| 瑪加伯下 |
2 Maccabees |
| 1一四九年，猶大和他的部下聽說安提約古歐帕托爾率領大軍來進攻猶太， |
1 In the year one hundred and forty-nine, Judas and his men learned that Antiochus Eupator was invading Judea with a large force, |
| 2他的監護人里息雅總理也與他同來；各自率領着希臘兵，共計步兵十一萬，騎兵五千三百，象二十二頭，鐮刀車三百輛。 |
2 and that with him was Lysias, his guardian, who was in charge of the government. They led a Greek army of one hundred and ten thousand foot soldiers, fifty-three hundred horsemen, twenty-two elephants, and three hundred chariots armed with scythes. |
| 3默乃勞也混入其中，假仁假義地激勵安提約古；他如此作，並非為了國家的安全，而只是想鞏固自己的職位。 |
3Menelaus also joined them, and with great duplicity kept urging Antiochus on, not for the welfare of his country, but in the hope of being established in office. |
| 4但萬王之王激動安提約古惱恨這個惡徒；里息雅向君王證明此人是萬惡的罪魁，安提約古即下令解送他到貝洛雅去，按當地的刑法處死他。 |
4 But the King of kings aroused the anger of Antiochus against the scoundrel. When the king was shown by Lysias that Menelaus was to blame for all the trouble, he ordered him to be taken to Beroea and executed there in the customary local method. |
| 5在那裏有一座塔，高五十餘肘，裏面滿是火灰，設有一架旋機，能從各方面把人投入火灰中。 |
5 There is at that place a tower seventy-five feet high, full of ashes, with a circular rim sloping down steeply on all sides toward the ashes. |
| 6凡盜竊廟物，或犯其他重罪的人，都應投入裏面處死。 |
6A man guilty of sacrilege or notorious for certain other crimes is brought up there and then hurled down to destruction. |
| 7這犯法的默乃勞就是受這刑罰而死的，死後也不得入土。 |
7In such a manner was Menelaus, the transgressor of the law, fated to die; he was deprived even of decent burial. |
| 8祭壇上的火和灰原是聖潔的：他既多次褻瀆祭壇，如今死在火灰中，是極公平的。 |
8It was altogether just that he who had committed so many sins against the altar with its pure fire and ashes should meet his death in ashes. |
| 9此時，國王起了一種野蠻和強橫的念頭，想加害猶太人，比他父親所行的還要殘酷。 |
9The king was advancing, his mind full of savage plans for inflicting on the Jews worse things than those they suffered in his father's time. |
| 10猶大一知道這事，便命民眾日夜呼求上主，求他這次還如從前一樣，拯救他們，不使法律、國家和聖殿遭受浩劫， |
10When Judas learned of this, he urged the people to call upon the LORD night and day, to help them now, if ever, |
| 11不讓這剛才復興的民族落在瀆神的異民手中。 |
11when they were about to be deprived of their law, their country, and their holy temple; and not to allow this nation, which had just begun to revive, to be subjected again to blasphemous Gentiles. |
| 12眾人一致順命，一連三天俯伏在地，哀哭禁食，懇求仁慈的上主。於是猶大勉勵眾人後，下令備戰， |
12When they had all joined in doing this, and had implored the merciful LORD continuously with weeping and fasting and prostrations for three days, Judas encouraged them and told them to stand ready. |
| 13先與長老們私下商議，然後決定在國王的軍隊尚未開入猶太和佔領京城以前，就出發迎擊，賴天主的助佑來決定一切。 |
13After a private meeting with the elders, he decided that, before the king's army could invade Judea and take possession of the city, the Jews should march out and settle the matter with God's help. |
| 14將戰爭的勝負全託付於宇宙的創造者；又勸勉自己的部下，應同他一起為法律、聖殿、京城、祖國及民權奮勇作戰，死而後已。於是他就在摩丁附近紮了營。 |
14Leaving the outcome to the Creator of the world, and exhorting his followers to fight nobly to death for the laws, the temple, the city, the country, and the government, he pitched his camp near Modein. |
| 15他給軍隊規定以「天主勝利」為口號，然後選拔一隊驍勇的少年士兵，夜襲國王營幕，在營內殺了二千守兵，刺殺了象隊中的領隊大象，以及木樓裏馭象的人。 |
15 Giving his men the battle cry "God's Victory," he made a night attack on the king's pavilion with a picked force of the bravest young men and killed about two thousand in the camp. They also slew the lead elephant and its rider. |
| 16最後使全營敵人驚慌失措，遂凱旋而歸。 |
16 Finally they withdrew in triumph, having filled the camp with terror and confusion. |
| 17因了上主保護猶大，戰事完了，天纔破曉。 |
17Day was just breaking when this was accomplished with the help and protection of the LORD. |
| 18國王雖經驗到猶太人的英勇，但仍設法侵略他們的地方。 |
18The king, having had a taste of the Jews' daring, tried to take their positions by a stratagem. |
| 19於是進攻猶太人堅固的堡壘貝特族爾，但被擊退；再次進攻，又遭挫敗。 |
19So he marched against Beth-zur, a strong fortress of the Jews; but he was driven back, checked, and defeated. |
| 20猶大輸送一切必需品，接濟被圍困的人， |
20Judas then sent supplies to the men inside, |
| 21但有個猶太軍人，名叫洛多苛的，向敵人告密；這人被查出後，即被捕入獄。 |
21 but Rhodocus, of the Jewish army, betrayed military secrets to the enemy. He was found out, arrested, and imprisoned. |
| 22國王二次與貝特族爾居民握手議和，遂離開了那裏，去攻擊猶大的軍隊，可是又遭到慘敗。 |
22The king made a second attempt by negotiating with the men of Beth-zur. After giving them his pledge and receiving theirs, he withdrew |
| 23那時王聽說，他留在安提約基雅攝政的斐理伯造反，就心慌意亂，遂與猶太人講和，宣誓接受他們一切合理的條件；講和後，他也獻了祭，對聖殿起敬畏，對聖所也表示慷慨大方。 |
23and attacked Judas and his men. But he was defeated. Next he heard that Philip, who was left in charge of the government in Antioch had rebelled. Dismayed, he parleyed with the Jews, submitted to their terms, and swore to observe their rights. Having come to this agreement, he offered a sacrifice, and honored the temple with a generous donation. |
| 24王又善待了瑪加伯，留下赫革摩尼德為總督，管理由仆托肋買至革勒尼人所居住的地方。 |
24 He approved of Maccabeus and left him as military and civil governor of the territory from Ptolemais to the region of the Gerrenes. |
| 25王回到仆托肋買，那裏的居民卻憤憤不平，不滿意這些和約，要廢除所議定的事項。 |
25When he came to Ptolemais, the people of that city were angered by the peace treaty; in fact they were so indignant that they wanted to annul its provisions. |
| 26里息雅便登台竭力辯解，說服了他們，贏得了他們的信心，使他們寧靜下來，然後回安提約基雅去了。這就是王進軍及撤兵的事。 |
26But Lysias took the platform, defended the treaty as well as he could and won them over by persuasion. After calming them and gaining their good will, he returned to Antioch. That is how the king's attack and withdrawal went. |
