Nehemiah 2
1 It happened in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artachshasta the king, when wine was before me, that I took up the wine, and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad before in his presence.
Pea naʻe hoko ʻo pehē ʻi he māhina ko Nisani, ʻi hono uofulu taʻu ʻo ʻAtakisekisi ko e tuʻi, naʻe ʻi hoku ʻao ʻae uaine: pea naʻaku toʻo hake ʻae uaine ʻo ʻatu ia ki he tuʻi. Pea ko eni naʻe teʻeki ai te u matapeko ʻi hono ʻao.
2 The king said to me, "Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing else but sorrow of heart." Then I was very much afraid.
Ko ia naʻe pehē ai ʻe he tuʻi kiate au, “Ko e hā ʻoku matapeko ai ho mata, ka ʻoku ʻikai te ke mahaki?” ʻOku ʻikai ko e meʻa kehe ia ka ko e mamahi ʻi loto. Pea ne u manavahē lahi ai.
3 I said to the king, "Let the king live forever. Why shouldn't my face be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' tombs, lies waste, and its gates have been consumed with fire?"
Pea naʻaku pehē ki he tuʻi, “Tuku ke moʻui ʻae tuʻi ʻo taʻengata: ʻe ʻikai te u mata tangi nai ko e hā, lolotonga kuo tuku liʻaki pe ʻae kolo, ko e potu ʻoe ngaahi tanuʻanga ʻo ʻeku ngaahi tamai, pea ko hono ngaahi matapā kuo tutuʻaki ʻae afi?”
4 Then the king said to me, "For what do you make request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven.
Pea pehē ai ʻe he tuʻi kiate au, “Ko e hā ia ʻoku ke kole? Ko ia naʻaku lotu ai ki he ʻOtua ʻoe langi.”
5 I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, that you would send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers' tombs, that I may build it."
Pea ne u pehē ki he tuʻi, “Kapau ʻoku lelei ki he tuʻi, pea kapau kuo ʻilo ʻe hoʻo tamaioʻeiki ʻae ʻofa ʻi ho ʻao, ke ke fekau au ki Siuta, ki he kolo ʻoe ngaahi tanuʻanga ʻo ʻeku ngaahi tamai, koeʻuhi ke u langa hake ia.”
6 The king said to me (the queen was also sitting by him), "For how long shall your journey be? And when will you return?" So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
Pea naʻe pehē ʻe he tuʻi kiate au, (pea naʻe nofo ofi kiate ia ʻae tuʻi fefine foki, ) “Ko e hā hono fuoloa ʻo ho fononga? Pea te ke toe haʻu ʻafē? Pea naʻe lelei ki he tuʻi ke ne fekauʻi au; pea ne u kotofa kiate ia ʻae kuonga.”
7 Moreover I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah;
Pea ne u pehē foki ki he tuʻi, “Kapau ʻoku lelei ki he tuʻi, tuku ke ʻomi kiate au ʻae ngaahi tohi ki he ngaahi pule ʻi he potu kauvai ʻe taha ʻoe vaitafe, koeʻuhi ke nau moimoiʻi au ʻo aʻu ki heʻeku hoko atu ki Siuta;
8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into." The king granted my requests, because of the good hand of my God on me.
Mo e tohi ʻe taha kia ʻAsafi ko e tauhi ʻoe vao ʻakau ʻoe tuʻi koeʻuhi ke ne foaki kiate au ʻae ngaahi ʻakau ke ngaohi ʻaki ʻae ʻakau lalava ki he ngaahi matapā ʻoe fale ʻaia ʻoku kau ki he faletapu, pea maʻae ʻā maka ʻoe kolo, pea maʻae fale ʻaia te u hū ki ai.” Pea naʻe tuku mai ʻe he tuʻi kiate au, ʻo hangē ko e ʻiate au ʻae nima lelei ʻo hoku ʻOtua.
9 Then I came to the governors beyond the River, and gave them the king's letters. Now the king had sent with me captains of the army and horsemen.
Pea ne u toki hoko atu ki he kau pule ʻi he tuʻa vaitafe, pea u tuku kiate kinautolu ʻae ngaahi tohi ʻoe tuʻi. Pea naʻe fekau ʻe he tuʻi ke ʻalu mo au ʻae ngaahi ʻeiki ʻoe tau mo e kau tangata heka hoosi.
10 When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly, because a man had come to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.
Pea ʻi he fanongo ki ai ʻe Sanipalate ko e tangata Holoni, mo Topaia ko e tamaioʻeiki, ko e tangata ʻAmoni, naʻe mamahi lahi ʻakinaua, koeʻuhi ʻi he haʻu ʻae tangata ke kumi ke lelei ai ʻae fānau ʻa ʻIsileli.
11 So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days.
Ko ia, ne u hoko ki Selūsalema, pea ne u ʻi ai ʻi he ʻaho ʻe tolu.
12 I arose in the night, I and some few men with me. And I told no one what my God put into my heart to do for Jerusalem; neither was there any animal with me, except the animal that I rode on.
Pea ne u tuʻu hake ʻi he poʻuli, mo e kau tangata tokosiʻi naʻe ʻiate au; pea naʻe ʻikai te u tala ki ha tokotaha ʻaia naʻe tuku ʻe hoku ʻOtua ki hoku loto ke fai ʻi Selūsalema: pea naʻe ʻikai ha manu ʻiate au ka ko ia naʻaku heka ai.
13 I went out by night by the Valley Gate, even toward the Serpent's Well, and to the Dung Gate, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and its gates were consumed with fire.
Pea ne u ʻalu kituaʻā ʻi he poʻuli ʻi he matapā ʻoe teleʻa, ʻo hangatonu mo e vaikeli ko e talākoni, pea ki he matapā fokotuʻunga veve, pea u vakai ki he ngaahi ʻā maka ʻo Selūsalema, ʻaia naʻe holoki hifo, mo e ngaahi matapā ʻaia naʻe fakaʻauha ʻaki ʻae afi.
14 Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King's Pool, but there was no place for the animal that was under me to pass.
Pea naʻaku ʻalu ai pe ki he matapā ʻoe matavai, pea ki he anovai ʻoe tuʻi: pea naʻe ʻikai ha potu ke ʻalu ai ʻae manu naʻaku heka ai.
15 Then went I up in the night by the wadi, and viewed the wall; and I turned back, and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned.
Pea naʻaku ʻalu hake ai ʻi he poʻuli ʻo ofi ki he vaitafe, ʻo vakai ki he ʻā maka, pea u tafoki ki mui, pea hū ʻi he matapā ʻoe teleʻa, pea toe foki atu ai.
16 The rulers did not know where I went, or what I did; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest who did the work.
Pea naʻe ʻikai ʻilo ʻe he kau pule pe naʻaku ʻalu ki fē, pe ko ia naʻaku fai; pea naʻe teʻeki te u tala ia ki he kakai Siu, pe ki he kau taulaʻeiki, pe ki he houʻeiki, pe ki he kau pule, pe ki he toenga [kakai ]naʻe fai ʻae ngāue.
17 Then I said to them, "You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come, let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we won't be disgraced."
Pea ne u pehē ai kiate kinautolu, “ʻOku mou mamata ki he mamahi ʻoku tau moʻua ai, koeʻuhi kuo tutu liʻaki pe ʻa Selūsalema, pea kuo tuku hono ngaahi matapā ʻaki ʻae afi: haʻu, ketau langa hake ʻae ʻā maka ʻo Selūsalema, koeʻuhi ke ʻoua naʻa tau kei hoko ko e lumaʻanga.”
18 I told them of the hand of my God which was good on me, as also of the king's words that he had spoken to me. They said, "Let's rise up and build." So they strengthened their hands for the good work.
Pea ne u toki tala kiate kinautolu ʻae nima ʻo hoku ʻOtua ʻaia naʻe hili lelei kiate au; pea mo e ngaahi lea ʻae tuʻi foki ʻaia naʻa ne lea kiate au. Pea naʻa nau pehē, “Ke tau tuʻu hake pea langa.” Ko ia naʻa nau fakamālohiʻi honau nima ki he ngāue lelei ni.
19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they ridiculed us, and despised us, and said, "What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?"
Ka ʻi he fanongo ki ai ʻe Sanipalate ko e tangata Holoni, mo Topaia ko e tamaioʻeiki, ko e tangata ʻAmoni, mo Kesemi ko e tangata ʻAlepea, naʻa nau kata manukiʻi ʻakimautolu, pea lumaʻi ʻakimautolu, ʻo pehē, “Ko e hā ʻae meʻa ni ʻoku mou fai? ʻOku mou loto ke angatuʻu ki he tuʻi?”
20 Then answered I them, and said to them, "The God of heaven will prosper us. Therefore we, his servants, will arise and build; but you have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem."
Pea naʻaku talia ʻakinautolu, pea u pehē kiate kinautolu, “Ko e ʻOtua ʻoe langi, te ne fakamonūʻia ʻakimautolu; ko ia ko kimautolu ko ʻene kau tamaioʻeiki te mau tuʻu hake ʻo langa: ka ʻoku ʻikai ha tofiʻa, pe ha potu, pe ha fakaʻilonga ʻi Selūsalema maʻamoutolu.”
