< 2 Samuel 14 >

1 And Joab son of Zeruial knoweth that the heart of the king [is] on Absalom,
責魯雅的兒子約阿布看透了君王懷念阿貝沙隆的心,
2 and Joab sendeth to Tekoah, and taketh thence a wise woman, and saith unto her, 'Feign thyself a mourner, I pray thee, and put on, I pray thee, garments of mourning, and anoint not thyself with oil, and thou hast been as a woman these many days mourning for the dead,
就派人到特科亞去,從那裏叫來一位明智的婦人,對她說:「請妳裝作一個居喪的婦心,穿上喪服,別抹油,像一個居喪很多自己婦人,
3 and thou hast gone unto the king, and spoken unto him, according to this word;' and Joab putteth the words into her mouth.
然後去見君王,對他這樣這樣說....」約阿布就把要說的話,口授給她。
4 And the woman of Tekoah speaketh unto the king, and falleth on her face to the earth, and doth obeisance, and saith, 'Save, O king.'
科特亞的婦人一來到君王前,便俯伏在地,叩拜喊說:「大王,救命! 」
5 And the king saith to her, 'What — to thee?' and she saith, 'Truly a widow woman [am] I, and my husband dieth,
君王對她說:「妳有什麼事﹖「她答說:「哎! 我是個寡婦,我的丈夫死了。
6 and thy maid-servant hath two sons; and they strive both of them in a field, and there is no deliverer between them, and the one smiteth the other, and putteth him to death;
你的婢女有兩個兒子,他們倆在田野裏爭鬥,無人解勸,彼此對打,竟將一個打死了。
7 and lo, the whole family hath risen against thy maid-servant, and say, Give up him who smiteth his brother, and we put him to death for the life of his brother whom he hath slain, and we destroy also the heir; and they have quenched my coal which is left — so as not to set to my husband a name and remnant on the face of the ground.'
全族的人都起來反對你的婢女說:將那打死自己兄弟的交出來,讓我們殺了他,抵償他所殺的兄弟的命,既便是後嗣,我們也要消滅。這樣,他們連我所剩下的一星之火,也要熄滅,不讓我的丈夫在世上留名,或者留後」。
8 And the king saith unto the woman, 'Go to thine house, and I give charge concerning thee.'
執行對婦人說:「妳回家去吧! 我會為妳下令查辦」。
9 And the woman of Tekoah saith unto the king, 'On me, my lord, O king, [is] the iniquity, and on the house of my father; and the king and his throne [are] innocent.'
特科亞的婦人立即對君王說:「我主,大王! 願此罪歸於我及我父家,與大王,與陛下無干」。
10 And the king saith, 'He who speaketh [aught] unto thee, and thou hast brought him unto me, then he doth not add any more to come against thee.'
君王說:「凡向妳再出言恐嚇的,你把他帶到我這裏來,誰也不敢再麻煩妳了」。
11 And she saith, 'Let, I pray thee, the king remember by Jehovah thy God, that the redeemer of blood add not to destroy, and they destroy not my son;' and he saith, 'Jehovah liveth; if there doth fall of the hair of thy son to the earth.'
她繼續說:「望大王提及上主你的天主名,不許報復血仇的人再從事破壞,不將我的兒子消滅」。他答說:「我指著永生的上主起誓:妳兒子的一根頭髮,也決不會落在地上」。
12 And the woman saith, 'Let, I pray thee, thy maid-servant speak unto my lord the king a word;' and he saith, 'Speak.'
婦人接著說:「望我主大王,許你的婢女再進一言! 」他答說:「說吧! 」
13 And the woman saith, 'And why hast thou thought thus concerning the people of God? yea, the king is speaking this thing as a guilty one, in that the king hath not brought back his outcast;
婦人說:「為什麼大王想出這樣的事來,反對天主的百姓。君王說出這話,若不將自己放逐的人召回來,就不免有罪了!
14 for we do surely die, and [are] as water which is running down to the earth, which is not gathered, and God doth not accept a person, and hath devised devices in that the outcast is not outcast by Him.
我們原來都該死,如同潑在地, 上的水,不能再收回,天主也不再給人生命;所以大王要設法不使那放逐的人,成為一個永不能再回家的人。
15 'And now that I have come to speak unto the king my lord this word, [it is] because the people made me afraid, and thy maid-servant saith, Let me speak, I pray thee, unto the king; it may be the king doth do the word of his handmaid,
我現今到這裏來,向我主大王提及此事,是因為有些人恐嚇我,為此你的婢女想:我得向君王說明,也許君王會實踐他婢女的請求。
16 for the king doth hearken to deliver his handmaid out of the paw of the man [seeking] to destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God,
因為大王必會聽從我,從那由天主產業中剷除和我兒子之人的手中,救出自己的婢女來。
17 and thy maid-servant saith, Let, I pray thee, the word of my lord the king be for ease; for as a messenger of God so [is] my lord the king, to understand the good and the evil; and Jehovah thy God is with thee.'
所以你的婢女說:我主大王的話,實能安慰人心,因為我主大王對於分辨善惡,實如同天主的使者。望上主你的天主,與你同在! 」
18 And the king answereth and saith unto the woman, 'Do not, I pray thee, hide from me the thing that I am asking thee;' and the woman saith, 'Let, I pray thee, my lord the king speak.'
君王回答婦人說:「我有一事問妳,妳可不要對我隱瞞」。婦人答說:「我主大王,請說! 」
19 And the king saith, 'Is the hand of Joab with thee in all this?' And the woman answereth and saith, 'Thy soul liveth, my lord, O king, none [doth turn] to the right or to the left from all that my lord the king hath spoken; for thy servant Joab he commanded me, and he put in the mouth of thy maid-servant all these words;
君王問說:「在這一切事上,是不是約阿布的手在妳後面﹖」婦人答說:「我一王萬歲! 我主君王所說的,絲毫不差,正是你的僕人約阿布吩咐了我,是他將這一切話,口授給你的婢女。
20 in order to bring round the appearance of the thing hath thy servant Joab done this thing, and my lord [is] wise, according to the wisdom of a messenger of God, to know all that [is] in the land.'
事實改變真相的,確是你的僕人約阿布所做的;但是我主賢明,賢明得如同天主的使者,曉得地上所有的事」。
21 And the king saith unto Joab, 'Lo, I pray thee, thou hast done this thing; and go, bring back the young man Absalom.'
王便對約阿布說:「好,現在我就履行此事,召回孩子阿貝沙隆來! 」
22 And Joab falleth on his face to the earth, and doth obeisance, and blesseth the king, and Joab saith, 'To-day hath thy servant known that I have found grace in thine eyes, my lord, O king, in that the king hath done the word of his servant.'
約阿布就俯首至地,叩拜祝福君王,隨後說:「我主大王,今天今日你的僕人知道,我在你眼前蒙得了寵幸,因為大王實踐了他僕人的請求」。
23 And Joab riseth and goeth to Geshur, and bringeth in Absalom to Jerusalem,
約阿布就起身,往革叔爾去,將阿貝沙隆領回耶路撒冷。
24 and the king saith, 'Let him turn round unto his house, and my face he doth not see.' And Absalom turneth round unto his house, and the face of the king he hath not seen.
君王說:「叫他回自己家裏去吧! 不要來見我」。於是阿貝沙隆回到自己家裏,不是見君王的面。
25 And like Absalom there was no man [so] fair in all Israel, to praise greatly; from the sole of his foot even unto his crown there was no blemish in him;
在全以色列中,沒有一人像阿貝沙隆那樣英俊,堪受讚美的,在他身上,自踵至頂,沒有一默缺陷。
26 and in his polling his head — and it hath been at the end of year by year that he polleth [it], for it [is] heavy on him, and he hath polled it — he hath even weighed out the hair of his head — two hundred shekels by the king's weight.
他剪髮以後,──他每年年底剪髮一次,因為頭上積髮太多,他必須剪去,──稱了稱剪的頭髮,依王家的衡制,重二百「協刻耳」。
27 And there are born to Absalom three sons, and one daughter, and her name [is] Tamar; she was a woman of a fair appearance.
阿貝沙隆有三個兒子,一個女兒;女兒名叫塔瑪爾,是個很美麗的女子。
28 And Absalom dwelleth in Jerusalem two years of days, and the face of the king he hath not seen;
阿貝沙隆在耶路撒冷住了兩年,仍未得見君王的面。
29 and Absalom sendeth unto Joab, to send him unto the king, and he hath not been willing to come unto him; and he sendeth again a second time, and he hath not been willing to come.
阿貝沙隆遂派人到約阿布那裏,求他引自己去見君王。但是,約阿布不願到他那裏去,他又派人去,他仍是不肯來。
30 And he saith unto his servants, 'See, the portion of Joab [is] by the side of mine, and he hath barley there; go, and burn it with fire;' and the servants of Absalom burn the portion with fire.
他於是對的僕人說:「你們看,約阿布的莊田與我的相接,他在那裏種了大麥,你們去放火燒田」。阿貝沙隆的僕人於是放火燒了田。
31 And Joab riseth and cometh unto Absalom in the house, and saith unto him, 'Why have thy servants burned the portion that I have with fire?'
約阿布就起身來到阿貝沙隆的家裡,對他說:「你的僕人為什麼燒了我的田?」
32 And Absalom saith unto Joab, 'Lo, I sent unto thee, saying, Come hither, and I send thee unto the king to say, Why have I come in from Geshur? — good for me while I [am] there — and now, let me see the king's face, and if there is in me iniquity then thou hast put me to death.'
阿貝沙隆回答約阿布說:「看,我派人到你那裡說:請你到我這裡來,我願派你去見君王,問他為什麼叫我從革叔爾回來?假如我仍留在那裡,為我豈不更好!如今我願見君王的面,我若有罪,他可殺我!」
33 And Joab cometh unto the king, and declareth [it] to him, and he calleth unto Absalom, and he cometh unto the king, and boweth himself to him, on his face, to the earth, before the king, and the king giveth a kiss to Absalom.
約阿布便去見君王,稟告了這些話。王遂召見阿貝沙隆;他來到君王前,俯首至地,叩拜君王;君王就吻了阿貝沙隆。

< 2 Samuel 14 >