Ngsäea Khut 8
1 Sawluh naw Stephen ami hnim vai jah tängpüiki. Acuna mhnüp üng Jerusalem mlüha veki sangcim cun aktäa mkhuimkhanak kham lawki he; acunakyase, Ngsäe däk ve hüt u se, jumeikie naküt cun Judah ja Samarih hnea ngpyeng hükie.
Then some men who revered God buried Stephen’s body in a tomb, and they mourned greatly and loudly for him. On that same day [people] started severely persecuting the believers [who were living] in Jerusalem. So most [of the believers] fled [to other places] throughout Judea and Samaria [provinces]. The apostles were the only [believers who remained in Jerusalem].
2 Acunüng, Pamhnam jumkie naw, Stephen cun k’ut u lü, aktäa ami kya.
3 Acunüng, Sawluh naw sangcime aktäa a jah khuimkha, im naküt üng lut hü lü jumeikia nghnumi kpamie jah man lü jah kaih hü lü, thawngim üng a jah khyum.
While the people were killing Stephen, Saul was there approving of their killing Stephen. So Saul [also] began trying to destroy the group of believers. He entered houses one by one, he dragged away men and women [who believed in Jesus], and then he [arranged for] them to be put in prison.
4 Acunüng, pyeng hükia jumkie naw hne naküt üng cit u lü ngthu pyen hükie.
The believers who had left Jerusalem went to different places, where they continued preaching the message about Jesus.
5 Philip cun Samarih hnea mlüh ktunga ju citki naw, Mesijaha mawng khyange veia a ju pyen.
[One of those believers whose name was] Philip went down [from Jerusalem] to a city in Samaria [province]. There he was telling [the people that Jesus is] [MTY] the Messiah.
6 Khyange naw, ngja u lü Philip naw a mdana müncam phyaki he ami jah hmu üng, a ngthu pyen cun aktäa ami ngaih.
Many people there heard Philip [speak] and saw the miraculous things that he was doing. So they all (paid close attention to/listened carefully to) his words.
7 Isetiakyaküng, khawksea jah venake ami k'um üngka naw khawyaie ngpyang u lü lut lawki he. A khaw kceke ja xokie pi ami daw law bea phäha kyaki.
For [example, when Philip commanded] evil spirits who controlled many people [that they should come out of them], they came out, while those spirits screamed. Also, many people who were paralyzed and [many others] who were lame were healed.
8 Acuna mlüh üngkae cun aktäa jekyaikie.
So [many people] [MTY] in that city greatly rejoiced.
9 Sihmon ngming nakia khyang mat veki; ani naw, ajana acuna mlüh üng, sui pawh lü Samarih khyange jah cäicatsak khawikia kyaki. “Kei cun khyang sawxat am ni” a ti.
There was a man in that city whose name was Simon. He had been practicing sorcery for a long time, and he had been amazing the people in Samaria [province by doing that]. He continually claimed that he was a great/important person.
10 Mlüha veki naküt khyang akdik akdäm naküt naw “Ani hin ‘Hlüngtaikia Johit’ tia ngthangkia Pamhnama Johit ni” ti lü a ngthu pyen cun mcek lü ngaikie.
All the people there, both ordinary and important people, listened to him. [Various ones of] them were saying, “This man works in extremely powerful ways [because] God has caused him to be a great [person].”
11 A sui bilaw am, aksoa cäicat kphyaki he a ja bilawh khawha phäha, a ngthu cun aktäa ami münnak.
They continued to listen to him carefully, because for a long time he had astonished them by practicing sorcery.
12 Acunsepi, Pamhnama pe thangkdaw ja Jesuh Khritawa ngming thangkdaw Philipa pyen ami jum ja, nghnumi kpami Baptican khan lawki he.
But then they believed Philip’s [message] when he preached to them about [how] God desires to rule [MET] [the lives of people who believe in him], and about Jesus being the Messiah [MTY]. Both the men and the women who believed in Jesus were baptized. {[Philip] was baptizing both the men and the women [who had come to believe in Jesus]}.
13 Sihmon naw pi jum law hnga lü Baptican a kham law päng ja Philipa hlawnga ve lü, müncamkse ja müncamnak a jah pawh cun hmu lü cäiki.
Simon himself believed [Philip’s message] and, after he was baptized {after [Philip] baptized him}, he began to constantly accompany Philip. Simon was continually amazed because he often saw [Philip] doing many kinds of miraculous things.
14 Acunüng, Jerusalema vekia Ngsäe naw Samarih hnea khyange naw pi Pamhnama ngthu jumkie tia ami ksing law üng, ami veia Pita ja Johan ami jah tüih;
When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that [many people] [PRS] [throughout] Samaria [district] had believed the message from God [about Jesus], they sent Peter and John there.
15 acu xawi ani ju pha üng, Ngmüimkhya Ngcim ami yahnak vaia ami jah ktaiyü pet.
When Peter and John arrived in Samaria, they prayed for those [new believers] in order that the Holy Spirit’s [power] would come to them.
16 Am acun ham üng ta ua khana Ngmüimkhya Ngcim am pha law; Bawi Jesuha ngming am Baptican däk va khan hamkiea kyaki.
[Peter and John realized that] the Holy Spirit had not yet begun to empower any of them. They had been baptized {[Philip] had baptized them} [because they had believed] in [MTY] the Lord Jesus, [but they did not know about the Holy Spirit].
17 Angsä xawi naw ami khana ani kut taih ni se, Ngmüimkhya Ngcim yaheikie.
[Then Peter and John] placed their hands on [the heads of] each person, and they received the [power of] [MTY] the Holy Spirit.
18 Acunüng, Ngsäea kut taiha phäha Ngmüimkhya Ngcim pha lawki ti cun Sihmon naw a hmuh. Acunüng ngui cun Pita ja Johana veia lawpüiki naw,
Simon saw [things that convinced him] that [God] had given the Spirit’s [power to people] as a result of the apostles placing their hands on them. So he offered [to give] money to the apostles,
19 “Kei pi, khyange khana ka kut taih ngüse, Ngmüimkhya Ngcim ami yahnak thei vaia johit na pe nia” ti lü a jah kthäh.
saying, “Enable me also to do what [you are doing], so that everyone on whom I place/put my hands may receive the Holy Spirit’s [power].”
20 Pamhnama bäkhäknak cun a ngui am khyäi khaia a büa phäha, Pita naw, “Na xünak ja na ngui mulaia cit ni se,
But Peter said to him, “May you [(sg)] and your money go to hell, because you [mistakenly] think that you can buy [from us] what God [alone] gives to [people] (questioned)
21 na mlung Pamhnama hmaia käh ngsungpyunkia kyase, hin üng käh na ngpüi hngaki, na ham pi am ve;
[God] has not authorized you to have any part of this ministry of giving [the Holy Spirit’s power], because he knows that you are not thinking rightly! (OR, because he knows that you are thinking completely wrongly.)
22 acunakyase, na mkhyekatnak ngjut lü Bawipa veia ktaiyüa, acunüng, na mlung üng na ngaihnak ni mhlät khai ni.
So stop thinking wickedly [like] that, and plead that the Lord, if he is willing, will forgive you [for what] you [wickedly] thought/planned [to do]
23 “Nang cun püi ng’eihnak am bebang lü mkhyekatnaka thawng kyuma na kyaki ti ksing veng” a ti.
[Turn away from your evil ways], because I perceive that you [(sg)] are extremely envious of [us], and you [are] a slave of your [continual desire to do evil! God will certainly punish you severely]!”
24 Acunüng, Sihmon naw, nani pyen ka khana am a pha lawnak vaia, nangni naw Bawipa veia na ktaiyü pe nia” ti lü Pita ja Johan a jah mtheh.
Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord [God] that [he] will not do to me what you just said!”
25 Acunüng, ani xawi naw saksi ja Bawipa ngthu ami ksingsak käna, Jerusalem mlüha citbeki xawi. Ani ceh sawa Samarih ngnam khawhah üng Thangkdaw sangki xawi.
After [Peter and John] told [people there] what they knew personally [about the] Lord [Jesus] and declared to them the message about Jesus, they both returned to Jerusalem. [Along the way] they preached the good message [about Jesus to people] in many villages in Samaria [province].
26 Bawipaa khankhawngsä mat naw Philipa veia, “Tho law lü Jerusalem üngkhyüh Kaza khawa cehnaka lam üng cita” a ti (Acuna lam cun tuh ta am sumei ti u.)
[One day] an angel whom the Lord [God] had sent commanded Philip, “Get ready and go south along the road that extends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” [That was] a road in a desert area.
27 Acunüng, tho law lü citki. Acua Ethiopia khawa Candace, Ethiopia upki nghnumia khawthem naküt msümcei lü nghnumi awmki cun Jerusalem khawa Pamhnam va hjawkhah khaia citki;
So Philip got ready and went [along that road]. Suddenly he met a man from Ethiopia. He was an important official who took care of all the funds for the queen [of] Ethiopia. [In his language people called their queen] Candace. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship [God],
28 a nglat law be lama, a senghlea khana ngaw lü sahma Hesajah cauk üngka kheki.
and he was returning [home] and was seated [riding] in his chariot. [As he was riding], he was reading [out loud from] what the prophet Isaiah [had written] [MTY] [long ago].
29 Acunüng, Ngmüimkhya naw Philipa veia, “Cana senghle veia cit lü a hlawnga va vea” a ti.
[God’s] Spirit told Philip, “Go near to that chariot and keep walking close to [the man who is riding in] it!”
30 Acunüng, Philip cun acuna ngvaia veia va cit lü sahma Hesajaha cauk khe se ngjaki naw, “Na khea asuilam na ksingki aw?” a ti.
So Philip ran [to the chariot and kept running close to it]. Then he heard the official reading what the prophet Isaiah [had written]. He asked the man, “Do you [(sg)] understand what you are reading?”
31 Ani naw, “U naw am a na mtheh cun ihawkba ka ksing thei khai ni?” a ti. Acunüng, a veia ngaw hnga khaia Philip cun a khü.
He answered Philip, “[No!] (I cannot possibly [understand it] if [there is] no one to explain it to me!/How can I [understand it] if [there is] no one to explain it to me?) [RHQ]” Acts 8:31b-35 Then the man said to Philip, “Please come up [and] sit beside me.” [So Philip did that].
32 Acunüng, Cangcim a khe cun: “Hnim vaia toa mäiha ani cun ami cehpüi; To a mu ami kteih üng käh khihkheh lü a vea mäiha, ani pi käh khihkheh lü veki;
The part of the Scriptures that the official was reading was this: He will [be silent when] they lead him away to kill him [like when] a sheep [is led away to be killed]. As a young sheep is silent when its wool is being cut off {someone cuts off its wool}, [similarly] he will not protest [MTY] [when people cause him to suffer].
33 Ani cun hnemnak a khamei üng, am cangkia lei ami mtai pet; u naw pi a mjükphyüi mawng am pyen khawh u, isetiakyaküng khawmdeka ania sak cun päihki” kyaki.
When he will be humiliated by being accused falsely {people will humiliate him [by accusing him falsely]}, [the rulers] (will not consider him innocent/will consider him guilty). No one will possibly be able to tell about his descendants, because he will be killed {people will kill him} without him having [any descendants] on the earth.
34 Acunüng, ngvai naw Philipa veia, “Sahma naw hin hin ua mawng ni a pyen? Amäta mawng mä, khyang kcea mawng mä? Ni kthäh veng na mtheha” a ti.
The official asked Philip [about these words that he was reading], “Tell me, who was the prophet writing about? [Was he writing] about himself or about someone else?”
35 Philip naw, thangkdaw cun ahina Cangcim üngkhyüh tünei lü Jesuha mawng cun a mtheh.
So Philip began [to explain] that Scripture passage. He told him the good message about [MTY] Jesus. [So the official understood and believed in Jesus].
36 Acunüng, lam ani ceh k'um üng, tuia venak pha ni se; ngvai naw, “Tenga, hin üng tui ve ve, Baptican kham vaia i naw na kyawhki ni?” ti se,
While they were traveling along the road, they came to [a place where there was a pond of] water [near the road]. Then the official said [to Philip], “Look, [there is a pond of] water! (I would like you to baptize me, because I do not know of anything that would prevent me from being baptized {prevent [you] from baptizing me.}/Do you know of anything that would prevent me from being baptized {prevent [you] from baptizing me}?) [RHQ]”
37 Philip naw, “Na mlungmthin avan am na jumei üng na kham theiki” ti se; ngvai naw, “Jesuh Khritaw, Pamhnama Cakpaa kyaki ti ka jumki” ti lü a msang.
38 Acunüng, angvai naw senghle ngdüihsak lü, Philipa dä ngvai cun tui da citki xawi. Acun üng Philip naw Baptican a khamsak.
So the official told [the driver] to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the official went down into the [pond of] water, and [Philip] baptized him.
39 Acunüng, tui üngka naw ani thaw law be ja, Bawipaa Ngmüimkhya naw Philip cun cehpüi. Angvai naw Philip am hmu ti kyaw lüpi jekyainak am amäta lama citbeki.
When they came up out of the water, suddenly God’s Spirit took Philip away. The official never saw Philip again. But [although he never saw Philip again], the official continued going along the road, very happy [that God had saved him].
40 Acunsepi, Philip cun Azuk mlüha ngdang law be lü; a ceh sawa acuna mlüh üngkhyüh Ketarih am a pha hama küt üng, mlüh naküt üng thangkdaw sang hüki.
Philip then realized [that the Spirit had miraculously taken him to] Azotus [town]. While he traveled around [in that region], he continued proclaiming the message [about Jesus] in all the towns [between Azotus and Caesarea. And he was still proclaiming] it when he finally arrived in Caesarea [city].
