< Jeremiah 27 >
1 When Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, first became king this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,
Ekuqaleni kokubusa kukaZedekhiya indodana kaJosiya inkosi yakoJuda, ilizwi leli lafika kuJeremiya livela kuThixo lisithi:
2 This is what the Lord has said to me: Make for yourself bands and yokes and put them on your neck;
UThixo wathi kimi, “Yenza ijogwe ngemichilo langemigoqo uligaxe entanyeni yakho.
3 And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the children of Ammon, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Zidon, by their servants who come to Jerusalem, to Zedekiah, king of Judah;
Ubusuthumela ilizwi enkosini yase-Edomi, leyaseMowabi, leyase-Amoni, eyeThire kanye leyaseSidoni ngezithunywa ezize eJerusalema kuZedekhiya inkosi yakoJuda.
4 And give them orders to say to their masters, This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, has said: Say to your masters,
Zinike ilizwi eliya emakhosini azo uthi, ‘UThixo uSomandla, uNkulunkulu ka-Israyeli uthi: Tshelani amakhosi enu lokhu ukuthi:
5 I have made the earth, and man and beast on the face of the earth, by my great power and by my outstretched arm; and I will give it to anyone at my pleasure.
Ngamandla ami amakhulu langengalo yami eyeluliweyo ngenza umhlaba labantu bawo kanye lezinyamazana ezikuwo, njalo ngiwunika loba ngubani ngokuthanda kwami.
6 And now I have given all these lands into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant; and I have given the beasts of the field to him for his use.
Khathesi wonke amazwe enu ngizawanikela encekwini yami uNebhukhadineza inkosi yaseBhabhiloni, ngizakwenza lezinyamazana zeganga zibe ngaphansi kwakhe.
7 And all the nations will be servants to him and to his son and to his son's son, till the time comes for his land to be overcome: and then a number of nations and great kings will take it for their use.
Izizwe zonke zizamsebenzela yena lamadodana akhe kanye labazukulu bakhe kuze kufike isikhathi selizwe lakhe lapho azanqotshwa khona yizizwe ezinengi lamakhosi amakhulu.
8 And it will come about, that if any nation does not become a servant to this same Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and does not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, then I will send punishment on that nation, says the Lord, by the sword and need of food and by disease, till I have given them into his hands.
Kodwa, loba yisiphi isizwe loba umbuso ongasebenzeli uNebhukhadineza inkosi yaseBhabhiloni loba ukhothamisele intamo yawo ejogeni lakhe, ngizasijezisa lesosizwe ngenkemba, ngendlala langesifo, ngize ngiwuchithe ngesandla sakhe, kutsho uThixo.
9 And you are not to give attention to your prophets or your readers of signs or your dreamers or those who see into the future or those who make use of secret arts, who say to you, You will not become servants of the king of Babylon:
Ngakho lingabalaleli abaphrofethi benu, izanuse zenu, abachazi bamaphupho, izangoma zenu loba izinyanga zenu ezithi kini, kaliyikuyisebenzela inkosi yaseBhabhiloni.’
10 For they say false words to you, so that you may be sent away far from your land, and so that you may be forced out by me and come to destruction.
Baphrofetha amanga kini azasebenza ukulisusa nje kuphela emazweni enu; ngizalixotsha njalo lizabhubha.
11 But as for that nation which puts its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and becomes his servant, I will let that nation keep on in its land, farming it and living in it, says the Lord.
Kodwa isizwe esizabeka intamo yaso ngaphansi kwejogwe lenkosi yaseBhabhiloni siyisebenzele, lesosizwe ngizasiyekela siselizweni laso ukuba sililime njalo sihlale kulo, kutsho uThixo.”
12 And I said all this to Zedekiah, king of Judah, saying, Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and become his servants and his people, so that you may keep your lives.
UZedekhiya inkosi yakoJuda ngamnika ilizwi elinjalo; Ngathi, “Beka intamo yakho ngaphansi kwejogwe lenkosi yaseBhabhiloni; isebenzele yona kanye labantu bayo, uzaphila.
13 Why are you desiring death, you and your people, by the sword, and because food is gone, and by disease, as the Lord has said of the nation which does not become the servant of the king of Babylon?
Kungani wena labantu bakho lizabulawa ngenkemba, indlala lesifo uThixo ayesongele ngakho isizwe esingayikusebenzela inkosi yaseBhabhiloni na?
14 And you are not to give ear to the prophets who say to you, You will not become servants of the king of Babylon: for what they say is not true.
Lingawalaleli amazwi abaphrofethi abathi kini, ‘Kaliyikuyisebenzela inkosi yaseBhabhiloni,’ ngoba baphrofetha amanga kini.
15 For I have not sent them, says the Lord, but they are saying what is false in my name, so that I might send you out by force, causing destruction to come on you and on your prophets.
‘Angibathumanga,’ kutsho uThixo. ‘Baphrofetha amanga ngebizo lami. Ngakho ngizalixotsha, libhubhe lina kanye labaphrofethi abaphrofetha kini.’”
16 And I said to the priests and to all the people, This is what the Lord has said: Give no attention to the words of your prophets who say to you, See, in a very little time now the vessels of the Lord's house will come back again from Babylon: for what they say to you is false.
Ngasengisithi kubaphristi lakubo bonke abantu laba, “UThixo uthi: Lingabalaleli abaphrofethi abathi, ‘Masinyane nje izitsha zasendlini kaThixo zizabuyiswa zivela eBhabhiloni.’ Baphrofetha amanga kini.
17 Give no attention to them; become servants of the king of Babylon and keep yourselves from death: why let this town become a waste?
Lingabalaleli. Isebenzeleni inkosi yaseBhabhiloni, lizaphila. Kungani idolobho leli kumele libe lunxiwa na?
18 But if they are prophets, and if the word of the Lord is with them, let them now make request to the Lord of armies that the vessels which are still in the house of the Lord and in the house of the king of Judah and at Jerusalem, may not go to Babylon.
Nxa bengabaphrofethi njalo belelizwi likaThixo, kabamncenge uThixo uSomandla ukuba izitsha eziseleyo endlini kaThixo lasesigodlweni senkosi yakoJuda kanye laseJerusalema zingasiwa eBhabhiloni.
19 For this is what the Lord has said about the rest of the vessels which are still in this town,
Ngoba lokhu yikho okutshiwo nguThixo uSomandla mayelana lensika, loLwandle, lokokumisa okuphakamisekayo kanye lezinye izitsha eziseleyo kulelidolobho,
20 Which Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, did not take away, when he took Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, a prisoner from Jerusalem to Babylon, with all the great men of Judah and Jerusalem;
uNebhukhadineza inkosi yaseBhabhiloni engahambanga layo ekuthatheni kwakhe uJehoyakhini indodana kaJehoyakhimi inkosi yakoJuda emsusa eJerusalema emusa ekuthunjweni eBhabhiloni, kanye lezikhulu zonke zakoJuda lezeJerusalema,
21 For this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, has said about the rest of the vessels in the house of the Lord and in the house of the king of Judah and at Jerusalem:
yebo, lokhu yikho okutshiwo nguThixo uSomandla, uNkulunkulu ka-Israyeli, mayelana lezinto eziseleyo endlini kaThixo lasesigodlweni senkosi yakoJuda kanye laseJerusalema ukuthi:
22 They will be taken away to Babylon, and there they will be till the day when I send their punishment on them, says the Lord. Then I will take them up and put them back in their place.
‘Zizasiwa eBhabhiloni lapho ezizakuba khona kuze kufike usuku engizazilanda ngalo,’ kutsho uThixo. ‘Lapho-ke ngizazibuyisela emuva kule indawo.’”