| 撒慕爾紀下 |
2 Samuel |
| 1責魯雅的兒子約阿布看透了君王懷念阿貝沙隆的心， |
1When Joab, son of Zeruiah, observed how the king felt toward Absalom, |
| 2就派人到特科亞去，從那裏叫來一位明智的婦人，對她說：「請你裝作一個居喪的婦人，穿上喪服，別抹油，像一個為死者居喪很久的婦人， |
2he sent to Tekoa and brought from there a gifted woman, to whom he said: "Pretend to be in mourning. Put on mourning apparel and do not anoint yourself with oil, that you may appear to be a woman who has been long in mourning for a departed one. |
| 3然後去見君王，對他這樣這樣說：······」約阿布就把要說的話，口授給她。 |
3Then go to the king and speak to him in this manner." And Joab instructed her what to say. |
| 4特科亞的婦人一來到君王前，便俯伏在地，叩拜喊說：「大王，救命！」 |
4So the woman of Tekoa went to the king and fell prostrate to the ground in homage, saying, "Help, your majesty!" |
| 5君王對她說：「你有什麼事？」她答說：「哎！我是個寡婦，我的丈夫死了。 |
5The king said to her, "What do you want?" She replied: "Alas, I am a widow; my husband is dead. |
| 6你的婢女有兩個兒子，他們倆在田野爭鬥，無人解勸，彼此對打，竟將一個打死了。 |
6Your servant had two sons, who quarreled in the field. There being no one to part them, one of them struck his brother and killed him. |
| 7全族的人都起來反對你的婢女說：將那打死自己兄弟的交出來，讓我們殺了他，抵償他所殺的兄弟的命，即使是後嗣，我們也要消滅。這樣，他們連我所剩下的一星之火，也要熄滅，不讓我的丈夫在世上留名，或者留後。」 |
7 Then the whole clan confronted your servant and demanded: 'Give up the one who killed his brother. We must put him to death for the life of his brother whom he has slain; we must extinguish the heir also.' Thus they will quench my remaining hope and leave my husband neither name nor posterity upon the earth." |
| 8君王對婦人說：「你回家去罷！我會為你下令查辦。」 |
8The king then said to the woman: "Go home. I will issue a command on your behalf." |
| 9特科亞的婦人立即對君王說：「我主，大王！願此罪歸於我及我父家，與大王，與陛下無干。」 |
9The woman of Tekoa answered him, "Let me and my family be to blame, my lord king; you and your throne are innocent." |
| 10君王說：「凡向你再出言恐嚇的，你把他帶到我這裏來，誰也不敢再麻煩你了。」 |
10Then the king said, "If anyone says a word to you, have him brought to me, and he shall not touch you again." |
| 11她繼續說：「望大王提及上主你的天主的名，不許報血仇的人再從事破壞，不將我的兒子消滅。」他答說：「我指着永生的上主起誓：你兒子的一根頭髮，也決不會落在地上。」 |
11But she went on to say, "Please, your majesty, keep in mind the LORD your God, that the avenger of blood may not go too far in destruction and that my son may not be done away with." He replied, "As the LORD lives, not a hair of your son shall fall to the ground." |
| 12婦人接着說：「望我主大王，許你的婢女再進一言！」他答說：「說罷！」 |
12The woman continued, "Please let your servant say still another word to my lord the king." He replied, "Speak." |
| 13婦人說：「為什麼大王想出這樣的事來，反對天主的百姓？君王說出這話，若不將自己放逐的人召回來，就不免有罪了！ |
13So the woman said: "Why, then, do you think of this same kind of thing against the people of God? In pronouncing as he has, the king shows himself guilty, for not bringing back his own banished son. |
| 14我們原來都該死，如同潑在地上的水，不能再收回，天主也不再給人生命；所以大王要設法不使那放逐的人，成為一個永不能回家的人。 |
14 We must indeed die; we are then like water that is poured out on the ground and cannot be gathered up. Yet, though God does not bring back life, he does take thought how not to banish anyone from him. |
| 15我現今到這裏來，對我主大王提及此事，是因為有些人恐嚇我，為此你的婢女想：我得向君王說明，也許君王會實踐他婢女的請求。 |
15And now, if I have presumed to speak of this matter to your majesty, it is because the people have given me cause to fear. And so your servant thought: 'Let me speak to the king. Perhaps he will grant the petition of his maidservant. |
| 16因為大王必會聽從我，從那要由天主的產業中剷除我和我兒子之人的手中，救出自己的婢女來。 |
16For the king must surely consent to free his servant from the grasp of one who would seek to destroy me and my son as well from God's inheritance.'" |
| 17所以你的婢女說：我主大王的話，實能安慰人心，因為我主大王對於分辨善惡，實如同天主的使者。望上主你的天主，與你同在！」 |
17 And the woman concluded: "Let the word of my lord the king provide a resting place; indeed, my lord the king is like an angel of God, evaluating good and bad. The LORD your God be with you." |
| 18君王回答婦人說：「我有一事問你，你可不要對我隱瞞。」婦人答說：「我主大王，請說！」 |
18The king answered the woman, "Now do not conceal from me anything I may ask you!" The woman said, "Let my lord the king speak." |
| 19君王問說：「在這一切事上，是不是約阿布的手在你後面？」婦人答說：「我大王萬歲！我主君王所說的，絲毫不差，正是你的僕人約阿布吩咐了我，是他將這一切話，口授給你的婢女。 |
19So the king asked, "Is Joab involved with you in all this?" And the woman answered: "As you live, my lord the king, it is just as your majesty has said, and not otherwise. It was your servant Joab who instructed me and told your servant all these things she was to say. |
| 20使事實改變真相的，確是你的僕人約阿布所做的；但是我主賢明，賢明得如同天主的使者，曉得地上所有的事。」 |
20Your servant Joab did this to come at the issue in a roundabout way. But my lord is as wise as an angel of God, so that he knows all things on earth." |
| 21王便對約阿布說：「好，現在我就履行此事。去召回孩子阿貝沙隆來！」 |
21Then the king said to Joab: "I hereby grant this request. Go, therefore, and bring back young Absalom." |
| 22約阿布就俯首至地，叩拜祝福君王。隨後說：「我主大王，今日你的僕人知道，我在你眼前獲得了寵幸，因為大王實踐了他僕人的請求。」 |
22Falling prostrate to the ground in homage and blessing the king, Joab said, "This day I know that I am in good favor with you, my lord the king, since the king has granted the request of his servant." |
| 23約阿布就起身，往革叔爾去，將阿貝沙隆領回耶路撒冷。 |
23Joab then went off to Geshur and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. |
| 24君王說：「叫他回自己家裏去罷！不要讓他來見我。」於是阿貝沙隆回到自己家裏，沒有見君王的面。 |
24But the king said, "Let him go to his own house; he shall not appear before me." So Absalom went off to his house and did not appear before the king. |
| 25在全以色列民中，沒有一人像阿貝沙隆那樣英俊，堪受讚美的；在他身上，自踵至頂，沒有一點缺陷。 |
25In all Israel there was not a man who could so be praised for his beauty as Absalom, who was without blemish from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. |
| 26他剪髮以後，──他每年年底剪髮一次，因為頭上積髮太多，他必須剪去，──稱了稱剪的頭髮，依王家的衡制，重二百「協刻耳」。 |
26When he shaved his head--which he used to do at the end of every year, because his hair became too heavy for him--the hair weighed two hundred shekels according to the royal standard. |
| 27阿貝沙隆有三個兒子，一個女兒；女兒名叫塔瑪爾，是個容貌很美麗的女子。 |
27Absalom had three sons born to him, besides a daughter named Tamar, who was a beautiful woman. |
| 28阿貝沙隆在耶路撒冷住了兩年，仍未得見君王的面。 |
28Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years without appearing before the king. |
| 29阿貝沙隆遂派人到約阿布那裏，求他引自己去見君王。但是，約阿布不願到他那裏去；他又派人去，他仍是不肯來。 |
29Then he summoned Joab to send him to the king, but Joab would not come to him. Although he summoned him a second time, Joab refused to come. |
| 30他於是對自己的僕人說：「你們看，約阿布的莊田與我的相接，他在那裏種了大麥，你們去放火燒田。」阿貝沙隆的僕人於是放火燒了田。 |
30He therefore instructed his servants: "You see Joab's field that borders mine, on which he has barley. Go, set it on fire." And so Absalom's servants set the field on fire. Joab's farmhands came to him with torn garments and reported to him what had been done. |
| 31約阿布就起身來到阿貝沙隆的家裏，對他說：「你的僕人為什麼燒了我的田？」 |
31At this, Joab went to Absalom in his house and asked him, "Why have your servants set my field on fire?" |
| 32阿貝沙隆回答約阿布說：「看，我派人到你那裏說：請你到我這裏來，我願派你去見君王，問他為什麼叫我從革叔爾回來？假如我仍留在那裏，為我豈不更好！如今我願見君王的面，我若有罪，他可殺我！」 |
32Absalom answered Joab: "I was summoning you to come here, that I may send you to the king to say: 'Why did I come back from Geshur? I would be better off if I were still there!' Now, let me appear before the king. If I am guilty, let him put me to death." |
| 33約阿布便去見君王，稟告了這些話。王遂召見阿貝沙隆；他來到君王前，俯首至地，叩拜君王；君王就吻了阿貝沙隆。 |
33Joab went to the king and reported this. The king then called Absalom, who came to him and in homage fell on his face to the ground before the king. Then the king kissed him. |
