創世記 37
1 ヤコブは父の寄留の地、すなわちカナンの地に住んだ。
Jacob continued to live in the Canaan region where his father had lived previously.
2 ヤコブの子孫は次のとおりである。ヨセフは十七歳の時、兄弟たちと共に羊の群れを飼っていた。彼はまだ子供で、父の妻たちビルハとジルパとの子らと共にいたが、ヨセフは彼らの悪いうわさを父に告げた。
(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.
3 ヨセフは年寄り子であったから、イスラエルは他のどの子よりも彼を愛して、彼のために長そでの着物をつくった。
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.
4 兄弟たちは父がどの兄弟よりも彼を愛するのを見て、彼を憎み、穏やかに彼に語ることができなかった。
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.
5 ある時、ヨセフは夢を見て、それを兄弟たちに話したので、彼らは、ますます彼を憎んだ。
One night Joseph had a dream. He told his brothers about the dream.
6 ヨセフは彼らに言った、「どうぞわたしが見た夢を聞いてください。
He said to them, “Listen to the dream I had!
7 わたしたちが畑の中で束を結わえていたとき、わたしの束が起きて立つと、あなたがたの束がまわりにきて、わたしの束を拝みました」。
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!”
8 すると兄弟たちは彼に向かって、「あなたはほんとうにわたしたちの王になるのか。あなたは実際わたしたちを治めるのか」と言って、彼の夢とその言葉のゆえにますます彼を憎んだ。
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.
9 ヨセフはまた一つの夢を見て、それを兄弟たちに語って言った、「わたしはまた夢を見ました。日と月と十一の星とがわたしを拝みました」。
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!”
10 彼はこれを父と兄弟たちに語ったので、父は彼をとがめて言った、「あなたが見たその夢はどういうのか。ほんとうにわたしとあなたの母と、兄弟たちとが行って地に伏し、あなたを拝むのか」。
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]
11 兄弟たちは彼をねたんだ。しかし父はこの言葉を心にとめた。
Joseph’s older brothers were furious/angry with him, but his father just kept thinking about what the dream meant.
12 さて兄弟たちがシケムに行って、父の羊の群れを飼っていたとき、
One day Joseph’s older brothers went to take care of their father’s sheep and goats that were eating grass near Shechem.
13 イスラエルはヨセフに言った、「あなたの兄弟たちはシケムで羊を飼っているではないか。さあ、あなたを彼らの所へつかわそう」。ヨセフは父に言った、「はい、行きます」。
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.”
14 父は彼に言った、「どうか、行って、あなたの兄弟たちは無事であるか、また群れは無事であるか見てきて、わたしに知らせてください」。父が彼をヘブロンの谷からつかわしたので、彼はシケムに行った。
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],
15 ひとりの人が彼に会い、彼が野をさまよっていたので、その人は彼に尋ねて言った、「あなたは何を捜しているのですか」。
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?”
16 彼は言った、「兄弟たちを捜しているのです。彼らが、どこで羊を飼っているのか、どうぞわたしに知らせてください」。
Joseph replied, “I am looking for my older brothers. Can you tell me where they are taking care of their sheep and goats?”
17 その人は言った、「彼らはここを去りました。彼らが『ドタンへ行こう』と言うのをわたしは聞きました」。そこでヨセフは兄弟たちのあとを追って行って、ドタンで彼らに会った。
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.
18 ヨセフが彼らに近づかないうちに、彼らははるかにヨセフを見て、これを殺そうと計り、
But they saw him when he was still far away, and they decided to kill him.
19 互に言った、「あの夢見る者がやって来る。
They said to each other [things like], “Here comes that dreamer!”
20 さあ、彼を殺して穴に投げ入れ、悪い獣が彼を食ったと言おう。そして彼の夢がどうなるか見よう」。
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)!”
21 ルベンはこれを聞いて、ヨセフを彼らの手から救い出そうとして言った、「われわれは彼の命を取ってはならない」。
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.
22 ルベンはまた彼らに言った、「血を流してはいけない。彼を荒野のこの穴に投げ入れよう。彼に手をくだしてはならない」。これはヨセフを彼らの手から救いだして父に返すためであった。
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.
23 さて、ヨセフが兄弟たちのもとへ行くと、彼らはヨセフの着物、彼が着ていた長そでの着物をはぎとり、
So when Joseph arrived where his older brothers were, they seized him and ripped off his pretty robe with long sleeves.
24 彼を捕えて穴に投げ入れた。その穴はからで、その中に水はなかった。
Then they took him and threw him into the pit/cistern. But the pit/cistern was dry; there was no water in it.
25 こうして彼らはすわってパンを食べた。時に彼らが目をあげて見ると、イシマエルびとの隊商が、らくだに香料と、乳香と、もつやくとを負わせてエジプトへ下り行こうとギレアデからやってきた。
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.
26 そこでユダは兄弟たちに言った、「われわれが弟を殺し、その血を隠して何の益があろう。
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]
27 さあ、われわれは彼をイシマエルびとに売ろう。彼はわれわれの兄弟、われわれの肉身だから、彼に手を下してはならない」。兄弟たちはこれを聞き入れた。
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.
28 時にミデアンびとの商人たちが通りかかったので、彼らはヨセフを穴から引き上げ、銀二十シケルでヨセフをイシマエルびとに売った。彼らはヨセフをエジプトへ連れて行った。
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.
29 さてルベンは穴に帰って見たが、ヨセフが穴の中にいなかったので、彼は衣服を裂き、
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.
30 兄弟たちのもとに帰って言った、「あの子はいない。ああ、わたしはどこへ行くことができよう」。
He went back to his [younger] brothers and said, “The boy is not in the pit/cistern! What can I do now?” [RHQ]
31 彼らはヨセフの着物を取り、雄やぎを殺して、着物をその血に浸し、
[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.
32 その長そでの着物を父に持ち帰って言った、「わたしたちはこれを見つけましたが、これはあなたの子の着物か、どうか見さだめてください」。
They took that pretty robe back to their father and said, “We found this robe! Look at it. Is it your son’s robe?”
33 父はこれを見さだめて言った、「わが子の着物だ。悪い獣が彼を食ったのだ。確かにヨセフはかみ裂かれたのだ」。
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!”
34 そこでヤコブは衣服を裂き、荒布を腰にまとって、長い間その子のために嘆いた。
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.
35 子らと娘らとは皆立って彼を慰めようとしたが、彼は慰められるのを拒んで言った、「いや、わたしは嘆きながら陰府に下って、わが子のもとへ行こう」。こうして父は彼のために泣いた。 (Sheol h7585)
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)
36 さて、かのミデアンびとらはエジプトでパロの役人、侍衛長ポテパルにヨセフを売った。
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.
