseph’s robe. Then they killed a goat and dipped the robe in the goat’s blood.
他們於是拿了若瑟的長衣，殺了一隻公山羊，將長衣浸在血裏；
32 They took that pretty robe back to their father and said, “We found this robe! Look at it. Is it your son’s robe?”
然後派人將那件彩色的長衣送給他們的父親說：「這是我們尋得的，請你仔細看看，是不是你兒子的長衣﹖」
33 He recognized it, and he said, “Yes, it is my son’s robe! Some ferocious/wild animal must have attacked and killed him! I am sure that the animal has torn Joseph to pieces!”
雅各伯仔細一看，就喊說：「是我兒子的長衣；猛獸將他吃了。若瑟被撕裂了，被撕裂了! 」
34 Jacob was so grieved that he tore his clothes. He put on (sackcloth/clothes that people wear when they are mourning for someone who has died). He mourned/cried for his son for many days.
雅各伯遂撕裂了自己的衣服，腰間圍上麻衣，為自己的兒子悲哀了多日。
35 All of his children came to try to comfort him, but he did not pay attention to what they said. He said, “No, I will still be mourning/crying when I die and go to be with my son.” So Joseph’s father continued to cry because of what had happened to his son. (Sheol h7585)
雖然他的兒女都來安慰他，他卻不肯接受他們的安慰，說：「我只有悲哀地下到陰間，往我兒那裏去! 」他的父親竟這樣哀悼他。 (Sheol h7585)
36 In the meantime, the men/traders from Midian took Joseph to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, who was one of the king’s officials. He was the captain of the soldiers who protected the king.
米德楊人後在在埃及將若瑟賣給了法郎的內臣，衛隊長普提法爾。
