1 Kings 14
1 At that time, Jeroboam’s son Abijah became very sick.
Ngalesosikhathi u-Abhija indodana kaJerobhowamu wagula,
2 Jeroboam said to his wife, “Disguise yourself, in order that no one will recognize that you are my wife. Then go to Shiloh [city], where the prophet Ahijah [lives]. He is the one who predicted/prophesied that I would become the king of Israel.
uJerobhowamu wathi kumkakhe, “Hamba, uzifihle ngesinye isimo, ukuze kungabikhona ozakunanzelela ukuthi ungumkaJerobhowamu. Ube ususiya eShilo. U-Ahija umphrofethi ukhonale onguye owangitshela ukuthi ngizakuba yinkosi yabantu laba.
3 Take with you ten [loaves of] bread and some small flat cakes, and a jar of honey, [and give them] to him. [Tell him about] our son, [and] he will tell you what will happen to him.”
Uthathe izinkwa ezilitshumi, amakhekhe athile kanye legabha loluju, ube ususiya kuye. Uzakutshela okumele kwenzakale emntwaneni.”
4 So his wife went to Shiloh, to Ahijah’s house. Ahijah was unable to see, because he was very old and had become blind.
Ngakho umkaJerobhowamu wenza lokho ayekutshilo wasesiya endlini ka-Ahija eShilo. U-Ahija wayengasaboni, eseyisiphofu ngenxa yokuluphala.
5 But [before she got there, ] Yahweh told Ahijah that Jeroboam’s wife was coming to inquire about their son, who was very sick. And Yahweh told Ahijah what he should tell her. When she came to him, she pretended to be another woman.
Kodwa uThixo wayetshele u-Ahija ukuthi, “UmkaJerobhowamu uyeza uzokubuza ngendodana yakhe, iyagula, njalo uzamnika impendulo le lale ngalokhu lalokhuyana. Ekufikeni kwakhe uzakwenza kungathi kayisuye ezifihla.”
6 But when Ahijah heard her footsteps as she entered the doorway, he said to her, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam! (Why do you pretend that you are someone else?/It will not help you to pretend that you are someone else.) [RHQ] [Yahweh] has given me bad news to tell you.
Kwathi u-Ahija esizwa izisinde zakhe phandle wahle wema emnyango, wathi, “Ngena, Nkosikazi kaJerobhowamu, kanti ngokwani ukuzenzisa? Ngithunywe kuwe ngilombiko omubi.
7 Go and tell Jeroboam that this is what Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship], says to you: ‘I chose you from among the common people and enabled you to become the king of my Israeli people.
Hamba, uyetshela uJerobhowamu ukuthi lokhu yikho okutshiwo nguThixo, uNkulunkulu ka-Israyeli, uthi: ‘Ngakondla wakhula phakathi kwabantu ngakwenza umkhokheli wabantu bami bako-Israyeli.
8 I took [most of] the kingdom of Israel away from David’s descendants and gave it to you. But you have not been like David, who served me [very well]. He obeyed all my commandments very sincerely, doing only things that I considered to be right.
Ngaxebula umbuso endlini kaDavida ngawunika wena, kodwa awuzange wenze njengenceku yami uDavida, yena owagcina imilayo yami njalo wangilandela ngayo yonke inhliziyo yakhe, esenza konke okuhle phambi kwami.
9 But you have done more evil things/deeds than all those [who ruled] before you. You have rejected me, and you have caused me to become very angry by making metal images of other gods so that you [and others] could worship them.
Wonile okudlula bonke abakwandulelayo. Usuzidalele abanye onkulunkulu, izithombe ezikhandwe ngensimbi, ungithukuthelisile ngazonda njalo ungifulathele.
10 ‘So, I am going to cause terrible things to happen to your family. I will cause all your male descendants to die, young ones and old ones. I will completely get rid of your family [MTY]. I will get rid of your family [MTY] just like a man completely burns dung [to cook his food].
Ngenxa yalokho ngizakwehlisela incithakalo endlini kaJerobhowamu. Ngizabhubhisa bonke abesilisa bokucina ekuzalweni kwabakaJerobhowamu ko-Israyeli loba yisigqili loba okhululekileyo. Ngizayitshisa indlu kaJerobhowamu kungathi ngibase ubulongwe, ize iphele du.
11 [The corpses of] any members of your family who die in cities will be eaten by dogs. And [the corpses of] any members of your family who die in the open fields will be eaten by vultures. [This will surely happen because] I, Yahweh, have said [that it will happen].’
Izinja zizabadla bonke abakaJerobhowamu abafele edolobheni, lezinyoni zemkhathini zizazitika ngalabo abafela emaphandleni. UThixo usekhulumile!’
12 So go back home. And as soon as you enter the city, your son will die.
Wena, buyela ekhaya. Uzakuthi ubeka unyawo lwakho edolobheni umfana ahle afe.
13 All the Israeli people will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only one of Jeroboam’s family who will be buried [properly], because he is the only one of Jeroboam’s family with whom Yahweh is pleased.
U-Israyeli uzalila amngcwabe. Nguye yedwa kwabakaJerobhowamu ozangcwatshwa, ngoba nguye yedwa endlini kaJerobhowamu, uThixo, uNkulunkulu ka-Israyeli, amthole enze ukulunga.
14 Furthermore, Yahweh will appoint for himself a king to rule over Israel who will get rid of Jeroboam’s descendants. And that [will start to happen] today!
UThixo uzazivusela owakhe umbusi ozakuba yinkosi phezu kuka-Israyeli, ozachitha imuli kaJerobhowamu. Lamuhla yikho ukuqala kwakho lokho.
15 Yahweh will punish the people of Israel; he will shake them like [the wind] shakes the reeds [that grow in] a stream. He will expel the Israeli people from this good land that he gave to our ancestors. He will scatter them into countries east of [the Euphrates] River, because they have caused him to become very angry by [worshiping statues of] the goddess Asherah.
UThixo uzamtshaya u-Israyeli, kungathi ngumhlanga uzunguzeka emanzini. Uzamquphuna u-Israyeli elizweni lakhe elihle alinika okhokho bakhe abachithe ngaphetsheya komfula uYufrathe, ngoba uThixo bamvuse ulaka ngokwenza izinsika zikankulunkulukazi u-Ashera.
16 Yahweh will abandon the Israeli people because of the sins that Jeroboam committed, sins which led the Israeli people to commit them.”
Njalo uzamlahla u-Israyeli ngenxa yezono zikaJerobhowamu azenzileyo wakhokhelela lo-Israyeli ukuzenza.”
17 Jeroboam’s wife returned home to Tirzah [city, the new capital of Israel]. And just as she entered her house, her son died.
UmkaJerobhowamu wasuka lapho waqonda eThiza. Wathi enyathela egumeni, indodana yafa.
18 All the Israeli people mourned for him and buried him, which is what Yahweh had told his servant, the prophet Ahijah, would happen.
Bayingcwaba njalo, u-Israyeli wonke wayililela njengoba uThixo wayetshilo ngenceku yakhe umphrofethi u-Ahija.
19 Everything else that Jeroboam did, and the record of wars that his [army] fought, and how he ruled, is written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.
Ezinye izehlakalo zombuso kaJerobhowamu, izimpi lokuthi wabusa njani, kulotshiwe egwalweni lwembali yamakhosi ako-Israyeli.
20 Jeroboam ruled for 22 years; then he died [EUP] and his son Nadab became king.
Wabusa okweminyaka engamatshumi amabili lambili wasesiyaphumula labokhokho bakhe ekufeni. Indodana yakhe uNadabi wathatha isikhundla sakhe waba yinkosi.
21 Solomon’s son Rehoboam ruled Judah. He was 41 years old when he started to rule, and he ruled for 17 years. He ruled in Jerusalem, which is the city that Yahweh chose out of all the tribes of Israel to be the place where he should be worshiped [MTY]. Rehoboam’s mother’s name was Naamah; she was from the Ammon people-group.
URehobhowami indodana kaSolomoni waba yinkosi wabusa koJuda. Wayeleminyaka engamatshumi amane lanye eqalisa ukubusa, wabusa okweminyaka elitshumi lesikhombisa eJerusalema idolobho elakhethwa nguThixo phakathi kwezizwana zonke zako-Israyeli ukubeka iBizo lakhe. Unina wayenguNahama; engowase-Amoni.
22 The people of Judah did things that Yahweh considered to be evil. They caused him to become angry because they committed more sins than their ancestors had committed: They worshiped many other gods instead of worshiping only Yahweh.
AbakoJuda bona phambi kukaThixo. Ngokona lokhu, bavusa ubukhwele bolaka lwakhe ukwedlula okwakwenziwe ngoyise.
23 They built places to worship those gods; on high hills, and under big trees they set up [stone] pillars to worship the goddess Asherah.
Bazakhela njalo indawo eziphakemeyo zeminikelo, amatshe azilayo lezinsika zika-Ashera ezintabeni zonke langaphansi kwemithunzi yezihlahla eziyizithingithingi.
24 Also, there were male prostitutes at these places of worship. The Israeli people did the same disgraceful things that had been done by the people whom Yahweh had expelled while the Israelis were advancing through the land.
Kwakukhona lapho amadoda afeba lamanye amadoda ezindaweni zemihlatshelo phakathi kwelizwe; abantu ababesenza wonke amanyala ezizwe uThixo ayezixotshile phansi kwabako-Israyeli.
25 When Rehoboam had been ruling for almost five years, King Shishak of Egypt came [with his army] to attack Jerusalem.
Ngomnyaka wesihlanu kaRehobhowami, uShishakhi inkosi yaseGibhithe wahlasela iJerusalema.
26 They took away all the valuable things in the temple and in the king’s palace, including the gold shields that Solomon’s [workers] had made.
Wabutha yonke inotho yethempeli likaThixo kanye lenotho yesigodlo sobukhosi. Wahuquluza konke kanye lamahawu enziwe ngegolide ayekhandwe nguSolomoni.
27 King Rehoboam’s [workers] made bronze shields to replace them and entrusted them to officers who guarded the entrance to the king’s palace.
Ngakho iNkosi uRehobhowami yakhanda amahawu ethusi ukwenanisa lawo yawabela abakhokheli babalindimasango besigodlweni.
28 Every time that the king went into the temple, those guards carried those shields; and [when he left the temple] they returned the shields to the storeroom.
Kwakusithi nxa inkosi isiya ethempelini likaThixo, abalindi babewathwala amahawu lawo, baphinde bawabuyisele endlini yabalindi.
29 Everything else that Rehoboam did is written [RHQ] in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Judah’.
Ezinye izehlakalo ekubuseni kukaRehobhowami, lakho konke akwenzayo, akulotshwanga yini egwalweni lwembali yamakhosi akoJuda?
30 There were wars continually between [the armies of] Rehoboam and Jeroboam.
Kwahlala kulempi phakathi kukaRehobhowami loJerobhowamu.
31 Then Rehoboam died [EUP], and he was buried in [the part of Jerusalem called] ‘The City of David’, where his ancestors were buried. Then his son Abijah became the king.
URehobhowami wakhothama, wangcwatshwa labokhokho bakhe eMzini kaDavida. Unina wayenguNahama, engumʼAmoni. U-Abhija indodana yakhe wathatha ubukhosi waba yinkosi ngemva kukayise.
