Ndu Manzaniba 19
1 Aye he niwa Apollos a he ni Corith, Bulus a zren zu ni kotu gbungblu'a nda ye ri ni kikle gbuwu Ephesus, nda ye toh ba mri ko bari niki.
While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul [left the places in Phrygia and Galatia] provinces where he had been visiting, and traveled through [Asia province] back to Ephesus. He met some people [who said that they] were believers.
2 Bulus a hla bawu ndi, “Bi kpa Ruhu tsatsra niwa bi kpanyime a?” Ba sa niwu ndi, “aan, kina wo nitu Ruhu Tsatsra mena.
He asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed [God’s message]?” They answered, “No, we [(exc) did not]. We have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 Bulus a tre ndi, “Nimi ngye wa ba ti batisma ni yiwu?” Ba tre ndi, “Ni baptisma wu Yohana.”
So Paul asked, “So when you were baptized, what [were you showing]?” They replied, “[We were showing] that we [(exc)] believed what John [the Baptizer] taught.”
4 Niki Bulus a sa ndi, “Yohana a ti batisma wu k'ma sron sran. A hla ni ndji ba ndi du ba kpanyime ni wa ani ye ka huu, wa a hi Yesu.”
Paul said, “John baptized people who turned away from their sinful behavior. He [also] told the people to believe in the one who would come after he [had come], and that was Jesus.”
5 Niwa ndji ba ba wo toki, ba kpa batisma ni nde Bachi Yesu.
So, when those men heard that, they were baptized [to affirm that they believed] [MTY] in the Lord Jesus.
6 Niki, wa Bulus a sawo nitu mba, Ruhu Tsatsra a ku nitu mba, nda duba tre ni lan bari nda bwu tre wu ko shishi si bla.
After that, Paul placed his hands on their heads [one by one], and the [power of the] Holy Spirit came upon [each of] them. The [Holy Spirit] enabled them to speak in various languages [MTY] [that they had not learned], and they also spoke messages [that the Holy Spirit] revealed to them.
7 Wawu mba bana mla tsra ndji wlon don ha (tso).
There were about twelve men [whom Paul baptized and who received the power of the Holy Spirit].
8 Bulus a ri hi ni sinagog nda ka tre ni gbengblen sron, wu wha tra, shle vu si ya nda nhron ba nitu ngbran ko Irji.
For three months after that, Paul entered the Jewish meeting place [in Ephesus on each] Sabbath/Jewish day of rest, and he spoke boldly. He convincingly taught [the people] about how God wanted to rule [MET] [their lives].
9 E niwa Yahudawa bari ba lo sron zi gbangban nda kamba ni shishi kpaa ndji ba. Niki Bulus a kaa ba don nda chu mriko bari hu nji ni kpama, nda ka vu bla siya ba baa ni ba ni tra wu zontu bi u Tyrannus.
[A few of the people in the meeting house believed the message about Jesus]. But some of the people would not believe that message and did not want to [continue to] hear it. While many people were listening, they said many bad things about the way [for people to receive eternal life about which Paul was preaching]. So Paul left them and took the believers with him [to meet in another place]. He taught every day in a lecture hall [that a man whose name was] Tyrannus [lectured in/owned].
10 A si he toki ka tsra se ha, nitu ki wawu mba wa ba kii ni Asia, ba wo lan tre Bachi, ni Yahudawa baba Greek ba.
For two years Paul continued to teach people in that building. In this way, most of [HYP] the Jews and non-Jews who lived in Asia [province] heard the message about the Lord [Jesus].
11 Irji a sia ti kikle kpi wa bana ri he wu toh ni son mba, ni wo Bulus.
Also, God gave Paul the power [MTY] to do amazing miracles.
12 Nitu kii, ngbanjan nklon wu wo mba nklon wu kaa nne wa ana sa wo ni wu ba ban ba ka nubi lilo, i lilo mba a bwa hi don ba e brji ba ba rju don kpamba.
[If those who were sick could not come to Paul, handkerchiefs or aprons that Paul had touched would be taken and] placed on the sick people {[others] would take [and place on] the sick people handkerchiefs or aprons that Paul had touched}. As a result, those sick people would become well, and evil spirits that troubled people would leave.
13 E Yahudawa bi zu brji rju ni kpa ndji bari ba sia zren zu ni ngbran kima. Ba yo nde BAchi Yesu ni du nuba gbengblen nitu meme brji niwa ba tre ndi, “Ni nde Yesu wa Bulus a dbu hla, mi mha yiyo, rju yi.”
There were also some Jews who traveled around [to] various places, [and] they commanded the evil spirits in those places to depart [from people. Certain ones of those Jews once] tried to command the evil spirits to come out of people by saying “I command you by the authority [MTY] of the Lord Jesus, the man about whom Paul preaches, to come out!”
14 Ninkon Prist wu Yahudawa, wa ndema ana Sceva, a he ni mri tangban wa basia ti toyi.
There were seven men who were doing that. They were sons of a man named Sceva, a Jew, [who called himself] a chief priest.
15 Meme brji a sa bawu ndi, “Yesu mi to, mba Bulus mi to, i wu hi nha?”
But [one day as they were doing that], the evil spirit [refused to come out of that person. Instead, he] said to them, “I know Jesus, and I know [that he has authorized] Paul [to expel demons]. (But no one has authorized you [to do anything to me!]/who authorized you [to do anything to me]?) [RHQ]”
16 Meme brji ni mi igu; a a doo lu hon nitu bi zu brji rju'a nda zan ba ni gbengble, nda hloba tsi. Mle ba yotsu rju ni ko'a ni ngbre mba ni nkpan kpa.
[After saying that, suddenly] the man who was controlled by the evil spirit jumped on the seven Jewish men, [one after another], knocked all of them down, and beat each of them severely. He tore off their clothes and wounded them, causing them to bleed. So, [greatly frightened, they all] ran out of the house.
17 Ikpe yi a ri ton ndji wawu, Yahudawa baba Greeks, wa ba ki ni Ephesus. Sissri a vu ba, u nde Bachi Yesu a nzu hon.
All the people who lived in Ephesus, both Jews and non-Jews, heard what had happened. So they were afraid [MTY]. They honored the Lord Jesus [MTY] [because they realized that he was very powerful].
18 Niki ngame, gbugbu biwa ba kpanyime'a, ba rju ye nran nda vu bla meme kpi wa bana ti yea.
[At that time], while other believers were listening, many believers confessed the evil things that they had been doing.
19 Gbugbu biwa bata ti gbugblu ba ni vunvu mba rju ye sru ni buburi nda goon ba ni shishi ko nha. Niwa ba bla nklen kpi ba, ana dubu se ton wu whlo azurfa.
Several of those who had [previously] practiced sorcery gathered up their scrolls [that told how to work] magic and burned them in a public place. When people added up how much those scrolls had cost, they realized that altogether the amount was 50,000 valuable silver coins.
20 Niki lan tre wu Bachi a zren kagon gbagban ni gbengblen.
As a result, many more people heard [MTY] the message about the Lord [Jesus], and the message powerfully [changed their lives].
21 Zizan, hu gon wa Bulus a kle ndu ma ni Ephesus, a yo sron, hu ni gbron Ruhu, nda zren zu ni Macedonia mba Achaia ni nkon ma wu hi ni Urushelima; a tre nde, “Mita ka ri niki, mi hi to Rome ngame.”
After those things had happened, Paul decided that he wanted to go to Jerusalem, but he decided that [first] he would visit [the believers in] Macedonia and Achaia [provinces again]. Paul said, “After I have been to Jerusalem, I must also go to Rome.”
22 Bulus a ton hi ni Macedonia, ha nimi biwa ba ti ndu niwu, Timoti mba Erastus. E wawu kima a son zu wu ton fii ni Asia.
He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, ahead to Macedonia. But Paul stayed a little longer [in Ephesus city], in Asia [province].
23 Mla tsra ni ton kima, iya wa ana fiime na a lu ni Ephesus nitu nko'a.
[Soon after that], some of the people there tried to make a lot of [LIT] trouble for the people who believed the way [God revealed for us(inc) to receive eternal life].
24 Ndji wu la azurfa ri ni nde Demetius, wa ata la gunki u Artemis ni azurfa, nda ta nji ndu nklen gbugbu ye ni bi laaba.
There was a man there whose name was Demetrius who made little images out of silver. [They were models] of the temple of [a goddess whose name was] Artemis. Demetrius and the other men [who made those little images] earned a lot of [LIT] money [from selling those images].
25 Niki a yo bi ndu kima zi nda tre ndi, “Indji mbu, bito ndi ninkon du mbuyi, nklen ni ri bran.
Demetrius called a meeting of his workmen and also of others who made the little silver images. He said to them, “Men, you know that we [(inc)] earn a lot of money doing our kind of work.
26 Bi to ndi ni wo ndi, ana ni Ephesus megen na, hu mla ngban gbungblu Asia wawu, Bulus yi, a kma sron ndji gbugbu sran. Ani bla ndi mri irji wa iwo ndji ba laa ba na Irji na.
Also, you know that [this fellow] Paul has persuaded many people who live in Ephesus [to no longer buy the images that we make. Now even the people from] many other towns in our province [no longer want to buy what we make]. This fellow tells people that the gods that we have made [and worship] are not gods [and that we should not worship them].
27 Ana nitu andi kikle iya wa a ni du ndu mbu kle na, iko kikle irji wu artemis me ni rjoku ni nzohonma ngame. Niki, gbengblen Artemis ani grji, wawu wa Asia mba gbungblu meme wawu ba kukru ni nzuhon.”
[If people continue to listen to him], soon they will ruin our business. Besides, they will no longer think that they should [come to] the temple of Artemis [to worship her. People] all over our Asia [province] and everywhere [HYP] else worship [our great] goddess [Artemis. Soon people] may no longer consider that Artemis is great!”
28 Niwa ba wo toki, ndu a shu sron mba, eba kpa gro ndani tre ndi, “Kikle Artemis wu Ephesus.”
All the men there were very angry [at Paul] when they heard what Demetrius said. They began to shout, “The goddess Artemis of us Ephesians is very great!”
29 Kikle gbu'a wawu a tsi shishi, e ndji ba wawu ba vra tsu ni sron ri hi ni ko wu son mba (theatre). Bana vu kpukpan bi zren Bulus ye, Gaius mba Aristarchus, wa ba ye rhini Macedonia.
Many of the other people in the city heard the shouting and went [and joined the crowd. They also became angry at Paul] and began shouting. [Several of] the people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, two men [from Macedonia] who had been traveling with Paul. [Then the whole crowd of people ran, dragging those men along with them], to the city stadium.
30 Bulus a ta son ri nimi kpaa ndji ba, e mri ko ba ba zuu.
Paul also wanted to go [to the stadium and speak to] the people, but the other believers would not let him go there.
31 Ngame, bari wa bana bi ninkon du ni ngrji Asia, wa bana kpanma, ba tondu hi wu ni bre ni duna ri ni tra son (theatre) na.
Also, some government officials of that province who were friends of Paul [heard what was happening]. So they sent someone to tell him [urgently] not to go into the stadium.
32 Ndji bari ba sia ti gro kperi, e bari ikpe nkan, nitu tsi shishi a vu kpaa ndji ba. Gbugbu mba bana to ka a hi ngye si zren nda duba ye zontu ki na.
The crowd of people [in the stadium] continued shouting. Some shouted one thing, and some shouted something else. But most of them did not even know what the meeting was about!
33 Bari ni kpaa mba ba nron Alexanda, wa Yahudawa ba ba tru yo ni shishi, niki Alexanda a ti ba niwo, nitu a ta son yo tre wu ya ni soon mba.
One of the [Jews there was named Alexander. Some of] the Jews pushed him to the front of the stadium, [so that he could speak to the crowd of people]. So Alexander motioned with his hands to the crowd, [wanting them to be quiet]. He wanted to tell them that [the Jews] were not responsible [for the riot].
34 Niwa ba mla to ndi a hi ndji Yahudawa, ba lu yra gro wu ton mla bla ha ni lan riri, ndani hla ndi, “KikleArtemis wu Ephesus.”
But [many of the non-Jewish people] knew that Alexander was a Jew. [They also knew that the Jews did not worship the goddess Artemis. So the non-Jews there] unitedly [and] repeatedly shouted for about two hours, “Great is [the goddess] Artemis [whom we(inc)] Ephesians [worship]!”
35 Niwa ndji wu nha (town clerk) wu gbu'a a du kpaa ndji ba kma ti gbangbi, a tre ndji, “Biyi ndji bi Ephesus, ahi ndji nha wa ana to ndi kikle gbu wu Ephesus yi hi bubu ko wu son wu kikle Artemis, mba iwhiwa grji ku rji ni shulu na?
Then the city secretary made the crowd stop shouting, and he said to them, “My fellow-citizens, everyone in the world knows [RHQ] that [we(inc) people who live in] Ephesus [city] guard the temple [where we worship] the great [goddess] Artemis. Also, [everyone knows that we(inc) watch over] the [sacred] image [of our goddess] that fell down from heaven!
36 Bita to ndi kpi biyi bana wu kpa tron na, bika ti wiime ni na kpati vravra mena.
Of course everyone knows that, and no one can say that these things are not true. So you should be quiet now. Do not suddenly do anything (foolish/that will cause us trouble).
37 Nitu bi nji ndji biyi ye ni shishi ko gaa tre, ana ndji ba bi y'bi iko bre mbi ka bi kpa nde mri Irji mbi ti meme na.
You [should not] have brought these [two] men [here, because they have not done anything evil]. They have not gone into our temples and taken things [from there]. And they have not spoken evil of our goddess.
38 Nitu ki, Dimetrius baba bi ndu la wa ba he niwu'a ba he ni tre wu lo nitu ndrjo, tra wu gaa tre a he ni who mba bi wa bawoba nda gaatre'a. Du ba tsra kpa mba.
Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow-workmen want to accuse anyone [about anything bad, they should do it in the right way]. There are courts [that you can go to when you want to accuse someone], and there are judges [there who have been appointed by the government] {[whom the government has appointed]}. You can accuse [anyone there].
39 Bita ni wato kpe nkan, kima ki vu ya ni son yi ni mla ti.
But if you want to ask about something else, [you should ask] for [other officials to] resolve it when [those] officials legally assemble.
40 A hi njanji ki he ni ya wu lo bata vuta nitu kma gbu srantu wu vi luwa. Kina he ni kpe wu kaatu nitu kpa gbu tsi wu luwa na, e kina to nkon wu chutu rju na.”
[And this is certainly not a legal meeting! Resolve this legally] because, if [we(inc) do] not, I am afraid [that the governor] will hear about all this noise [that you have made] and will say that we [(inc)] were trying to rebel [against the government]. If he would ask me what you were all shouting about, I would not be able to give him an answer.”
41 Niwa a kle tre toyi, a kaa son a nda du ndji ba shan hi.
That is what the city secretary said [to the crowd]. Then he told them all to go [home. So they left].
