< Numbers 18 >
1 So the LORD said to Aaron, “You and your sons and your father’s house must bear the iniquity involving the sanctuary. And you and your sons alone must bear the iniquity involving your priesthood.
INkosi yasisithi kuAroni: Wena lamadodana akho lendlu kayihlo kanye lawe lizathwala ububi bendlu engcwele; futhi wena lamadodana akho kanye lawe lizathwala ububi bobupristi benu.
2 But bring with you also your brothers from the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may join you and assist you and your sons before the Tent of the Testimony.
Labafowenu, isizwe sakoLevi, isizwe sikayihlo, basondeze-ke lawe ukuze bahlanganiswe lawe, bakusize. Kodwa wena lamadodana akho kanye lawe lizakuba phambi kwethente lobufakazi.
3 And they shall attend to your duties and to all the duties of the Tent; but they must not come near to the furnishings of the sanctuary or the altar, or both they and you will die.
Bazagcina umlayo wakho, lemfanelo zethente lonke; kodwa kabayikusondela ezitsheni zendlu engcwele lelathini, ukuze bangafi, labo lani.
4 They are to join you and attend to the duties of the Tent of Meeting, doing all the work at the Tent; but no outsider may come near you.
Bazahlanganiswa lawe, bagcine imfanelo zethente lenhlangano kuyo yonke inkonzo yethente; kodwa owemzini kayikusondela kini.
5 And you shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and of the altar, so that wrath may not fall on the Israelites again.
Njalo lizagcina imfanelo zendlu engcwele lemfanelo zelathi, ukuze kungabi kusaba khona ulaka phezu kwabantwana bakoIsrayeli.
6 Behold, I Myself have selected your fellow Levites from the Israelites as a gift to you, dedicated to the LORD to perform the service for the Tent of Meeting.
Mina-ke, khangelani, ngithethe abafowenu amaLevi bevela phakathi kwabantwana bakoIsrayeli. Bayisipho kini, baphiwe iNkosi ukwenza inkonzo yethente lenhlangano.
7 But only you and your sons shall attend to your priesthood for everything concerning the altar and what is inside the veil, and you are to perform that service. I am giving you the work of the priesthood as a gift, but any outsider who comes near the sanctuary must be put to death.”
Ngakho wena lamadodana akho kanye lawe lizagcina ubupristi benu kuzo zonke izinto zelathi laphakathi kweveyili, likhonze. Nginike ubupristi benu bube ngumsebenzi wesipho; kodwa owemzini osondelayo uzabulawa.
8 Then the LORD said to Aaron, “Behold, I have put you in charge of My offerings. As for all the sacred offerings of the Israelites, I have given them to you and your sons as a portion and a permanent statute.
INkosi yasisithi kuAroni: Mina-ke, khangela, ngikunike ukuphathwa kweminikelo yami yokuphakanyiswa yazo zonke izinto ezingcwele zabantwana bakoIsrayeli; ngiziphe wena, ngenxa yokugcotshwa, lamadodana akho, ngesimiso esilaphakade.
9 A portion of the most holy offerings reserved from the fire will be yours. From all the offerings they render to Me as most holy offerings, whether grain offerings or sin offerings or guilt offerings, that part belongs to you and your sons.
Lokhu kuzakuba ngokwakho okuvela ezintweni ezingcwelengcwele, zivela emlilweni; yonke iminikelo yabo, yonke iminikelo yabo yokudla, layo yonke iminikelo yabo yesono, layo yonke iminikelo yabo yecala, abazayibuyisela kimi; izakuba ngengcwelengcwele ibe ngeyakho leyamadodana akho.
10 You are to eat it as a most holy offering, and every male may eat it. You shall regard it as holy.
Lizakudlela engcweleni yezingcwele; wonke owesilisa uzakudla; kuzakuba ngcwele kuwe.
11 And this is yours as well: the offering of their gifts, along with all the wave offerings of the Israelites. I have given this to you and your sons and daughters as a permanent statute. Every ceremonially clean person in your household may eat it.
Lalokhu ngokwakho: Umnikelo wokuphakanyiswa wesipho sabo, layo yonke iminikelo yokuzunguzwa yabantwana bakoIsrayeli; ngikuphe wena lamadodana akho lamadodakazi akho, ngesimiso esilaphakade. Wonke ohlambulukileyo endlini yakho uzakudla.
12 I give you all the freshest olive oil and all the finest new wine and grain that the Israelites give to the LORD as their firstfruits.
Ikhethelo lonke lamafutha, lekhethelo lonke lewayini elitsha, lelamabele, lengqabutho yalezo abazazinikela eNkosini, ngiziphe wena.
13 The firstfruits of everything in their land that they bring to the LORD will belong to you. Every ceremonially clean person in your household may eat them.
Izithelo zokuqala zakho konke okuselizweni labo abazakuletha eNkosini kuzakuba ngokwakho. Wonke ohlambulukileyo endlini yakho uzakudla.
14 Every devoted thing in Israel belongs to you.
Konke okwehlukanisiweyo koIsrayeli kuzakuba ngokwakho.
15 The firstborn of every womb, whether man or beast, that is offered to the LORD belongs to you. But you must surely redeem every firstborn son and every firstborn male of unclean animals.
Konke okuvula isizalo, kwayo yonke inyama abakuletha eNkosini, phakathi kwabantu laphakathi kwezifuyo, kuzakuba ngokwakho; kodwa izibulo lomuntu uzalihlenga lokulihlenga, lezibulo lenyamazana engcolileyo uzalihlenga.
16 You are to pay the redemption price for a month-old male according to your valuation: five shekels of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel, which is twenty gerahs.
Lalezo ezizahlengwa uzazihlenga kusukela sezilenyanga, njengesilinganiso sakho, ngemali yamashekeli amahlanu, ngokweshekeli lendlu engcwele, elingamagera angamatshumi amabili.
17 But you must not redeem the firstborn of an ox, a sheep, or a goat; they are holy. You are to sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat as an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.
Kodwa izibulo lenkomo, kumbe izibulo lemvu, kumbe izibulo lembuzi, awuyikuwahlenga, angcwele. Uzafafaza igazi lawo phezu kwelathi, utshise amahwahwa awo, abe ngumnikelo owenziwe ngomlilo, kube luqhatshi olumnandi eNkosini.
18 And their meat belongs to you, just as the breast and right thigh of the wave offering belong to you.
Lenyama yawo izakuba ngeyakho, njengesifuba esizunguziweyo lanjengomlenze wokunene, kuzakuba ngokwakho.
19 All the holy offerings that the Israelites present to the LORD I give to you and to your sons and daughters as a permanent statute. It is a permanent covenant of salt before the LORD for you and your offspring.”
Yonke iminikelo yokuphakanyiswa yezinto ezingcwele abantwana bakoIsrayeli abayinikela eNkosini ngiyinike wena lamadodana akho lamadodakazi akho kanye lawe, ngesimiso esilaphakade. Kuyisivumelwano setswayi esilaphakade phambi kweNkosi kuwe lakunzalo yakho kanye lawe.
20 Then the LORD said to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites.
INkosi yasisithi kuAroni: Kawuyikudla ilifa elizweni labo, kawuyikuba lesabelo phakathi kwabo; ngiyisabelo sakho lelifa lakho phakathi kwabantwana bakoIsrayeli.
21 Behold, I have given to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the service of the Tent of Meeting.
Khangela-ke, nginike abantwana bakoLevi konke okwetshumi koIsrayeli kube yilifa, ngomsebenzi wabo abawenzayo, inkonzo yethente lenhlangano.
22 No longer may the Israelites come near to the Tent of Meeting, or they will incur guilt and die.
Njalo abantwana bakoIsrayeli bangabe besasondela ethenteni lenhlangano hlezi bathwale isono bafe.
23 The Levites are to perform the work of the Tent of Meeting, and they must bear their iniquity. This is a permanent statute for the generations to come. The Levites will not receive an inheritance among the Israelites.
Kodwa amaLevi azakwenza inkonzo yethente lenhlangano, wona athwale ububi bawo. Kuzakuba yisimiso esilaphakade ezizukulwaneni zenu; laphakathi kwabantwana bakoIsrayeli kawayikuzuza ilifa.
24 For I have given to the Levites as their inheritance the tithe that the Israelites present to the LORD as a contribution. That is why I told them that they would not receive an inheritance among the Israelites.”
Ngoba okwetshumi kwabantwana bakoIsrayeli abakunikela eNkosini kube ngumnikelo wokuphakanyiswa, ngikunike amaLevi kube yilifa. Ngakho ngitshilo kiwo ukuthi phakathi kwabantwana bakoIsrayeli kawayikuzuza ilifa.
25 And the LORD instructed Moses,
INkosi yasikhuluma kuMozisi isithi:
26 “Speak to the Levites and tell them: ‘When you receive from the Israelites the tithe that I have given you as your inheritance, you must present part of it as an offering to the LORD—a tithe of the tithe.
Futhi uzakhuluma kumaLevi uthi kuwo: Nxa lithatha ebantwaneni bakoIsrayeli okwetshumi engilinike khona, kuvela kubo kube yilifa lenu, lizanikela kokwakho umnikelo wokuphakanyiswa weNkosi, kube ngokwetshumi kwalokho okwetshumi.
27 Your offering will be reckoned to you as grain from the threshing floor or juice from the winepress.
Lomnikelo wenu wokuphakanyiswa uzabalelwa lina, njengamabele ebala lokubhulela lanjengokugcwala kwesikhamelo sewayini.
28 So you are to present an offering to the LORD from all the tithes you receive from the Israelites, and from these you are to give the LORD’s offering to Aaron the priest.
Ngalokhu lani lizanikela umnikelo wokuphakanyiswa weNkosi kukho konke okwetshumi kwenu elikwemukelayo ebantwaneni bakoIsrayeli; lizanika kokwayo umnikelo wokuphakanyiswa weNkosi, kuAroni umpristi.
29 You must present the offering due the LORD from all the best of every gift, the holiest part of it.’
Kuzo zonke izipho zenu lizanikela wonke umnikelo wokuphakanyiswa weNkosi; ekhethelweni lonke lazo, ingxenye yayo engcwelisiweyo evela kuyo.
30 Therefore say to the Levites, ‘When you have presented the best part, it will be reckoned to you as the produce of the threshing floor or winepress.
Futhi uzakuthi kuwo: Lapho linikela ikhethelo lazo elivela kuzo, kuzabalelwa amaLevi njengesivuno sebala lokubhulela lanjengesivuno sesikhamelo sewayini.
31 And you and your households may eat the rest of it anywhere; it is the compensation for your work at the Tent of Meeting.
Lizakudla lokho endaweni zonke, lina lendlu yenu, ngoba kungumvuzo wenu ngomsebenzi wenu ethenteni lenhlangano.
32 Once you have presented the best part of it, you will not incur guilt because of it. But you must not defile the sacred offerings of the Israelites, or else you will die.’”
Njalo kaliyikuthwala isono ngenxa yakho, lapho seliphakamisile ikhethelo lakho kukho; kaliyikungcolisa izinto ezingcwele zabantwana bakoIsrayeli, ukuze lingafi.