Yobu 4
1 Pamenepo Elifazi wa ku Temani anayankha kuti,
Then responded Eliphaz the Temanite, and said: —
2 “Ngati wina atakuyankha, kodi ungakhumudwe? Koma ndani angakhale chete wosayankhula?
If one attempt a word unto thee, wilt thou be impatient? But, to restrain speech, who, can endure?
3 Taganiza momwe iwe walangizira anthu ambiri, momwe walimbitsira anthu ofowoka.
Lo! thou hast admonished many, and, slack hands, hast thou been wont to uphold:
4 Mawu ako analimbitsa anthu ofuna kugwa; unachirikiza anthu wotha mphamvu.
Him that was stumbling, have thy words raised up, and, sinking knees, hast thou strengthened.
5 Koma tsopano mavuto akufikira ndipo wataya mtima, zakukhudza ndipo uli ndi mantha.
But, now, it cometh upon thee, and thou despairest, It smiteth even thee, and thou art dismayed.
6 Kodi kuopa Mulungu kwako sindiko kulimbika mtima kwako? Ndipo moyo wako wosalakwa ndiye chiyembekezo chako?
Is not, thy reverence, thy confidence? And is not, thy hope, the very integrity of thy ways?
7 “Ganiza bwino tsopano: Kodi munthu wosalakwa anawonongekapo nʼkale lonse? Nʼkuti kumene munthu wolungama mtima anaphedwa?
Remember, I pray thee, who, being innocent, hath perished, or when, the upright, have been cut off.
8 Monga ndaonera ine, anthu amene amatipula zoyipa, ndi iwo amene amadzala mavuto, amakolola zomwezo.
So far as I have seen, They who plow for iniquity and sow misery, reap the same:
9 Iwo amaphedwa ndi mpweya wa Mulungu; amawonongeka ndi mpweya waukali wa mkwiyo wake.
By the blast of GOD, they perish, And, by the breath of his nostrils, are they consumed:
10 Mikango imabangula ndi kulira, komabe mano a mikango yamphamvu amathyoledwa.
[Notwithstanding] the roaring of the lion, and the noise of the howling lion, yet, the teeth of the fierce lions, are broken:
11 Mkango umafa chifukwa chosowa nyama, ndipo ana amkango amamwazikana.
The strong lion perishing for lack of prey, Even the whelps of the lioness, are scattered.
12 “Mawu anabwera kwa ine mwamseri, makutu anga anamva kunongʼona kwake.
But, unto me, something was brought by stealth, —and mine ear caught a whispering of the same:
13 Mʼkati mwa maloto ochititsa mantha usiku, nthawi imene anthu amagona tulo tofa nato,
When there were thoughts, from visions of the night, —When deep sleep falleth upon men,
14 ndinagwidwa ndi mantha, ndi kuyamba kunjenjemera ndipo mafupa anga onse anaweyeseka.
Dread, came upon me, and trembling, The multitude of my bones, it put in dread:
15 Pamenepo mzimu unadutsa pamaso panga, ndipo ubweya wa pa thupi langa unayima kuti njoo.
Then, a spirit, over my face, floated along, The hair of my flesh bristled-up:
16 Chinthucho chinayimirira koma sindinathe kuzindikira kuti chinali chiyani. Chinthu chinayima patsogolo panga, kunali zii ndipo ndinamva mawu akuti,
It stood still, but I could not distinguish its appearance, I looked, but there was no form before mine eyes, —A whispering voice, I heard: —
17 ‘Kodi munthu angathe kukhala wolungama kupambana Mulungu? Kodi munthu angathe kukhala wangwiro kupambana Mlengi wake?
Shall, mortal man, be more just than GOD? Or a man be more pure than, his Maker?
18 Ngati Mulungu sakhulupirira atumiki ake omwe, ngati Iye amawapeza angelo ake ndi cholakwa,
Lo! in his own servants, he trusteth not, and, his own messengers, he chargeth with error:
19 nanga kuli bwanji ndi iwo amene amakhala mʼnyumba zadothi, amene maziko awo ndi fumbi, amene amathudzuka mosavuta ngati kadziwotche!
How much more the dwellers in houses of clay, which, in the dust, have their foundation, which are crushed sooner than a moth:
20 Mmawa ali moyo, pofika madzulo afa; mwakachetechete, amawonongeka kwamuyaya.
Betwixt morning and evening, are they broken in pieces, With none to save, they utterly perish:
21 Kodi zonse zimene ali nazo sizimatheratu, kotero kuti amafa osadziwa nʼkanthu komwe?’
Is not their tent-rope within them, torn away? They die, disrobed of wisdom!
