« | Ezekiel 29 | » |
1 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:
2 "Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt;
3 speak, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lies in the midst of his streams, that says, `My Nile is my own; I made it.'
4 I will put hooks in your jaws, and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales; and I will draw you up out of the midst of your streams, with all the fish of your streams which stick to your scales.
5 And I will cast you forth into the wilderness, you and all the fish of your streams; you shall fall upon the open field, and not be gathered and buried. To the beasts of the earth and to the birds of the air I have given you as food.
6 "Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the LORD. Because you have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel;
7 when they grasped you with the hand, you broke, and tore all their shoulders; and when they leaned upon you, you broke, and made all their loins to shake;
8 therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring a sword upon you, and will cut off from you man and beast;
9 and the land of Egypt shall be a desolation and a waste. Then they will know that I am the LORD. "Because you said, `The Nile is mine, and I made it,'
10 therefore, behold, I am against you, and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt an utter waste and desolation, from Migdol to Syene, as far as the border of Ethiopia.
11 No foot of man shall pass through it, and no foot of beast shall pass through it; it shall be uninhabited forty years.
12 And I will make the land of Egypt a desolation in the midst of desolated countries; and her cities shall be a desolation forty years among cities that are laid waste. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among the countries.
13 "For thus says the Lord GOD: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered;
14 and I will restore the fortunes of Egypt, and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin; and there they shall be a lowly kingdom.
15 It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself above the nations; and I will make them so small that they will never again rule over the nations.
16 And it shall never again be the reliance of the house of Israel, recalling their iniquity, when they turn to them for aid. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD."
17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:
18 "Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre; every head was made bald and every shoulder was rubbed bare; yet neither he nor his army got anything from Tyre to pay for the labor that he had performed against it.
19 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth and despoil it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army.
20 I have given him the land of Egypt as his recompense for which he labored, because they worked for me, says the Lord GOD.
21 "On that day I will cause a horn to spring forth to the house of Israel, and I will open your lips among them. Then they will know that I am the LORD."
The Revised Standard Version (RSV)
The Revised Standard Version (RSV) is a widely respected English translation of the Bible that was first published in 1952 by the National Council of Churches. It was developed as a revision of the American Standard Version (ASV) of 1901, with the primary aim of providing a more accurate and readable text while retaining the literary qualities of its predecessor. The RSV sought to modernize the language of the ASV without sacrificing its faithfulness to the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek manuscripts, making it a significant milestone in the history of English Bible translations.
One of the key features of the RSV is its commitment to formal equivalence, or a word-for-word translation approach. This method ensures that the translation closely mirrors the structure and wording of the original texts, allowing readers to engage more directly with the biblical languages. The translators of the RSV were guided by the latest biblical scholarship of their time, and they endeavored to produce a text that was both accurate and elegant. This combination of precision and literary quality has made the RSV a popular choice for both academic study and liturgical use.
The RSV also stands out for its ecumenical appeal. It was one of the first translations to be accepted across a wide range of Christian denominations, including Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox traditions. This broad acceptance was partly due to the inclusive approach of the translation committee, which included scholars from various religious backgrounds. The RSV’s ecumenical nature helped it gain widespread usage in churches, seminaries, and universities, fostering a greater sense of unity among different Christian communities.
Despite its many strengths, the RSV has faced some criticism over the years. Some conservative scholars and readers have expressed concerns about certain translation choices, arguing that they reflect modernist theological perspectives. Additionally, the RSV’s use of archaic language in certain passages has been a point of contention for those seeking a more contemporary rendering of the Bible. Nonetheless, the Revised Standard Version remains a highly respected and influential translation, valued for its accuracy, literary excellence, and broad ecumenical acceptance. It continues to serve as a foundation for later revisions and translations, such as the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) and the English Standard Version (ESV).