Chapter 17

¹Furthermore, Ahithophel said to Absalom, 'Please let me choose 12,000 men that I may arise and pursue David tonight.

¹亞希多弗又對押沙龍說：求你准我挑選一萬二千人，今夜我就起身追趕大衛，

²'I will come upon him while he is weary and exhausted and terrify him, so that all the people who are with him will flee. Then I will strike down the king alone,

²趁他疲乏手軟，我忽然追上他，使他驚惶；跟隨他的民必都逃跑，我就單殺王一人，

³and I will bring back all the people to you. The return of everyone depends on the man you seek; [then] all the people will be at peace.'

³使眾民都歸順你。你所尋找的人既然死了，眾民就如已經歸順你；這樣，也都平安無事了。

⁴So the plan pleased Absalom and all the elders of Israel.

⁴押沙龍和以色列的長老都以這話為美。

⁵Then Absalom said, 'Now call Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear what he has to say.'

⁵押沙龍說：要召亞基人戶篩來，我們也要聽他怎樣說。

⁶When Hushai had come to Absalom, Absalom said to him, 'Ahithophel has spoken thus. Shall we carry out his plan? If not, you speak.'

⁶戶篩到了押沙龍面前，押沙龍向他說：亞希多弗是如此如此說的，我們照著他的話行可以不可以？若不可，你就說罷！

⁷So Hushai said to Absalom, 'This time the advice that Ahithophel has given is not good.'

⁷戶篩對押沙龍說：亞希多弗這次所定的謀不善。

⁸Moreover, Hushai said, 'You know your father and his men, that they are mighty men and they are fierce, like a bear robbed of her cubs in the field. And your father is an expert in warfare, and will not spend the night with the people.

⁸戶篩又說：你知道，你父親和跟隨他的人都是勇士，現在他們心裡惱怒，如同田野丟崽子的母熊一般，而且你父親是個戰士，必不和民一同住宿。

⁹'Behold, he has now hidden himself in one of the caves or in another place; and it will be when he falls on them at the first attack, that whoever hears [it] will say, 'There has been a slaughter among the people who follow Absalom.'

⁹他現今或藏在坑中或在別處，若有人首先被殺，凡聽見的必說：跟隨押沙龍的民被殺了。

¹⁰'And even the one who is valiant, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will completely lose heart; for all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man and those who are with him are valiant men.

¹⁰雖有人膽大如獅子，他的心也必消化；因為以色列人都知道你父親是英雄，跟隨他的人也都是勇士。

¹¹'But I counsel that all Israel be surely gathered to you, from Dan even to Beersheba, as the sand that is by the sea in abundance, and that you personally go into battle.

¹¹依我之計，不如將以色列眾人─從但直到別是巴，如同海邊的沙那樣多─聚集到你這裡來，你也親自率領他們出戰。

¹²'So we shall come to him in one of the places where he can be found, and we will fall on him as the dew falls on the ground; and of him and of all the men who are with him, not even one will be left.

¹²這樣，我們在何處遇見他，就下到他那裡，如同露水下在地上一般，連他帶跟隨他的人，一個也不留下。

¹³'If he withdraws into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city, and we will drag it into the valley until not even a small stone is found there.'

¹³他若進了哪一座城，以色列眾人必帶繩子去，將那城拉到河裡，甚至連一塊小石頭都不剩下。

¹⁴Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, 'The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel.' For the LORD had ordained to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel, so that the LORD might bring calamity on Absalom.

¹⁴押沙龍和以色列眾人說：亞基人戶篩的計謀比亞希多弗的計謀更好！這是因耶和華定意破壞亞希多弗的良謀，為要降禍與押沙龍。

¹⁵Then Hushai said to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, 'This is what Ahithophel counseled Absalom and the elders of Israel, and this is what I have counseled.

¹⁵戶篩對祭司撒督和亞比亞他說：亞希多弗為押沙龍和以色列的長老所定的計謀是如此如此，我所定的計謀是如此如此。

¹⁶'Now therefore, send quickly and tell David, saying, 'Do not spend the night at the fords of the wilderness, but by all means cross over, or else the king and all the people who are with him will be destroyed.''

¹⁶現在你們要急速打發人去，告訴大衛說：今夜不可住在曠野的渡口，務要過河，免得王和跟隨他的人都被吞滅。

¹⁷Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En-rogel, and a maidservant would go and tell them, and they would go and tell King David, for they could not be seen entering the city.

¹⁷那時，約拿單和亞希瑪斯在隱羅結那裡等候，不敢進城，恐怕被人看見。有一個使女出來，將這話告訴他們，他們就去報信給大衛王。

¹⁸But a lad did see them and told Absalom; so the two of them departed quickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim, who had a well in his courtyard, and they went down into it.

¹⁸然而有一個童子看見他們，就去告訴押沙龍。他們急忙跑到巴戶琳某人的家裡；那人院中有一口井，他們就下到井裡。

¹⁹And the woman took a covering and spread it over the well's mouth and scattered grain on it, so that nothing was known.

¹⁹那家的婦人用蓋蓋上井口，又在上頭鋪上碎麥，事就沒有洩漏。

²⁰Then Absalom's servants came to the woman at the house and said, 'Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?' And the woman said to them, 'They have crossed the brook of water.' And when they searched and could not find [them], they returned to Jerusalem.

²⁰押沙龍的僕人來到那家，問婦人說：亞希瑪斯和約拿單在哪裡？婦人說：他們過了河了。僕人找他們，找不著，就回耶路撒冷去了。

²¹It came about after they had departed that they came up out of the well and went and told King David; and they said to David, 'Arise and cross over the water quickly for thus Ahithophel has counseled against you.'

²¹他們走後，二人從井裡上來，去告訴大衛王說：亞希多弗如此如此定計害你，你們務要起來，快快過河。

²²Then David and all the people who [were] with him arose and crossed the Jordan; and by dawn not even one remained who had not crossed the Jordan.

²²於是大衛和跟隨他的人都起來，過約但河。到了天亮，無一人不過約但河的。

²³Now when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled [his] donkey and arose and went to his home, to his city, and set his house in order, and strangled himself; thus he died and was buried in the grave of his father.

²³亞希多弗見不依從他的計謀，就備上驢，歸回本城；到了家，留下遺言，便吊死了，葬在他父親的墳墓裡。

²⁴Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom crossed the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.

²⁴大衛到了瑪哈念，押沙龍和跟隨他的以色列人也都過了約但河。

²⁵Absalom set Amasa over the army in place of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was Ithra the Israelite, who went in to Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, Joab's mother.

²⁵押沙龍立亞瑪撒作元帥，代替約押。亞瑪撒是以實瑪利人（又作以色列人）以特拉的兒子。以特拉曾與拿轄的女兒亞比該親近；這亞比該與約押的母親洗魯雅是姊妹。

²⁶And Israel and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead.

²⁶押沙龍和以色列人都安營在基列地。

²⁷Now when David had come to Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim,

²⁷大衛到了瑪哈念，亞捫族的拉巴人拿轄的兒子朔比，羅底巴人亞米利的兒子瑪吉，基列的羅基琳人巴西萊，

²⁸brought beds, basins, pottery, wheat, barley, flour, parched [grain], beans, lentils, parched [seeds],

²⁸帶著被、褥、盆、碗、瓦器、小麥、大麥、麥麵、炒穀、豆子、紅豆、炒豆、

²⁹honey, curds, sheep, and cheese of the herd, for David and for the people who [were] with him, to eat; for they said, 'The people are hungry and weary and thirsty in the wilderness.'

²⁹蜂蜜、奶油、綿羊、奶餅，供給大衛和跟隨他的人吃；他們說：民在曠野，必飢渴困乏了。