申命記 21
1 あなたの神、主が与えて獲させられる地で、殺されて野に倒れている人があって、だれが殺したのかわからない時は、
“Suppose someone has been murdered in a field in the land that Yahweh our God is giving to you, and you do not know who killed that person.
2 長老たちと、さばきびとたちが出てきて、その殺された者のある所から、周囲の町々までの距離をはからなければならない。
[If that happens], your elders and judges must go out to where that person’s corpse was found and measure the distance from there to each of the nearby towns.
3 そしてその殺された者のある所に最も近い町の長老たちは、まだ使わない、まだくびきを負わせて引いたことのない若い雌牛をとり、
Then the elders in the town that is closest to where the corpse was found must select a young cow that has never been used for doing work.
4 その町の長老たちはその雌牛を、耕すことも、種まくこともしない、絶えず水の流れている谷へ引いていって、その谷で雌牛のくびを折らなければならない。
They must take it to a place near a stream where the ground has never been plowed or planted. They must break its neck there in that valley.
5 その時レビの子孫である祭司たちは、そこに進み出なければならない。彼らはあなたの神、主が自分に仕えさせ、また主の名によって祝福させるために選ばれた者で、すべての論争と、すべての暴行は彼らの言葉によって解決されるからである。
The priests must go there also, because Yahweh our God has chosen them from the tribe of Levi to serve him and to be his representatives [MTY] when they bless people. And he has also chosen them to settle disputes in which someone has been injured.
6 そしてその殺された者のある所に最も近い町の長老たちは皆、彼らが谷でくびを折った雌牛の上で手を洗い、
The elders from the closest town must wash their hands over the young cow whose neck was broken,
7 証言して言わなければならない、『われわれの手はこの血を流さず、われわれの目もそれを見なかった。
and they must say, ‘We did not murder this person [MTY], and we did not see who did it.
8 主よ、あなたがあがなわれた民イスラエルをおゆるしください。罪のない者の血を流したとがを、あなたの民イスラエルのうちにとどめないでください。そして血を流したとがをおゆるしください』。
Yahweh, forgive us, your Israeli people whom you rescued [from Egypt]. Do not consider (us to be guilty/that we should be punished because) of murdering someone who (is innocent/had not done something that is wrong). Instead, forgive us.’
9 このようにして、あなたは主が正しいと見られる事をおこない、罪のない者の血を流したとがを、あなたがたのうちから除き去らなければならない。
By doing that, you will be doing what Yahweh considers to be right, and you will not be considered to be guilty for murdering that person.”
10 あなたが出て敵と戦う際、あなたの神、主がそれをあなたの手にわたされ、あなたがそれを捕虜とした時、
“When you [soldiers] go to fight against your enemies, and Yahweh our God enables you to defeat them [IDM], and (they become your prisoners/you capture them),
11 もし捕虜のうちに美しい女のあるのを見て、それを好み、妻にめとろうとするならば、
one of you may see among them a beautiful woman that he likes, and he may want to marry her.
12 その女をあなたの家に連れて帰らなければならない。女は髪をそり、つめを切り、
He should take her to his home, and there she must shave [all the hair off] her head and cut her fingernails [to signify that now she does not belong to her people-group any more, but instead she is becoming an Israeli].
13 また捕虜の着物を脱ぎすてて、あなたの家におり、自分の父母のために一か月のあいだ嘆かなければならない。そして後、あなたは彼女の所にはいって、その夫となり、彼女を妻とすることができる。
She must take off the clothes that she was wearing when she was captured, [and put on Israeli clothes]. She must stay in that man’s house and mourn for a month because of [leaving] her parents. After that, he will be allowed to marry her.
14 その後あなたがもし彼女を好まなくなったならば、彼女を自由に去らせなければならない。決して金で売ってはならない。あなたはすでに彼女をはずかしめたのだから、彼女を奴隷のようにあしらってはならない。
Later, if he no longer is pleased with her, he will be permitted to allow her to leave him. But because she was forced to have sex with him, he will not be allowed to treat her like a slave [and sell her to someone else].”
15 人がふたりの妻をもち、そのひとりは愛する者、ひとりは気にいらない者であって、その愛する者と気にいらない者のふたりが、ともに男の子を産み、もしその長子が、気にいらない女の産んだ者である時は、
“Suppose that a man has two wives, but he likes one of them and dislikes the other one. And suppose that they both give birth to sons, and the oldest son is the child of the woman that he does not like.
16 その子たちに自分の財産を継がせる時、気にいらない女の産んだ長子をさしおいて、愛する女の産んだ子を長子とすることはできない。
On the day when that man decides how he will divide his possessions for his sons to possess [after he dies], he must not favor the son of the wife that he loves by giving him [a bigger share, ] the share that the older son should receive.
17 必ずその気にいらない者の産んだ子が長子であることを認め、自分の財産を分ける時には、これに二倍の分け前を与えなければならない。これは自分の力の初めであって、長子の特権を持っているからである。
He must give to the older son, the son of the wife whom he does not like, twice as much of his possessions. That son is his firstborn son, and he must be given the share that he should receive because of his being that man’s firstborn son.”
18 もし、わがままで、手に負えない子があって、父の言葉にも、母の言葉にも従わず、父母がこれを懲らしてもきかない時は、
“Suppose there is a boy who is very stubborn and always (rebelling against/disobeying) [his parents], and who will not heed what they say to him. And suppose that they punish him but he still does not pay attention to what they tell him [MTY].
19 その父母はこれを捕えて、その町の門に行き、町の長老たちの前に出し、
If that happens, his parents must take him to the (gate of/central meeting place in) the city where he lives and have him stand in front of the elders of the city.
20 町の長老たちに言わなければならない、『わたしたちのこの子はわがままで、手に負えません。わたしたちの言葉に従わず、身持ちが悪く、大酒飲みです』。
Then the parents must say to the elders of that city, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and always rebelling against us. He will not pay attention to what we tell him [MTY]. He wastes a lot of money (OR, eats too much food) and gets drunk.’
21 そのとき、町の人は皆、彼を石で撃ち殺し、あなたがたのうちから悪を除き去らなければならない。そうすれば、イスラエルは皆聞いて恐れるであろう。
Then all the elders of that city must execute him by throwing stones at him. By doing that, you will get rid of this evil practice among you. And everyone in Israel will hear [about what happened] and they will be afraid [to do what he did].”
22 もし人が死にあたる罪を犯して殺され、あなたがそれを木の上にかける時は、
“If someone is executed for having committed a crime for which he deserves to die, and you hang his corpse on a post,
23 翌朝までその死体を木の上に留めておいてはならない。必ずそれをその日のうちに埋めなければならない。木にかけられた者は神にのろわれた者だからである。あなたの神、主が嗣業として賜わる地を汚してはならない。
you must not allow his corpse to remain there all night. You must bury it on the day that he died, because [God] has cursed anyone whose corpse is allowed to remain on a post. [You must bury the corpse that day], in order that you do not defile the land that Yahweh our God is giving to you.”
