| 巴路克 |
Baruch |
| 1為了你們在天主面前犯的罪過，你們纔被巴比倫人的君王拿步高擄到巴比倫去作俘虜。 |
1A copy of the letter which Jeremiah sent to those who were being led captive to Babylon by the king of the Babylonians, to convey to them what God had commanded him:For the sins you committed before God, you are being led captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Babylonians. |
| 2你們到了巴比倫，要在那裏寄居多年和一長久的時間，直到第七代，然後我纔領你們從那裏平安出來。 |
2When you reach Babylon you will be there many years, a period seven generations long; after which I will bring you back from there in peace. |
| 3你們在巴比倫時，要看見許多金、銀、木製的神像，由人們抬在肩上，向外方人示威。 |
3And now in Babylon you will see borne upon men's shoulders gods of silver and gold and wood, which cast fear upon the pagans. |
| 4你們務要小心，切不要連你們也像外邦人一樣，對這些神像，起敬起畏。 |
4Take care that you yourselves do not imitate their alien example and stand in fear of them, |
| 5幾時你們一見群眾在神像前後敬拜，就該在心中說：上主，只有你應受欽崇。 |
5when you see the crowd before them and behind worshiping them. Rather, say in your hearts, "You, O LORD, are to be worshiped!"; |
| 6因為有我的天使與你們在一起，他必照顧你們的性命。 |
6for my angel is with you, and he is the custodian of your lives. |
| 7神像的舌頭是匠人琢磨的，再包上金銀；都是假造的，不能說話。 |
7Their tongues are smoothed by woodworkers; they are covered with gold and silver-but they are a fraud, and cannot speak. |
| 8人們又拿金子，打造金冠，戴在他們神像的頭上，像是一個愛裝飾的女郎。 |
8People bring gold, as to a maiden in love with ornament, |
| 9有時司祭竟竊取神像身上的金銀，私自使用，甚或用以酬謝院中的廟妓。 |
9and furnish crowns for the heads of their gods. Then sometimes the priests take the silver and gold from their gods and spend it on themselves, |
| 10這些金、銀、木製的神像，穿上衣裳雖像人一樣，仍不免要生銹生蟲。 |
10or give part of it to the harlots on the terrace. They trick them out in garments like men, these gods of silver and gold and wood; |
| 11它們雖身披紫錦紅袍，臉上卻不斷落滿廟內的塵土，需人拂拭。 |
11but though they are wrapped in purple clothing, they are not safe from corrosion or insects. |
| 12有些手執權杖，像是一個作地方判官的人，卻不能處死得罪自己的人； |
12They wipe their faces clean of the house dust which is thick upon them. |
| 13有些右手執劍持斧，卻不能拯救自己脫免戰爭和強盜。 |
13Each has a scepter, like the human ruler of a district; but none does away with those that offend against it. |
| 14由此可知它們並不是神，不應害怕！ |
14Each has in its right hand an axe or dagger, but it cannot save itself from war or pillage. Thus it is known they are not gods; do not fear them. |
| 15正如人做的器皿，一經破爛，就失去了用途；安置在廟裏的神像，也是這樣。 |
15As useless as one's broken tools |
| 16它們的眼睛蓋滿了進廟的人雙腳揚起的灰塵； |
16are their gods, set up in their houses; their eyes are full of dust from the feet of those who enter. |
| 17如同對得罪皇上，快要處死的囚犯，四面門窗緊閉；同樣司祭設門安鎖加閂，關閉它們的廟宇，以免強盜來洗劫。 |
17Their courtyards are walled in like those of a man brought to execution for a crime against the king; the priests reinforce their houses with gates and bars and bolts, lest they be carried off by robbers. |
| 18廟宇裏的燈，點得比神像還多；可是它們連一盞也看不見。 |
18They light more lamps for them than for themselves, yet not one of these can they see. |
| 19它們好像廟中的木樑一樣：人們都說它們的內部已經腐爛；地裏出來的爬蟲侵食它們和它們的衣飾，它們卻毫不自覺； |
19They are like any beam in the house; it is said their hearts are eaten away. Though the insects out of the ground consume them and their garments, they do not feel it. |
| 20它們的臉面已讓廟裏的火煙燻得烏黑； |
20Their faces are blackened by the smoke of the house. |
| 21蝙蝠、燕子和雀鳥，都在它們身上頭上飛舞；同樣，貓兒也任情跳躍： |
21Bats and swallows alight on their bodies and on their heads; and cats as well as birds. |
| 22由此你們該知，它們並不是神，不應害怕！ |
22Know, therefore, that they are not gods, and do not fear them. |
| 23人給神像包上金銀，為光華美麗，但若沒有人擦去銹污，它們不會光亮；因為即在被鑄造時，它們已毫無知覺。 |
23Despite the gold that covers them for adornment, unless someone wipes away the corrosion, they do not shine; nor did they feel anything when they were molded. |
| 24不論人用什麼價錢將它們買來，它們總不會生氣； |
24They are bought at any price, and there is no spirit in them. |
| 25它們沒有腳，要人抬在肩上，給人露出自己的恥辱，致使敬拜的人也因此感到羞愧；為使它們不翻倒在地，就得由人扶持； |
25Having no feet, they are carried on men's shoulders, displaying their shame to all; and those who worship them are put to confusion |
| 26人若把它們直立起來，它們不能自己行動；如果歪斜了，又不能自動直立；人給它們擺上供物，亦無異給死人上供。 |
26because, if they fall to the ground, the worshipers must raise them up. They neither move of themselves if one sets them upright, nor come upright if they fall; but one puts gifts beside them as beside the dead. |
| 27人給它們獻的犧牲，司祭卻加以變賣，從中取利；司祭的妻室亦照樣醃存一些祭品，也不施捨給貧苦和殘疾的人；甚至在經期和將分娩的婦女，都敢觸摸獻給它們的祭品： |
27Their priests resell their sacrifices for their own advantage. Even their wives cure parts of the meat, but do not share it with the poor and the weak; |
| 28由此可知它們並不是神，不應害怕。 |
28the menstruous and women in childbed handle their sacrifices. Knowing from this that they are not gods, do not fear them. |
| 29實在，它們怎麼能稱為神呢？連婦女也敢給這些金、銀、木製的神像獻祭。 |
29How can they be called gods? For women bring the offerings to these gods of silver and gold and wood; |
| 30在廟裏，司祭穿着破裂的袈裟，剃去了鬚髮，光頭坐着； |
30and in their temples the priests squat with torn tunic and with shaven hair and beard, and with their heads uncovered. |
| 31或在神像前狂呼亂叫，好像參加喪宴的人一樣； |
31They shout and wail before their gods as others do at a funeral banquet. |
| 32又脫掉神像的衣服，給自己的妻子兒女穿。 |
32The priests take some of their clothing and put it on their wives and children. |
| 33人們待神像好壞，它們都不能回報；不能委任或廢除君王， |
33Whether they are treated well or ill by anyone, they cannot requite it; they can neither set up a king nor remove him. |
| 34也不能賜人財帛銀錢；人若許願而不實踐，它們也不能追索； |
34Similarly, they cannot give anyone riches or coppers; if one fails to fulfill a vow to them, they cannot exact it of him. |
| 35不能救人不死，也不能由強者手中搶救弱者； |
35They neither save a man from death, nor deliver the weak from the strong. |
| 36不能使瞎子恢復視力，也不能救人脫免患難； |
36To no blind man do they restore his sight, nor do they save any man in an emergency. |
| 37不知憐恤寡婦，也不知加惠孤兒： |
37They neither pity the widow nor benefit the orphan. |
| 38這些包金包銀和木製的神像，好比山間採來的石塊，敬拜的人，都要蒙受羞辱： |
38These gilded and silvered wooden statues are like stones from the mountains; and their worshipers will be put to shame. |
| 39既然這樣，人又怎能相信，或稱呼它們為神呢？ |
39How then can it be thought or claimed that they are gods? |
| 40連加色丁人也不尊敬它們；幾時看見一個不能說話的啞吧，就領他到貝耳面前，求賜說話奇恩，好像它能垂聽一樣。 |
40Even the Chaldeans themselves have no respect for them; for when they see a deaf mute, incapable of speech, they bring forward Bel and ask the god to make noise, as though the man could understand; |
| 41他們明知不能，卻不能離棄這些神祇，因為他們都愚昧無知。 |
41and they are themselves unable to reflect and abandon these gods, for they have no sense. |
| 42婦女們身上繫上繩索，坐在路旁，燒麥糠為香； |
42And their women, girt with cords, sit by the roads, burning chaff for incense; |
| 43若其中一個被一過路男人帶去，與她同睡，她就笑罵自己的同伴不如自己有身價，因為她的帶子還沒有扯斷。 |
43and whenever one of them is drawn aside by some passer-by who lies with her, she mocks her neighbor who has not been dignified as she has, and has not had her cord broken. |
| 44對這些神像做的一切，無不荒唐；既然這樣，人又怎能相信，或稱呼它們為神呢？ |
44All that takes place around these gods is a fraud: how then can it be thought or claimed that they are gods? |
| 45它們全是由木匠和金匠製成的，不能是別的，只能是這些匠人願做成的物品。 |
45They are produced by woodworkers and goldsmiths, and they are nothing else than what these craftsmen wish them to be. |
| 46製造它們的那些人，自己還活不長久，他們製造的作品，又怎能是神呢？ |
46Even those who produce them are not long-lived; |
| 47只不過給自己的後代，留下欺騙和羞辱， |
47how then can what they have produced be gods? They have left frauds and opprobrium to their successors. |
| 48因為幾時民間有了戰爭或災難，司祭們就彼此商議何處能同這些神像一起隱藏。 |
48For when war or disaster comes upon them, the priests deliberate among themselves where they can hide with them. |
| 49它們竟不能救自己免於戰爭或災難，人怎麼還不覺悟它們並非神明呢？ |
49How then can one not know that these are no-gods, which do not save themselves either from war or from disaster? |
| 50由此可知：這些包金包銀和木製的神像，只不過是偽造，萬民和君王都清楚知道它們不是神明，只不過是人手的作品，沒有一點神明的作為。 |
50They are wooden, gilded and silvered; they will later be known for frauds. To all peoples and kings it will be clear that they are not gods, but human handiwork; and that God's work is not in them. |
| 51如此還有誰不知道它們不是神明呢？ |
51Who does not know that they are not gods? |
| 52它們不能給一地方建立君王，不能給人興雲降雨； |
52They set no king over the land, nor do they give men rain. |
| 53不能為人決獄斷案，不能救護受迫害的人，因為它們毫無能力，猶如飛翔天地間的烏鴉。 |
53They neither vindicate their own rights, nor do they recover what is unjustly taken, for they are unable; |
| 54幾時這些包金包銀和木製的神像的廟裏起了火，司祭們都各自逃命，它們只有像棟樑一樣，被火燒毀。 |
54they are like crows between heaven and earth. For when fire breaks out in the temple of these wooden or gilded or silvered gods, though the priests flee and are safe, they themselves are burnt up in the fire like beams. |
| 55它們既不能抵抗君王和仇敵， |
55They cannot resist a king, or enemy forces. |
| 56人怎麼還能承認，或相信它們是神呢？ |
56How then can it be admitted or thought that they are gods? are safe from neither thieves nor bandits, these wooden and silvered and gilded gods; |
| 57這些包金包銀和木製的神像，不能救自己脫免強盜和匪徒；比它們更有力的人奪去了它們的金銀，和它們穿的衣服以後，安然離去，它們竟不能自助自救。 |
57those who seize them strip off the gold and the silver, and go away with the clothing that was on them, and they cannot help themselves. |
| 58為此虛假的神祇，還不如一個彰顯自己權威的君王，或家中一個能供主人使用的器具；虛假的神祇，還不如能使家中一切安全的房門；虛假的神祇，還不如一根支撐皇宮的木柱。 |
58How much better to be a king displaying his valor, or a handy tool in a house, the joy of its owner, than these false gods; or the door of a house, that keeps safe those who are within, rather than these false gods; or a wooden post in a palace, rather than these false gods! |
| 59太陽、月亮和星辰放出光明，執行自己的職務，無不從命； |
59The sun and moon and stars are bright, and obedient in the service for which they are sent. |
| 60同樣，雷電閃耀，光輝燦爛；風也依命吹向四方； |
60Likewise the lightning, when it flashes, is a goodly sight; and the same wind blows over all the land. |
| 61雲彩一奉天主的命，即飛遊全球，執行使命；電火亦遵命行事，從天降下，燒毀山嶺森林； |
61The clouds, too, when commanded by God to proceed across the whole world, fulfill the order; |
| 62論美麗，論能力，這些神像不能與它們相比： |
62and fire, sent from on high to burn up the mountains and the forests, does what has been commanded. But these false gods are not their equal, whether in beauty or in power; |
| 63為此，人不應相信或稱呼它們為神，因為它們不能施行審判，也不能施惠於人。 |
63so that it is unthinkable, and cannot be claimed, that they are gods. They can neither execute judgment, nor benefit man. |
| 64因此，該知道它們並不是神，不應害怕。 |
64Know, therefore, that they are not gods, and do not fear them. |
| 65這些神像不能詛咒，也不能祝福君王； |
65Kings they neither curse nor bless. |
| 66不能給萬民顯示天上的奇蹟，也不能像太陽一般輝耀，像月亮一般光明。 |
66They show the nations no signs in the heavens, nor are they brilliant like the sun, nor shining like the moon. |
| 67它們竟連走獸也不如，因為走獸還能逃到安身的地區，營救自己。 |
67The beasts which can help themselves by fleeing to shelter are better than they are. |
| 68不論在任何情形下，我們都清楚看出：它們不是神，所以你們不應害怕！ |
68Thus in no way is it clear to us that they are gods; so do not fear them. |
| 69就如一個稻草人在瓜果園內，不能看守什麼；這些包金包銀和木製的神也是如此。 |
69For like a scarecrow in a cucumber patch, that is no protection, are their wooden, gilded, silvered gods. |
| 70此外，這些包金包銀和木製的神，彷彿園中任各種飛鳥棲息的荊棘叢，又彷彿被人拋棄在暗處的死屍； |
70Just like a thornbush in a garden on which perches every kind of bird, or like a corpse hurled into darkness, are their silvered and gilded wooden gods. |
| 71從它們身上那腐爛了的紫錦和麻衣，你們便可以知道它們並不是神；最後連它們自己也要被蟲吃盡，成為地上的恥辱。 |
71From the rotting of the purple and the linen upon them, it can be known that they are not gods; they themselves will in the end be comsumed, and be a disgrace in the land. |
| 72故此還是沒有偶像的義人好，恥辱決來不到他身上！ |
72The better for the just man who has no idols: he shall be far from disgrace! |
