Nehemiæ 1

1 Verba Nehemiæ filii Helchiæ. Et factum est in mense Casleu, anno vigesimo, et ego eram in Susis castro.

Words of Nehemiah son of Hachaliah. And it cometh to pass, in the month of Chisleu, the twentieth year, and I have been in Shushan the palace,

2 Et venit Hanani, unus de fratribus meis, ipse et viri ex Juda: et interrogavi eos de Judæis qui remanserant, et supererant de captivitate, et Jerusalem.

and come in doth Hanani, one of my brethren, he and men of Judah, and I ask them concerning the Jews, the escaped part that have been left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem;

3 Et dixerunt mihi: Qui remanserunt, et relicti sunt de captivitate ibi in provincia, in afflictione magna sunt, et in opprobrio: et murus Jerusalem dissipatus est, et portæ ejus combustæ sunt igni.

and they say to me, 'Those left, who have been left of the captivity there in the province, [are] in great evil, and in reproach, and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burnt with fire.'

4 Cumque audissem verba hujuscemodi, sedi, et flevi, et luxi diebus multis: jejunabam, et orabam ante faciem Dei cæli:

And it cometh to pass, at my hearing these words, I have sat down, and I weep and mourn [for] days, and I am fasting and praying before the God of the heavens.

5 et dixi: Quæso, Domine Deus cæli fortis, magne atque terribilis, qui custodis pactum et misericordiam cum his qui te diligunt, et custodiunt mandata tua:

And I say, 'I beseech thee, O Jehovah, God of the heavens, God, the great and the fearful, keeping the covenant and kindness for those loving Him, and for those keeping His commands,

6 fiant aures tuæ auscultantes, et oculi tui aperti, ut audias orationem servi tui, quam ego oro coram te hodie nocte et die pro filiis Israël servis tuis: et confiteor pro peccatis filiorum Israël, quibus peccaverunt tibi: ego et domus patris mei peccavimus,

let Thine ear be, I pray Thee, attentive, and Thine eyes open, to hearken unto the prayer of Thy servant, that I am praying before Thee to-day, by day and by night, concerning the sons of Israel Thy servants, and confessing concerning the sins of the sons of Israel, that we have sinned against Thee; yea, I and the house of my father have sinned;

7 vanitate seducti sumus, et non custodivimus mandatum tuum, et cæremonias, et judicia quæ præcepisti Moysi famulo tuo.

we have acted very corruptly against Thee, and have not kept the commands, and the statutes, and the judgments, that Thou didst command Moses Thy servant.

8 Memento verbi quod mandasti Moysi servo tuo, dicens: Cum transgressi fueritis, ego dispergam vos in populos:

'Remember, I pray Thee, the word that Thou didst command Moses Thy servant, saying, Ye — ye trespass — I scatter you among peoples;

9 et si revertamini ad me, et custodiatis præcepta mea, et faciatis ea: etiamsi abducti fueritis ad extrema cæli, inde congregabo vos, et reducam in locum quem elegi ut habitaret nomen meum ibi.

and ye have turned back unto Me, and kept My commands, and done them — if your outcast is in the end of the heavens, thence I gather them, and have brought them in unto the place that I have chosen to cause My name to tabernacle there.

10 Et ipsi servi tui, et populus tuus, quos redemisti in fortitudine tua magna, et in manu tua valida.

And they [are] Thy servants, and Thy people, whom Thou hast ransomed by Thy great power, and by Thy strong hand.

11 Obsecro, Domine, sit auris tua attendens ad orationem servi tui, et ad orationem servorum tuorum, qui volunt timere nomen tuum: et dirige servum tuum hodie, et da ei misericordiam ante virum hunc. Ego enim eram pincerna regis.

'I beseech Thee, O Lord, let, I pray Thee, Thine ear be attentive unto the prayer of Thy servant, and unto the prayer of Thy servants, those delighting to fear Thy Name; and give prosperity, I pray Thee, to Thy servant to-day, and give him for mercies before this man;' and I have been butler to the king.