1 Samuel 6
1 And the ark of the Lord was in the fields of the Philistines seven months.
Kwathi ibhokisi lesivumelwano sikaThixo selihlale elizweni lamaFilistiya izinyanga eziyisikhombisa,
2 And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? let us know wherewith we shall send off it to its place.
amaFilistiya abiza abaphristi labahlahluli athi, “Sizakwenzani ngebhokisi lesivumelwano sikaThixo na? Sitsheleni ukuthi singalibuyisela njani emuva endaweni yalo.”
3 And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not away empty; but ye must to a certainty return him a trespass-offering: then will ye be healed, and it will be known to you why his hand is not removed from you.
Baphendula bathi, “Nxa libuyisela ibhokisi lesivumelwano sikankulunkulu ka-Israyeli, lingalibuyiseli lingelalutho, kodwa impela thumelani umnikelo wecala kuye. Ngalokho lizasila, njalo lizakwazi ukuthi kungani isandla sakhe singasuswanga kini.”
4 And they said, What shall be the trespass-offering that we shall return to him? And they answered, According to the number of the lords of the Philistines, five golden hemorrhoids, and five golden mice; for one plague affected them all, and your lords.
AmaFilistiya abuza athi, “Ngumnikelo bani wecala okumele siwuthumele kuye na?” Baphendula bathi, “Amathumba egolide amahlanu lamagundwane egolide amahlanu, kusiya ngenani lababusi bamaFilistiya, ngoba isifo sinye sihlasele lina kanye lababusi benu.”
5 Therefore make images of your hemorrhoids, and images of your mice that devastate the land; and give glory unto the God of Israel: perhaps he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
Yenzani izifanekiso zamathumba lamagundwane achitha ilizwe, lidumise unkulunkulu ka-Israyeli. Mhlawumbe uzasusa isandla sakhe kini lakubonkulunkulu benu kanye laselizweni lenu.
6 And why will ye harden your heart, just as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their heart? Did not they, when he had wrought wonderful deeds among them, dismiss them, and they departed?
Kungani lisenza inhliziyo zenu zibe lukhuni njengalokhu okwenziwa ngamaGibhithe loFaro na? Lapho unkulunkulu wama-Israyeli esebaphethe kalukhuni kabawavumelanga ama-Israyeli ukuba ahambe na?
7 And now make a new wagon, and take two milch-cows, on which there hath come no yoke, and harness the cows to the wagon, and bring their calves home away from them:
“Ngakho-ke khathesi, lungisani inqola entsha lamankomokazi amabili azeleyo njalo angakaze afakwe ijogwe. Bophelani amankomokazi enqoleni, kodwa lisuse amankonyane awo liwavalele esibayeni.
8 And take the ark of the Lord, and place it into the wagon; and the articles of gold, which ye return him as a trespass-offering, ye must put in a casket alongside of it; and then send it away, that it may go.
Thathani ibhokisi lesivumelwano sikaThixo lilibeke enqoleni, kuthi emxhakeni oseceleni kwalo lifake izinto zegolide elizithumela kuye njengomnikelo wecala. Ikhupheni izihambele ngendlela yayo,
9 And then see, if it go up by the way to its own boundary, to Beth-shemesh, then hath he done us this great evil; but if not, then shall we know that not his hand hath smitten us; it is a chance which hath happened to us.
kodwa liyiqaphelisise. Ingaya elizweni lakibo, iqonde eBhethi-Shemeshi, kuyabe kunguThixo olethe incithakalo le enkulu phezu kwethu. Kodwa nxa ingenzi njalo, sizakwazi ukuthi kade kungasisosandla sakhe esisitshayileyo kanye lokuthi kuzenzakalele kodwa nje kithi.”
10 And the men did so; and they took two milch-cows, and harnessed them to the wagon, and their calves they shut up at home:
Ngakho-ke bakwenza lokhu. Bathatha amankomokazi amabili anjalo bawabophela enqoleni kwathi amankonyane awo bawavalela esibayeni.
11 And they placed the ark of the Lord in the wagon, and the casket with the mice of gold and images of their hemorrhoids.
Babeka ibhokisi lesivumelwano sikaThixo enqoleni ndawonye lomxhaka owawulamagundwane egolide lezifanekiso zamathumba.
12 And the cows went straight forward on the way on the road to Beth-shemesh: on one highway they did go along, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
Emva kwalokho amankomokazi ahamba eqonde eBhethi-Shemeshi, elokhu esemgwaqweni njalo ebhonsa indlela yonke; kawazange aphambukele kwesokudla kumbe kwesenxele. Ababusi bamaFilistiya bawalandela baze bayafika emngceleni weBhethi Shemeshi.
13 And they of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley; and when they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, they rejoiced to see it.
Ngalesosikhathi abantu beBhethi-Shemeshi babevuna ingqoloyi yabo esigodini, njalo bathi lapho bekhangela babona ibhokisi lesivumelwano, bathokoza ukulibona.
14 And the wagon came to the field of Joshua, the Beth-shemite, and stood still there; and there was a great stone; and they split the wood of the wagon, and the cows they offered as a burnt-offering unto the Lord.
Inqola yafika ensimini kaJoshuwa waseBhethi-Shemeshi, yasisima khonapho phansi kwedwala elikhulu. Abantu babanda inqola yaba zinkuni basebehlaba amankomokazi ukuba ngumnikelo wokutshiswa kuThixo.
15 And the Levites took down the ark of the Lord, and the casket that was with it, wherein were the articles of gold, and put them on the great stone; and the men of Beth-shemesh offered bunt-offerings and sacrificed sacrifices on the same day unto the Lord.
AbaLevi bethula ibhokisi lesivumelwano sikaThixo, kanye lomxhaka owawulezinto zegolide, bakubeka phezu kwedwala elikhulu. Ngalelolanga abantu baseBhethi-Shemeshi banikela iminikelo yokutshiswa benza lemihlatshelo kuThixo.
16 And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to 'Ekron on the same day.
Ababusi abahlanu bamaFilistiya bakubona konke lokhu basebebuyela e-Ekroni ngalelolanga.
17 And these are the golden hemorrhoids which the Philistines returned as a trespass-offering unto the Lord: For Ashdod one, for Gazzah one, for Ashkelon one, for Gath one, for 'Ekron one.
Amathumba egolide amaFilistiya awathumela kuThixo njengomnikelo wecala yila, elilodwa ele-Ashidodi, leleGaza, lele-Ashikheloni, leleGathi kanye lele-Ekroni.
18 And the golden mice were according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines under the five lords, from the fortified city, down to the open village, even unto the great stone whereon they had set down the ark of the Lord, and which is unto this day in the field of Joshua, the Beth-shemite.
Lenani lamagundwane egolide lalisiya ngenani lamadolobho amaFilistiya ayengawababusi abahlanu, amadolobho ayevikelwe alemizi yawo yasemaphandleni. Idwala elikhulu ababebeke ibhokisi lesivumelwano sikaThixo phezu kwalo, liyibufakazi lalamhlanje ensimini kaJoshuwa waseBhethi-Shemeshi.
19 And he smote among the men of Beth-shemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the Lord, namely, he smote among the people seventy men and fifty thousand men: and the people mourned because the Lord had caused among the people a great slaughter.
Kodwa uNkulunkulu watshaya abanye babantu baseBhethi-Shemeshi, wabulala abangamatshumi ayisikhombisa babo ngoba babelunguze phakathi kwebhokisi lesivumelwano sikaNkulunkulu. Abantu balila ngenxa yokugadla okunzima uThixo ayekwenze kubo,
20 And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? and to whom shall it go up away from us?
njalo abantu baseBhethi-Shemeshi babuza bathi, “Pho ngubani ongema phambi kukaThixo, uNkulunkulu lo ongcwele na?”
21 And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiryath-ye'arim, saying, The Philistines have brought back the ark of the Lord: come ye down, and fetch it up to you.
Emva kwalokho bathumela izithunywa ebantwini baseKhiriyathi-Jeyarimi, besithi, “AmaFilistiya aselibuyisile ibhokisi lesivumelwano sikaThixo. Wozani lizolithatha lilise endaweni yenu.”
