Acts 7
1 “Are these allegations true?” the high priest asked.
Ipapo muprista mukuru akamubvunza akati, “Izvi zvauri kupomerwa ndezvechokwadi here?”
2 “Brothers and fathers, listen to me!” Stephen replied. “God in his glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was living in Mesopotamia, before he moved to Haran.
Iye akapindura achiti, “Hama dzangu nemi madzibaba, nditeererei! Mwari wokubwinya akazviratidza kuna baba vedu Abhurahama paakanga achiri kuMesopotamia, asati agara muHarani.
3 God told him, ‘Leave your country and your relatives, and go to the country that I'm going to show you.’
Mwari akati kwaari, ‘Ibva munyika yako nokuhama dzako, uende kunyika yandichakuratidza.’
4 So he left the country of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran. After his father's death, God sent him here to this country where you now live.
“Saka akabva munyika yavaKaradhea akandogara muHarani. Shure kwokufa kwababa vake, Mwari akamutuma munyika ino yamugere zvino.
5 God didn't give Abraham an inheritance here, not even one square foot. But God did promise Abraham that he would give him and his descendants possession of the land, even though he had no children.
Haana kumupa nhaka imomo, kunyange paangatsika norutsoka rwake. Asi Mwari akamuvimbisa kuti iye nezvizvarwa zvake zvaimutevera vaizotora nyika ino, kunyange panguva iyoyo Abhurahama akanga asina mwana.
6 God also told him that his descendants would live in a foreign country, and that they would be enslaved there, and would be mistreated for four hundred years.
Mwari akataura naye achiti, ‘Zvizvarwa zvako zvichava vatorwa munyika isiri yavo, uye vachaitwa varanda vagotambudzwa kwamakore mazana mana.
7 God said, ‘I will punish the nation that enslaves them. Eventually they will leave and come here to worship me.’
Asi ndicharanga rudzi rwavachashandira senhapwa,’ ndizvo zvakataurwa naMwari, ‘uye shure kwaizvozvo vachabuda munyika iyoyo vagondishumira panzvimbo ino.’
8 God also gave Abraham the agreement regarding circumcision, and so when Isaac was born, Abraham circumcised him on the eighth day. Isaac was the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of the twelve patriarchs.
Ipapo akapa Abhurahama sungano yokudzingiswa. Abhurahama akabereka Isaka akamudzingisa zuva rorusere shure kwokuberekwa kwake. Shure kwaizvozvo Isaka akabereka Jakobho, uye Jakobho akabereka madzitateguru ane gumi navaviri.
9 The patriarchs, who were jealous of Joseph, sold him into slavery in Egypt. But God was with him,
“Nokuti madzitateguru akaitira godo Josefa, vakamutengesa senhapwa kuIjipiti. Asi Mwari akanga anaye
10 and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave him wisdom and helped him gain the favor of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and the royal household.
akamununura kubva pamatambudziko ake ose. Akapa Josefa uchenjeri uye akaita kuti adikanwe naFaro mambo weIjipiti; saka akamuita mutongi weIjipiti nomuzinda wake wose.
11 Now a famine occurred throughout Egypt and Canaan. It caused terrible misery, and our forefathers had no food.
“Zvino nzara yakasvika muIjipiti yose neKenani, kukava nokutambudzika kukuru, uye madzibaba edu akashayiwa zvokudya.
12 When Jacob heard there was grain in Egypt he sent our forefathers down on their first visit.
Jakobho akati anzwa kuti kuIjipiti kwaiva nezviyo, akatuma madzibaba edu parwendo rwavo rwokutanga.
13 During their second visit, Joseph revealed to his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh discovered Joseph's family background.
Parwendo rwavo rwechipiri, Josefa akaudza madzikoma ake kuti iye aiva ani uye Faro akanzwa nezvemhuri yaJosefa.
14 Joseph sent for his father and all his relatives—seventy-five in total.
Shure kwaizvozvo, Josefa akatuma shoko kuti baba vake Jakobho, nemhuri yavo yose, vanhu makumi manomwe navashanu pamwe chete, vauye.
15 Jacob traveled to Egypt, and died there—as did our forefathers.
Ipapo Jakobho akaburuka akaenda kuIjipiti, uko kwaakandofira iye namadzibaba edu.
16 Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought with silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
Mitumbi yavo yakatakurwa ikaendeswa kuShekemu vakavigwa muguva rakanga ratengwa naAbhurahama kubva kuvanakomana vaHamori, paShekemu, nomutengo wemari yakati kuti.
17 As the time approached regarding the promise that God had made to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt increased.
“Nguva yakati yaswedera yokuti Mwari azadzise chipikirwa chake kuna Abhurahama, uwandu hwavanhu vedu muIjipiti hwakawedzerwa zvikuru.
18 A new king came to the throne in Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph.
Ipapo mumwe mambo, akanga asingazivi nezvaJosefa, akava mutongi weIjipiti.
19 He took advantage of our people and treated our ancestors badly, forcing them to abandon their babies so they would die.
Akabata vanhu vedu zvakaipa akadzvinyirira madzitateguru edu achivamanikidza kuti varase vana vachangoberekwa kuitira kuti vagofa.
20 It was at this time that Moses was born. He was a handsome child, and for three months he was looked after in his father's home.
“Panguva iyoyo Mozisi akaberekwa, uye akanga asiri mwanawo zvake. Akachengetwa mumba mababa vake kwemwedzi mitatu.
21 When he had to be abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter rescued him and took care of him as her own son.
Paakasiyiwa kunze, mwanasikana waFaro akamutora akamurera somwanakomana wake.
22 Moses received instruction in all areas of Egyptian knowledge, and he became a powerful speaker and leader.
Mozisi akadzidziswa uchenjeri hwose hweIjipiti uye aigona kwazvo kutaura nokuita zvinhu.
23 However, when he was forty years old, he decided to visit his relatives, the Israelites.
“Mozisi paakanga ava namakore makumi mana okuberekwa, akafunga zvokundoshanyira hama dzake ivo vaIsraeri.
24 He saw one of them being mistreated, so he intervened to defend him. On behalf of the man he took revenge and killed the Egyptian.
Akaona mumwe wavo achitambudzwa nomuIjipita, saka akasvika akamurwira akatsiva nokuuraya muIjipita uya.
25 Moses thought his fellow Israelites would see that God was rescuing them through him, but they didn't.
Mozisi akafunga kuti vanhu vake vachaziva kuti Mwari ainge achimushandisa kuti avanunure, asi ivo havana kuzviziva.
26 The next day when he arrived, two Israelites were fighting one another. He tried to reconcile them and stop the fight. ‘Men! You are brothers!’ he told them. ‘Why are you attacking each other?’
Fume mangwana Mozisi akasvikowana vaIsraeri vaviri vachirwa. Akaedza kuvayananisa achiti, ‘Varume, muri hama imi; munodireiko kukuvadzana?’
27 But the man who had started the fight pushed Moses away. ‘Who put you in charge over us? Are you our judge now?’ he asked.
“Asi murume uya akanga achitambudza mumwe akasundidzira Mozisi padivi akati, ‘Ndianiko akakuita mubati nomutongi wedu?
28 ‘Are you going to kill me like you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’
Unoda kundiuraya sokuuraya kwawakaita muIjipita nezuro?’
29 When he heard this, Moses ran away. He went and lived in exile in the land of Midian, where two sons were born to him.
Mozisi paakanzwa izvozvo, akatiza akaenda kuMidhiani, uko kwaakandogara ari mutorwa uye akabereka vanakomana vaviri.
30 Forty years later, in the desert of Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to him in the flames of a burning bush.
“Makore makumi mana akati apfuura, mutumwa akazviratidza kuna Mozisi ari mumurazvo womoto mugwenzi, mugwenga raiva pedyo neGomo reSinai.
31 When Moses saw this, he was amazed at the sight, and went over to take a closer look. The voice of the Lord spoke to him:
Paakaona chinhu ichi, akashamiswa nezvaakaona. Akati achiswedera kuti anyatsoona, akanzwa inzwi raIshe richiti,
32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.’ Moses shook with fear and didn't dare look up.
‘Ndini Mwari wamadzibaba ako, Mwari waAbhurahama, Isaka naJakobho.’ Mozisi akadedera nokutya akatadza kana kutarisa.
33 The Lord told him, ‘Take off your sandals, because where you are standing is holy ground.
“Ipapo Jehovha akati kwaari, ‘Bvisa shangu dzako; nokuti nzvimbo yaumire pairi itsvene.
34 I have closely observed the suffering of my people in Egypt, and I have heard their groans. I have come down to rescue them. Now come over here, for I'm sending you to Egypt.’
Zvirokwazvo ndaona kudzvinyirirwa kwavanhu vangu muIjipiti. Ndanzwa kugomera kwavo, saka ndaburuka kuti ndizovasunungura. Zvino uya, ndinoda kukutuma udzokere kuIjipiti.’
35 This was the same Moses that the people had rejected when they said, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us?’ God sent him to be both a ruler and a liberator, by means of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
“Ndiye Mozisi uya wavakanga varamba namashoko okuti, ‘Ndianiko akakuita mubati nomutongi wedu?’ Ndiye akatumwa naMwari pachake kuti ave mubati nomusununguri wavo, kubudikidza nomutumwa akazviratidza kwaari mugwenzi.
36 Moses led them out after performing miraculous signs in Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and continued to do so in the desert for forty years.
Ndiye akavabudisa muIjipiti uye akaita zvishamiso nezviratidzo muIjipiti, paGungwa Dzvuku uye kwamakore makumi mana murenje.
37 This is the same Moses who promised the Israelites, ‘God will send you a prophet like me from among your people.’
“Ndiye Mozisi uya akaudza vaIsraeri kuti, ‘Mwari achakutumirai muprofita akaita seni anobva muvanhu venyu chaivo.’
38 Moses was with God's assembled people in the desert when the angel spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and there with our forefathers he received God's living word to give to us.
Akanga ari muungano yaiva murenje, pamwe chete nomutumwa akataura kwaari paGomo reSinai, uye namadzibaba edu; uye akagamuchira mashoko mapenyu kuti azoasvitsa kwatiri.
39 He was the one our fathers wouldn't listen to. They rejected him and decided to return to Egypt.
“Asi madzibaba edu akaramba kumuteerera. Vakamuramba uye mumwoyo yavo vakadzokerazve kuIjipiti.
40 They told Aaron, ‘Make gods for us to lead us, because we don't know what's happened to this Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt.’
Vakati kuna Aroni, ‘Tiitire vamwari vachatitungamirira. Kana ari Mozisi uyu akatibudisa muIjipiti, hatizivi zvakamuwira!
41 Then they made an idol in the shape of a calf, sacrificed to it, and celebrated what they themselves had made!
Ndiyo nguva yavakaumba chifananidzo chakaita semhuru. Vakauya nezvibayiro kwachiri vakachipemberera vachikudza chinhu chakaitwa namaoko avo.
42 So God gave up on them. He left them to their worship of the stars in the sky. This is what the prophets wrote, ‘Were you giving offerings or making sacrifices to me during the forty years in the desert, you Israelites?
Asi Mwari akavafuratira akavasiya kuti vanamate hondo dzokudenga, sezvazvakanyorwa mubhuku ravaprofita zvichinzi: “‘Makandivigira zvibayiro nezvipo makore makumi mana murenje here, imi imba yaIsraeri?
43 No, you carried the Tabernacle of the god Moloch and the image of the god Rephan's star, images that you made so you could worship them. So I will banish you in exile beyond Babylon.’
Makatakura tabhenakeri yaMoreki nenyeredzi yamwari wenyu Refani, zvifananidzo zvamakaita kuti muzvinamate. Naizvozvo ndichakuendesai kuutapwa’ mberi kweBhabhironi.
44 Our ancestors had the Tabernacle of Testimony in the desert. God had told Moses how he should make it following the blueprint he had seen.
“Madzitateguru edu akanga ane tabhenakeri yeChipupuriro pakati pavo murenje. Yakanga yakagadzirwa sokurayirwa kwakanga kwaitwa Mozisi naMwari, maererano nomufananidzo waakanga aona.
45 Later on, our forefathers carried it with them when they went in with Joshua to occupy the land taken from the nations the Lord drove out before them. It stayed there until the time of David.
Vakagamuchira tabhenakeri, vachitungamirirwa naJoshua, madzibaba edu akauya pamwe chete nayo paya pavakatora nyika kubva kundudzi dzakanga dzadzingwa pamberi pavo naMwari. Tabhenakeri yakagara munyika iyo kusvikira panguva yaDhavhidhi,
46 David found favor with God and asked to make a more permanent home for the God of Jacob.
uyo akaitirwa zvakanaka naMwari uye akakumbira kuti avakire Mwari waJakobho nzvimbo yokugara.
47 But it was Solomon who built a Temple for him.
Asi Soromoni ndiye akazomuvakira imba.
48 Of course the Almighty doesn't live in temples we make. As the prophet said,
“Kunyange zvakadaro, Wokumusoro-soro haagari mudzimba dzakavakwa navanhu. Sezvinorehwa nomuprofita achiti:
49 ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth the place I put my feet. What kind of dwelling could you build for me?’ the Lord asks. ‘What bed could you make for me to rest in?
“‘Denga ndicho chigaro changu choushe uye nyika ndiyo chitsiko chetsoka dzangu. Ko, muchandivakira imba yakaita sei? ndizvo zvinotaura Ishe. Kana kuti nzvimbo yangu yokuzorora ichava kupiko?
50 Didn't I make everything?’
Ko, ruoko rwangu haruna kuita izvozvi zvose here?’
51 You arrogant, hard-hearted people! You never listen! You always fight against the Holy Spirit! You act just like your fathers did!
“Imi vanhu vemitsipa mikukutu, vane mwoyo nenzeve dzisina kudzingiswa! Makangoita samadzibaba enyu: Munogara muchidzivisa Mweya Mutsvene!
52 Was there ever a prophet your fathers didn't persecute? They killed those who prophesied about the coming of the one who is truly good and right. He is the one you betrayed and murdered—
Kwakambova nomuprofita asina kutambudzwa namadzibaba enyu here? Vakauraya kunyange vaya vakaprofita kuuya kwaIye Oga Akarurama. Uye zvino makamupandukira mukamuuraya,
53 you who received the law by means of the angels, but refused to keep it.”
iyemi makagamuchira murayiro wamakapiwa kubudikidza navatumwa, asi mukasauteerera.”
54 When they heard this, the council members became mad with rage, and snarled at him, grinding their teeth.
Vakati vanzwa izvi, vakashatirwa zvikuru uye vakamurumanyira meno avo.
55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed up into heaven and saw God's glory, with Jesus standing at God's right hand.
Asi Sitefani, azere noMweya Mutsvene, akatarisa kudenga akaona kubwinya kwaMwari, uye Jesu amire kuruoko rworudyi rwaMwari.
56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open, and the Son of Man standing at God's right hand.”
Akati, “Tarirai, ndinoona denga razaruka uye Mwanakomana woMunhu amire kuruoko rworudyi rwaMwari.”
57 But they held their hands over their ears and shouted as loudly as they could. They rushed together at him,
Pavakanzwa izvi vakadzivira nzeve dzavo vakamhanyira kwaari vose, vachidanidzira namanzwi ari pamusoro-soro,
58 dragged him out of the city, and began to stone him. His accusers laid their coats down beside a young man called Saul.
vakamuzvuzvurudzira kunze kweguta vakatanga kumutaka namabwe. Uye, vaya vaiva zvapupu vakandoisa nguo dzavo patsoka dzejaya rainzi Sauro.
59 As they went on stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Vachiri kumutaka namabwe, Sitefani akanyengetera, akati, “Ishe Jesu, gamuchirai mweya wangu.”
60 He kneeled down, calling out, “Lord, please don't hold this sin against them!” And after he said this, he died.
Ipapo akapfugama namabvi ake akadanidzira achiti, “Ishe, musavapa mhosva yechivi ichi.” Akati ataura izvi, akavata.
