評論
打印
There now came a lull in his look, as he silently turned over the leaves of the Book once more; and, at last, standing motionless, with closed eyes, for the moment, seemed communing with God and himself.
這時,他的臉色平靜下來了,他再次悄悄翻著《圣經》;最后,他緊閉雙眼.一動不動地站了一會,象在跟上帝交談似的。
But again he leaned over towards the people, and bowing his head lowly, with an aspect of the deepest yet manliest humility, he spake these words:
但是,他又傴著身子,對著下邊的人群,低垂著頭,以一種非常深切而又極富有男子氣概的謙恭態度,說出這些話來:
"Shipmates, God has laid but one hand upon you; both his hands press upon me. I have read ye by what murky light may be mine the lesson that Jonah teaches to all sinners; and therefore to ye, and still more to me, for I am a greater sinner than ye. And now how gladly would I come down from this mast-head and sit on the hatches there where you sit, and listen as you listen, while some one of you reads me that other and more awful lesson which Jonah teaches to me, as a pilot of the living God. How being an anointed pilot-prophet, or speaker of true things and bidden by the Lord to sound those unwelcome truths in the ears of a wicked Nineveh, Jonah, appalled at the hostility he should raise, fled from his mission, and sought to escape his duty and his God by taking ship at Joppa.
船友們,上帝放在你們身上的只有一只手;可是按在我身上的卻是一雙手。我剛才已經用了我的可以說是不很清楚的見解給你們講出了約拿告誡一切犯罪者的教訓了;因此,這些教訓與其說是對你們的,不如說是對我自己的,因為我是個比你們更大的犯罪者。現在,要是我能夠從這個桅頂似的地方走下來,坐到你們坐著的那些艙口上,象你們聽我一樣地聽著,而讓你們中間哪一位來對我念約拿所告訴我的,告訴我這個身為永生之主的舵工的另外一些更可怕的教訓,那可多愉快呵。讓我來聽你們講約拿這個搽了圣油的舵工的先知,也可以說是一個傳播真理的人,受了主的囑托,去對邪惡的尼尼微人傳播那些不受歡迎的真理,可他卻因害怕會惹起那里的人的敵意而逃避了自己的使命,想逃避他的職守和他的上帝,竟跑到約帕去乘船。上帝是無所不在的;約拿永遠也對他無計可施。
