尼希米記 9 – CCBT & NIVUK

Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)

尼希米記 9:1-38

以色列人認罪禱告

1這月二十四日,以色列人聚集禁食。他們身披麻衣,頭撒塵土。 2以色列人與其他外族人隔離,站著承認自己的罪惡和祖先的過犯。 3他們站在自己的地方,宣讀他們上帝耶和華的律法書,長達三個小時9·3 三個小時」希伯來文是「一天的四分之一」。。他們又用了三個小時認罪,敬拜他們的上帝耶和華。 4利未耶書亞巴尼甲篾示巴尼布尼示利比巴尼基拿尼站在臺上,大聲呼求他們的上帝耶和華。 5利未耶書亞甲篾巴尼哈沙尼示利比荷第雅示巴尼毗他希雅說:「起來稱頌你們的上帝耶和華,直到永永遠遠。耶和華啊,你榮耀的聖名當受稱頌!願你的名被尊崇,超過一切稱頌和讚美!

6「你,唯有你是耶和華!你造了天、天上的天和天上的萬象、地和地上的一切、海和海中的一切,你賜給他們生命。眾天軍都敬拜你。 7你是耶和華上帝,你揀選了亞伯蘭,帶他離開迦勒底吾珥,又給他改名為亞伯拉罕8你知道他對你忠心,就與他立約,把迦南人、人、亞摩利人、比利洗人、耶布斯人及革迦撒人的土地賜給他的後代。你實現了你的應許,因為你是公義的。

9「你看見我們祖先在埃及所受的苦,又聽見他們在紅海邊的呼求, 10就行神蹟奇事對付法老及其所有的臣僕和國民,因為你知道他們對以色列人行事狂傲。你使自己威名遠揚直到今日。 11你在我們祖先面前把海水分開,使他們在海中走乾地過去;你把追趕他們的人扔進深海,好像把石頭扔進大水中。 12白天,你用雲柱帶領他們;夜間,你用火柱照亮他們當走的路。 13你降臨在西奈山,從天上與他們說話,賜給他們公正的典章、信實的律法、美好的律例和誡命。 14你使他們知道你的神聖安息日,藉你僕人摩西賜給他們誡命、律例和法度。 15他們餓了,你賜下天糧給他們吃;他們渴了,你使磐石流出水給他們喝。你吩咐他們去佔領你起誓賜給他們的土地。 16但我們的祖先行事狂傲,頑固不化,不肯聽從你的誡命。 17他們拒絕聽從,忘記了你為他們所行的奇事,頑固不化,自立首領要回埃及做奴隸。但你是樂意饒恕,有恩典,有憐憫,不輕易發怒,充滿慈愛的上帝,你沒有離棄他們。 18縱使他們為自己鑄造了一頭牛犢,聲稱那是把他們帶出埃及的上帝,大大褻瀆了你, 19你還是對他們大施憐憫,沒有在曠野離棄他們。白天,雲柱沒有離開他們,仍然引導他們前行;夜間,火柱仍然照亮他們當走的路。 20你差遣你良善的靈去教導他們,沒有停止賜他們嗎哪吃,也沒有停止賜他們水喝。 21在曠野的四十年間,你供養他們,使他們一無所缺,他們的衣服沒有穿破,腳也沒有走腫。

22「你將列國和萬民賜給他們,為他們劃分疆界,他們佔領了希實本西宏巴珊的土地。 23你使他們的子孫多如天上的星星,你帶領他們進入你應許他們祖先的土地。 24他們的子孫進去佔領了那地方,你在他們面前制伏了那裡的迦南人,把迦南諸王和那地方的人交在他們手裡,任由他們處置。 25他們奪取堅固的城池、肥沃的土地、裝滿美物的房屋、挖好的水井、葡萄園、橄欖園以及各樣的果樹。他們吃得飽足,身體發胖,享受你的厚恩。

26「然而,他們不順從你,背叛你,把你的律法拋在背後,又殺掉勸誡他們歸向你的眾先知,大大褻瀆了你。 27於是你把他們交在欺壓他們的仇敵手中。他們在患難中向你呼求,你就從天上垂聽,懷著豐盛的憐憫賜給他們拯救者,把他們從仇敵手中拯救出來。 28可是,他們得享平安後,又在你面前作惡,於是你離棄他們,把他們交在敵人手中,使敵人統治他們。他們回轉向你呼求,你就從天上垂聽,你一次次地懷著憐憫拯救他們。 29你警告他們,要使他們遵守你的律法,但他們行事狂傲,不聽從你的誡命,干犯你的典章。人若遵行這典章就必存活,但他們背棄你,頑固不化,不肯聽從。 30你多年來容忍他們,差遣你的靈藉著你的眾先知警告他們,但他們依然不肯聽從,於是你把他們交在列邦手中。 31然而,你大施憐憫,沒有完全毀滅他們,也沒有離棄他們,因為你是有恩典和憐憫的上帝。

32「因此,我們的上帝啊,你是偉大、全能、可畏、守約、施慈愛的上帝,求你不要輕看我們的王、首領、祭司、先知、祖先和你的子民從亞述諸王時代直到今天所受的苦難。 33在這臨到我們的一切事上,你都是公義的,因為你行事信實,我們行事邪惡。 34我們的王、首領、祭司和祖先沒有遵行你的律法,也沒有留心聽從你的誡命和你給他們的警告。 35他們即使在本國,在你賜給他們廣闊肥沃的土地上得享你的厚恩,也不事奉你,不離開惡道。 36今天,我們淪為奴隸,在你賜給我們祖先的土地上,在你讓我們祖先享用其出產和各樣美物的土地上,我們淪為奴隸。 37因為我們的罪過,這地方的豐富出產都歸給了那些你派來統管我們的王。他們隨意統管我們和我們的牲畜。我們生活在極大的苦難中。

38「鑒於這一切,我們鄭重立約,記載下來。我們的首領、利未人和祭司都在上面蓋了印。」

New International Version – UK

Nehemiah 9:1-38

The Israelites confess their sins

1On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads. 2Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. 3They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshipping the Lord their God. 4Standing on the stairs of the Levites were Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani and Kenani. They cried out with loud voices to the Lord their God. 5And the Levites – Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah – said: ‘Stand up and praise the Lord your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.9:5 Or God for ever and ever

‘Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise. 6You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.

7‘You are the Lord God, who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and named him Abraham. 8You found his heart faithful to you, and you made a covenant with him to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites and Girgashites. You have kept your promise because you are righteous.

9‘You saw the suffering of our ancestors in Egypt; you heard their cry at the Red Sea.9:9 Or the Sea of Reeds 10You sent signs and wonders against Pharaoh, against all his officials and all the people of his land, for you knew how arrogantly the Egyptians treated them. You made a name for yourself, which remains to this day. 11You divided the sea before them, so that they passed through it on dry ground, but you hurled their pursuers into the depths, like a stone into mighty waters. 12By day you led them with a pillar of cloud, and by night with a pillar of fire to give them light on the way they were to take.

13‘You came down on Mount Sinai; you spoke to them from heaven. You gave them regulations and laws that are just and right, and decrees and commands that are good. 14You made known to them your holy Sabbath and gave them commands, decrees and laws through your servant Moses. 15In their hunger you gave them bread from heaven and in their thirst you brought them water from the rock; you told them to go in and take possession of the land you had sworn with uplifted hand to give them.

16‘But they, our ancestors, became arrogant and stiff-necked, and they did not obey your commands. 17They refused to listen and failed to remember the miracles you performed among them. They became stiff-necked and in their rebellion appointed a leader in order to return to their slavery. But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them, 18even when they cast for themselves an image of a calf and said, “This is your god, who brought you up out of Egypt,” or when they committed awful blasphemies.

19‘Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them in the wilderness. By day the pillar of cloud did not fail to guide them on their path, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine on the way they were to take. 20You gave your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold your manna from their mouths, and you gave them water for their thirst. 21For forty years you sustained them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing, their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen.

22‘You gave them kingdoms and nations, allotting to them even the remotest frontiers. They took over the country of Sihon9:22 One Hebrew manuscript and Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts Sihon, that is, the country of the king of Heshbon and the country of Og king of Bashan. 23You made their children as numerous as the stars in the sky, and you brought them into the land that you told their parents to enter and possess. 24Their children went in and took possession of the land. You subdued before them the Canaanites, who lived in the land; you gave the Canaanites into their hands, along with their kings and the peoples of the land, to deal with them as they pleased. 25They captured fortified cities and fertile land; they took possession of houses filled with all kinds of good things, wells already dug, vineyards, olive groves and fruit trees in abundance. They ate to the full and were well-nourished; they revelled in your great goodness.

26‘But they were disobedient and rebelled against you; they turned their backs on your law. They killed your prophets, who had warned them in order to turn them back to you; they committed awful blasphemies. 27So you delivered them into the hands of their enemies, who oppressed them. But when they were oppressed they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion you gave them deliverers, who rescued them from the hand of their enemies.

28‘But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight. Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time.

29‘You warned them in order to turn them back to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, of which you said, “The person who obeys them will live by them.” Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen. 30For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you warned them through your prophets. Yet they paid no attention, so you gave them into the hands of the neighbouring peoples. 31But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

32‘Now therefore, our God, the great God, mighty and awesome, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes – the hardship that has come on us, on our kings and leaders, on our priests and prophets, on our ancestors and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today. 33In all that has happened to us, you have remained righteous; you have acted faithfully, while we acted wickedly. 34Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our ancestors did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the statutes you warned them to keep. 35Even while they were in their kingdom, enjoying your great goodness to them in the spacious and fertile land you gave them, they did not serve you or turn from their evil ways.

36‘But see, we are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our ancestors so that they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces. 37Because of our sins, its abundant harvest goes to the kings you have placed over us. They rule over our bodies and our cattle as they please. We are in great distress.

The agreement of the people

38‘In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their seals to it.’9:38 In Hebrew texts this verse (9:38) is numbered 10:1.