God’s grace offers us fresh starts.

上帝的恩典让我们能重新开始。

Everyone whose heart God had moved—prepared to go up and build the house of the  in Jerusalem. Ezra 1:5

一切被上帝激动他心的人，都起来，要上耶路撒冷去建造耶和华的殿。-以斯拉记1章5节

After Christmas festivities conclude at the end of December, my thoughts often turn to the coming year. While my children are out of school and our daily rhythms are slow, I reflect on where the last year has brought me and where I hope the next will take me. Those reflections sometimes come with pain and regret over the mistakes I’ve made. Yet the prospect of starting a new year fills me with hope and expectancy. I feel I have the opportunity to begin again with a fresh start, no matter what the last year held.

圣诞节庆在十二月底落幕之后，我会将思绪转到新的一年。因为我的孩子们还在放假，每天的生活节奏也比较慢，使我有时间反思过去一年的经历，也思考未来一年新的方向。有时，想到曾犯过的错误，我就不禁感到难过和懊悔。然而，看见新的一年即将开展，又让我充满盼望和期待。无论去年的景况如何，我又有机会可以重新开始。

My anticipation of a fresh start pales in comparison to the sense of hope the Israelites must have felt when Cyrus, the king of Persia, released them to return to their homeland in Judah after seventy long years of captivity in Babylon. The previous king, Nebuchadnezzar, had deported the Israelites from their homeland. But the Lord prompted Cyrus to send the captives home to Jerusalem to rebuild God’s temple (Ezra 1:2–3). Cyrus also returned to them treasures that had been taken from the temple. Their lives as God’s chosen people, in the land God had appointed to them, began afresh after a long season of hardship in Babylon as a consequence for their sin.

我对重新开始的期待，绝对比不上那些被掳归回的以色列百姓。当他们被掳到巴比伦七十年之后，波斯王塞鲁士让他们重返犹大故土，那时他们必定对未来充满盼望。先前，尼布甲尼撒王虽迫使他们离开家乡，但之后上帝却感动波斯王塞鲁士，让他们回到耶路撒冷去重建圣殿（以斯拉记1章2-3节）。波斯王塞鲁士甚至将从圣殿夺取的器皿、珍宝还给他们。作为上帝的选民，以色列百姓因犯罪而在巴比伦度过漫长艰苦的岁月后，终于在上帝赐给他们的土地上，得以重新开始。

No matter what lies in our past, when we confess our sin, God forgives us and gives us a fresh start. What great cause for hope!

不管我们的过去如何，只要愿意承认我们的罪，上帝便赦免我们，并让我们可以重新开始。这是何等美好的盼望啊！

Lord, thank You for Your grace and forgiveness and new beginnings.

主啊，感谢祢赐下恩典和赦免，
让我有新的开始。
在接下来的日子里，我愿与祢更亲近。

Ezra 1New International Version (NIV)

1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

2 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:

“‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them. 4 And in any locality where survivors may now be living, the people are to provide them with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.’”

5 Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and Levites—everyone whose heart God had moved—prepared to go up and build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. 6 All their neighbors assisted them with articles of silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with valuable gifts, in addition to all the freewill offerings.

7 Moreover, King Cyrus brought out the articles belonging to the temple of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and had placed in the temple of his god.8 Cyrus king of Persia had them brought by Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah.

9 This was the inventory:

11 In all, there were 5,400 articles of gold and of silver. Sheshbazzar brought all these along with the exiles when they came up from Babylon to Jerusalem.

以斯拉记 1Chinese Union Version Modern Punctuation (Simplified) (CUVMPS)

1 波斯王居鲁士元年，耶和华为要应验借耶利米口所说的话，就激动波斯王居鲁士的心，使他下诏通告全国说： 2 “波斯王居鲁士如此说：耶和华天上的神已将天下万国赐给我，又嘱咐我在犹大的耶路撒冷为他建造殿宇。 3 在你们中间凡做他子民的，可以上犹大的耶路撒冷，在耶路撒冷重建耶和华以色列神的殿，只有他是神。愿神与这人同在！ 4 凡剩下的人，无论寄居何处，那地的人要用金银、财物、牲畜帮助他，另外也要为耶路撒冷神的殿甘心献上礼物。”

5 于是，犹大和便雅悯的族长、祭司、利未人，就是一切被神激动他心的人，都起来，要上耶路撒冷去建造耶和华的殿。 6 他们四围的人就拿银器、金子、财物、牲畜、珍宝帮助他们[a]，另外还有甘心献的礼物。 7 居鲁士王也将耶和华殿的器皿拿出来，这器皿是尼布甲尼撒从耶路撒冷掠来，放在自己神之庙中的。 8 波斯王居鲁士派库官米提利达将这器皿拿出来，按数交给犹大的首领设巴萨。 9 器皿的数目记在下面：金盘三十个，银盘一千个，刀二十九把， 10 金碗三十个，银碗之次的四百一十个，别样的器皿一千件， 11 金银器皿共有五千四百件。被掳的人从巴比伦上耶路撒冷的时候，设巴萨将这一切都带上来。

整理：于姊妹