< Judges 6 >

1 Again the Israelis did things that Yahweh said were very evil. So he allowed the people of Midian to conquer them and rule them for seven years.
イスラエルの子孫またヱホバの目のまへに惡を行ひたればヱホバ七年の間之をミデアン人の手に付したまふ
2 The people of Midian treated the Israelis so cruelly that the Israelis fled to the mountains. There they made places to live in caves and animal dens.
ミデアン人の手イスラエルにかてりイスラエルの子孫はミデアン人の故をもて山にある窟と洞穴と要害とをおのれのために造れり
3 Whenever the Israelis planted things in their fields, the people of Midian and Amalek and other groups from the east invaded Israel.
イスラエル人蒔種してありける時しもミデアン人アマレキ人及び東方の民上り來りて押寄せ
4 They set up tents in the area, and then destroyed the crops as far south as Gaza. They did not leave anything for the Israelis’ sheep or cattle or donkeys to eat.
イスラエル人に向ひて陣を取り地の產物を荒してガザにまで至りイスラエルのうちに生命を維ぐべき物を遺さず羊も牛も驢馬も遺ざりき
5 They came into Israel with their tents and their livestock like a swarm of locusts. There were [so many of them that] arrived riding on their camels that no one could count them. They stayed and ruined the Israelis’ crops.
夫この衆人は家畜と天幕を携へ上り蝗蟲の如くに數多く來れりその人と駱駝は數ふるに勝ず彼ら國を荒さんとて入きたる
6 The people of Midian took almost everything the Israelis owned. So finally the Israelis pleaded for Yahweh to help them.
かかりしかばイスラエルはミデアン人のために大いに衰へイスラエルの子孫ヱホバに呼れり
7 When the Israelis pleaded with Yahweh to help them because of [what] the people from Midian [were doing to them],
イスラエルの子孫ミデアン人の故をもてヱホバに呼はりしかば
8 he sent to them a prophet, who said, “Yahweh, the God we Israelis worship, says this: ‘Your ancestors were slaves in Egypt.
ヱホバひとりの預言者をイスラエルの子孫に遣りて言しめたまひけるはイスラエルの神ヱホバ斯くいひたまふ我かつて汝らをエジプトより上らせ汝らを奴隸たるの家より出し
9 But I rescued them from the leaders of Egypt and from all the others who oppressed them. I expelled their enemies from this land, and gave it to your ancestors.
エジプト人の手およびすべて汝らを虐ぐるものの手より汝らを拯ひいだし汝らの前より彼らを追ひはらひてその邦土を汝らに與へたり
10 I told you all, “I am Yahweh, your God. You are now in the land where the descendants of Amor live, but you must not worship the gods whom they worship.” But you did not pay attention to me.’”
我また汝らに言り我は汝らの神ヱホバなり汝らが住ひ居るアモリ人の國の神を懼るるなかれとしかるに汝らは我が聲に從はざりき
11 One day Yahweh appeared [in the form of] an angel and sat underneath a big oak tree at Ophrah [town]. That tree belonged to Joash, who was from the clan of Abiezer. Joash’s son Gideon was threshing wheat in the pit where they pressed [grapes to make] wine. He was threshing the grain there in order to hide it from the people of Midian.
茲にヱホバの使者來りてアビエゼル人ヨアシの所有なるオフラの橡の樹のしたに坐す時にヨアシの子ギデオン、ミデアン人に奪はれざらんために酒榨のなかに麥を打ち居たりしが
12 Yahweh [went over] to Gideon and said to him, “You mighty warrior, Yahweh is helping you!”
ヱホバの使之に現れて剛勇丈夫よヱホバ汝とともに在すといひたれば
13 Gideon replied, “Sir, if Yahweh is helping us, why have all these [bad things] happened to us? We heard about [RHQ] all the miracles that Yahweh performed for our ancestors. We heard people tell us about how he rescued them from [being slaves in] Egypt. But now Yahweh has abandoned us, and we are ruled by the people from Midian.”
ギデオン之にいひけるはああ吾が主よヱホバ我らと偕にいまさばなどてこれらのことわれらの上に及びたるやわれらの先祖がヱホバは我らをエジプトより上らしめたまひしにあらずやといひて我らに告たりしその諸の不思議なる行爲は何處にあるや今はヱホバわれらを棄てミデアン人の手に付したまへり
14 Then Yahweh turned toward him and said, “I will give you strength to enable you to rescue the Israelis from the people of Midian. I am sending you [to do that]!”
ヱホバ之を顧みていひたまひけるは汝此汝の力をもて行きミデアン人の手よりイスラエルを拯ひいだすべし我汝を遣すにあらずや
15 Gideon replied, “But Yahweh, how can I rescue the Israelis? My clan is the least significant in the whole tribe descended from Manasseh, and I am the least significant person in my whole family!”
ギデオン之にいひけるはああ主よ我何をもてかイスラエルを拯ふべき視よわが家はマナセのうちの最も弱きもの我はまた父の家の最も卑賤きものなり
16 Yahweh said to him, “I will help you. So you will defeat the army of Midian [as easily] as if you were fighting only one man!”
ヱホバ之にいひたまひけるは我かならず汝とともに在ん汝は一人を撃がごとくにミデアン人を撃つことを得ん
17 Gideon replied, “If you are truly pleased with me, do something which will prove that you who are speaking to me are really Yahweh.
ギデオン之にいひけるは我もし汝のまへに恩を蒙るならば請ふ我と語る者の汝なる證據を見せたまへ
18 But do not go away until I go and bring back an offering to you.” Yahweh answered, “Okay, I will stay here until you return.”
ねがはくは我復び汝に來りわが祭物をたづさへて之を汝のまへに供ふるまでここを去たまふなかれ彼いひたまひけるは我汝の還るまで待つべし
19 Gideon hurried to his home. He [killed] a young goat [and] cooked [it]. Then he took (a half a bushel/18 liters) of flour and baked some bread without yeast. Then he put the cooked meat in a basket, and put the broth [from the meat] in a pot, and took it to Yahweh, who was sitting under the tree.
ギデオンすなはち往て山羊の羔を調へ粉一エパをもて無酵パンをつくり肉を筺にいれ羹を壺に盛り橡樹の下にもち出て之を供へたれば
20 Then Yahweh said to him, “Put the meat and the bread on this rock. Then pour the broth on top of it.” So Gideon did that.
神の使之にいひたまひけるは肉と無酵パンをとりて此巖のうへに置き之に羹を斟げとすなはちそのごとくに行ふ
21 Then Yahweh touched the meat and bread with the walking stick that was in his hand. A fire flamed up from the rock and burned up everything that Gideon had brought! And then Yahweh disappeared.
ヱホバの使手にもてる杖の末端を出して肉と無酵パンに觸れたりしかば巖より火燃えあがり肉と無酵パンを燒き盡せりかくてヱホバの使去てその目に見ずなりぬ
22 When Gideon realized that it was really Yahweh [who had appeared in the form of an angel and talked with him], he exclaimed, “O, Yahweh, I have seen you face-to-face [when you had the form of] an angel! [So I will surely die]!”
ギデオン是において彼がヱホバの使者なりしを覺りギデオンいひけるはああ神ヱホバよ我面を合せてヱホバの使者を見たれば將如何せん
23 But Yahweh called to him and said, “Do not be afraid! You will not die [because of seeing me]!”
ヱホバ之にいひたまひけるは心安かれ怖るる勿れ汝死ぬることあらじ
24 Then Gideon built an altar to [worship] Yahweh there. He named it ‘Yahweh gives us peace’. That altar is still there in Ophrah [town], in the land that belongs to the descendants of Abiezer.
ここにおいてギデオン彼所にヱホバのために祭壇を築き之をヱホバシヤロムと名けたり是は今日に至るまでアビエゼル人のオフラに存る
25 That night Yahweh said to Gideon, “Take the second-best/oldest bull from your father’s herd, the bull that is seven years old. [Kill it]. Then tear down the altar that your father built to [worship] the god Baal. Also cut down the pole for worshipping [the goddess] Astarte that is there beside it.
其夜ヱホバ、ギデオンにいひ給ひけるは汝の父の少き牡牛および七歳なる第二の牛を取り汝の父のもてるバアルの祭壇を毀ち其上なるアシラの像を斫り仆し
26 Then build a [stone] altar to worship me, your God Yahweh, here on this hill. Take the wood from the pole you cut down and make a fire [to cook the meat of the bull] as a burnt offering to me.”
汝の神ヱホバのためにこの堡砦の頂において次序をただしくし祭壇を築き第二の牛を取りて汝が斫り倒せるアシラの木をもて燔祭を供ぐべし
27 So Gideon and his servants did what Yahweh commanded. But they did it at night, because he was afraid what the other members of his family and the other men in town would do to him if they found out that he had done that.
ギデオンすなはちその僕十人を携へてヱホバのいひたまひしごとく行へりされど父の家のものどもおよび邑の人を怖れたれば晝之をなすことを得ず夜に入りて之を爲り
28 Early the next morning, as soon as the men got up, they saw that the altar to Baal had been torn down, and the pole for worshiping Astarte was gone. They saw that there was a new altar there, and on it was what remained from the bull they had sacrificed.
邑の衆朝興出て視にバアルの祭壇は摧け其の上なるアシラの像は斫仆されて居り新に築る祭壇に第二の牛の供へてありしかば
29 The people asked each other, “Who did this?” After they investigated, someone told them that it was Gideon, the son of Joash, [who had done it].
たがひに此は誰が所爲ぞやと言ひつつ尋ね問ひけるに此はヨアシの子ギデオンの所爲なりといふものありたれば
30 They went to Joash and said to him, “Bring your son out here! (He must be executed/We must kill him), because he destroyed our god Baal’s altar and cut down the pole for our goddess Astarte!”
邑の人々ヨアシにむかひ汝の子を曳き出して死なしめよそは彼バアルの祭壇を摧き其上に在しアシラの像を斫仆したればなりといふ
31 But Joash replied, “Are you trying to defend Baal? Are you trying to argue his case? Anyone who tries to defend Baal should be executed by tomorrow morning! If Baal is truly a god, he ought to be able to defend himself, and to get rid of the person who tore down his altar!”
ヨアシおのれの周圍に立るすべてのものにいひけるは汝らはバアルの爲に爭論ふや汝らは之を救んとするや之が爲に爭論ふ者は朝の中に死べしバアルもし神ならば人其祭壇を摧きたれば自ら爭論ふ可なりと
32 From that time, people called Gideon Jerub-Baal, which means ‘Baal should defend himself’, because he tore down Baal’s altar.
是をもて人衆ギデオンその祭壇を摧きたればバアル自ら之といひあらそはんといひて此日かれをヱルバアル(バアルいひあらそはん)と呼なせり
33 Soon after that, the armies of the people of Midian and of Amalek and the people from the east gathered together. They crossed the Jordan River [to attack the Israelis]. They set up their tents in Jezreel Valley.
茲にミデアン人アマレク人および東方の民相集まりて河を濟りヱズレルの谷に陣を取しが
34 Then Yahweh’s Spirit took control of Gideon. He blew a ram’s horn to summon the men to prepare to fight. So the men of the clan of Abiezer came to him.
ヱホバの靈ギデオンに臨みてギデオン箛を吹たればアビエゼル人集りて之に從ふ
35 He also sent messengers throughout the tribes descended from [the four tribes of] Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali [to tell their soldiers to come], and all of them came.
ギデオン徧くマナセに使者を遣りしかばマナセ人また集りて之に從ふ彼またアセル、ゼブルン及びナフタリに使者を遣りしにその人々も上りて之を迎ふ
36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you are truly going to enable me to rescue the Israeli people as you promised,
ギデオン神にいひけるは汝かつていひたまひしごとくわが手をもてイスラエルを救はんとしたまはば
37 confirm it by doing this: Tonight I will put a dry wool fleece on the ground where I thresh the grain. Tomorrow morning, if the fleece is wet with dew but the ground is dry, then I will know that I am the one you will enable to rescue the people of Israel as you promised.”
視よ我一箇の羊の毛を禾塲におかん露もし羊毛にのみおきて地はすべて燥きをらば我之れによりて汝がかつて言たまひし如く吾が手をもてイスラエルを救ひたまふを知んと
38 And that is what happened. When Gideon got up the next morning, he picked up the fleece, and squeezed out a whole bowlful of water!
すなはち斯ありぬ彼明る朝早く興きいで羊毛をかき寄てその毛より露を搾りしに鉢に滿つるほどの水いできたる
39 Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me, but let me ask you to do one more thing. Tonight I will put the fleece out again. This time, let the fleece remain dry, while the ground is wet with the dew.”
ギデオン神にいひけるは我にむかひて怒を發したまふなかれ我をしていま一回いはしめたまへねがはくは我をして羊の毛をもていま一回試さしめたまへねがはくは羊毛のみを燥して地には悉く露あらしめたまへと
40 So that night, God did what Gideon asked him to do. The next morning the fleece was dry, but the ground was covered with dew.
その夜神かくの如くに爲したまふすなはち羊毛のみ燥きて地には凡て露ありき

< Judges 6 >