尼希米记 4

1 参巴拉听见我们修造城墙就发怒，大大恼恨，嗤笑犹大人，

But when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry, and was very indignant, and mocked the Jews.

2 对他弟兄和撒马利亚的军兵说：“这些软弱的犹大人做什么呢？要保护自己吗？要献祭吗？要一日成功吗？要从土堆里拿出火烧的石头再立墙吗？”

He spoke before his brothers and the army of Samaria, and said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they fortify themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, since they are burnt?”

3 亚扪人多比雅站在旁边，说：“他们所修造的石墙，就是狐狸上去也必跐倒。”

Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, “What they are building, if a fox climbed up it, he would break down their stone wall.”

4 我们的 神啊，求你垂听，因为我们被藐视。求你使他们的毁谤归于他们的头上，使他们在掳到之地作为掠物。

“Hear, our God, for we are despised. Turn back their reproach on their own head. Give them up for a plunder in a land of captivity.

5 不要遮掩他们的罪孽，不要使他们的罪恶从你面前涂抹，因为他们在修造的人眼前惹动你的怒气。

Don’t cover their iniquity. Don’t let their sin be blotted out from before you; for they have insulted the builders.”

6 这样，我们修造城墙，城墙就都连络，高至一半，因为百姓专心做工。

So we built the wall; and all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.

7 参巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亚扪人、亚实突人听见修造耶路撒冷城墙，着手进行堵塞破裂的地方，就甚发怒。

But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabians, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem went forward, and that the breaches began to be filled, they were very angry;

8 大家同谋要来攻击耶路撒冷，使城内扰乱。

and they all conspired together to come and fight against Jerusalem, and to cause confusion amongst us.

9 然而，我们祷告我们的 神，又因他们的缘故，就派人看守，昼夜防备。

But we made our prayer to our God, and set a watch against them day and night because of them.

10 犹大人说：“灰土尚多，扛抬的人力气已经衰败，所以我们不能建造城墙。”

Judah said, “The strength of the bearers of burdens is fading and there is much rubble, so that we are not able to build the wall.”

11 我们的敌人且说：“趁他们不知不见，我们进入他们中间，杀他们，使工作止住。”

Our adversaries said, “They will not know or see, until we come in amongst them and kill them, and cause the work to cease.”

12 那靠近敌人居住的犹大人十次从各处来见我们，说：“你们必要回到我们那里。”

When the Jews who lived by them came, they said to us ten times from all places, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.”

13 所以我使百姓各按宗族拿刀、拿枪、拿弓站在城墙后边低洼的空处。

Therefore I set guards in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, in the open places. I set the people by family groups with their swords, their spears, and their bows.

14 我察看了，就起来对贵胄、官长，和其余的人说：“不要怕他们！当记念主是大而可畏的。你们要为弟兄、儿女、妻子、家产争战。”

I looked, and rose up, and said to the nobles, to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them! Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

15 仇敌听见我们知道他们的心意，见 神也破坏他们的计谋，就不来了。我们都回到城墙那里，各做各的工。

When our enemies heard that it was known to us, and God had brought their counsel to nothing, all of us returned to the wall, everyone to his work.

16 从那日起，我的仆人一半做工，一半拿枪、拿盾牌、拿弓、穿铠甲，官长都站在犹大众人的后边。

From that time forth, half of my servants did the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.

17 修造城墙的，扛抬材料的，都一手做工一手拿兵器。

Those who built the wall, and those who bore burdens loaded themselves; everyone with one of his hands did the work, and with the other held his weapon.

18 修造的人都腰间佩刀修造，吹角的人在我旁边。

Amongst the builders, everyone wore his sword at his side, and so built. He who sounded the shofar was by me.

19 我对贵胄、官长，和其余的人说：“这工程浩大，我们在城墙上相离甚远；

I said to the nobles, and to the rulers and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and widely spread out, and we are separated on the wall, far from one another.

20 你们听见角声在哪里，就聚集到我们那里去。我们的 神必为我们争战。”

Wherever you hear the sound of the shofar, rally there to us. Our God will fight for us.”

21 于是，我们做工，一半拿兵器，从天亮直到星宿出现的时候。

So we did the work. Half of the people held the spears from the rising of the morning until the stars appeared.

22 那时，我又对百姓说：“各人和他的仆人当在耶路撒冷住宿，好在夜间保守我们，白昼做工。”

Likewise at the same time I said to the people, “Let everyone with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us, and may labour in the day.”

23 这样，我和弟兄仆人，并跟从我的护兵都不脱衣服，出去打水也带兵器。

So neither I, nor my brothers, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me took off our clothes. Everyone took his weapon to the water.