Judges 3
1 At that time there were still many people-groups in Canaan. Yahweh left them there to test the Israeli people. But many of the Israelis in Canaan were ones who had not fought in any of the wars in Canaan. So Yahweh also left those people-groups in Canaan so that the descendants of those who had not fought in any of the wars might learn how to fight.
Queste sono le nazioni che il Signore risparmiò allo scopo di mettere alla prova Israele per mezzo loro, cioè quanti non avevano visto le guerre di Canaan.
Ciò avvenne soltanto per l'istruzione delle nuove generazioni degli Israeliti, perché imparassero la guerra, quelli, per lo meno, che prima non l'avevano mai vista:
3 [This is a list of] the people-groups that Yahweh left there: The Philistines and their five leaders, the people living in the area near Sidon [city], the descendants of Canaan, and the descendants of Hiv who were living in the mountains of Lebanon between Baal-Hermon Mountain and Lebo-Hamath.
i cinque capi dei Filistei, tutti i Cananei, quei di Sidòne e gli Evei, che abitavano le montagne del Libano, dal monte Baal-Ermon fino all'ingresso di Amat.
4 Yahweh left these people-groups there to test the Israelis, to see if they would obey his commands which he had told Moses to give them.
Queste nazioni servirono a mettere Israele alla prova per vedere se Israele avrebbe obbedito ai comandi, che il Signore aveva dati ai loro padri per mezzo di Mosè.
5 The Israelis lived among the Canaan people-group, the Hiv people-group, the Amor people-group, the Periz people-group, the Hiv people-group, and the Jebus people-group.
Così gli Israeliti abitarono in mezzo ai Cananei, agli Hittiti, agli Amorrei, ai Perizziti, agli Evei e ai Gebusei;
6 [Moses had told the people not to associate with any of those people]. But the Israelis took daughters of people from those people-groups [to be their own wives], and gave their own daughters to men of those groups, to marry them. And [as a result] they started to worship the gods of those people-groups.
presero in mogli le figlie di essi, maritarono le proprie figlie con i loro figli e servirono i loro dei.
7 The Israelis did things that Yahweh said were very evil. They forgot about Yahweh, their God, and they started to worship [the idols that represented] the god Baal and the goddess Asherah.
Gli Israeliti fecero ciò che è male agli occhi del Signore; dimenticarono il Signore loro Dio e servirono i Baal e le Asere.
8 Yahweh became very angry with the Israelis. So he allowed king Cushan from Mesopotamia to conquer them and rule them for eight years.
Perciò l'ira del Signore si accese contro Israele e li mise nelle mani di Cusan-Risataim, re del Paese dei due fiumi; gli Israeliti furono servi di Cusan-Risataim per otto anni.
9 But when they pleaded to Yahweh [to help them], he gave them a leader to rescue them. He was Othniel, the son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz.
Poi gli Israeliti gridarono al Signore, e il Signore suscitò loro un liberatore, Otniel, figlio di Kenaz, fratello minore di Caleb, ed egli li liberò.
10 Yahweh’s Spirit came upon him, and he became their leader. He [led an army that] fought against [the army of] Cushan, and defeated them.
Lo spirito del Signore fu su di lui ed egli fu giudice d'Israele; uscì a combattere e il Signore gli diede nelle mani Cusan-Risataim, re di Aram; la sua mano fu potente contro Cusan-Risataim.
11 After that, there was peace in the land for 40 years, until Othniel died.
Il paese rimase in pace per quarant'anni, poi Otniel, figlio di Kenaz, morì.
12 After that, the Israelis again did things that Yahweh said were very evil. As a result, he allowed the army of King Eglon, who ruled [the] Moab [area], to defeat the Israelis.
Gli Israeliti ripresero a fare ciò che è male agli occhi del Signore; il Signore rese forte Eglon, re di Moab, contro Israele, perché facevano ciò che è male agli occhi del Signore.
13 Eglon persuaded the leaders of the Ammon and Amalek people-groups to join their armies with his army to attack Israel. They captured [Jericho, which was called] ‘The City of Palm Trees’.
Eglon radunò intorno a sé gli Ammoniti e gli Amaleciti, fece una spedizione contro Israele, lo battè e si impadronì della città delle Palme.
14 Then King Eglon ruled the Israelis for eighteen years.
Gli Israeliti furono schiavi di Eglon, re di Moab, per diciotto anni.
15 But then the Israelis again pleaded to Yahweh [to help them]. So he gave them another leader to rescue them. He was Ehud, a left-handed man, the son of Gera, from the descendants of Benjamin. The Israelis sent him to King Eglon to give him their yearly protection money.
Poi gridarono al Signore ed egli suscitò loro un liberatore, Eud, figlio di Ghera, Beniaminita, che era mancino. Gli Israeliti mandarono per mezzo di lui un tributo a Eglon re di Moab.
16 Ehud had with him a double-edged dagger, about a foot and a half long. He strapped it to his right thigh, under his clothes.
Eud si fece una spada a due tagli, lunga un gomed, e se la cinse sotto la veste, al fianco destro.
17 He gave the money to King Eglon, who was a very fat man.
Poi presentò il tributo a Eglon, re di Moab, che era uomo molto grasso.
18 Then Ehud started to go back home with the men who had carried the money.
Finita la presentazione del tributo, ripartì con la gente che l'aveva portato.
19 When they arrived at the stone carvings near Gilgal, [he told the other men to go on, but] he himself turned around and went back [to the king of Moab. When he arrived at the palace], he said to the king, “Your majesty, I have a secret message for you.” So the king told all his servants to be quiet, and sent them out of the room.
Ma egli, dal luogo detto Idoli, che è presso Gàlgala, tornò indietro e disse: «O re, ho una cosa da dirti in segreto». Il re disse: «Silenzio!» e quanti stavano con lui uscirono.
20 Then, as Eglon was sitting alone in the upstairs room of his summer palace, Ehud came close to him and said, “I have a message for you from God.” As the king got up from his chair,
Allora Eud si accostò al re che stava seduto nel piano di sopra, riservato a lui solo, per la frescura, e gli disse: «Ho una parola da dirti da parte di Dio». Quegli si alzò dal suo seggio.
21 Ehud reached with his left hand and pulled the dagger from his right thigh, and plunged it into the king’s belly.
Allora Eud, allungata la mano sinistra, trasse la spada dal suo fianco e gliela piantò nel ventre.
22 He thrust it in so far that the handle went into the king’s belly, and the blade came out the king’s back. Ehud did not pull the dagger out. [He left it there, with] the handle buried in the king’s fat.
Anche l'elsa entrò con la lama; il grasso si rinchiuse intorno alla lama, perciò egli uscì subito dalla finestra, senza estrargli la spada dal ventre.
23 Then Ehud left the room. He went out to the porch. He shut the doors to the room and locked them.
Eud uscì nel portico, dopo aver chiuso i battenti del piano di sopra e aver tirato il chiavistello.
24 After he had gone, King Eglon’s servants came back, but they saw that the doors of the room were locked. They said, “The king must be defecating in the inner room.”
Quando fu uscito, vennero i servi, i quali guardarono e videro che i battenti del piano di sopra erano sprangati; dissero: «Certo attende ai suoi bisogni nel camerino della stanza fresca».
25 So they waited, but when the king did not open the doors of the room, after a while they were worried. They got a key and unlocked the doors. And they saw that their king was lying on the floor, dead.
Aspettarono fino ad essere inquieti, ma quegli non apriva i battenti del piano di sopra. Allora presero la chiave, aprirono ed ecco il loro signore era steso per terra, morto.
26 Meanwhile, Ehud escaped. He passed by the stone carvings and arrived at Seirah, in the hilly area where the descendants of Ephraim lived.
Mentre essi indugiavano, Eud era fuggito e, dopo aver oltrepassato gli Idoli, si era messo in salvo nella Seira.
27 There he blew a trumpet [to signal that the people should join him to fight the people of Moab]. So the Israelis went with him from the hills. They went down [toward the Jordan river], with Ehud leading them.
Appena arrivato là, suonò la tromba sulle montagne di Efraim e gli Israeliti scesero con lui dalle montagne ed egli si mise alla loro testa.
28 He said to the men, “Yahweh is going to allow us to defeat your enemies, the people of Moab. So follow me!” So they followed him down to the river, and they stationed some of their men at the place where people can walk across the river, in order that they could [kill any people from Moab who tried to] cross the river [to escape].
Disse loro: «Seguitemi, perché il Signore vi ha messo nelle mani i Moabiti, vostri nemici». Quelli scesero dopo di lui, si impadronirono dei guadi del Giordano, per impedirne il passo ai Moabiti, e non lasciarono passare nessuno.
29 At that time, the Israelis killed about 10,000 people from Moab. They were all strong and capable men, but not one of them escaped.
In quella circostanza sconfissero circa diecimila Moabiti, tutti robusti e valorosi; non ne scampò neppure uno.
30 On that day, the Israelis conquered the people of Moab. Then there was peace in their land for 80 years.
Così in quel giorno Moab fu umiliato sotto la mano d'Israele e il paese rimase tranquillo per ottant'anni.
31 After Ehud [died], Shamgar became their leader. He rescued the Israelis [from the Philistines. In one battle] he killed 600 Philistines with an (ox goad/sharp wooden pole).
Dopo di lui ci fu Samgar figlio di Anat. Egli sconfisse seicento Filistei con un pungolo da buoi; anch'egli salvò Israele.
