Êxodo 18

1 Ora Jethro, sacerdote de Midian, sogro de Moisés, ouviu todas as coisas que Deus tinha feito a Moisés e a Israel seu povo: como o Senhor tinha tirado a Israel do Egito.

Now news came to Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, of all God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, and how the Lord had taken Israel out of Egypt.

2 E Jethro, sogro de Moisés, tomou a Zippora, a mulher de Moisés, depois que ele lha enviara,

And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses' wife, after he had sent her away,

3 Com seus dois filhos, dos quais um se chamava Gerson; porque disse: Eu fui peregrino em terra estranha;

And her two sons, one of whom was named Gershom, for he said, I have been living in a strange land:

4 E o outro se chamava Eliezer; porque disse: O Deus de meu pai foi por minha ajuda, e me livrou da espada de faraó.

And the name of the other was Eliezer, for he said, The God of my father was my help, and kept me safe from the sword of Pharaoh:

5 Vindo pois Jethro, o sogro de Moisés, com seus filhos e com sua mulher, a Moisés no deserto, ao monte de Deus, onde se tinha acampado,

And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to where Moses had put up his tent in the waste land, by the mountain of God.

6 Disse a Moisés: Eu, teu sogro Jethro, venho a ti, com tua mulher, e seus dois filhos com ela.

And he said to Moses, I, your father-in-law, have come to you, with your wife and your two sons.

7 Então saiu Moisés ao encontro de seu sogro, e inclinou-se, e beijou-o, e perguntaram um ao outro como estavam, e entraram na tenda.

And Moses went out to his father-in-law, and went down on his face before him and gave him a kiss; and they said to one another, Are you well? and they came into the tent.

8 E Moisés contou a seu sogro todas as coisas que o Senhor tinha feito a faraó e aos egípcios por amor de Israel, e todo o trabalho que passaram no caminho, e como o Senhor os livrara.

And Moses gave his father-in-law an account of all the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians because of Israel, and of all the troubles which had come on them by the way, and how the Lord had given them salvation.

9 E alegrou-se Jethro de todo o bem que o Senhor tinha feito a Israel, livrando-o da mão dos egípcios.

And Jethro was glad because the Lord had been good to Israel, freeing them from the power of the Egyptians.

10 E Jethro disse: bendito seja o Senhor, que vos livrou das mãos dos egípcios e da mão de faraó; que livrou a este povo de debaixo da mão dos egípcios.

And Jethro said, Praise be to the Lord, who has taken you out of the hand of Pharaoh and out of the hand of the Egyptians; freeing the people from the yoke of the Egyptians.

11 Agora sei que o Senhor é maior que todos os deuses: porque na coisa, em que se ensoberbeceram, os sobrepujou.

Now I am certain that the Lord is greater than all gods, for he has overcome them in their pride.

12 Então tomou Jethro, o sogro de Moisés, holocausto e sacrifícios para Deus: e veio Aarão, e todos os anciãos de Israel, para comerem pão com o sogro de Moisés diante de Deus.

Then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, made a burned offering to God: and Aaron came, with the chiefs of Israel, and had a meal with Moses' father-in-law, before God.

13 E aconteceu que, ao outro dia, Moisés assentou-se para julgar o povo; e o povo estava em pé diante de Moisés desde a manhã até à tarde

Now on the day after, Moses took his seat to give decisions for the people: and the people were waiting before Moses from morning till evening.

14 Vendo pois o sogro de Moisés tudo o que ele fazia ao povo, disse: Que é isto, que tu fazes as povo? porque te assentas só, e todo o povo está em pé diante de ti, desde a manhã até à tarde?

And when Moses' father-in-law saw all he was doing, he said, What is this you are doing for the people? why are you seated here by yourself, with all the people waiting before you from morning till evening?

15 Então disse Moisés a seu sogro: É porque este povo vem a mim, para consultar a Deus:

And Moses said to his father-in-law, Because the people come to me to get directions from God:

16 Quando tem algum negócio vem a mim, para que eu julgue entre um e outro, e lhes declare os estatutos de Deus, e as suas leis.

And if they have any question between themselves, they come to me, and I am judge between a man and his neighbour, and I give them the orders and laws of God.

17 O sogro de Moisés porém lhe disse: Não é bom o que fazes.

And Moses' father-in-law said to him, What you are doing is not good.

18 Totalmente desfalecerás, assim tu, como este povo que está contigo: porque este negócio é mui difícil para ti; tu só não o podes fazer.

Your strength and that of the people will be completely used up: this work is more than you are able to do by yourself.

19 Ouve agora minha voz, eu te aconselharei, e Deus será contigo: Sê tu pelo povo diante de Deus, e leva tu as coisas a Deus;

Give ear now to my suggestion, and may God be with you: you are to be the people's representative before God, taking their causes to him:

20 E declara-lhes os estatutos e as leis, e faze-lhes saber o caminho em que devem andar, e a obra que devem fazer.

Teaching them his rules and his laws, guiding them in the way they have to go, and making clear to them the work they have to do.

21 E tu dentre todo o povo procura homens capazes, tementes a Deus, homens de verdade, que aborrecem a avareza; e põe-nos sobre eles por maiorais de mil, maiorais de cento, maiorais de cincoênta, e maiorais de dez;

But for the rest, take from among the people able men, such as have the fear of God, true men hating profits wrongly made; and put such men over them, to be captains of thousands, captains of hundreds and of fifties and of tens;

22 Para que julguem este povo em tempo; e seja que todo o negócio pequeno eles o julguem: assim a ti mesmo te aliviarás da carga, e eles a levarão contigo.

And let them be judges in the causes of the people at all times: and let them put before you all important questions, but in small things let them give decisions themselves: in this way, it will be less hard for you, and they will take the weight off you.

23 Se isto fizeres, e Deus to mandar, poderás então subsistir: assim também todo este povo em paz virá ao seu lugar.

If you do this, and God gives approval, then you will be able to go on without weariness, and all this people will go to their tents in peace.

24 E Moisés deu ouvidos à voz de seu sogro, e fez tudo quanto tinha dito;

So Moses took note of the words of his father-in-law, and did as he had said.

25 E escolheu Moisés homens capazes, de todo o Israel, e os pôs por cabeças sobre o povo: maiorais de mil, maiorais de cento, maiorais de cincoênta, e maiorais de dez.

And he made selection of able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, captains of thousands, captains of hundreds and of fifties and of tens.

26 E eles julgaram o povo em todo o tempo; o negócio árduo trouxeram a Moisés, e todo o negócio pequeno julgaram eles.

And they were judges in the causes of the people at all times: the hard questions they put before Moses; but on every small point they gave decisions themselves.

27 Então despediu Moisés o seu sogro, o qual se foi à sua terra.

And Moses let his father-in-law go away, and he went back to his land.