Ἔσδρας Βʹ 5

1 καὶ ἦν κραυγὴ τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ γυναικῶν αὐτῶν μεγάλη πρὸς τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτῶν τοὺς Ιουδαίους

Then came there to be a great outcry of the people and their wives, —against their brethren the Jews.

2 καὶ ἦσάν τινες λέγοντες ἐν υἱοῖς ἡμῶν καὶ ἐν θυγατράσιν ἡμῶν ἡμεῖς πολλοί καὶ λημψόμεθα σῖτον καὶ φαγόμεθα καὶ ζησόμεθα

And there were some who were saying, Our sons and our daughters, are we pledging, —that we may obtain corn, and eat, and keep ourselves alive.

3 καὶ εἰσίν τινες λέγοντες ἀγροὶ ἡμῶν καὶ ἀμπελῶνες ἡμῶν καὶ οἰκίαι ἡμῶν ἡμεῖς διεγγυῶμεν καὶ λημψόμεθα σῖτον καὶ φαγόμεθα

And there were some who were saying, Our fields and our vineyards and our houses, are we pledging, —that we may obtain corn in the dearth.

4 καὶ εἰσίν τινες λέγοντες ἐδανεισάμεθα ἀργύριον εἰς φόρους τοῦ βασιλέως ἀγροὶ ἡμῶν καὶ ἀμπελῶνες ἡμῶν καὶ οἰκίαι ἡμῶν

And there were others who were saying, We have borrowed silver, for the king’s tribute, —[upon] our lands and our vineyards.

5 καὶ νῦν ὡς σὰρξ ἀδελφῶν ἡμῶν σὰρξ ἡμῶν ὡς υἱοὶ αὐτῶν υἱοὶ ἡμῶν καὶ ἰδοὺ ἡμεῖς καταδυναστεύομεν τοὺς υἱοὺς ἡμῶν καὶ τὰς θυγατέρας ἡμῶν εἰς δούλους καὶ εἰσὶν ἀπὸ θυγατέρων ἡμῶν καταδυναστευόμεναι καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν δύναμις χειρῶν ἡμῶν καὶ ἀγροὶ ἡμῶν καὶ ἀμπελῶνες ἡμῶν τοῖς ἐντίμοις

Now, therefore, as is the flesh of our brethren, so is our flesh, as are their children, so are our children. Yet lo! we are putting in subjection our sons and our daughters, for bondservants, yea there are some of our daughters already trodden down, and we are powerless, and, our fields and our vineyards, belong to others.

6 καὶ ἐλυπήθην σφόδρα καθὼς ἤκουσα τὴν κραυγὴν αὐτῶν καὶ τοὺς λόγους τούτους

And it angered me greatly, —when I heard their outcry, and these words.

7 καὶ ἐβουλεύσατο καρδία μου ἐπ’ ἐμέ καὶ ἐμαχεσάμην πρὸς τοὺς ἐντίμους καὶ τοὺς ἄρχοντας καὶ εἶπα αὐτοῖς ἀπαιτήσει ἀνὴρ τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ ὑμεῖς ἀπαιτεῖτε καὶ ἔδωκα ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς ἐκκλησίαν μεγάλην

So my heart took counsel unto me and I contended with the nobles and with the deputies, and said to them, A loan on interest—every man to his brother, are ye making, —So I appointed over them a great assembly;

8 καὶ εἶπα αὐτοῖς ἡμεῖς κεκτήμεθα τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ἡμῶν τοὺς Ιουδαίους τοὺς πωλουμένους τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἐν ἑκουσίῳ ἡμῶν καὶ ὑμεῖς πωλεῖτε τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ὑμῶν καὶ ἡσύχασαν καὶ οὐχ εὕροσαν λόγον

and I said unto them, We, have bought our brethren the Jews, who had sold themselves unto the nations, according to our ability, and will, ye, even sell your brethren, or shall they sell themselves unto us? And they were silent, and found no answer.

9 καὶ εἶπα οὐκ ἀγαθὸς ὁ λόγος ὃν ὑμεῖς ποιεῖτε οὐχ οὕτως ἐν φόβῳ θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἀπελεύσεσθε ἀπὸ ὀνειδισμοῦ τῶν ἐθνῶν τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἡμῶν

Then said I, Not good, is the thing which ye are doing, —ought ye not, in the fear of God, to walk, because of the reproach of the nations, our enemies?

10 καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί μου καὶ οἱ γνωστοί μου καὶ ἐγὼ ἐθήκαμεν ἐν αὐτοῖς ἀργύριον καὶ σῖτον ἐγκαταλίπωμεν δὴ τὴν ἀπαίτησιν ταύτην

I too, then, my brethren and my young men, might be lending unto them on interest silver and corn! I pray you, let us leave off this lending on interest!

11 ἐπιστρέψατε δὴ αὐτοῖς ὡς σήμερον ἀγροὺς αὐτῶν ἀμπελῶνας αὐτῶν ἐλαίας αὐτῶν καὶ οἰκίας αὐτῶν καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀργυρίου τὸν σῖτον καὶ τὸν οἶνον καὶ τὸ ἔλαιον ἐξενέγκατε αὐτοῖς

Restore, I pray you, unto them this very day, their fields, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, —also the hundredth of silver and corn, new wine and oil, for which ye have been lending to them.

12 καὶ εἶπαν ἀποδώσομεν καὶ παρ’ αὐτῶν οὐ ζητήσομεν οὕτως ποιήσομεν καθὼς σὺ λέγεις καὶ ἐκάλεσα τοὺς ἱερεῖς καὶ ὥρκισα αὐτοὺς ποιῆσαι ὡς τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο

And they said, We will restore them, and, from them, will we require nothing, so, will we do, as thou, art saying. Then called I the priests, and put them on oath, to do according to this promise.

13 καὶ τὴν ἀναβολήν μου ἐξετίναξα καὶ εἶπα οὕτως ἐκτινάξαι ὁ θεὸς πάντα ἄνδρα ὃς οὐ στήσει τὸν λόγον τοῦτον ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐκ κόπου αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔσται οὕτως ἐκτετιναγμένος καὶ κενός καὶ εἶπεν πᾶσα ἡ ἐκκλησία αμην καὶ ᾔνεσαν τὸν κύριον καὶ ἐποίησεν ὁ λαὸς τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο

Also, my lap, shook I out, and said—Thus and thus, may God shake out every man who shall not confirm this promise, out of his house and out of his labour, yea, thus and thus, let him be shaken out and empty, —And all the convocation said, Amen! and praised Yahweh, and the people did according to this promise.

14 ἀπὸ τῆς ἡμέρας ἧς ἐνετείλατό μοι εἶναι εἰς ἄρχοντα αὐτῶν ἐν γῇ Ιουδα ἀπὸ ἔτους εἰκοστοῦ καὶ ἕως ἔτους τριακοστοῦ καὶ δευτέρου τῷ Αρθασασθα ἔτη δώδεκα ἐγὼ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί μου βίαν αὐτῶν οὐκ ἔφαγον

Moreover, from the day I was commanded to become their pasha in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year, even unto the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes the king, twelve years, I and my brethren, pasha’s bread, have not eaten;

15 καὶ τὰς βίας τὰς πρώτας ἃς πρὸ ἐμοῦ ἐβάρυναν ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐλάβοσαν παρ’ αὐτῶν ἐν ἄρτοις καὶ ἐν οἴνῳ ἔσχατον ἀργύριον δίδραχμα τεσσαράκοντα καὶ οἱ ἐκτετιναγμένοι αὐτῶν ἐξουσιάζονται ἐπὶ τὸν λαόν καὶ ἐγὼ οὐκ ἐποίησα οὕτως ἀπὸ προσώπου φόβου θεοῦ

whereas, the former pashas, who were before me, suffered themselves to be a burden upon the people, and took from them in bread and wine, besides forty shekels of silver, even, their young men, bare rule over the people, —but, I, did not so, because of the fear of God.

16 καὶ ἐν ἔργῳ τοῦ τείχους τούτων οὐκ ἐκράτησα ἀγρὸν οὐκ ἐκτησάμην καὶ πάντες οἱ συνηγμένοι ἐκεῖ ἐπὶ τὸ ἔργον

Moreover also, in this work of the wall, I repaired, and, no field, did we buy, —though, all my young men, were gathered thither unto the work.

17 καὶ οἱ Ιουδαῖοι ἑκατὸν καὶ πεντήκοντα ἄνδρες καὶ οἱ ἐρχόμενοι πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν τῶν κύκλῳ ἡμῶν ἐπὶ τράπεζάν μου

And, Jews and deputies, a hundred and fifty men, and they who were coming in unto us from among the nations which were round about us, [depended] upon my table.

18 καὶ ἦν γινόμενον εἰς ἡμέραν μίαν μόσχος εἷς καὶ πρόβατα ἓξ ἐκλεκτὰ καὶ χίμαρος ἐγίνοντό μοι καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον δέκα ἡμερῶν ἐν πᾶσιν οἶνος τῷ πλήθει καὶ σὺν τούτοις ἄρτους τῆς βίας οὐκ ἐζήτησα ὅτι βαρεῖα ἡ δουλεία ἐπὶ τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον

Now, that which was prepared for a single day, was—one ox, six choice sheep, also, fowls, were prepared for me, and, apportioned unto ten days, of every sort of wine, in abundance, —yet, in spite of this, the bread of the pasha, demanded I not, because heavy was the bondage upon this people.

19 μνήσθητί μου ὁ θεός εἰς ἀγαθὸν πάντα ὅσα ἐποίησα τῷ λαῷ τούτῳ

Remember unto me, O my God, for good, —all that I have done for this people.