LESSON 13 RESPECT FOR THE SABBATH REWARDED 尊重安息日

1.In the city of Bath, not many years since, lived a barber who made a practice of following his ordinary occupation on the Lord’s day.As he was on the way to his morning’s employment, he happened to look into some place of worship just as the minister was giving out his text—”Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” He listened long enough to be convinced that he was constantly breaking the laws of God and man by shaving and dressing his customers on the Lord’s day.He became uneasy, and went with a heavy heart to his Sabbath task.

2.At length he took courage, and opened his mind to his minister, who advised him to give up Sabbath work, and worship God.He replied that beggary would be the consequence.He had a fl ourishing trade, but it would almost all be lost.At length, after many a sleepless night spent in weeping and praying, he was determined to cast all his care upon God, as the more he refl ected, the more his duty became apparent^[1].

3.He discontinued his Sabbath work, went constantly and early to the public services of religion, and soon enjoyed that satisfaction of mind which is one of the rewards of doing our duty, and that peace which the world can neither give nor take away.The consequences he foresaw actually followed.His genteel^[2] customers left him, and he was nicknamed “Puritan” or “Methodist.” He was obliged to give up his fashionable shop, and, in the course of years, became so reduced^[3] as to take a cellar under the old market house and shave the poorer people.

4.One Saturday evening, between light and dark, a stranger from one of the coaches, asking for a barber, was directed by the hostler to the cellar opposite.Coming in hastily, he requested to be shaved quickly, while they changed horses, as he did not like to violate^[4] the Sabbath.This was touching the barber on a tender chord.He burst into tears; asked the stranger to lend him a half-penny to buy a candle, as it was not light enough to shave him with safety.He did so, revolving in his mind the extreme poverty to which the poor man must be reduced.

5.When shaved, he said, “There must be something extraordinary in your history, which I have not now time to hear.Here is half a crown for you.When I return, I will call and investigate^[5] your case.What is your name?” “William Reed,” said the astonished barber.“William Reed?” echoed the stranger: “William Reed? by your dialect^[6] you are from the West.” “Yes, sir, from Kingston, near Taunton.” “William Reed from Kingston, near Taunton? What was your father’s name?” “Thomas.” “Had he any brother?” “Yes, sir, one, after whom I was named; but he went to the Indies, and, as we never heard from him, we supposed him to be dead.”

6.“Come along, follow me,” said the stranger, “I am going to see a person who says his name is William Reed, of Kingston, near Taunton.Come and confront^[7] him.If you prove to be indeed he who you say you are, I have glorious news for you.Your uncle is dead, and has left an immense fortune, which I will put you in possession of when all legal doubts are removed.”

7.They went by the coach; saw the pretended William Reed, and proved him to be an impostor.The stranger, who was a pious attorney^[8], was soon legally satisfied of the barber’s identity^[9], and told him that he had advertised him in vain.Providence had now thrown him in his way in a most extraordinary manner, and he had great pleasure in transferring^[10] a great many thousand pounds to a worthy man, the rightful heir of the property.Thus was man’s extremity^[11] God’s opportunity^[12].Had the poor barber possessed one half-penny, or even had credit for a candle, he might have remained unknown for years; but he trusted God, who never said, “Seek ye my face,” in vain.

【中文閱讀】

1.在巴斯城里，住著一位理發師。幾年前，他始終保持著星期日不休息、照常工作的習慣。某個周日早晨，在去理發店的路上，他偶然看見一處教會敬拜的場所，牧師正在分發布道經文——“紀念安息日，請維護它的神圣?！彼犃撕芫茫K于相信自己所作所為確實違背了上帝與人類的律法，安息日里，他竟然還在為顧客打理胡須、修剪頭發，想到這里，他開始變得不安，心情沉重地前去工作。

2.終于，他鼓起勇氣，向牧師袒露了他的憂慮。牧師建議他在安息日停止工作，敬拜上帝。他回答道，如果不在安息日工作的話，他大概就得四處乞討了。他那曾經蒸蒸日上的事業，很快便會失去。他在哭泣和祈禱中度過了一個個不眠之夜，他最終決定，全身心地信奉上帝，越是反省深思，他越覺得上帝賦予他的職責至關重要。

3.從此以后，每逢安息日，他不再工作，總是早起去參加教會禮拜。很快，他便感受到內心的平安喜樂，這種安寧的心態是對履行我們職責的回報，既不能由別人給予，也無法被他人奪走。當然，他曾預見到的后果也隨之而來。上流社會的顧客們紛紛離他而去，他甚至還被封了“清教徒”、“衛道士”的綽號。他被迫賣掉自己那間時尚理發店，隨后的日子里，生活日漸窘迫，他不得不租了一間破舊市場的地下室，為窮人理發剃須。

4.一個星期六的晚上，夜幕剛剛降臨，有個陌生人從馬車上走下來，想找一位理發師，住在理發店對面的馬夫將他帶到這里。客人匆忙地走進小店，要求理發師趁著馬夫換馬的工夫，迅速幫他打理一下，因為他不想違背安息日的規矩。這話觸動了理發師心里柔軟的地方，頓時讓他淚流滿面。屋里太黑，他唯恐做起活來不穩當，只好開口向客人先支借半便士來買根蠟燭?？腿四贸霭氡闶拷o他，理發師這么窮困潦倒，客人不禁陷入沉思。

5.理完發后，客人說：“你的經歷一定很特別，我很感興趣，但現在沒有時間傾聽，先付你兩個半便士。等我回來的時候，我再找你好好聊聊。你叫什么名字？”“威廉·瑞德?！崩戆l師回答道，心里有點吃驚。“威廉·瑞德？”陌生人不可置信地重復了一遍，“威廉·瑞德？你的方言聽起來，好像是從西邊來的？”“是的，先生，我出生在陶頓附近的金士頓。”“從陶頓附近的金士頓來的威廉·瑞德？你父親叫什么名字？”“托馬斯?！薄八行值軉?？”“是的，先生，他有一個兄弟，我的名字便是用來紀念他的。但他去了西印度群島，此后就再無音訊了。我們猜想，他大概已經不在人世了。”

6.“來吧，跟我來，”陌生人說，“我正要去見一個自稱從陶頓附近的金士頓來的名叫威廉·瑞德的人。你跟著我，來和他當面對質。如果你能證明你才是這個人，我可有個天大的好消息要告訴你。你的叔叔去世了，留下了一筆巨額財富。如果你所言不虛，通過所有相關的法律認證，你便可以繼承這筆財產?！?/p>

7.于是，他們乘著馬車去見了那個冒牌的威廉·瑞德，證實了他是一個騙子。不久以后，這名陌生人——事實證明他是一名盡職的律師，很快獲得理發師的合法身份證明。他告訴理發師自己曾登出廣告尋找，卻一無所獲。如今天如人意，竟用最不尋常的方式將真正的威廉·瑞德帶到他的眼前，他很高興能將這筆巨額財富移交給一個值得擁有的人，這筆遺產的合法繼承者。逆境是上帝考驗人的良機，如果當時那個可憐的理發師擁有半便士，哪怕是擁有欠錢買蠟燭的信用，律師可能都還要花很長時間才能找到他。但是，他相信上帝。上帝說，“你們當尋求我的面”，這話絕非虛言。

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【注釋】

[1] Apparent, clear, plain.

[2] Genteel, fashionable, elegant.

[3] Reduced, brought to poverty.

[4] Violate, to break, to profane.

[5] Investigate, to inquire into with care.

[6] Dialect, a local form of speech.

[7] Confront, to face, to stand before.

[8] Attorney, a lawyer.

[9] Identity, the condition of being the same as something claimed.

[10] Transferring, making over the possession of.

[11] Extremity, greatest need.

[12] Opportunity, favorable time.