章节研读
Tobit 5 — Tobias's Journey with a Stranger Angel
Tobias is commissioned to recover the money left with Gabael in Rages, encounters Raphael who offers to guide him, and departs with his father's blessing while Anna's tears are calmed.
经文
- 1.天使拉法尔 那时，托比亚回答他说，父亲，我必遵行你所吩咐我的一切事；The Angel Raph′ael Then Tobi′as answered him, “Father, I will do everything that you have commanded me;
- 2.但我怎么能得到这笔钱，当我根本不认识这个人呢？but how can I obtain the money when I do not know the man?”
- 3.当时托比特给了他收据，对他说：“你找一个人一起去，我将会在我活着的时候给他工钱，你去取那笔钱。”Then Tobit gave him the receipt, and said to him, “Find a man to go with you and I will pay him wages as long as I live; and go and get the money.”
- 4.于是他去寻找一个人，结果找到了拉斐尔，他是一位天使，So he went to look for a man; and he found Raph′ael, who was an angel,
- 5.但是托比亚斯不知道这件事。托比亚斯对他说：“你能和我一起去米底的拉格吗？你熟悉那地方吗？”but Tobi′as did not know it. Tobi′as said to him, “Can you go with me to Rages in Media? Are you acquainted with that region?”
- 6.天使回答说：“我会和你一起去，我熟悉这条路，并且我曾经住在我们的兄弟加比尔那里。”The angel replied, “I will go with you; I am familiar with the way, and I have stayed with our brother Gab′ael.”
- 7.随后，托比亚斯对他说，等等我，我要告诉我的父亲。Then Tobi′as said to him, “Wait for me, and I shall tell my father.”
- 8.他对他说：“去吧，不要延迟。”于是他进去，对他父亲说：“我找到了一个人可以和我一起去。”他说：“叫他到我这里来，我要知道他是哪个支派的人，也要知道他是否是一个可以和你一起去的可靠人。”And he said to him, “Go, and do not delay.” So he went in and said to his father, “I have found some one to go with me.” He said, “Call him to me, so that I may learn to what tribe he belongs, and whether he is a reliable man to go with you.”
- 9.于是，托比亚斯请他进来，他进来后，他们互相问候。So Tobi′as invited him in; he entered and they greeted each other.
- 10.当时提ﾄ比对他说：“我的兄弟，你属于哪个支派和家族？告诉我。”Then Tobit said to him, “My brother, to what tribe and family do you belong? Tell me.”
- 11.他回答说：“你们是要找一个部落和一个家族，还是要找一个可以带着你们的儿子去的男人？”托比特对他说：“我愿意知道，我的兄弟，你的族人和你的名字。”But he answered, “Are you looking for a tribe and a family or for a man whom you will pay to go with your son?” And Tobit said to him, “I should like to know, my brother, your people and your name.”
- 12.他回答说：“我是亚撒利雅，是伟大的亚拿尼亚的儿子，也是你们的亲属之一。”He replied, “I am Azari′as the son of the great Anani′as, one of your relatives.”
- 13.托比对他说，你欢迎，我的兄弟，不要对我生气，因为我试图了解你的族和家。你是我的亲戚，是一个好而高贵的家族。因为我曾经认识阿拿尼亚和雅坦，他们是伟大的示玛雅的儿子，当我们一起去耶路撒冷敬拜并献上我们羊群的长子和我们作物的十分之一时。他们没有像我们的兄弟一样陷入错误。我的兄弟，你出身于好的家族。Then Tobit said to him, “You are welcome, my brother. Do not be angry with me because I tried to learn your tribe and family. You are a relative of mine, of a good and noble lineage. For I used to know Anani′as and Jathan, the sons of the great Shema′iah, when we went together to Jerusalem to worship and offered the first-born of our flocks and the tithes of our produce. They did not go astray in the error of our brethren. My brother, you come of good stock.
- 14.但你要我付你多少工钱呢，一天一德拉克马，还有你和我儿子一样的开支吗But tell me, what wages am I to pay you—a drachma a day, and expenses for yourself as for my son?
- 15.而且，我还会增加你的工资，如果你们两个安全无恙地回来。”于是，他们同意了这些条件。And besides, I will add to your wages if you both return safe and sound.” So they agreed to these terms.
- 16.他对提比亚说：“准备好上路，一路平安。” 于是他的儿子为旅行做好了准备。他的父亲对他说：“跟这个人一起去，住在天上的神必使你们的道路通达，愿他的使者与你们同在。”于是他们就出发了，年轻人的狗也跟着他们。Then he said to Tobi′as, “Get ready for the journey, and good success to you both.” So his son made the preparations for the journey. And his father said to him, “Go with this man; God who dwells in heaven will prosper your way, and may his angel attend you.” So they both went out and departed, and the young man’s dog was with them.
- 17.但他的母亲安娜却哭了起来，对托比特说：“你为什么要打发我们的孩子走呢？他不是我们出入时的拐杖吗？But Anna, his mother, began to weep, and said to Tobit, “Why have you sent our child away? Is he not the staff of our hands as he goes in and out before us?
- 18.不要把钱加上钱，但要把钱看作是与孩子相比的废物。Do not add money to money, but consider it as rubbish as compared to our child.
- 19.我们从主那里所领受的生命已经足够我们了。For the life that is given to us by the Lord is enough for us.”
- 20.托比对她说：“不要担心，我的妹妹，他会安全无恙地回来，你的眼睛会再见到他。And Tobit said to her, “Do not worry, my sister; he will return safe and sound, and your eyes will see him.
- 21.因为有一位好天使会与他同行，他的旅程将会成功，他也会安全、健全地回来。For a good angel will go with him; his journey will be successful, and he will come back safe and sound.”
- 22.于是她停止了哭泣。So she stopped weeping.
这段经文的意思
Chapter 5 advances the plot from commission to departure. Tobit hands over the receipt and instructs Tobias to find a traveling companion who will be paid. The chapter highlights the practical side of obedience: the son must still find a trustworthy guide, and the father must still provide wages, so that faith works through ordinary arrangements rather than bypassing them.
The pivotal scene is Raphael's appearance and acceptance. He offers to travel with Tobias, claims familiarity with the road, and identifies himself as Azariah son of the great Ananias, a relative of Tobit's family. Tobit accepts him on the basis of this lineage and the shared memory of pilgrimage to Jerusalem and proper tithing. The reader is told that Tobias did not know his companion was an angel, so the meaning of the chapter depends on the gap between divine providence and human recognition.
The chapter closes with the father's benediction and the mother's grief. Tobit prays that the God who dwells in heaven will prosper the way and that 'his angel' will attend the young man, while Anna laments the loss of her son's presence. Tobit reassures her that a good angel will go with him and that her eyes will see him again, bringing her weeping to an end.
背景
The chapter sits at the hinge between Tobit's commission in chapter 4 and the journey proper in chapters 6–10. The earlier instruction, to go to Rages in Media and recover money left with Gabael, is now acted upon, while the trials of the road, the marriage to Sarah, and the healing of Tobit's blindness are still ahead. The chapter note simply marks it as a backfilled portion of the book outside earlier priority selections, with no further editorial framing provided.
Tobit's final blessing, that 'God who dwells in heaven will prosper your way' and that 'his angel will attend you,' is spoken before Raphael's true identity is revealed to the family. Tobit speaks these words knowing only that Azariah is a kinsman, so his benediction expresses ordinary Israelite piety about divine guardianship on a journey, while the reader knows that the 'angel' he names is in fact the traveling companion standing beside him.
常见问题
Why does Tobias need a companion if Raphael already knows the way?
Within the chapter, Tobit requires a guide for practical reasons: he wants a trustworthy man to travel with his son and is willing to pay wages. Tobias is sent specifically to 'find a man to go with you,' and the hiring arrangement is settled before Raphael's true nature is disclosed. The companion also serves as a narrative device, since the road to Rages becomes the occasion for the guidance Raphael will give in later chapters.
How is Raphael able to claim he is Azariah son of Ananias?
The chapter presents Raphael's self-identification as a simple statement: 'I am Azariah the son of the great Ananias, one of your relatives.' Tobit accepts this on the basis of the claimed lineage, recalling that he once knew Ananias and Nathan as fellow pilgrims to Jerusalem who kept the proper offerings. The text frames the identification as something Tobias and Tobit take at face value, while the reader has already been told that the man Tobias met was 'an angel' whose identity he did not know.
Why does Anna weep, and what ends her weeping?
Anna weeps because her son has been sent away on a long journey. She calls him 'the staff of our hands,' argues that money is not worth her child's safety, and trusts that the life given by the Lord is sufficient without the errand. Tobit responds not by retreating from the mission but by promising that Tobias will return safe and sound because 'a good angel will go with him.' It is this assurance, rooted in Tobit's faith in divine guardianship, that causes her to stop weeping.