赞美你啊，尼罗河!

　　You rise out of the earth and come to nourish Egypt!

　　你来自大地，来到这儿，给埃及输送营养!

　　You water the plains and have the power to feed all cattle.

　　你灌溉田野，喂养全部牲口。

　　You quench the thirsty desert, far from any water.

　　你浸润远离河水的沙漠。

　　You bring forth the barley, You create the wheat.

　　你使大地长出大麦和小麦。

　　You fill the granaries and storehouses, not forgetting the poor.

　　你灌满水库并使谷仓堆满粮食，你救济穷人。

　　For You we pluck our harps, for You we sing.

　　我们为你弹奏竖琴，我们为你歌唱。

　　So sang the ancient Egyptians.

　　古老的埃及人就是这样歌唱的。

　　And they were right.

　　他们做得对。

　　For, thanks to the Nile, their land grew rich and powerful.

　　因为这个国家由于尼罗河而变得如此富有和强大。

　　Mightiest of all was their king.

　　他们的国王是所有国王中最强大的。

　　One king ruled over all the Egyptians, and the first to do so was King Menes.

　　一个统治所有埃及人的国王，第一个这样的国王就是美尼斯国王。

　　Do you remember when that was?

　　你还记得是什么时候吗？

　　It was in 3,100 BC.

　　公元前3100年。

　　And can you also remember - perhaps from Bible stories - what those kings of Egypt were called?

　　你还能不能记得--大概是来自圣经故事--这些埃及国王的称呼是什么？

　　They were called pharaohs.

　　他们叫做法老。

　　A pharaoh was immensely powerful.

　　一个法老的权力无比强大。

　　He lived in a great stone palace with massive pillars and many courtyards, and his word was law.

　　他住在一座巨大的石造的宫殿里，宫殿里有许多又大又粗的柱子，还有许多庭院；他说的每一句话都必须照办。

　　All the people of Egypt had to toil for him if he so decreed. And sometimes he did.

　　只要他下令，埃及的所有人就都得为他工作，有时候他就这样做。