MAN’S GREAT END
LORD OF ALL BEING,
There is one thing that deserves my greatest care, that calls forth my ardent desires,
That is, that I may answer the great end for which I am made—
to glorify thee who hast given me being,
and to do all the good I can for my fellow men;
Verily, life is not worth having
if it be not improved for this noble purpose.
Yet, Lord, how little is this the thought of mankind! Most men seem to live for themselves,
without much or any regard for thy glory,
or for the good of others;
They earnestly desire and eagerly pursue the riches, honours, pleasures of this life,
as if they supposed that wealth, greatness, merriment,
could make their immortal souls happy;
万有的主啊，
有一件事值得我最大的关注，引发我热烈的渴慕，
就是有一天我能回应你，我被造的最重大目的——
这目的就是：荣耀你，这位赐我生命的主；尽我一切所能服侍我的邻舍。
诚然，若非为此尊贵目的，生命就不值得拥有。
是的，主啊，有这想法的人何其稀少！
大多数人是为他们自己而活，
你的荣耀和他人的利益，他们漠不关心；
他们热心渴望与极力追求的是
发财、虚名和生活的享乐，
他们似乎认为，财富、成就与欢愉能让不死的灵魂得到喜乐。
But, alas, what false delusive dreams are these!
And how miserable ere long will those be that sleep in them,
for all our happiness consists in loving thee,
and being holy as thou art holy.
O may I never fall into the tempers and vanities, the sensuality and folly of the present world!
It is a place of inexpressible sorrow, a vast empty nothingness;
Time is a moment, a vapour,
and all its enjoyments are empty bubbles,
fleeting blasts of wind,
from which nothing satisfactory can be derived;
Give me grace always to keep in covenant with thee,
and to reject as delusion a great name here or hereafter,
together with all sinful pleasures or profits.
Help me to know continually
that there can be no true happiness,
no fulfilling of thy purpose for me,
apart from a life lived in and for the Son of thy love.
但是，哀哉，这些都是何等虚假的幻梦！
沉睡其中的人很快就会变得凄惨无比。
因我们的一切幸福都在于爱你，
且因你是圣洁而分别为圣。
哦，求你使我永远不落入今世的血气和虚荣，愚昧和放纵。
这世界是一个不可言喻的悲惨之处，一个巨大的虚无幻影；
时间不过是短暂片刻，像雾气一样，
其中的所有享乐都是空空泡沫，随风飘散，
从中，人找不到任何满足；
求你总是赐我恩典，使我永远向你守约，
并且拒绝眼前和将来的美名，
以及一切犯罪所带来的乐趣和利益，
看这一切为虚幻，
求你帮助我牢记，
若非在你的爱子里为祂而活，
绝不可能有真正的快乐，也不可能实现你赐给我的人生目的。
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