Chapter XLIII

 The Devil attempts arson¹.

 

 

1 Then Adam and Eve were afraid, and stood still. And Adam said to Eve, "What is that fire by our cave? We have done nothing in it to cause this fire.

 

2 We neither have bread to bake therein, nor broth² to cook there. As to this fire, we have never known anything like it, neither do we know what to call it.

 

3 But ever since God sent the cherub³ with a sword of fire that flashed and lightened in his hand, from fear of which we fell down and were like corpses⁴, have we not seen the like.

 

4 But now, O Eve, behold⁵, this is the same fire that was in the cherub's hand, which God has sent to keep the cave in which we live.

 

5 O Eve, it is because God is angry with us, and will drive us from it.

 

6 O Eve, we have again transgressed⁶ His commandment in that cave, so that He had sent this fire to burn around it, and to prevent us from going into it.

 

7 If this be really so, O Eve, where shall we live? And where shall we flee from before the face of the Lord? Since, in regards to the garden, He will not let us live in it, and He has deprived us of the good things thereof; but He has placed us in this cave, in which we have borne darkness, trials and hardships, until at last we have found comfort therein.

 

8 But now that He has brought us out into another land, who knows what may happen in it? And who knows but that the darkness of that land may be far greater than the darkness of this land?

 

9 Who knows what may happen in that land by day or by night? And who knows whether it will be far or near, O Eve? Where it will please God to put us, may be far from the garden, O Eve? Or where God will prevent us from beholding⁷ Him, because we have transgressed His commandment, and because we have made requests of Him at all times?

 

10 O Eve, if God will bring us into a strange land other than this, in which we find consolation⁸, it must be to put our souls to death, and blot⁹ out our name from the face of the earth.

 

11 O Eve, if we are further alienated¹⁰ from the garden and from God, where shall we find Him again, and ask Him to give us gold, incense¹¹, myrrh, and some fruit of the fig-tree?

 

12 Where shall we find Him, to comfort us a second time? Where shall we find Him, that He may think of us, as regards the covenant¹² He has made on our behalf?"

 

13 Then Adam said no more. And they kept looking, He and Eve, towards the cave, and at the fire that flared¹³ up around it.

 

14 But that fire was from Satan. For he had gathered trees and dry grasses, and had carried and brought them to the cave, and had set fire to them, in order to consume the cave and what was in it.

 

15 So that Adam and Eve should be left in sorrow, and he should cut off their trust in God, and make them deny Him.

 

16 But by the mercy of God he could not burn the cave, for God sent His angel around the cave to guard it from such a fire, until it went out.

 

17 And this fire lasted from noon-day until the break of day. That was the forty-fifth day.

 

1 arson   

n.纵火，放火

参考例句：

• He was serving a ten spot for arson.他因纵火罪在服十年徒刑。
• He was arraigned on a charge of arson.他因被指控犯纵火罪而被传讯。

2 broth   

n.原(汁)汤(鱼汤、肉汤、菜汤等)

参考例句：

• Every cook praises his own broth.厨子总是称赞自己做的汤。
• Just a bit of a mouse's dropping will spoil a whole saucepan of broth.一粒老鼠屎败坏一锅汤。

3 cherub   

n.小天使，胖娃娃

参考例句：

• It was easy to see why the cartoonists regularly portrayed him as a malign cherub.难怪漫画家总是把他画成一个邪恶的小天使。
• The cherub in the painting is very lovely.这幅画中的小天使非常可爱。

4 corpses   

n.死尸，尸体( corpse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The living soldiers put corpses together and burned them. 活着的战士把尸体放在一起烧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Overhead, grayish-white clouds covered the sky, piling up heavily like decaying corpses. 天上罩满了灰白的薄云，同腐烂的尸体似的沉沉的盖在那里。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

5 behold   

v.看，注视，看到

参考例句：

• The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。
• The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

6 transgressed   

v.超越( transgress的过去式和过去分词 )；越过；违反；违背

参考例句：

• You transgressed against the law. 你犯法了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• His behavior transgressed the unwritten rules of social conduct. 他的行为违反了不成文的社交规范。 来自辞典例句

7 beholding   

v.看，注视( behold的现在分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟

参考例句：

• Beholding, besides love, the end of love,/Hearing oblivion beyond memory! 我看见了爱，还看到了爱的结局，／听到了记忆外层的哪一片寂寥！ 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学
• Hence people who began by beholding him ended by perusing him. 所以人们从随便看一看他开始的，都要以仔细捉摸他而终结。 来自辞典例句

8 consolation   

n.安慰，慰问

参考例句：

• The children were a great consolation to me at that time.那时孩子们成了我的莫大安慰。
• This news was of little consolation to us.这个消息对我们来说没有什么安慰。

9 blot   

vt.弄脏（用吸墨纸）吸干；n.污点，污渍

参考例句：

• That new factory is a blot on the landscape.那新建的工厂破坏了此地的景色。
• The crime he committed is a blot on his record.他犯的罪是他的履历中的一个污点。

10 alienated   

adj.感到孤独的，不合群的v.使疏远( alienate的过去式和过去分词 )；使不友好；转让；让渡（财产等）

参考例句：

• His comments have alienated a lot of young voters. 他的言论使许多年轻选民离他而去。
• The Prime Minister's policy alienated many of her followers. 首相的政策使很多拥护她的人疏远了她。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 incense   

v.激怒；n.香，焚香时的烟，香气

参考例句：

• This proposal will incense conservation campaigners.这项提议会激怒环保人士。
• In summer,they usually burn some coil incense to keep away the mosquitoes.夏天他们通常点香驱蚊。

12 covenant   

n.盟约，契约；v.订盟约

参考例句：

• They refused to covenant with my father for the property.他们不愿与我父亲订立财产契约。
• The money was given to us by deed of covenant.这笔钱是根据契约书付给我们的。

13 Flared   

adj. 端部张开的, 爆发的, 加宽的, 漏斗式的 动词flare的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The match flared and went out. 火柴闪亮了一下就熄了。
• The fire flared up when we thought it was out. 我们以为火已经熄灭，但它突然又燃烧起来。