Deuteronomy 8
1 You must take care to follow every commandment I am giving you today, so that you may live and have many descendants, and go in and take over the country the Lord promised to give to your fore fathers.
“Nanzelelani njalo lilandele yonke imilayo engilinika yona lamuhla, ukuze liphile njalo lande khona lizangena lithumbe ilizwe uThixo alinika okhokho benu ethembisa ngesifungo.
2 Remember how for these forty years the Lord your God has led you all the way through the desert, humbling you and testing you in order to find out what you were really thinking, and whether or not you would keep his commandments.
Likhumbule ukuthi uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu walikhokhela njani lidabula inkangala okweminyaka engamatshumi amane, elichumisa lokulilinga ukuthi abone okwakusezinhliziyweni zenu, ukuthi kambe lizayigcina imiyalo yakhe na loba hayi.
3 He humbled you, and when you were hungry he gave you manna to eat, which nobody, including you and your forefathers, had ever had before This was in order to make it clear to you that human beings do not live by only eating bread, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
UThixo walichumisa, walenza lalamba kanti njalo walipha ukudla okuyimana, ukudla lokho laboyihlo abangazange bakwazi, kuyikulifundisa ukuthi umuntu kaphili ngesinkwa kuphela zwi kodwa ngalo lonke ilizwi eliphuma emlonyeni kaThixo.
4 During these forty years your clothing didn't wear out and your feet didn't swell up.
Izigqoko zenu aziguganga njalo lezinyawo zenu azivuvukanga kuleyo minyaka engamatshumi amane.
5 So you should realize that just as a parent disciplines their child, so the Lord your God disciplines you.
Gcinani lokhu ezinhliziyweni zenu lazi ukuthi njengendoda ikhuza indodana yayo, ngokufananayo uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu uyalikhuza.
6 That's why you have to keep the commandments of the Lord your God, following his ways and respecting him.
Gcinani imilayo kaThixo uNkulunkulu wenu lihambe endleleni yakhe njalo limkhonze.
7 For the Lord your God is taking you to a good country. It's a land of streams and pools and springs that flow through the valleys and down the hills;
Ngakho uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu ulisa elizweni elihle, ilizwe elilezifula leziziba zamanzi, intombo zamanzi ezimpompoza ezigodini lasemaqaqeni;
8 It's a land that produces wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey.
elizweni lengqoloyi lebhali, amavini lemikhiwa, amaphomegranathi, amafutha ama-oliva lenyosi;
9 It's a land where you won't run out of food, where you will have everything you need; a land whose rocks contain iron ore and whose hills can be mined for copper.
elizweni lapha okungasayi kusweleka khona isinkwa njalo aliyikuswela lutho; elizweni lapho amatshe akhona ayinsimbi kanti njalo lingemba ikhopha emaqaqeni.
10 When you eat and are full, make sure you thank the Lord your God for the good land that he's given you.
Lizakuthi selidlile lasutha, lidumise uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu ngelizwe elihle alinike lona.
11 Make sure you don't forget the Lord your God by disobeying his commandments and rules and regulations that I'm giving you today.
Linanzelele ukuthi alilibali uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu, lingehluleki ukugcina imilayo yakhe, imithetho kanye lezimiso engilinika zona lamuhla.
12 For when you eat and are full, when you build beautiful houses to live in,
Kungenzeka ukuthi lithi selidlile lasutha, selakhe izindlu ezinhle lahlala lazinza,
13 and when your herds and flocks grow larger, and your silver and gold accumulates, and all your possessions increase,
njalo imihlambi yezifuyo zenu leyezimvu zenu isiqhelile yanda kuze kuthi lesiliva legolide lenu selilinengi kanye lakho konke okwenu sekukunengi kuphindwe kanenginengi,
14 then you will become proud, and you will forget the Lord your God who led you out of Egypt, out of the prison-house of slavery.
liziqhenye ezinhliziyweni zenu, libe selikhohlwa uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu, yena owalikhupha eGibhithe, walikhupha elizweni lobugqili.
15 He guided you through the immense and terrifying desert with its poisonous snakes and scorpions—a dried up, waterless land. He brought water for you out of a flint rock.
UThixo walikhokhela enkangala enkulu eyesabekayo, eyomileyo engelamanzi, elobuthi benyoka lenkume. Walinika amanzi aphuma edwaleni.
16 He fed you in the desert with manna that your forefathers had never known, humbling you and testing you, so that eventually you would do well in the future.
Walinika imana ukuba lidle enkangala, into abangazange bayazi oyihlo, ukulichumisa njalo lokulilinga ukuze kuthi ekucineni kulihambele kuhle.
17 You might think to yourselves, “I became rich through all my hard work.”
Mhlawumbe lingathi, ‘Ngokuzimisela kwami langamandla ezandla zami sengizidalele inotho.’
18 But remember it's the Lord your God who gives you the ability to become rich, in order to fulfill his agreement he promised to your forefathers that still exists today.
Kodwa khumbulani uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu ngoba kunguye olipha amandla okunotha, lokho kuyikho ukugcwaliseka kwesivumelwano sakhe, sona afunga kubokhokho benu, okulokhu kunjalo lalamuhla.
19 If you ever forget the Lord your God, and run after other gods, worshiping and bowing down to them, I assure you right now that you will definitely die!
Nxa lizake likhohlwe uThixo uNkulunkulu wenu beselilandela abanye onkulunkulu libakhonze libakhothamele, ngiyalifungela lamuhla ukuthi lizabhujiswa ngempela.
20 In the same way the Lord destroyed the nations as you advanced, you will also die if you don't obey the Lord your God.
Njengezizwe uThixo azibhubhisa phambi kwenu lani lizabhujiswa nguThixo uNkulunkulu wenu.”
