Nehemiæ 6

1 Factum est autem, cum audisset Sanaballat, et Tobias, et Gossem Arabs, et ceteri inimici nostri, quod aedificassem ego murum, et non esset in ipso residua interruptio (usque ad tempus autem illud valvas non posueram in portis)

Now when word was given to Sanballat and Tobiah and to Geshem the Arabian and to the rest of our haters, that I had done the building of the wall and that there were no more broken places in it (though even then I had not put up the doors in the doorways);

2 miserunt Sanaballat, et Gossem ad me, dicentes: Veni, et percutiamus foedus pariter in vitulis in Campoono. Ipsi autem cogitabant ut facerent mihi malum.

Sanballat and Geshem sent to me saying, Come, let us have a meeting in one of the little towns in the lowland of Ono. But their purpose was to do me evil.

3 Misi ergo ad eos nuncios, dicens: Opus grande ego facio, et non possum descendere: ne forte negligatur cum venero, et descendero ad vos.

And I sent men to them saying, I am doing a great work, so that it is not possible for me to come down: is the work to be stopped while I go away from it and come down to you?

4 Miserunt autem ad me secundum verbum hoc per quattuor vices: et respondi eis iuxta sermonem priorem.

And four times they sent to me in this way, and I sent them the same answer.

5 Et misit ad me Sanaballat iuxta verbum prius quinta vice puerum suum, et epistolam habebat in manu sua scriptam hoc modo:

Then Sanballat sent his servant to me a fifth time with an open letter in his hand;

6 IN GENTIBUS auditum est, et Gossem dixit, quod tu et Iudaei cogitetis rebellare, et propterea aedifices murum, et levare te velis super eos regem: propter quam causam

And in it these words were recorded: It is said among the nations, and Geshem says so, that you and the Jews are hoping to make yourselves free from the king's authority; and that this is why you are building the wall: and they say that it is your purpose to be their king;

7 et prophetas posueris, qui praedicent de te in Ierusalem, dicentes: Rex in Iudaea est. Auditurus est rex verba haec: idcirco nunc veni, ut ineamus consilium pariter.

And that you have prophets preaching about you in Jerusalem, and saying, There is a king in Judah: now an account of these things will be sent to the king. So come now, and let us have a discussion.

8 Et misi ad eos, dicens: Non est factum secundum verba haec, quae tu loqueris: de corde enim tuo tu componis haec.

Then I sent to him, saying, No such things as you say are being done, they are only a fiction you have made up yourself.

9 Omnes enim hi terrebant nos, cogitantes quod cessarent manus nostrae ab opere, et quiesceremus. Quam ob causam magis confortavi manus meas:

For they were hoping to put fear in us, saying, Their hands will become feeble and give up the work so that it may not get done. But now, O God, make my hands strong.

10 et ingressus sum domum Semaiae filii Dalaiae filii Metabeel secreto. Qui ait: Tractemus nobiscum in domo Dei in medio templi, et claudamus portas aedis: quia venturi sunt ut interficiant te, et nocte venturi sunt ad occidendum te.

And I went to the house of Shemaiah, the son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was shut up; and he said, Let us have a meeting in the house of God, inside the Temple, and let the doors be shut: for they will come to put you to death; truly, in the night they will come to put you to death.

11 Et dixi: Num quisquam similis mei fugit? et quis ut ego ingredietur templum, et vivet? non ingrediar.

And I said, Am I the sort of man to go in flight? what man, in my position, would go into the Temple to keep himself safe? I will not go in.

12 Et intellexi quod Deus non misisset eum, sed quasi vaticinans locutus esset ad me, et Tobias, et Sanaballat conduxissent eum.

Then it became clear to me that God had not sent him: he had given this word of a prophet against me himself: and Tobiah and Sanballat had given him money to do so.

13 acceperat enim pretium, ut territus facerem, et peccarem, et haberent malum, quod exprobrarent mihi.

For this reason they had given him money, in order that I might be overcome by fear and do what he said and do wrong, and so they would have reason to say evil about me and put shame on me.

14 Memento mei Domine pro Tobia et Sanaballat, iuxta opera eorum talia: sed et Noadiae prophetae, et ceterorum prophetarum, qui terrebant me.

Keep in mind, O my God, Tobiah and Sanballat and what they did, and Noadiah, the woman prophet, and the rest of the prophets whose purpose was to put fear into me.

15 Completus est autem murus vigesimoquinto die mensis Elul, quinquaginta duobus diebus.

So the wall was complete on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days.

16 Factum est ergo cum audissent omnes inimici nostri, ut timerent universae gentes, quae erant in circuitu nostro, et conciderent intra semetipsos, et scirent quod a Deo factum esset opus hoc.

And when our haters had news of this, all the nations round about us were full of fear and were greatly shamed, for they saw that this work had been done by our God.

17 Sed et in diebus illis multae optimatum Iudaeorum epistolae mittebantur ad Tobiam, et a Tobia veniebant ad eos.

And further, in those days the chiefs of Judah sent a number of letters to Tobiah, and his letters came to them.

18 Multi enim erant in Iudaea habentes iuramentum eius, quia gener erat Secheniae filii Area, et Iohanan filius eius acceperat filiam Mosollam filii Barachiae:

For in Judah there were a number of people who had made an agreement by oath with him, because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah, the son of Arah; and his son Jehohanan had taken as his wife the daughter of Meshullam, the son of Berechiah.

19 sed et laudabant eum coram me, et verba mea nunciabant ei: et Tobias mittebat epistolas ut terreret me.

And they said much before me of the good he had done, and gave him accounts of my words. And Tobiah sent letters with the purpose of causing me fear.