Nehemia 5

1 Joma chwo kod mondgi notingʼo dwondgi ka giywak matek ne owetegi ma jo-Yahudi.

[Later, ] many of the men and their wives protested loudly about what [some of] the [other] Jews were doing.

2 Moko kuomgi ne wacho niya, “Wan kod yawuotwa gi nyiwa wathoth mokalo; to mondo wachiem kendo wabed mangima, nyaka wabed kod cham.”

Some/One of them said, “We have many children. So we need a lot of grain to be able to eat and continue to live.”

3 Jomoko kuomgi ne wacho niya, “Wasingo ni ji puothewa, puothewa mag mzabibu, kod miechwa mondo wayud cham ndalo mar kech.”

Others said, “The fields and vineyards and houses that we own, it has been necessary for us to (mortgage them/promise to give them to someone if we do not pay back to him the money he has loaned us) in order to get money to buy grain, during this (famine/time where there is not much food).”

4 Eka jomoko to ne wacho niya, “Chunowa ni nyaka wahol pesa mondo wachul godo osuru mar ruoth e puothewa kod puothe mzabibu.

Others said, “We have [needed to] borrow money to pay the taxes that the king [commanded us to pay] on our fields and our vineyards.

5 Kata obedo ni wan ringruok kod remo achiel kaka jopinyni to kata bed ni yawuotwa ber mana ka yawuotgi, to pod waketo yawuotwa kod nyiwa kaka wasumbini. Nyiwa moko to ne oseketi wasumbini, to waonge gi teko, nikech puothewa kod puothewa mag mzabibu koro gin mek jomoko nono.”

We are Jews just like [IDM] they are. Our children are ([just as good as/equal with)] their children. But we have needed to sell some of our children to become slaves [in order to pay what we owe]. We have already sold some of our daughters to become slaves. Our fields and vineyards have been taken away from us, so now we do not have [the money to pay what we owe, and we are forced to sell our children to get money to pay those debts].”

6 Kane awinjo ywakgi kod weche mane odonjnigigo, iya nowangʼ ahinya.

I was very angry when I heard these things that they were complaining about.

7 Ne aparo wechego matut mi adonjone joka ruoth kod jotelo. Ne anyisogi niya, “Uyudo ohala kuom jowadu uwegi!” Omiyo ne aluongo buch galamoro mondo awuo kodgi,

So I thought about what I could do about it. I told the leaders and officials [who were responsible for this work], “You are charging interest to your own relatives [when they borrow money from you]!” Then I called together a large group of people,

8 mi awachonegi niya, “Wasetemo kaka wanyalo ma waduogo owetewa mane joma ok jo-Yahudi ongʼiewo kuomu kaka wasumbini. Koro sani uuso oweteu, to mano biro chunowa ni nyaka wawargi kendo!” Negilingʼ thi, nikech onge gima neginyalo wacho.

and I said to their [leaders], “Some of our Jewish relatives have been forced to sell themselves to become slaves of people who have come from other countries. As much as we have been able to, we have been buying them back [out of slavery]. But now you are forcing your own relatives to sell themselves to you, their fellow Jews, as slaves!” [When I said that to them, ] they were silent. There was nothing that they could say [because they knew that what I said was true].

9 Eka ne adhi nyime ka awacho niya, “Gima utimoni ok ber. Donge duluorie Nyasachwa mondo ugengʼ achaya mar joma ok jo-Yahudi ma wasikwa ochayowago?

Then I said to them, “What you are doing is terrible [EUP]! You certainly ought to [RHQ] obey God and do what is right! If you did that, our enemies who do not revere Yahweh [would see that we are doing what is right and] would not ridicule us.

10 An, owetena kod joga bende waholo ji pesa kod cham to ok wakaw ohala, omiyo hola midwoko gohala nyaka rum!

My fellow Jews and I and my servants have lent money and grain to people [without charging interest]. So you all should stop charging interest on these loans.

11 Duoknegiuru puothegi, puothegi mag mzabibu, puothegi mag zeituni kod utegi, kaachiel gi hola midwoko gohala ma gin achiel ewi mia achiel mar pesa gi cham, gi divai manyien kod mo.”

Also, you must give back to them their fields, their vineyards, their olive tree orchards, and their houses that you have taken from them. You must also give back to them the interest that you charged them when they borrowed money, grain, wine, and [olive] oil from you, and you must do it today!”

12 Negiwacho niya, “Wabiro duogonugi kendo ok wabi chunou mondo umedwa gimoro amora kuomgi. Wabiro timo kaka uwachono.” Bangʼe ne aluongo jodolo mi giketo joka ruoth kod jotelo okwongʼore ni gibiro timo kaka gisesingore.

The leaders replied, “We will do what you have said. We will return to them everything that we forced them to give to us, and we will not require that they give us anything more.” Then I summoned the priests, and I forced the leaders to vow in front of them that they would do what they had promised to do.

13 Bende ne atengʼo nangana mi awacho niya, “Kamano bende e kaka Nyasaye onego omaa od ngʼato angʼata motamore rito singruokni mwandune. Omiyo mad ngʼama chalo kamano tengʼe oko mi odongʼ gi lwete nono!” Kuom mano, kanyakla mar oganda nodwoko niya, “Amin,” kendo negipako Jehova Nyasaye. Kendo ji notimo mana kaka ne gisesingono.

I shook out the folds of my robe and said to them, “If you do not do what you have just now promised to do, I hope/desire that God will shake you like I am shaking my robe. He will take away your homes and everything else that you own.” They all replied, “Amen/May it be so!” And they praised Yahweh. Then they did what they had promised to do.

14 To bende kochakore e higa mar piero ariyo mar loch Ruoth Artaksases, e ndalo mane oyiera jatelo e piny Juda, nyaka ochopo e hike mar piero adek gariyo, ma duto ne gin higni apar gariyo, an kod owetena ne ok wachamo chiemo mane opog ne jatelo.

I was appointed to be the governor of Judea in the twentieth year that Artaxerxes was the king [of Persia]. For the next twelve years, until he had been ruling for almost 32 years, neither I nor my officials accepted [the money that we were allowed/entitled to receive to buy] food because of my being the governor.

15 To jotelo machon, mane otiyo kapok achako tich, noketo tingʼ mapek ne ji mine gikawo nus kilo mar fedha koa kuomgi kaachiel gi chiemo kod divai. Jolupgi bende nomiyo ji tingʼno mapek. To nikech luor mane amiyo Nyasaye an to ne ok atimo kamano.

The men who were governors before I became the governor had burdened the people by requiring them to pay a lot of taxes. They had forced each person to pay to them 40 silver coins every day, in addition to giving food and wine to them. Even their servants/officials oppressed the people. But I did not do that, because I revered God.

16 Kuom mano, anto ne achiwora ne tich mar ohingani. Joga duto nochokore kanyakla ne tich; ne ok angʼiewo lowo moro amora e pinyno.

I also continued to work on the wall, and I did not take land from people [who were unable to pay back the money that they had borrowed from me]. All those who worked for me joined me to work on the wall.

17 To bende, jo-Yahudi mia achiel gi piero abich kod jotelo nochiemo e mesana, kaachiel gi ogendini mane obiro irwa koa machiegni kodwa.

Also, every day I was responsible to feed 150 Jewish officials, and also [official] visitors who came from nearby countries.

18 Odiechiengʼ ka odiechiengʼ notedna rwath achiel, rombe auchiel machwe, kod gwen, to ndalo apar ka ndalo apar divai mopogore opogore nokel mangʼeny. To kata kamano, ne ok adwaro chiemo mane opog ne jatelo, nikech gigo mane idwaro ne ohewo jogi tingʼo.

Each day I [told my servants to] serve [us the meat from] one ox, six very good sheep, and chickens. And every ten days I gave them a large new supply of wine. But I knew that the people were burdened [by paying lots of taxes], so I did not accept [the money that I was entitled/allowed to receive to buy all this] food because of my being the governor.

19 Yaye Nyasacha, para gi ngʼwono kuom gik masetimone jogi,

My God, do not forget me, and reward me because of all that I have done for these people.